Random team generator
Paste the names, choose the number of teams or the team size and press Make teams. Press again for a new split.
Free · no signup Runs in your browser
How do I split a list into random teams?
Paste your names with one per line, choose whether you want a set number of teams or a set size for each team, and press Make teams. The list is shuffled fairly and dealt out like cards, one to each team in turn, so the teams are as even as possible: if 11 people are split into 3 teams, you get teams of 4, 4 and 3. Press the button again for a different split.
How the teams are made
The names are put in random order with a Fisher–Yates shuffle, driven by the browser's secure random generator, and then dealt out one at a time to team 1, team 2, and so on, going round until everyone has a place. Because of the shuffle every possible grouping is equally likely, and because of the dealing no team can be more than one person larger than another.
Choosing by team size works the other way: with 14 people and a team size of 4, the tool makes four teams (14 divided by 4, rounded up) and deals them out evenly, so you get two teams of 4 and two of 3 rather than three of 4 and a lone pair.
It runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere, and there is no sign-up.
Fair teams for classes and sport
A random split is fair in the sense of chances, not of skill: it may put the strongest players together. If the teams must be balanced by ability, sort the names into levels first, run the tool for each level and assign one person from each level to each team. The tool does not remember earlier splits, so if you want to keep the same people from teaming up twice, note the groups before pressing again.
When to use it
- Classroom groups and project teams
- Pickup sports, pub quizzes and trivia nights
- Breaking a workshop into discussion groups
- Secret Santa style splits (use the picker for pairs)
Mistakes it helps you avoid
- Choosing teams by hand and favouring friends.
- Ending up with one tiny team because the numbers do not divide.
- Using a biased sort-by-random shuffle.
- Forgetting that a random split can still be uneven in skill.
The formula
How the answer is worked out.
1. Read the names, one per line.2. Number of teams: either the number you set, or ⌈names ÷ team size⌉ if you set a size.3. Shuffle the names with Fisher–Yates.4. Deal them out in turn: name 1 to team 1, name 2 to team 2, and so on, wrapping round.
With n names and t teams, every team has either ⌊n/t⌋ or ⌈n/t⌉ members. The shuffle makes every assignment equally likely. Blank lines are ignored and repeated names are kept as separate entries.
Example: 11 people, 3 teams
A class of 11 is split into 3 groups.
- Sizes11 ÷ 3 = 3 remainder 2: two groups of 4 and one of 3
Teams of 4, 4 and 3
Press again for a different split.
Terms on this page
- Shuffle
- Putting a list in a random order.
Common questions
Are the teams random and fair?
Yes, the names are shuffled with an unbiased method and dealt out evenly.
What if the names do not divide evenly?
Some teams get one more person. No team is more than one larger than another.
Can I balance the teams by skill?
Not automatically. Split the names into levels first and run each level separately.
Is my list uploaded?
No.
Is anything I enter sent to a server?
No. The calculation happens in your browser and nothing you type leaves your device.
Where these numbers come from
- Wikipedia — Fisher–Yates shuffle The unbiased shuffle used, and why a naive sort-based shuffle is biased.
- MDN Web Docs — Crypto.getRandomValues() The browser's cryptographically strong random number source used by these tools.
Last verified 2026-10-25 The method on this page is checked against the sources above at least once a year. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.
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