Are pranks supposed to be to the benefit of both the prankster and the one being pranked?

I would hope so. Otherwise I would consider it bullying. Even more so if the same people were targeted often.

Ditto.
@snowberry, you have some sauce on your, no, there.

So the April Fools prank I pulled on my ex husband, telling him I had wrecked his new car was bullying? Nah….the look on his face was priceless and watching his ears turn red was too.
“I’m really, really sorry honey but you know that phone pole at the end of our driveway, well, I accidentally cut the corner too tightly this morning and stoved in the door of your car when the side mirror clipped the pole.” lol

@Coloma I’d consider it bullying if someone was in the habit of making me the brunt of physically painful and/or socially embarrassing “jokes”. Simply telling someone you wrecked the car when you didn’t, wouldn’t seem to qualify.

I have never been pranked in such a way that I didn’t find it funny, and my son was a professional prankster!
Actually, there was one time that my ex snuck up behind me. I was cross legged on the floor really intent on something and he snuck up and screamed, or something, right in my ear. It scared the hell out of me, then pissed me off, and I just reacted by throwing and empty box at him. Of course, that pissed him off. “I can’t even have any fun with you any more.” Pout. Well, try doing something that I will think is funny too, asshole.

My ex husband hid behind a door once. When I came into the room he jumped behind me and yelled “BOO!” I am highly reflexive. Before either of us had time to think I spun around and popped him in the jaw. He wobbled, nearly fell down, and I felt awful. His only response was to say he wouldn’t worry anymore about me being at home alone.

^ Reminds me of when I gave my computer science teacher a near heart attack. I did the exact same as your ex. I wanted to prank my classmate, but the teacher entered instead. She almost passed out. I felt so embarrassed.

The only way that I can think a prank is beneficial for both the perpetrator and victim is when someone is making a Youtube video about it and post it in social media, in such a way that both parties received income from the amount of views the got through the video. The victims
won’t be complaining about being pranked on their way to bank. Otherwise, it’s bullying.

I don’t think April Fool is an excuse to hurt other people’s feeling or make them stressful.

No.
Pranks are only to the benefit of the prankster. Always.
Any claims to the contrary are just feeble attempts to rationalise this insidious form of bullying.
There is a reason why “It was just a prank, bro!” makes you want to kill someone.

No. What @ragingloli said. Pranks, like practical jokes, should do no harm.

I agree with Raggie but in a limited way. It depends on what the prank is and the motive behind it.
I got a huge kick out of the pranks my son played on me. Like the time he brought home that mannequin hand and put it in different places in the house for two weeks, until he took it back. On my pillow, in the knife drawer…I never knew where it was going to show up!

He once put a bunch of Furbies on my ceiling fan. When I turned it on the air was full of flying Furbies.

One April Fools he taped the handle to the kitchen sink sprayer down so when I turned on the water I got a face full!

I didn’t consider any of that “bullying.” We laugh about them to this day.

I hope the fake dog poop I put on the floor of their rec room yesterday doesn’t make my grandkids think I’m being a bully.

I’ll have you know that fake vomit is a felony in CA! ;-o

I have a secret for you, and only you @Brian1946. The fake dog poop was a double edged sword. My son was arrested at 17 for stealing fake dog poop out of a car! Had to go to court and everything. The judge almost lost it trying not to laugh through the whole ordeal. He kept pausing and putting his head down. The stenographer could hardly type. Then the judge said, “How are we going to carry this in the records?” and everybody lost it, except me and Chris. It was hard not to, though, but it WAS serious. The dumbass. One of the attorneys said, “Let’s call it a “novelty item.” I actually had it on me and I was sooo tempted to put it on the judge’s desk and say, “This is Exhibit A.” I didn’t, of course. It was a tough 15 minutes for everyone! It’s our secret though. My son got probation, had to be at home at 7:00 every night for 3 months. It was like a super curfew, and he never broke it by a second.