We’ve all had messy breakups from people we thought we’d end up with. They’ve hurt us time and time again and made us feel stupid for believing in the promise of love.
Some breakups are even more heartbreaking than usual – and this kind of breakup can upend your life and make you question your self-worth. The only way to feel better in such a situation is to avenge the disrespect you suffered throughout the relationship and during the breakup.
Keep reading to learn the best 20 ways to take revenge on your ex!
Table of Contents
1. Find Pleasure in Your Independence
Sure, you can sleep in, eat whatever you want, and binge-watch TV now. However, if you become too engrossed in this pattern, you’re more likely to experience depression rather than vengeance – so get up, get out of the house, and look after your physical well-being.
Demonstrate to your ex-boyfriend that you now have a great life that you couldn’t have before because you were too reliant on his bad habits while you were together.
2. Take Care of Your Emotional Well-being
Start doing fun hobbies (such as small-scale traveling) to help heal spiritually. Dance, have fun, and do things that lift your spirits. Your ex anticipates you being hurt – so the more you can do to keep yourself light and uplifted emotionally, the better.
Don’t get caught up in the wacky loop. Don’t follow him/her around. Don’t make anonymous phone calls to all of his new girlfriends or boyfriends. Don’t stoop to the level of a child.
You can, but the results of that type of vengeance aren’t nearly as satisfying. It’s critical that you take care of yourself emotionally to eventually move past the hurt.
3. Let Him Know What You Think of Him
One of the quickest ways to exact vengeance on your ex is to tell him whatever is on your mind without slowing down. This isn’t the time to be courteous or mind your mouth and social etiquette.
You deserve to be able to tell him exactly what you want in a face-to-face conversation – so if you’re feeling like shouting, swearing, or disparaging him, this is the moment to do it.
4. Get a Gorgeous Makeover
Spend the day at a spa. Take a bit of time to learn how to make yourself look better, even if you don’t have a lot of money. Look through some YouTube clips. Change your hairstyle. The small details can make a big difference.
Not only will your self-esteem improve, but you’ll also make your ex yearn for you, which will be heartbreaking for them.
5. Give Him a Taste of His Own Medicine
If you’re looking for a way to get back at your ex, one of the effective methods is to do to him exactly what he’s done to you – and break his heart in the same way he did yours. It’s best not to succumb to his level, but if you really want to get even, this will undoubtedly provide you with some gratification.
For this idea to succeed as effectively as possible, you’ll have to act like everything is in order – because that’s how you’ll hurt his feelings the most.
6. Make Sure Everyone Knows What He Did to You
One of the most powerful strategies of retaliation is publicly humiliating your ex for all of his wrongdoings.
His actions speak for themselves – and there’s no shame in telling everyone about how he treated you.
This is especially true if your ex was an abusive partner; in this case, you have an ethical duty to call up about everything that happened to assist other victims. To begin with, tell everyone you know what a jerk your ex is.
7. Make Him Think You’re Dating Someone New
Finding a rebound and entering a new relationship immediately after a traumatic relationship breakdown is not for everyone.
Yes, some argue that this is the most efficient way to move on from a doomed relationship, but others argue that doing so only makes matters worse.
So, before you use someone just to make your ex jealous, think about tricking him into thinking you’ve found someone new without actually going back into the dating market (if it’s something you’re not ready to do).
8. Play Mind Games
If you’re looking for a way to get vengeance on your ex, another option is to start toying with him. Confound him and make him believe he’s the one who’s crazy.
Act as if you still love him and would do anything to get him back one day – but the next day, act as if you couldn’t care less about him and wouldn’t get back together with him even if he were the last guy on Earth.
Do whatever it takes to keep him in the dark about where he stands. Make him question what you really want, and you’ll be the source of his insomnia.
9. Update Your Wardrobe (Add Some Sexy Pieces)
If you don’t want to appear desperate, don’t dress too provocatively. You can, however, invest in one or two new articles of equipment or accessories that bring out your sexiness. You’re no longer in a committed relationship; you’ve made yourself available.
Gaining some traction in the form of clothes that fit well, show off your best colors, and reveal a small portion of your gorgeous figure should be enough to make your ex-man seethe. These clothing tips for dressing to impress will help you figure out what works best for your body type!
10. Earn, Earn, Earn!
Find a side job or a part-time job (or a full-time job if you’re not working at all) to supplement your income. There are a few advantages to doing so.
