Random choice
Random pick from a list
One list — one honest choice. Or several winners at once and a new order.
How to fairly choose a winner
Random selection has one important property: every participant must have an equal chance. Here, this is ensured by the browser's cryptographic generator.
crypto.getRandomValues — the same source that is used for encrypting connections. The value does not depend on time, time zone, or a “lucky” click: it cannot be predicted in advance by either the organizer or the participants.
The list is not sent anywhere: names, results, and exceptions are calculated directly in your tab. Therefore, the draw can be conducted offline — it is enough to open the page once.
Why the order of lines does not matter
A line in the list is neither a queue nor a priority. Before selection, the site shuffles a copy of the list using the Fisher-Yates algorithm and takes the required number of positions from it. The probability for each participant is 1/N, where N is the number of participants, regardless of whether the name is first or last.
Therefore, there is no need to arrange names 'alphabetically' or add them in a random order — it does not affect the result. And if a new order is specifically needed, enable the 'Shuffle' mode: it will show a random permutation of all participants, which can be copied or downloaded as a CSV.
How repeat filtering works
The 'Ignore duplicates' switch compares strings without regard to case and extra spaces: 'Anya', 'anya', and ' Anya ' are considered the same participant. If you turn off the option, identical strings will become separate entries — for example, when two people have the same name or one participant received two tickets.
The "Remove winners from the list" option is a permanent exclusion: the winner does not participate in the following rounds until you click "Return all." The counter next to it shows how many participants are left. The list and exclusions are saved in the browser's localStorage, so they will survive a page reload.
When it will come in handy
- to hold a prize draw among subscribers, colleagues, or friends;
- select the person on duty, the reporter, or the queue for the task;
- determine the order of speeches and presentations;
- decide where to go as a team, and not argue;
- to draw lots one by one — with the feeling of a real drum.