Love Island wouldn’t be Love Island without its cringe-worthy and drama-fuelled games. Almost every episode involves a raunchy challenge — and we’ve seen a fair few on Love Island USA over the years.
Whether it’s passing food via their mouths (ew), answering shocking questions, or getting their contestants’ heart rates rising, the Love Island challenges are one of a kind. So, let’s take a trip down Love Island memory lane and look back at the 10 greatest challenges of all time. We’ve ranked them using our own Love Island game scale.
10 Greatest Love Island USA Challenges of All Time
It’s hard to choose the best Love Island challenges, but we’ve narrowed it down to our top 10. We’ve graded each game based on its fun level, relationship-building ability, drama-inducing factor, and cringe-worthiness (each out of a possible 5) to help us pick our final lineup.
1. Smooch, Marry, Pie
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣 |
It doesn’t matter whether you’re watching Love Island USA, UK, or Australia — each features the Smooch, Marry, Pie game nearly every year. Psst…if you’re watching the UK version, you might know this better as Snog, Marry, Pie.
In this game, either the boys or girls line up, ready to face the other contestants. Each Islander chooses three contestants of the opposite sex to smooch, marry, or pie. They kiss another Islander for the smooch, put a ring on their finger for marriage, or send a cream pie to their face to pie them.
It’s a simple game, but it works. It almost always delivers on the drama element, too. We see committed couples and loved-up contestants kissing other Islanders (much to their partner’s dismay), and some of the more controversial contestants get covered in cream after one too many pies. Remember Cinco from season 3 of Love Island USA? He might’ve broken the record for the most number of pies in a single game. After an up-and-down relationship with Cashay and an unforgettable dumping for Trina, the other Islanders were ready for some payback. Cinco received a grand total of five pies — ouch!
2. Raunchy Races: Casa Amor Competition
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣🫣 |
Casa Amor is the biggest test for the Islanders. The boys pack their bags and make their way to a new villa, welcoming a number of new girls. The female Islanders stick to the main villa and, yes, of course, in walk several new male contestants.
To add to the drama, each villa takes part in a series of games and challenges across several days. Usually, this kicks off with Raunchy Races as the ultimate icebreaker (and sometimes a dealbreaker for couples, too).
In Raunchy Races, Casa Amor and the main villa both take part in small challenges. The quickest villa to complete the task earns a point. The villa with the most points wins and receives a prize, which is usually an evening party.
It’s not as tame as finding an object beginning with the letter “L” — it’s called raunchy for a reason. In season 4, we saw the tallest boy and girl with red hair share a steamy kiss, the boy with the most tattoos run to the bedroom, get in bed, and kiss a girl of their choice, and the shortest boy and oldest girl make out like no-one was watching.
Raunchy Races is usually a bit of harmless fun, but for many Islanders, it leaves them in turmoil over how their partner is acting in the other villa. For others, it can turn their heads completely. How could we forget when Pheobe kissed Isaiah in season 4 of Love Island USA? A challenge kiss (or two) turned into a recoupling, leaving Sydney in the main villa heartbroken.
3. Sexy Carwash
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣🫣🫣🫣 |
Would it be Love Island if the contestants weren’t getting their kit off and plowing through an unusual obstacle course? Probably not. Sexy Carwash appears pretty much every year, although it was renamed All Lubed Up in season 3.
Regardless, the aim of the game remains the same. The girls must go through a car-wash-themed obstacle course looking as sexy as possible before kissing a male contestant of their choice. At the end, the male contestants decided which female Islander performed the best.
There’s no prize for coming 1st place, other than an ego boost. You’d think the kisses would be predictable, but season 2 of Love Island USA proved otherwise in that “Jaleb” car wash scene. Everyone (contestants included) thought Justine would pick her partner Tre for a smooch, but she stirred things up by choosing Caleb. No one saw that coming — especially Tre, who described it as a “slap in the face.” Eek!
4. Mr & Mrs
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣 |
As the couples get to know each other more, we see their knowledge tested in a lighthearted game of Mr. and Mrs. This was a brand-new game for season 3 of Love Island USA.
In the challenge, couples take part in a relationship quiz to see how well they really know their partner. Each couple is given a set of questions, like “What is your body count?”; “How many children do you want?,” and even more raunchy ones like “What’s your favorite sex position?” Both partners write their answers down on a blackboard, and if they guess the same, they get a point.
These games are a great way for Islanders to deepen their connection and show how much they’ve paid attention to their conversations. Sadly, it doesn’t always go that way. In season 4, when asked “What makes your partner happy?” contestant Will wrote “A vegan protein shake.” His partner, Kyra, tried a more thoughtful answer: “Expressing our shared love languages.” Some might say Will was easily pleased, while others couldn’t help but laugh at his complete obliviousness.
5. The Heart Rate Challenge
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣🫣 |
Just when the couples think they’re enjoying a drama-free time in the villa, Love Island producers throw them a curve ball with the heart rate challenge. Hearts on Fire tasks the islanders with trying to raise the other contestants’ heart rates. Whoever raises the most heart rates, wins. In true Love Island style, the game also reveals some finer details, like which contestant spiked which person’s heart rate the highest. If it wasn’t the Islander they’re coupled up with, it can (and has) caused explosive rows and tension in the villa.
To make things a little more racy, each contestant has to wear a risqué outfit. Some of these are pretty raunchy — think nurse, secretary, and sailor. Others are… questionable. In season 1, Alexandra dressed up as a hot dog (we have so many questions).
