Ever gone to the grocery store and bought food only because the box promised deliciousness inside? Or maybe you purchased the larger container of your favorite skincare item? Well, you might want to think twice next time you want a product based on its packaging. As these photos of (evil) package designs prove, some companies aren't afraid to deceive us. So keep scrolling to look at the infuriating yet hilarious ways real people have been fooled.
The Trojan Horse of Office Supplies
If you want to purchase some super glue, be sure to check out the number of ounces in each bottle. Otherwise, you can end up buying what appears to be a larger container only to discover that it is the same size as the rest. This super glue container is just a little tube, but it is wrapped in so much plastic and paper that you would never be able to tell until you take apart the whole thing.
This is a genius piece of marketing, as anyone looking to purchase a bigger container of super glue will gravitate toward this option. But unfortunately, they might lose loyal customers over this deception.
Now We Know Why the Strawberry Wouldn't Mix in When We Stirred It
If you ever wanted a refreshing fruit smoothie, this fruit smoothie would surely entice you with the colorful strips of blended strawberry presented throughout the entire cup. Unfortunately, you are likely to feel disappointed as you consume your beverage and discover that the red stripes of strawberry throughout the smoothie were merely the design on the cup and not an accurate representation of your drink. That was a nasty trick.
This is what happens when you take a chance on a new smoothie spot. You are setting yourself up for some massive disappointment. At least you'll always have evidence of this betrayal.
Insurance Charged Her $56.91 for Pills or $2.73 for Capsules... With Pills Inside
Have you ever gone to the pharmacy and discovered that your prescription price has drastically increased? Well, that is the case here. This woman's prescription used to go for around 3 dollars, but it now costs nearly 60 dollars. She probably expected this to be due to some revolutionary upgrade, but further inspection revealed the truth. The pharmaceutical company merely placed her old pill in a new capsule!
Imagine how shocked you would be to discover this price hike; now imagine how angry you'd get when you find that the price hike was for absolutely no good reason. Isn't the company spending more money prepping the capsules they sell for less?
Good-Looking Books Shouldn't Be Judged by Their Cover, Either
Getting hungry and picking up a quick, pre-made sandwich from the store is normal. What is not normal is wondering why the sandwich's flavor disappeared after your first bite. How can this product even be allowed to be sold in stores? The presentation is misleading, and the product-for-buck ratio is entering the thieving territory. The entire sandwich has a single (tiny) slice of deli meat and a teaspoon of mustard.
Thank you very much, but no, thank you. We will stick with making our own sandwiches at home after seeing this. We at least get two slices of deli meat there.
How Generous - They Left Room for Storing the Art
This brand decided to come out with its latest Super Art Coloring Kit edition. Honestly, it looks pretty impressive, with plenty of pencils and crayons to draw and bring to life any creation. Unfortunately, that illusion is shattered once you pop off the container's lid. You soon discover that this container can only be described as a bald-faced lie. Guess you spend all that extra money on air.
It really makes you wonder about the conversation the marketing department had. Any professional looking at this would know that the customer's expectation will not be met here.
Identical Ingredients and Quantities, Different Packaging and Prices
You'd be surprised by the massive variety of cold meds if you ever have a stuffy nose and stop by the pharmacy for some over-the-counter medicine. Sadly, you'd probably be too sick to realize that each box contains precisely the same ingredients, but that does not stop the companies that sell them from pricing them differently. The three medicines below all hold the same ingredients, the same amount of each one, and have the same number of tablets in each package. And while the same company sells them, they all have different "purposes" and are sold at different prices.
It makes you question what you are spending the extra money on. Is it because printing orange packaging costs more than printing blue-colored packages?
Snickers Yard (minus About Half a Yard)
The presentation of this Snickers yard-length box suggests a yard's worth of candy bars hidden within. So when this person decided to purchase it, they felt satisfied that this would suffice. It turns out that their assumptions were wrong. While the box might have been a yard long - and the product has "Yard" in its name - the contents were a bit misleading as there was a massive, empty cardboard box in the middle of the pack.
Aren't you glad you spent all that extra money on this jumbo-sized bar? Who wouldn't be ecstatic about finding out you spent all that extra money on cardboard?
