Random Name Picker

Paste your list, click Pick a Name — the winner is chosen with cryptographic fairness.

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add names below & press pick

Remove winner from list (no repeats this session)

Names (one per line) 0 names

Enter at least 2 names, one per line. Blank lines are ignored.

Recent Winners

No winners yet — draw a name to get started.

How to Use the Random Name Picker

Type or paste your names into the text box, one name per line.

Optionally tick "Remove winner from list" if you don't want the same person picked twice.

Click Pick a Name — names will shuffle rapidly for dramatic effect, then land on the winner.

The winner appears with a highlight animation. Check the Recent Winners log for a running history.

To start a fresh session, edit the names list or reload the page.

Using the Name Picker for Giveaways

Running a prize draw, raffle, or social media giveaway? This tool makes it easy to conduct a live, transparent random draw:

Collect your entrants. Copy names from a spreadsheet, comment list, or sign-up form and paste them in — one name per line.

Enable "Remove winner from list" so each prize goes to a different person. The tool removes each winner from the pool automatically.

Screen-share the draw. The shuffle animation is purposely high-energy — it builds suspense in a live stream or recorded video, giving your audience confidence the draw is fair.

Cryptographic fairness. Behind the scenes the winner is determined by crypto.getRandomValues() — the same technology used in security software — so there is no way to game or predict the result.

Recent Winners log keeps a record for the duration of your session, so you can screenshot the results for transparency.

Classroom Name Picking for Teachers

Teachers use random name pickers to call on students fairly, avoiding unconscious bias or predictable patterns. Here's how to get the most out of this tool in the classroom:

Add your class roll. Paste all student names at the start of term. Takes about 30 seconds.

Cold-call fairly. Hit "Pick a Name" whenever you want to ask a question — every student knows they have an equal shot, which keeps engagement high.

Remove after picking to work through the whole class before anyone is picked twice — great for oral presentations or reading turns.

No student data is stored. Names exist only in your browser tab. When you close the tab, everything is gone. GDPR and FERPA friendly.

Works on any device. No app to install — open the tool on your smartboard browser, laptop, or tablet.

Fair Randomness — How It Works

The winner is selected using crypto.getRandomValues() from the Web Crypto API, which produces cryptographically secure random numbers — the same standard used in encryption and security tokens. The modulo bias problem is eliminated using rejection sampling, so every name in your list has an exactly equal probability of being chosen regardless of list size.

The shuffle animation that plays for 1.5 seconds is purely visual. The winner has already been decided the moment you click "Pick a Name." This is by design — it means the result cannot be influenced by how long the animation runs.

🔒 100% private. Your names are never sent to any server. Everything runs inside your browser tab. Closing or refreshing the page clears all data instantly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the name pick truly random?

Yes. The winner is chosen using crypto.getRandomValues() — a cryptographically secure random number generator — before the shuffle animation plays. The animation is visual only. Every name has an exactly equal probability of being selected on every draw.

How do I stop the same person being picked twice?

Tick the "Remove winner from list" checkbox. After each draw, the winner is removed from the pool and also deleted from the text box so you can see who is still eligible.

How many names can I add?

There is no hard limit. Paste hundreds of names if you need to — the tool handles large lists without slowing down. Each name should be on its own line; blank lines are ignored automatically.

Can I use this for a live giveaway or stream?

Yes — it's one of the most popular uses. Paste your entrant list, enable "Remove winner from list" to avoid duplicate prizes, and draw one winner at a time. The shuffle animation is designed to build suspense on camera.

Is my data private?

Completely. Names exist only in your browser tab. No data is sent to any server. When you close or refresh the page, everything is cleared. No sign-up, no tracking, no cookies.