6. The Public Tweets
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣 |
The Islanders are stuck in the villa for weeks on end, with no access to the outside world. So, when the producers introduced the Social Bingo game (it’s also been called Online Buzz and Twitter Bingo), we were excited — and so were the Islanders. This game involves reading out public Tweets where Islanders have to guess who it’s referring to or fill in the blanks. If they guess correctly, they get a point.
This challenge is designed to give the contestants an insight into what their partners and others are saying about them. Usually, it’s not pretty. In season 4, Social Bingo revealed a Tweet saying: “It would suck for [blank] to find out [blank] was comparing her to [blank]’s natural beauty.” We’re sure you can already fill in the blanks — Isaiah was comparing Sydney to Casa Amor bombshell Pheobe. Needless to say, it didn’t go down well.
7. Polls Apart
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣 |
Rather than boys vs. girls, Love Island often introduces challenges where couples go head to head. One of those includes Polls Apart, which was one of the best games of season 1 Love Island USA.
Couples are tasked with ranking themselves in order of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd when another contestant reads out a statement. This includes everything from the biggest game players and fakest couple, to the most annoying couple and most likely to have their heads turned. If they guess the order correctly for each one, they can win a party for the evening.
They have to guess in which order America voted for them, instead of using their personal judgment. The Islanders finally find out how the public and their fellow contestants feel about them, giving them plenty to think about. As per usual, it causes spiking tensions in the villa.
8. Kissing Booth
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️❤️❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣 |
Kissing Booth is one challenge that gets hearts racing. It involves blindfolding contestants, so the other islanders can give them a kiss. It’s usually the boys who are blindfolded. The girls then go up one by one to give them a kiss, and the boys rate her out of 10. Whichever girl has the highest score at the end, wins.
We want to see whether the boys can rightly guess their partner’s smooch even when they’re blindfolded and whether they think she’s the best kisser. Often, that’s not the case. While Isaiah rated Sydney the highest in season 4, Deb was upset when Val claimed the top spot for her partner Jesse. Like her, we watched with gritted teeth. One thing is for sure, it’s uncomfortable to watch.
9. Truth Or Dare
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯😯😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣🫣 |
Chances are good you already know the rules of this game. The Islanders can either answer a question (truth) or perform an action (dare). Dares range from kissing the three Islanders they fancy the most, to performing a lap dance for the person they’re most attracted to. Ultimately, anything goes.
If you’ve seen season 2 of Love Island USA, you’ll know why Truth or Dare made our top 10 best challenges. Connor created friction with Mackenzie when he shared a three-way kiss with Rachel and Justine. Mackenzie’s jealousy got the better of her and she wasn’t shy of making her feelings known to the entire villa.
10. The Parenting Challenge
| Challenge Ranking | |
| Fun | 😂😂😂😂 |
| Relationship building | ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ |
| Drama inducing | 😯😯 |
| Cringe-worthy | 🫣 |
Last but not least, it is, of course, the parenting challenge. We know the baby challenge comes every year, but it still manages to surprise us. For the couples who make it to the final few weeks, the parenting challenge is a snippet of how life could look like with a baby in tow.
Each couple is given a baby doll to look after for the day. They need feeding, changing, and constant attention. Their cries are incredibly life-like and somewhat triggering for the contestants. In season 4, we watched the hilarious moment the girls plotted to leave each of the babies with the boys while they snuck away to the terrace. Mission Daddy daycare was truly underway!
Where Can I Watch Love Island USA?
Seasons 1-4 of Love Island USA are available on ITVX, Amazon Prime Video, and Peacock. CBS is also showing seasons 1-3. If you’ve not seen the US version before, now’s the time to tune in as season 5 is set to air in Summer 2023.
Remember, you can’t access these streaming services in every country. Peacock and CBS are only available in the US, while you can only stream on ITVX in the UK. If you’re planning a vacation, use CyberGhost VPN to take your streaming accounts with you.
Just connect to one of our streaming-optimized servers in your home country, and we’ll switch your IP address. That way, you can safely watch every challenge, firepit recoupling, and dressing room chat without restrictions, even if you’re away from home.
Who’s Ready for the Challenge?
Truth or dare, strip teases, lap dances, raunchy obstacle courses, kissing booths — we’ve seen it all. The Love Island games are like no other. Some we see year after year, while others are a new way for producers to bring drama, questions, and relationship tests to the villa.
What new challenges can we expect? We’ll have to wait and see what’s in store for season 5 of Love Island USA. Keep the challenges coming!
FAQ
Love Island is full of eye-opening and sometimes unusual games. Some of the most popular challenges include heart rate games, truth or dare, kissing booths, and the parenting test. Catch all of Love Island USA’s challenges on ITVX, Peacock, or Amazon Prime Video.
Yes, Love Island has many competitions. Almost all games involve a winning contestant, team, or couple. Don’t forget, Love Island itself is a competition, with couples competing for first place and a cash prize. It’s one of the most popular reality TV shows, and for good reason. People all over the globe love tuning in to the US, UK, and Australian villas to watch the arguments, challenges, bromances, and everything in between.
Nearly every Love Island challenge has a cheeky element to it! Most games are designed to get hearts racing. Some of the cheekiest challenges include the heart rate monitor test where Islanders dress up in a raunchy outfit and try to spike other contestants’ heart rates.
Then there’s the kissing booth challenge where the female contestants kiss each of the male Islanders, who are blindfolded. If you want to go back and watch the cheekiest challenges, you can stream Love Island USA on ITVX, Peacock, or Amazon Prime Video. CBS is also showing seasons 1-3.
Yes. The baby challenge appears year after year, usually in the final weeks. Each couple must look after a baby doll, feed them, change them, and attend to them when they’re crying. It puts the Islander’s parenting skills to the test and shows each couple what life could be like on the outside.
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