30% Product, 70% Packaging
This person decided to purchase some skin cream. Alongside the high-quality brand, they chose the container that offered the most product for their money. Sadly, their error in their thinking was trusting that the company was on their side. After a closer examination, they soon discovered that the container was shaped to hide that it only provided a fraction of the amount of the cream promised by the product's packaging.
What a disappointment. Hopefully, they discovered this trick before they purchased the container and before they began to wonder how they were running out of skin care cream so quickly.
Flowering Cactus? Nah. Gluing a Flower Onto a Cactus? Oh, Yeah
Perhaps someone was looking for an exciting house plant and decided to go with a desert flower like a Parodia. When they came home, they soon realized they didn't have some unique plant but just a standard cactus with a yellow flower glued on top. This one is crossing the line from deception to straight-faced lying. That is not a Parodia flower; that is a Cactus with a glued-on flower. Is that even healthy for the cactus?
How long was the company expecting this ruse to last? Sooner or later, the plant owner would notice that the flower doesn't grow or act like a flower.
Not Even the Children's Arts and Crafts Aisle Is Exempt
This box promises to be a massive container of various beads, but this company decided to use one of the oldest tricks in the book. The hollowing out of the box's bottom to give the impression of a more filled container while only giving about half the perceived amount of product seems to be standard practice these days. And it sure works for the companies - until someone decides to check the container's bottom, that is.
These companies believe that they are creating a product for a consumer, but the consumer will only be able to tolerate this game of deception for so long.
Some Marketing Teams Are Just Set on Making Kids Cry
This package is a bracelet-making kit. Perfect for making friendship bracelets for all of your friends, assuming you have one friend. This box is 80% empty space and just a few materials to make your bracelets. So while the product says you can make over 20 bracelets, you are lucky if you can get more than two of those friendship bracelets out of this trick of a bracelet-making kit.
This product is actually worth its money. It provides your children a lesson that not all things are as they appear and to not believe everything they read.
This One Doesn't Even Look Edible
You never really know what you'll get when going into a new relationship, job, or, apparently, ice cream bar until some time has passed. Life teaches us that not everything is as it seems at first glance. For example, this person saw the swirly goodness advertised on the box below and had to pick up a pack. However, outside the box, these bars look like some deformed pile of something we don't even want to name.
But it remains true that appearances are not everything. While this ice cream bar might look absolutely revolting, it might actually taste delicious. We're just not sure anyone will give it a chance.
Just M&M, Not M&Ms
If you are a fan of ice cream sandwiches and M&Ms, then there is no shame in purchasing this delicious-looking M&M Ice Cream sandwich. After all, the M&Ms will make the deliciousness of ice cream sandwiches even more splendid. However, according to this picture, you're lucky if you get more than two M&Ms on each ice cream sandwich. Look on the bright side: at least you can appreciate the flavor of the basic ice cream sandwich without its M&M enhancements.
The sandwich will probably still be delicious, but we understand. You were expecting M&Ms, so you better get those M&Ms. We guess you'll need to buy an M&M bag separately.
"Mixed Vegetables: Carrots, Corn, Peas, Green Beans, and Lima Beans"
Going to make some mixed vegetable dishes? Why not purchase a premixed bag of frozen veggies to make your life a bit easier? Hopefully, you will be making something heavily corn related. Otherwise, you'll likely be disappointed in this purchase. This mixed bag of veggies promises corn, green beans, carrots, and peas. However, you will only receive a pile of frozen corn with two carrots and a pea.
Who knew that if you wanted a mixed veggie dish, you would have to bring your veggies alongside the bag of "mixed veggies." It feels like this is a strong metaphor for something.
All the Small Ones Were Coincidentally Covered by the Package
This company might win some awards for being the most intentionally deceiving company out there. If you are super particular about your strawberries, you might like packages like the one below, where the individual strawberries are on display for everyone to see. Unfortunately, once you take off the wrapping, you discover that all the best strawberries are displayed, and they hide the ugly ones where no one can see them.
The plus side of this deception is that you know your strawberries were actually handpicked. Unfortunately, that did not work out to your benefit, did it?
