11 Rules You Didn't Know “Big Brother” Contestants Have to Follow (Including Why They Can't Sing Certain Songs)

ElspethEntertainment2025-07-119470

NEED TO KNOW

Houseguests on Big Brother follow specific rules to compete on the reality TV show

The CBS show, which debuted season 27 on July 10, follows a group of contestants vying for $750,000

Big Brother producers regulate certain aspects of the show — including Houseguests' schedules and communication

Big Brother has been showing the inner workings of contestants' lives for 25 years.

The hit CBS reality competition series, which premieres season 27 on July 10, follows a group of contestants living together in a house competing in various challenges to win the grand prize of $750,000.

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As the show unfolds, the contestants are always filmed and recorded — and there are even cameras in the house's shared bathroom areas.

While the Houseguests form alliances and campaign for themselves to win, they must also abide by a strict list of rules. From how they're monitored to what they can know about the outside world, there are several rules and guidelines in place for all Houseguests.

Here's everything to know about the rules all Big Brother contestants must follow.

Contestants can't have contact with the outside world except in rare instances at the producers’ discretion

Chelsie Baham and Makensy Manbeck on Big Brother.

One of the most crucial elements in Big Brother is eliminating the noise from the outside world so contestants can fully focus on the show. Houseguests do not have access to the internet or any other form of outside communication.

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In the past, Houseguests have been told about major world events, like when producers told season 2 finalists Will Kirby, Nicole Nilson andMonica Bailey about the 9/11 terrorist attacks, according to Entertainment Weekly.

During that conversation, Bailey learned that her cousin Tamitha Freeman was listed as missing in the World Trade Center collapse.

Cameras are filming inside the house 24 hours a day

Cam Sullivan-Brown and Chelsie Baham on Big Brother.

Since the series is a surveillance-based show, contestants are filmed "at all times" throughout their tenure in the house, per the Big Brother casting website.

The show employs 94 cameras and 113 microphones, as set designer Scott Storey told the Los Angeles Times in 2019.

Producers can remove contestants

Sonja Flemming/CBS via Getty

Luke Valentine from Big Brother.

Most Big Brother contestants leave the house through evictions. However, producers have historically removed Houseguests who threaten violence. In season 2, Justin Sebik was removed from the house for putting a knife against Krista Stegall's neck.

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"All of a sudden the producers came on the loudspeaker and said that Justin had been removed from the show. We had no idea what was going on," Mike Malin, who appeared on Big Brother seasons 2, 7 and 14, told the Huffington Post in June 2016. "We didn’t know about Justin pulling the knife on her until we got off the show and saw it on TV, like everybody else. Out of my three seasons, twice violence or threatened violence would play a part and someone was taken out of the game."

Producers can also remove contestants who break the rules, like in season 11, when Chima Simone refused to reattach her microphone pack and was evicted from the house.

"I just didn’t want to play a fixed game anymore, so I left in dramatic style. I was giving zero f---- before it was a thing," she told Huffington Post. "It was never about me tossing the microphone. By making it about my microphone and breaking the rules they’ve excused for many Houseguests before and after me, I’m the bad guy. I maintain I quit."

More recently, in 2023, the show removed Luke Valentineafter he was caught using the n-word on a Paramount+ live feed. In 2025, Celebrity Big Brother UK contestant Mickey Rourke was given a formal warning after he used homophobic language against fellow contestant JoJo Siwa. He subsequently left the house.

Before getting cast, contestants undergo background checks and IQ tests

Quinn Martin on Big Brother.

Before they enter the Big Brother house, contestants are thoroughly researched. In past years, they have had to undergo a background check, as Executive Producer Allison Grodner told Deseret News in July 2002, plus an IQ test.

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"It's not about needing to be a certain intelligence to be in this house by any means," she said. "It's ... just to get a sense of who they are. These tests are really about seeing the well-rounded person."

Per the Big Brother casting website, potential contestants must "submit to physical and mental examinations by ... selected medical professional(s) in Los Angeles selected by the Producer and meet all physical and psychological requirements."

Housemates clean the house themselves

Bowie Jane, Matt Klotz, Felicia Cannon and Jag Bains on Big Brother.

Just like living in their own homes, all Big Brother Houseguests are responsible for taking care of the house.

"It’s up to the houseguests to do their own cleaning, and some casts are real slobs and some are really neat,” Grodner told the New York Post in June 2017. “Inevitably there’s a neatnik in the cast. You start to hear, ‘I’m the only one scrubbing and cleaning.’ "

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Cleanliness has caused issues in the past, including during season 3, when Gerry Lancaster went to the bathroom and then continued cooking, without washing his hands.

“He was hand-tossing a salad," Grodner said. "That was noticed by his fellow housemates and a huge fight ensued.”

They can't grocery shop

Makensy Manbeck, Chelsie Baham and Cam Sullivan-Brown on Big Brother.

Since Big Brother contestants aren't allowed to leave the house during their stay, they cannot grocery shop.

Instead, ingredients are delivered to the house. During season 22, which was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, groceries were disinfected before their arrival, host Julie Chen Moonves told Entertainment Tonight.

Producers only speak to contestants and rarely show their faces

Cirie Fields and Felicia Cannon on Big Brother.

As Big Brother fans know, a major part of the show is how the contestants express their true feelings in the Diary Room. While there, the Houseguests are speaking with producers —although they can't see who, exactly, they're talking to.

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"Sometimes there are producers in the Diary Room that you meet during casting and they’re the ones you’re kind of going on the journey with," Malin told the Huffington Post. "They’re just a voice overhead, so it’s an odd relationship because you have your most vulnerable moments in there."

There are cameras in the shared areas of the bathroom

CBS via Getty

Shelly Moore and Cassi Colvin on Big Brother.

There are cameras in the Big Brother bathrooms, per SFGate. However, the devices were only installed to capture any conspiring behind the scenes.

Big Brother has not explicitly shown someone going to the bathroom, but the show has included scenes where people have conversations in the space,including while they're showering or in the stall.

Contestants are asked not to sing copyrighted material

Cameron Hardin and Blue Kim on Big Brother.

Houseguests cannot sing certain songs while on Big Brother, since it would "affect the live feeds," per Dan Gheesling, who was on seasons 10 and 14.

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"In the day-to-day, I think the producers are really, really hands-off. They’ll tell you to stop if you’re doing something destructive or harmful to the house or doing things that affect the live feeds, like singing. If you have any sort of speaking role in a ceremony, that’s the only time there are any sort of directions," he told the Huffington Post.

Some furniture is bolted to the ground

Cam Sullivan-Brown, Makensy Manbeck, Rubina Bernabe and Kimo Apaka on Big Brother.

The Big Brother house is one of a kind. In addition to the custom pieces of furniture — and hundreds of cameras capturing contestants' every move — some of the furniture is bolted to the ground, as Storey told the Los Angeles Times.

The items are permanently nailed down or secured in order to prevent Houseguests from moving pieces.

According to the publication, cameras are always considered in the making of the house — beds are built on platforms to stop players from hiding under them and doors purposely don’t open wide enough to shield players from the devices.

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