You’ll feel better if you get up and out of the house or if you start a venture that you’ve put your heart and soul into. Finally, you will be able to earn some extra cash – which is the point of it all. What better way to get even with your ex romantic partner than to increase the size of your wallet?
11. Look Like You’ve Moved On
You have two choices now that you have earned that dollar: You can either spend the new money on things that will make you happy (and likely make your ex jealous) or save it.
If we’re talking about the former, now is your chance to upgrade your car, buy a new outfit, or attend concerts you’ve always wanted to see but never got around to. Now is the time to reward yourself – and make sure to post on social media.
12. Invest in Yourself
You can also save time by going the other route with your money. Demonstrate that you can be more willing to take responsibility without him and that you don’t have to spend a lot of money.
You now have more time to work hard and save money for a big trip, completing your education, or achieving any other key accomplishment.
This doesn’t sound like a very good way to exact revenge, but it does make sense that your ex will despise the fact that you’re financially successful.
13. Erase All Physical Memories You Have of Him
That means removing pictures, packing up the trinkets you exchanged when you were in the relationship, and asking him if he wants them. Seeing you giving back his stuff may drive him insane – but that’s what we want, don’t we?
Get rid of it if they don’t want it. For you, it’ll be a medicinal cleanse.
14. Delete Your Photos Together From Social Media
Print out any photos you have on Facebook or other social media sites, or simply delete them. Your ex might get the itch to look through your old photos now and then. Make it unthinkable! That’s the epitome of vengeance.
Remove them from your accounts, alter your passwords, and, if necessary, block them. The less they see of you, the more curious they’ll become.
15. Start Going Out on Dates Again
Find people with whom you can have a causal relationship and be happy about it. You don’t require another long-term commitment at this point in your life. Simply return to the field and take pleasure in it. Go out and appreciate the single life as a form of retaliation for your ex!
Make sure your ex finds out from someone else; don’t just call them up and say, “Hey, I’m going out to get laid!”
You want him to be jealous of you, and that’s the way it should be.
16. Sleep With His Friends
This is a fantastic way to exact vengeance. Of course, you should avoid the friends that will sympathize with your ex.
On the other hand, your ex-boyfriend will have one or two friends who have liked you the entire time. Invite them to an event and make sure you both have a great time. You may be doing this solely for vengeance (in which case, limit yourself to a week) or to truly move on.
17. Enter a Relationship With Someone Much Better Than Him
Be content. Find someone who’ll look after you and appreciate you. If you go on long enough, you might end up in a relationship (just don’t do it a week after your ex has left you). Give it time, and when your ex runs into you years later, seeing happy you are will be the best revenge on the romantic partner who abandoned you.
18. Be Single for a Little While
Choose to demonstrate to your ex that this time is all about you – and that you’re better off without him! Focus on yourself, and enjoy being single – because it’ll show him that you don’t need the horrible relationship and heartbreak he was able to give you.
19. Make the Most of Social Media
Without social media, hookup culture would be nearly impossible to imagine. Even though it can sometimes cause more harm than good in a loving relationship, social media can be your best ally when it comes to getting revenge on your ex, if you use it correctly.
If you really want to irritate your ex, make sure he sees you calling your new boyfriend the same monikers you used to call him or dedicating the same music to him as you did to him. Make sure he sees the photos you posted of you enjoying your time being single.
This way, he’ll see that he was just another guy in a line, that he was hardly anything particularly unique, and that he hasn’t left an impression on you.
20. Let Karma Deal With Him
Your ex will get what’s coming to him, whether you call it retribution, fairness, or karma. If he’s deserving of punishment, he will receive it. Don’t get in the way of justice or karma’s natural order.
If your ex did something illegal, however, speak with the police about filing charges. Forgiveness doesn’t imply that you should allow yourself to be stepped on, nor does it imply that your ex should be allowed to get away with unethical or criminal behavior.
There’s a significant difference between seeking vengeance on an ex because your feelings have been hurt and filing charges against a man who has wronged you.
The Bottom Line
There are times when people hurt us to the point where we have no choice but to seek retribution – because it is the only thing they deserve. If you’ve had a particularly bad breakup from someone who never looked back, it makes sense that you do some things that make him a little (or a lot) jealous.
If you’re looking for a way to get revenge on your ex, pick one of the methods listed above, and you’ll be able to effectively drive him insane – and remember, revenge is a dish best served cold.