Expose the Chip Bags for What They Truly Are: Pure Air
Chip bags are filled with air intentionally. This might feel like a scam, but it is done to prevent chips from breaking as the air cushions the bags of chips during shipment. But the truth is, some people take this necessary addition of air too far. The tortilla chips pictured below, for example, literally have over half of their bag of chips filled with air. Yeah, keeping the chips safe during transport doesn't take that much air.
Just flipping the bag over reveals their intentional design and how it is meant to misrepresent facts. The air in these bags goes beyond necessity and is greedy.
Pre-Made Taco Pizza - All You Need to Do Is Make It
The frozen meal aisle at the grocery store is known for having quick, easy options for all kinds of meals. But beware: these pictures of delicious foods on the boxing don't always show the truth of the final product. Purchasing this Taco Pizza, for example, promises a stuffed pizza filled with vegetables, meat, and cheese. Unfortunately, this is only a "Visual Serving Proposal" (as stated on the back of the box). In reality, you only get a basic cheese pizza.
We guess that if you want what is pictured on the box, you will have to purchase some extra ingredients, such as everything, and then make it yourself.
The Design Team Really Outdid Themselves With This One
Have you ever gone out and felt secure in your purchase at the grocery store because you could see most of the food you were about to purchase? Same. After all, what could be wrong with the product if we can see a vast majority of it? Unfortunately, our beliefs have led us astray once again. This container promises a large filet, but peeling back the packaging reveals a half-filled container.
The presentation of the packaging promises that there is more food underneath, but this is another lie. It's starting to feel like our food is teasing us.
Some of These Pieces Are Not Like the Others
At first glance, this bucket of toy construction pieces might seem like the perfect gift for a child. It'll get their motor skills working while letting their imaginations do all the work of what they will build. However, it might also make a child cry when they realize that many "pieces" in the bucket are useless. Opening the container reveals that it is barely halfway filled and that they have installed a cone-shaped image of its "construction pieces."
They created an optical illusion that the bucket is more filled than it actually is. We are not fans of any deception when it comes to products. However, if you are going to deceive, then at least make it a good one - this just feels insulting to whoever is opening the package.
Their Secret Is That Half the Bottle Is Empty
The ploy by companies to make their products appear larger than they truly are is not unknown to the general public. However, there should be an agreement between companies and customers that these deceptions can only be taken so far. We feel that this deodorant stick crosses the line with its deceptive presentation. Some investigative work using sunlight reveals that the hygiene product is only half full before opening.
Aren't there laws out there that people are not allowed to waste this much plastic on senseless deception so they can earn an extra dime per sale?
The Dating Profile Versus the Person in Real Life
There is a saying: "beggars can't be choosers." While this line poses some obvious issues, we will take it at face value. The same cannot be said about the promise of this sandwich. To avoid being beggars, we purchase these food items with our money. Unfortunately, it turns out that even non-beggers can't be choosers. This sandwich promises a meat-filled sandwich, but it's more like 1/8 a sandwich.
With this lack of a sandwich, we feel that a refund should be issued to cover 7/8 of the original costs because we can barely call this a light snack.
Whoever Says Size Doesn't Matter Never Got Deceived by Corndog Packaging
This corn dog looks like it is not only the black sheep of the corn dog family, but it appears as if it has been through some heavy stuff throughout its life. While we could say that this is one of the worst misrepresentations of a food product based on the product's image, this one goes deeper. We almost feel bad, not for the consumer who purchased this corn dog, but for the corn dog itself.
This corn dog could have gone places in life and rested comfortably in our bellies. Unfortunately, it just couldn't live up to the expectations we had for it.
Know What's Better Than a "Seedless" Melon? One Without Seeds
This one simply can not actually be intentionally designed to trick its consumers into picking up this product. If so, then if you were one of the people who picked up this melon believing its label of "seedless" when it is obviously filled with seeds, then that one is purely on you. As we said, at least they are targeting their deceptions at the truly non-observant demographics of the population.
Honestly, we can't believe this design is intended to take advantage. More likely, it was a simple mislabeling. Either way, someone should probably be fired for this one.
All the Fun's in the Wrapper
In this game of companies attempting to trick consumers and consumers trying to spot their deceptions, specific rules must be followed. This one breaks all of them. These "Funfetti" candy canes are white with rainbow spots covering their surface. However, once you peel back the plastic, you realize that it is actually just a plain white candy cane. Now that does not exactly scream "Funfetti," does it?
