Random Name Picker

Paste or type your names into the Names box, one per line, then press Pick names. Spaces at the start and end of each line are trimmed and empty lines are skipped, so a list copied from a spreadsheet column, a chat or a sign-up sheet usually works as it is. The hint under the box shows how many names will take part in the draw.

By default the tool draws one winner. Change Number of winners to draw several at once. Three options shape the draw:

A short example: with 12 names, Number of winners set to 3 and No repeats on, you get three different people. Turn No repeats off and the same name can come up twice in that one draw, which suits drawing with replacement, such as one prize per round where everyone stays in. Turn on Remove picked names from the list and press Pick names again: the three winners are gone from the box and the next draw uses the other 9.

Winners appear after a short rolling reveal, numbered in the order they were drawn. You can copy them or press Download to save them as a text file. Every draw is also added to the Draw history table with its number, winners and time. Reset clears the form and the current result but keeps the history.

Yes. The draw uses your browser's cryptographic random generator (crypto.getRandomValues), the same source browsers use when they create security keys. Its output cannot be predicted from earlier results, unlike the simple formula based generators that many quick scripts rely on.

Turning a raw random value into a position in your list has one classic trap. The generator returns whole numbers from 0 up to just under $2^{32}$, about 4.29 billion values. If you simply take the remainder after dividing by the number of names, a few positions get slightly more chances, because that range does not split evenly for most list lengths. The leftover values always land on the first names in the list.

The tool removes that effect with rejection sampling. It works out the largest multiple of your list length that fits in the range, and any raw value at or above it is thrown away and drawn again. What remains splits into exactly equal shares. With 30 names, every name has exactly a 1 in 30 chance on each pick, about 3.33%.

When you draw several winners with No repeats on, the tool uses a partial Fisher-Yates shuffle: it picks a random entry, sets it aside, then picks from the entries that are left, and so on. Every possible set of winners is equally likely, and the draw order is kept in the result.

Fair does not mean evenly spread in the short run. The same name can come up in two separate draws in a row, just as a fair coin can land heads twice. If everyone should get one turn before anyone gets a second, use Remove picked names from the list, explained in the next section.

Teachers often want to call on every student once before anyone gets a second turn. Paste the class list, turn on Remove picked names from the list, keep Number of winners at 1, and press Pick names each time you need a student. The picked name disappears from the box after every draw, so the pool shrinks from 28 names to 27, then 26, until everyone has had a turn.

A few practical points:

• The remaining list is rewritten cleanly. Empty lines are dropped, and when Remove duplicate names is on, repeated names are dropped as well.
• When one name is left, the next draw returns it straight away. When the box is empty, the tool asks you to add at least one name.
• To start a new round, paste the full class list again. Keeping a copy in a document makes this a matter of seconds.
• The Draw history table lists each draw with its time, newest first. Export it as CSV or Excel to keep a note of who answered, who presented or who took the warm-up question today.

The same routine works for choosing who reads next, who presents in which order, who tidies the lab or who gets the next help slot. If you need the whole order at once instead of one name at a time, a list randomizer shuffles the entire class list in one go and can also split it into random groups for group work.

A visible random draw also takes away the feeling that the teacher picks favourites. Projecting the screen while the reveal runs lets the whole class follow the process.

For a social media giveaway or an office raffle, the draw is only as fair as the list behind it. Collect all entries in one place, for example comments exported to a spreadsheet, and paste one name or username per line.

1. Keep Remove duplicate names on if each person should have one entry, however many times they commented. Matching ignores upper and lower case, so @Sam_K and @sam_k count once.
2. Set Number of winners to the number of prizes plus a few reserves. For 3 prizes and 2 reserves, draw 5 with No repeats on. The first three names in the result win, and the next two step in if a winner does not reply.
3. Press Pick names once. Redrawing until you like the result defeats the point of a random draw.
4. Export the Draw history as CSV or Excel. It shows the draw number, the winners and the time, a simple record if anyone asks how the winners were chosen.

For more transparency, screen record the whole process: the pasted list, the entry count under the box, the settings and the reveal. Announcing the draw time in advance and recording it live helps participants trust the outcome.

Giveaway rules differ between countries and platforms, including who may enter and how winners must be announced. Check the platform's promotion guidelines and the rules that apply to you before you start. The picker only makes the draw itself fair and documented.

Each non-empty line is one entry. What happens to repeated lines depends on Remove duplicate names.

With the option on, which is the default, a repeated name counts once. The comparison ignores letter case and spaces at the ends of the line, and the first spelling in the list is the one that appears in the result. Use this when every person should have exactly the same chance, for example when some people signed up twice.

With the option off, every line is its own entry. That gives you a simple way to weight a draw. In a raffle where people bought different numbers of tickets, write one line per ticket:

With several winners and No repeats on, the rule applies to entries, not to people, so Maya could win with two of her lines in the same draw. To give each person at most one prize while still weighting by tickets, draw one winner at a time and delete that person's remaining lines before the next draw.

Names that differ in spelling, like Jon and John, are treated as different people. Tidy the list first if someone appears under two spellings.

The hint under the box always shows the number of entries after duplicates are handled, so you can confirm what goes into the draw before you press Pick names.

The picker runs entirely in your browser. The names you paste are processed on your device and are never uploaded, stored on a server or shared with anyone. That matters when the list holds student names, staff names or customer handles from a giveaway. Close or reload the page and the list, the winners and the draw history are gone, so export the history first if you want to keep it.

There is no account, no sign-up and no limit on the number of draws or the length of the list. The tool is free to use.

Picking names is one of several random tools on Callculation:

• To draw numbers instead of names, such as ticket or seat numbers, a random number generator lets you set your own range.
• For lottery style lines with a main pool and a bonus pool, a lottery number generator creates them and shows the jackpot odds for each game.

For a list that is short and changes often, keep it in a plain text note and paste it in when you need a draw. Nothing has to be prepared in advance, and nothing stays behind afterwards.