Random Name Picker
Paste a list of names or items and pick one — or several — at random. Great for raffles, giveaways, and teams.
About the Random Name Picker
The Random Name Picker draws a name or item at random from any list you paste in. Type or paste your entries — one per line, or separated by commas, whichever is easier — and the tool figures out the boundaries for you. Press Pick and a single winner appears in big, unmistakable letters, so everyone in the room can see who was chosen. It is the fast, fair way to run a raffle, choose a prize winner, assign the next speaker, or settle any "who goes first?" argument without printing slips of paper or reaching for a hat.
Beyond a single draw, the picker handles the real jobs people use it for. Need several winners? Set the count and pick multiple distinct names at once — no duplicates in a single draw. Running an elimination round or a multi-prize giveaway? Turn on Remove picked items from the list and each winner is taken out automatically, so the same person can't be chosen twice across rounds. Want to randomize an order rather than pick one? Use Shuffle all to reorder the entire list, which is handy for seating charts, presentation running orders, or splitting a class into teams by cutting the shuffled list into groups. A live counter always shows how many items are in your list, so you know exactly what's in the draw.
Because fairness matters most when something is at stake, every pick and shuffle is powered by your browser's built-in cryptographic random number generator (crypto.getRandomValues) with rejection sampling, so no position in your list is favored over another. It is far stronger than the simple Math.random() many web toys rely on, and the results are genuinely unpredictable.
How to use
- Paste your list into the box. Put one name per line, or separate them with commas — you can even mix both. Blank lines and extra spaces are ignored automatically.
- Check the count shown under the box to confirm every entry was recognized. Fix any typos or stray commas if the number looks off.
- Set how many to pick with the − and + buttons if you want more than one winner. Leave it at 1 for a single draw.
- (Optional) Turn on "Remove picked items" so each winner is removed from the list, preventing anyone from being chosen twice across multiple rounds.
- Press Pick to draw. The winner (or winners) appears prominently below the buttons.
- Use Shuffle all to randomly reorder the whole list instead of picking, or Clear to empty the box and start over.
Frequently asked questions
Can I paste a comma-separated list instead of one name per line?
Yes. The picker accepts both formats and even a mix of the two. It splits your text on line breaks and commas, trims whitespace, and drops empty entries — so a list like Alex, Jordan, Sam and a list with each name on its own line both work exactly the same.
How do I pick more than one winner at a time?
Use the − and + buttons next to "How many to pick" to set the number, then press Pick. The tool selects that many distinct names in a single draw, so no one is chosen twice within the same pick. If you ask for more names than the list contains, it simply returns everyone.
What does "Remove picked items from the list" do?
When enabled, every name that gets picked is deleted from the list automatically. This is ideal for multi-prize raffles or elimination games where each person should only win once — just keep pressing Pick and the pool shrinks with each round until it's empty.
Are the picks truly random and fair?
Yes. Each pick and shuffle uses crypto.getRandomValues, your browser's cryptographically secure random generator, combined with rejection sampling so every entry has an equal chance. This is stronger and less biased than the ordinary Math.random() used by many simple pickers.
Is my list sent to a server or saved anywhere?
No. Everything happens in your browser with JavaScript. Your list is never uploaded, logged, or stored — it lives only in the page's memory and disappears when you refresh or close the tab. Use Clear any time to remove it immediately.
What's the difference between "Pick" and "Shuffle all"?
Pick selects one or more winners and shows them prominently, optionally removing them. Shuffle all leaves everyone in the list but randomizes their order in the box — perfect for creating a fair running order, seating arrangement, or splitting a shuffled list into balanced teams.