There is no plausible way of discovering this trickery unless you unwrap the candy canes in the store and, therefore, become forced to pay for it anyways. That is very unsportsmanlike.
Personally, We Wouldn't Wanna Mess With NHL Fans
We have all been fooled once or twice into purchasing one of those gigantic, solid chocolate recreations. Either your partner really wanted that chocolate Easter Bunny that you accidentally ate in the car, or your belly convinces you that it's okay to get that two-pound chocolate Easter egg. The one constant in both respects is that you get an entire chocolate bunny or egg. That wasn't the case here.
This chocolate Stanley Cup appears to be an entirely chocolate chalice, but once the package is opened, it is revealed to be only half a Stanley Cup. We feel cheated.
We Feel Strung Along
If you are someone who sews your own clothes or even mends them, you always have to have a thread on you that will match any clothing you might be called upon to repair. Thankfully, there are products out there with numerous different colored threads so that you never have to worry about running out of a specific color. Unfortunately, this is not one of those products.
This box would imply 25 different colored threads, but in reality, there were only 16, and they tricked you with the placement of their sticker. Ugh, why not just be honest?
Waf-FULLS? More Like Waf-A-Third-FULL
You know you will be in trouble when you see digital recreations on the packaging of food products. If they couldn't even get a picture of how their product once looked, then there is no way that the food inside that package will resemble anything like the design of their packaging. This is proven true with the strawberry-filled waffles from Waf-FULLS. The reality is that it is more of a hint of strawberry.
While the packaging says, "I'm ready to eat," we feel more like "We're ready to pass" on this unsatisfying strawberry-filled waffle. This is like the La Croix version of waffles.
You Better Enjoy That One (very Dry) Blueberry
If you are a fan of oatmeal and a fan of blueberries and an even bigger fan of oatmeal with blueberries, then you've come to the wrong place. This oatmeal pack promises us some delicious and nutritious oatmeal with the sweetness of a few dozen blueberries. As you can expect, things did not go according to the packaging. Emptying the oatmeal pack left our blueberry and oatmeal fan with a single, a single, blueberry.
You were stoked about that delicious blueberry oatmeal; we were too. Unfortunately, this is one of those where you must purchase additional parts to get the full experience.
Always Get Your Lawyer to Read the Fine Print on Giant Lollipops
This is a different sort of betrayal. This person discovered a hand-sized version of their favorite lollipop flavor, cotton candy. When they purchased it and unwrapped their glorious find, they were filled with disappointment. Instead of a massive lollipop, this was an empty container holding a measly nine normal-sized lollipops. That wasn't even the worse part. Out of all nine different lollipops, not a single was cotton candy flavored.
The level of distrust this person must feel is unparalleled. Only to be comparable to our disappointment when Kanye West cheated on Kim Kardashian with singer Christina Millian.
We Always Thought It's What's on the Inside That Counts - Until Now
When you purchase a big container of chocolate, you want to receive a large amount. Perhaps it is a gift for your partner, or maybe it's because you just broke up with your partner and you're in need of some extra chocolate. Either way, you want bigger, so you buy bigger. Unfortunately, no matter the size you buy here, you get the same amount of chocolate.
Imagine how disappointing this would be. You just broke up with your partner and purchased the big box of chocolates for your crying session, only to be heartbroken again.
Caution: Image Is Not to Scale
Purchasing a longer cord for your charging port can be done for various reasons. It is usually expected that the size you ordered for your charging cable will be the size you received. While packaging can sometimes be misleading, this package's design is nothing more than a lie. The cord's length is perhaps a fifth of the advertised one. Hopefully, the principle that good things come in small packages applies here.
In reality, whether or not good things come in small packages, this cord isn't acceptable on any level. The cord isn't even going to reach a foot in length.
If You Just Spread It Out, You'll Get a Whopping One Pepperoni per Slice
Do you know that one friend who always comes to everything with a group of friends, and they all stand in the corner the entire time? Well, that is the same situation here. You purchased this pepperoni pizza to throw in the oven, but once it is out of the packaging, you realize that the pepperoni only covers half the pizza. The pepperoni is just way too clique to spread out.
