What the wheel does with your list
The wheel takes a list you type in and picks exactly one entry per spin. Until you change the weights, every entry on the wheel has the same chance of winning; give an option weight 3 and it comes up three times as often as weight 1.
One entry per line is all the setup there is. The wheel redraws itself as you type, so you can see how many options are in play before the first spin.
The selection runs in your browser through the Web Crypto API rather than a plain pseudo-random call, and the tool rejects values that would skew the result toward the first few entries. That matters when the wheel decides who presents first or who takes the last slice.
Spin the wheel in four steps
The wheel remembers its last list in this browser, and you can save more lists by name; nothing leaves your device until you share it.
Type or paste your entries, one per line, or load one of the twelve preset lists and edit it.
Check the entry counter to confirm every option made it onto the wheel.
Press Spin and wait for the pointer to settle on a single entry.
After the spin, press Hide selected to remove that label before spinning again.
Settings that change the outcome
The wheel keeps a deliberately small set of controls, and each one changes the result in a way you can predict.
- One entry per line, with blank lines ignored so pasted lists work as-is
- A weight, a colour and a picture for each option, with its chance in percent shown beside it
- Import from a text or CSV file with option, weight and colour columns; a spin sound and confetti you can switch off
- Twelve ready-made lists, including a yes/no wheel, food, cities, animals, movie genres, teams and tasks
- An editable wheel title, so a shared wheel says what it is deciding
- A Hide selected button for removing the selected label before the next spin
- A reset that puts every hidden entry back on the wheel
- A live count of the entries currently eligible to win
- Keyboard spin, so you can trigger it without reaching for the mouse
- A share link, with control over who may spin and whether viewers see every result
- A winner pop-up with Remove and Spin again, colour palettes, a logo in the centre, CSV download and named lists saved in this browser
- In a shared room, guests can add their own names from their phones, and the host can approve each one first
Classroom, standup and giveaway setups
The wheel earns its place when a group needs to see the decision happen rather than hear the outcome.
A teacher enters pupil names and hides each one after they answer, so nobody is asked twice.
A standup host spins to choose who gives the first update, then hides that name for the rest of the round.
A pair deciding on dinner enters three restaurants and spins once instead of negotiating.
A giveaway host puts entrant names on the wheel and spins on a shared screen so viewers watch the pick.
A trainer splits a workshop by spinning for who takes each role in a scenario.
A parent turns chores into a spin so the assignment feels like the wheel's decision.
Draw every name once without repeats
By default a spin changes nothing about the wheel, so the same entry can win twice in a row. That is the correct behaviour for an independent draw: the wheel has no memory, and a previous result never shortens or lengthens the odds for the next one.
For a round without repeats, press Hide selected after each result. All entries with that label are hidden. The remaining entries fill the wheel; Reset restores the hidden entries.
Where a wheel is the wrong tool
With weights, a light option can get a slice too thin for its label; it still takes part, and its name and chance stay visible in the list beside the wheel.
The wheel shortens long labels as the list grows — past roughly a dozen entries the text on each slice is abbreviated to stay readable. Long lists still work, but a list is a better display than a circle.
This is not a certified lottery mechanism. Do not use it where a regulator, an auditor or a betting rule requires verifiable draw records.
Getting cleaner spins
- Paste from a spreadsheet column rather than retyping: one cell per line lands as one entry per slice.
- Read the entry counter aloud before spinning in front of a group — ask the group to check that every intended name is present.
- Decide whether winners come off the wheel before the first spin, not after a result you dislike.
- For long lists, inspect the text list alongside the wheel so abbreviated labels do not hide mistakes.
Wheel of names questions
Is the wheel actually random?
Yes. Each spin draws from the browser's cryptographic random source, and values that would bias the result toward the earliest entries are discarded rather than folded back in. With equal weights every active entry has the same chance; with weights, an entry's chance is its weight divided by the total.
Can I give one name a bigger chance of winning?
Yes. Give it a higher weight in the options list: weight 3 is three times as likely as weight 1. Each option's chance is shown next to it, the slices can follow the weights, and shared rooms draw with the same weights.
How do I spin through every name without repeats?
After each spin, press Hide selected. This is a manual action, not an automatic mode, and it hides all entries with the selected label. Reset restores the hidden names.
How many names can I put on the wheel?
Practically, keep it under about twenty. Longer lists are accepted, but the wheel abbreviates slice labels once you pass roughly a dozen entries, so names become hard to read from across a room.
Is there a yes or no wheel?
Yes. A yes/no list is one of twelve presets, alongside food, cities, animals, movie genres, teams and tasks. Load it and spin, or edit the entries afterwards.
Can other people watch the same wheel?
Create a shared session and invite people with the appropriate access. Visibility depends on the session settings. You control who is allowed to spin and whether viewers see every result or only the host does.
Does the previous spin affect the next one?
Only if you hide the winner. If you leave the wheel as it is, every spin is independent and the same name can win twice in a row — unlikely, but not a malfunction.
Should I use the wheel or draw lots?
Use the wheel when the group should watch a single pick happen. Use draw lots when you need several winners at once, prizes matched to names, or reserve winners behind the main list.
Do I need an account to spin?
No. Typing entries and spinning needs no sign-in. An account only comes into play for shared sessions where other people join and follow the results.