15 good excuses, ranked roughly by believability:
Most believable
- Stomach bug. "Can't keep anything down."
- Migraine. "Can't look at a screen."
- Food poisoning. Same as stomach bug, more specific.
- Family emergency. Brief, no detail.
- Sick child. Common and verifiable.
Second tier
- Mental health day. Increasingly accepted.
- Doctor / dentist appointment.
- Childcare fell through.
- Bad reaction to medication.
- Sleep deprivation. "Was up all night sick."
Logistics
- Plumber / electrician for a service window.
- Power outage.
- Car trouble — tow, dead battery.
- Burst pipe / flood at home.
- Voting / jury duty / civic obligation.
Delivery tips
- Early notice. Before your absence is noticed.
- Brief. "Stomach bug, taking the day. Will be on Slack if urgent."
- Don't over-explain. Long stories sound rehearsed.
- Match your team's norm. Slack, email, or call — pick what's standard.
What kills credibility
- Posting on social media during the "sick" day
- Same excuse twice in a month
- Excuses requiring documents you don't have
- Calling out the day before / after a holiday weekend
When excuses are bad strategy
- You'd rather just be in a job you don't dread.
- You need real time off.
Sorce auto-applies to 5M+ jobs. 40 free swipes/day. Maybe the answer isn't a better excuse.
For more: bulletproof excuses to get out of work, reasons to call out of work, excuses to call off work.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What's a good last-minute excuse to call out?
- Stomach bug, migraine, or food poisoning. Hard to disprove, common enough that managers don't probe.
- Should I text or call?
- Match your team's norm. Most modern offices accept Slack/email. Traditional industries may expect a phone call.
- Can I call out without notice?
- Notify as early as you can — ideally before your shift starts. Last-minute call-outs raise more flags than well-timed ones.
- How often is too often?
- Once a month is normal. Twice a month starts being noticed. Weekly is a problem.