Did it ever happen that you were thinking of someone and they called you on your phone right then? Or have you ever seen the sun lining up perfectly with a traffic light?
Sometimes, the universe aligns in the most unexpected ways, and we call it a coincidence.
These moments can be anything from small, unexplained events to perfectly-timed and perfectly-aligned photos — like a cat’s face matching a pattern on a curtain or shadows that look like animals.
We’ve rounded up a list of these incredible and bizarre coincidences that people have shared online, and some of them look almost too perfect to be real.
Bored Panda also spoke to Madrid-based photographer Denis Cherim to understand how these fleeting moments happen.
#1 I Don’t Know Him, But He Is My Brother
Image source: KingCaptHappy-LotPP
#2 This Must’ve Been Calculated
Image source: LowRenzoFreshkobar
#3 By Complete Coincidence, The Trees Along This Street Matched The Colors Of The Buildings
Image source: Bomurang
These surprising and bizarre incidents can seem like they’re hinting at hidden truths, but what they’re really showing is the human mind at work.
In the early 1900s, Austrian biologist Paul Kammerer proposed that coincidences arise from a basic physical force, called “seriality.”
He believed patterns in nature and everyday life happen more often than we’d expect by pure chance. And that events aren’t completely random — they can form subtle clusters or series.
Seen through this lens, many of these perfectly timed photos don’t feel as mysterious.
For example, a row of trees matching the colors of nearby buildings. It might look oddly precise, but it could simply be the result of seasonal change happening at the same time across that area.
“Coincidences don’t appear — you just finally learn how to see them,” photographer Denis Cherim, who has been exploring coincidences and visual perception, tells Bored Panda.
#4 Husband And I Broke Same Leg, Same Bone, Within 30 Seconds Of Eachother Slipping On Ice
Also both need surgery.
Image source: milkthe
#5 My Fiance And I Got Each Other The Same Card For Valentines Day
Image source: bipolardaisy
#6 The Sign Says “Beware The Falling Rocks”
Image source: imgur.com
Capturing these kinds of moments isn’t just about luck — it’s about noticing what others miss. As Cherim puts it, “Luck is everywhere. Skill is recognizing it before it disappears.”
Many photographers simply walk around and observe until something lines up. “Slow down. Coincidences only reveal themselves at the speed of attention,” he adds.
In fact, these moments are usually seen before they’re captured. It’s less about reviewing photos later and more about spotting the alignment in real time.
“The best coincidences are seen before the camera is even raised,” Cherim notes.
His ‘The Coincidence Project‘ is built on this exact approach — constantly scanning everyday scenes for light, shadows, people and objects that briefly connect.
#7 There’s A Bathroom In My Parent’s House That Is Lit By A Single Window And This Is What Happens Every Day
Image source: scoottehbesht
#8 Bought A LEGO Technic At Costco And The Same Car Was In The Parking Lot
Image source: _nenena
#9 Lightning Striking Simultaneously On Chicago’s Three Tallest Buildings
Image source: reddit.com
Psychologist Carl Jung explained coincidences as patterns that feel meaningful to us, even when there’s no clear connection between the events.
He came up with the term “synchronicity” to describe these moments.
For example, someone might dream about a beetle, then spot one in real life the very same day. Or someone might see an ad on the internet about the exact product they have been thinking of buying.
#10 This Window That Makes My Back Yard Look Like It’s In 4 Different Seasons
Image source: pommiegurl130
#11 Birds Forming A Bird (Starling Murmuration)
6 years to the day I was photographing this huge mass of birds. I took about 300 images and for a split second they formed this shape. I’ve seen the cloud forming the shape of the bird on reddit this week which is amazing so I thought I’d post this. What are the odds?
Image source: Mr_BoHingles
#12 Somehow Ended Up Behind These 2 Cars At The Same Location A Couple Days Apart
Image source: duckduckbananas
Psychologists point out that our minds are built to spot such patterns.
Have you ever paid attention to a word you didn’t know before, and then started seeing it everywhere? That’s called the frequency or clustering illusion.
Your brain just notices it more often, even though the world hasn’t actually changed.
The same goes for coincidences. We tend to remember the hits — things that line up — and forget the misses (all the times nothing happens).
“The clustering illusion is the cognitive bias that tricks us into seeing meaningful groupings in random data. Our brains are wired for order, even when chaos is all that’s there,” writes RJ Starr, a psychology educator and author.
“You hear about three airplane crashes in one month and wonder if something deeper is going on. You win the lottery on a scratch-off ticket, then try again, thinking you’re ‘on a streak.’ You check your horoscope after a rough day and feel like it somehow predicted it all,” he adds.
#13 This Too Shall Pass. Alternate Title: Destined For Infamy
Image source: wrider151
#14 Rainbow Deflecting Lightning
Image source: justDackJaniels
#15 Waiting On Food At A Restaurant And Realized That I Had The Same Fashion Sense As The Table
Image source: imgur.com
Sometimes events that seem random might actually share a hidden cause.
For example, a couple slipping on the very exact patch of ice just minutes apart and breaking the same side of the leg might look like a wild coincidence. But maybe the sidewalk was especially slick in that spot, or the same patch of black ice caught both of them.
