Random Name Picker
Draw the whole list in a random order: who presents first, who goes next, who gets which topic.
One topic per person (optional)
How to use the name picker
- Type or paste one name per line.
- Optional: open "One topic per person" and add the topics.
- Press "Shuffle the order". Print it, copy it or download it as CSV.
Odds and number of possible orders
| Names | Drawn first | In the top 3 | Possible orders |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 33.3% | 100% | 6 |
| 5 | 20% | 60% | 120 |
| 8 | 12.5% | 37.5% | 40,320 |
| 10 | 10% | 30% | 3,628,800 |
| 15 | 6.7% | 20% | 1,307,674,368,000 |
| 20 | 5% | 15% | 2,432,902,008,176,640,000 |
| 25 | 4% | 12% | 15,511,210,043,330,985,984,000,000 |
| 30 | 3.3% | 10% | 265,252,859,812,191,058,636,308,480,000,000 |
Possible orders is n! (n × (n − 1) × … × 1). Each one is equally likely.
Prefer the suspense of a spin? Use the spin the wheel page. Need teams? Try therandom team generator.
Frequently asked questions
How is the order drawn?
The list is shuffled once with the Fisher-Yates method and your browser's cryptographic generator. Every order is equally likely, so each person has the same chance at every position.
Can I pick just one name, or the first few?
Read the top of the list: the first name is a fair pick of one, the first three a fair pick of three. With 25 names each person is first 4% of the time and in the top three 12%.
Can each person get a topic?
Open "One topic per person" and type one topic per line. Topics are shuffled too and handed out in order, each used once. If there are fewer topics than people, the page tells you how many are missing.
Can the same order come up twice?
In theory yes, in practice no: 20 names have 2,432,902,008,176,640,000 possible orders.
Is my list saved?
In this browser only, shared with the spin the wheel and team generator pages, so you type your class once. Nothing is sent to a server.