While this is a perfect metaphor for the situation you have experienced with your friend, it was not something you needed to pay money for, and you probably feel deceived.
Seems Like This One's the Oldest Trick in the Book
Size expectations often are a setup for disappointment, especially regarding portion sizes and food products. This Herbes of Provence promised us so much and just could not deliver on the expectation we had set for ourselves based on Herbes' lies. You could fit an entire fist in the massive hole at the bottom of this glass jar. This is a lesson to us all not to trust anyone on these matters.
Truly, it looks so high-class and is probably a delicious food thing. To be honest, we have no idea what this is, but we do know that we were lied to.
Another Case of Same Contents, Different Packaging, Higher Price
It's no secret that the consumer and provider relationship is built on capitalism, and with that comes the fake wokeness seen throughout the corporate world. Many companies will paint their logos with Pride colors during Pride month, but this is merely a money-grabbing scheme. For example, look at the Pride-themed packaging below with its additional 1.50 price tag. How does it compare to the regular (and cheaper) package?
Were there more Oreos in the package for that extra 1.50? Were there rainbow-colored cookies? No. Pride sells, so the corporation charges more for a rainbow package, even if nothing else is different.
Their Gift Card's so Heavy, It Needed Half a Box
Sometimes companies want to get a fresh face for their product, or they are coming out with their product's seasonal or holiday line. In either case, you would expect there to be some differences in the pricing and the size of the new product lines. What you do not expect is for it to be the exact same product but displayed in a larger box so they can charge a higher price.
This company has potentially broken the trust of all chocolate lovers with this nasty trick. It is the exact same product, but in a box nearly double the size.
Imagine Going for a Midnight Snack and Finding This Deceit
This larger cookie container would seem perfect and probably holds nearly a dozen cookies. Perhaps, that was the exact number you needed. However, once opening the packaging, it is revealed that you paid extra for all the extra plastic holding merely five cookies. Disappointed is an understatement. While this packaging design might fool someone once, it isn't going to work twice. It turns out you pay extra, just not for cookies, sadly.
The designs of these packages might be working initially, but once people catch on, no one will trust the false promises you have ingrained into your brand.
We Feel Teased
The package design and the product inside are two different entities that should be considered completely separate. For example, this cake bar promises a yummy bar filled with some refreshing mixed berry jelly. However, you are the fool because you believed they would include this filling within their cake bar. The joke is on you because these cake bars are only going to be teasing the possibility.
Nothing is sadder than going for a jelly donut and discovering that it contains absolutely no jelly. The exact same lie is being told here, and we aren't even surprised.
Chocolate Croissants, Chocolate Sold Separately
Do you remember buying those toys and devices that have in a tiny little script the label "batteries sold separately?" We also do, but we falsely believed that this was only related to products that required batteries to be operated. Little did we know that this was something that extended to food products as well. Here they are selling soft croissant dough filled with chocolate, as clearly displayed on the packaging.
Unfortunately, you assumed that the chocolate would be included. Silly goose, why ever would they include something they promised on their product's packaging design? You should've known better.
Three Different Packing, All Different Sizes, Same Amount of Product
This is another one where the corporations of the world are attempting to pose a lesson to their consumers. Here are three different packages with nearly the exact same product in all of them. However, even with their size differences, they contain the same amount of product in each of them. The moral? Even though things may look different, they never really change. Now that seems to be a really expensive lesson.
Honestly, we've had enough of these companies attempting to teach us moral lessons with their overpriced and sneaky design choices. Can we just purchase our products and leave, please?
This Pricey Spice Gets a Pricey Presentation
Sometimes presentation is all that something has. Think about your local pretty boy with their perfect haircut and washboard abs, but there is nothing going on upstairs. This is the product design equivalent. Saffron is an extremely expensive spice that sells for around 5,000 dollars per pound. There is no need for this fancy presentation that, once unwrapped, reveals nearly no saffron at all in the entire package. Once again, we were fooled by good looks.
Good looks are not everything. This applies to the hot boys and girls from your local town and to product design choices. Just because it is pretty doesn't mean people are buying.