Simple factors like timing or environment can explain a lot of coincidences, and what feels improbable often has a perfectly ordinary reason behind it.
#16 I’ve Visited The Dragonglass Cave In Real Life, Coincidently That Day A Dragonshaped Dragon Flew Right Over!! Amazing
Image source: LordSykens
#17 The Way These Concrete Balls Lined Up To Look Like Wheels
Image source: condensermike
#18 This Pebble That Got Stuck In The Sole Of My Shoe
Image source: reddit.com
Research in photography shows that images that follow Gestalt principles — like similarity, alignment, or symmetry — are processed faster and even feel more visually pleasing.
For example, things that look similar (same color or shape) feel connected, or things that line up feel intentional.
The camera basically just freezes that one second where everything clicks.
#19 Found A Dog Toy That Is A Less-Spooky-Version Of My Husband’s Tattoo
Image source: hideandsee
#20 The Sun Lined Up Nicely With The Traffic Light As I Pulled Up
Image source: Nayeem83
A lot of these perfect alignment photos are basically real-world optical illusions as well.
Our brain can interpret the same image in multiple ways, and what we see usually depends on the angle, framing, context, as well as our perspectives.
For example, in the famous rabbit–duck illusion, the same image can look like two different animals depending on how you view it.
Or a tree might line up with the moon and suddenly look like it’s “holding” it — not because it is, but because of perspective.
#21 Two Identical Lamborghinis Crash In Singapore
Image source: eskylabs
#22 My Citys Landfill Gives Me Windows Xp Vibes
Image source: canmancans
These moments might feel unique, but coincidences are actually happening all the time if we are observant enough.
A recent psychology study using daily tracking found that 93% of participants experienced at least one meaningful coincidence during the study period.
Some of the similar types of coincidences that people reported experiencing again and again include: thinking of someone and they call, hearing something you were just thinking about, running into someone unexpectedly, and being in the right place at the right time.
#23 My Keychain Broke Off, 1 Week After Owning Another Brand
I got this Mercedes keychain about 15 years ago. 1 week ago I started driving a Volkswagen, and the keychain broke off today.
Image source: anon
#24 A Funny Coincidence
Image source: parisianseine
#25 Little Did I Know, I’d Marry Her Some Day
Image source: dmau9600
#26 My Best Friends Music Studio Burned To The Ground. This Album Cover Left A Chilling Message Behind
Image source: thebusdriver5
#27 These 3 20 Dollar Bills I Withdrew Have Sequential Serial Numbers
Image source: Bloodline16
#28 My Black Cat Looks Like My White Cat’s Shadow
Image source: JoshuaForLong
#29 When I Went To Switzerland And Happened To Look Exactly Like This Random Wood Statue
Image source: Blueskyblonde
#30 Got A Tattoo Yesterday And My Son Pulled This Good Looking Lady Out Of The Lake Today!
Image source: 2-cents
#31 5+6=11
Image source: LaScorpio1111
#32 My Dog Yawned At The Exact Moment I Took A Photo Of Him In Front Of The Graffiti That Looks Like Him
Image source: living-trainwreck
#33 Character In The Show I Was Watching Had The Same Mug I Was Drinking Out Of
Image source: Mticore
#34 My Parents Went To An Art Shop On Their Vacation And Saw A Drawing That Looks Like Me From Face And Body Type By Coincidence
Image source: Raxen92
#35 Found My Look-A-Like, Just Around 100 Years Apart
Image source: Claire0000
#36 After This Lucky Shot, We Tried To Recreate It, Didn’t Work
Image source: KingAwesome005
#37 My Egg Perfectly Inverted Itself
Image source: artemwastaken
#38 Dragonfly Ate A Mosquito That Was About To Bite
Image source: ryerjohn
#39 They Fit Together Perfectly
Image source: Hurtcult
#40 A Line Of Campus Bots Following Me At My College
Image source: Crusty_laptop
#41 Caught Both My Pets Stretching At The Same Time
Image source: ForeverJamon
#42 So Tried To Make An Account And Basically Spammed Letters And This Happened
Image source: BigBoiNeptiks
#43 My Friend And I Were Walking Back From A Bar And Found Our Doppelgängers On An Ad
Image source: AnaCeleste_20
#44 Two One Eyed Toads Showed Up At The Same Time
Image source: Lazy_James
#45 My Neighbor’s Tree Fits Perfectly In My Window
Image source: FollowingOdd896
#46 Crow Hopped As I Took His Photo
Image source: Jedi_JJ
#47 My Mom Gifted Me This Key Chain And Within A Day I Am Seeing The Same Keychain In Netflix
Image source: BabaYaga3694
#48 My Costco Run Today Totaled $420.69
Image source: -bassassin-
#49 My Sneaker Matches My Gyms Floor
Image source: Osirisk
#50 I Saw A Cloud That Said ET Today. It’s Also The 40th Anniversary Of The Movie ET. That Is All
Image source: toxictoy
#51 A Perfect Pair
Image source: GuyLuomo
#52 Perfectly Split Dart Tail
Image source: Staang
#53 These Two On My Feed
Image source: Iownya
