How the pick is made
The tool splits your text into lines, throws away blank ones and trims spare spaces, then picks one line at random. Every remaining line has an equal chance: 1 ÷ number of items. With ten names, each has a 10% chance; entering a name twice doubles its odds, which is a simple way to weight a draw.
Groups often move straight on to the spinning wheel picker afterwards.
How to use it
Replace the sample list with your own options — names, restaurants, chores, prize entrants — putting one item per line. Press Pick for a winner, and press again for a fresh draw (the same item can win twice, since nothing is removed). To split the same list into groups instead of picking one, use the random team generator.
For a giveaway, paste the entrant list exactly as you exported it, pick a winner, then delete that line before drawing a runner-up so nobody can win twice. Screen-recording the draw is a simple way to show entrants it was fair.
The yes or no picker is worth a look for the next round.
Randomness and security
Every result on this page is produced in your own browser with JavaScript's built-in Math.random() pseudo-random generator. That is perfectly fine for games, giveaways, classroom picks and decision-making, but it is not cryptographically secure — never use it to generate keys, tokens or anything protecting real money or private data. Nothing you type is uploaded; the page never sends your inputs anywhere.
The random number generator is the obvious companion when this one is not quite the right shape.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I enter my list?
- Type or paste it into the box with one item per line. Blank lines and stray spaces are ignored automatically.
- Can an item win twice?
- Yes. Each press is a fresh independent draw, so nothing is removed from the list between picks.
- Can I make one item more likely?
- Yes — add it to the list more than once. Two entries out of ten lines give it a 20% chance.
- Is my list sent anywhere?
- No. Everything runs in your browser and nothing is uploaded or stored.
- What happens if the box is empty?
- Nothing is picked, because there are no non-empty lines to choose from — add at least one item. A list with a single item will simply return that item every time.