A seating plan in a minute, with the rules you actually need
Every teacher knows the two pupils who cannot sit next to each other and the one who has to be near the board. Drawing a fresh seating plan by hand with all that in mind takes a free period; random seating without it takes ten minutes of moving people again.
Here you type the class list, set how many rows and seats there are, and write the rules down once: who must not share a side, and who must sit in the front row. The chart comes out random within those rules, with the board marked at the top so you read it the way the room looks.
If you know something the rules do not — two quiet pupils who would work well together — tap two seats to swap them. The page warns you if a swap puts a keep-apart pair side by side.
Making a seating chart
Set the room first: the number of seats limits everything else.
Type the students, one per line, then set the number of rows and seats per row to match the room.
Under “Keep apart”, put pupils who must not sit next to each other on one line. Under “Must sit in the front row”, list anyone who needs to be near the board.
Press “Arrange seats”. Tap two seats to swap pupils if you want, then copy or print the chart.
What the chart respects
Each rule is checked every time you shuffle.
- Up to 12 rows and 12 seats per row
- Keep-apart groups: nobody sits beside, in front of or behind someone from their group
- A front-row list for pupils who need to be near the board
- Empty seats spread at random when there are more seats than pupils
- Tap-to-swap with a warning if a swap breaks a keep-apart rule
- The board marked at the top so the chart matches the room
- Print just the chart, or copy it row by row as text
- Class lists stay in this browser and are not sent anywhere
Lessons, exams and new classes
Any time the seating needs a fresh start without a fight.
A maths teacher reseats a year-7 class of 28 every half-term and keeps two chatty pairs apart.
A secondary school seats 30 students for a mock exam so that friends do not end up side by side.
A new form tutor seats a class they do not know yet, with the two pupils who need glasses at the front.
A language teacher mixes native and non-native speakers by putting each group's strongest pairs on keep-apart lines.
A workshop facilitator seats participants from the same company apart at long tables.
A supply teacher prints a chart to learn names quickly during the first lesson.
How the seats are filled
Front-row pupils are placed first, then the pupils with the most keep-apart rules, then everyone else. Each one goes into a random free seat whose neighbours — left, right, in front and behind — contain nobody from their keep-apart groups. If the search hits a dead end, it starts again with a new random order, so any valid chart can come out.
Diagonal seats do not count as neighbours, which is usually what you want in rows of desks. If the rules cannot all be met with your number of seats, the page says so instead of producing a chart that quietly breaks one.
What it does not model
Each row is treated as one continuous line of seats. If your room has an aisle in the middle, two pupils across the aisle still count as neighbours; set the seats per row to one side of the aisle and make two charts if that matters.
It knows only the rules you write. It cannot balance ability, gender or behaviour by itself.
There is no shared online plan for colleagues; print it or copy it into your planner.
For a plan that lasts the term
- Keep the keep-apart list short. Every extra rule makes valid charts rarer and the result less random.
- Use the front-row list for real needs — eyesight, hearing, mobility — not for behaviour, which keep-apart handles better.
- Print the chart for the desk and keep the list in the box: next half-term, one press gives a new plan.
- Tell the class the plan was made at random within a few rules; it heads off most complaints.
Seating chart questions
Which seats count as next to each other?
Left, right, in front and behind. Diagonal seats do not count, so two pupils who must be apart can end up diagonally adjacent.
How many students can I seat?
Up to 12 rows of 12 seats, so 144. Fewer students than seats is fine; the empty seats are spread at random.
Can I put some pupils in the front row?
Yes. List them under “Must sit in the front row”. There must be no more of them than seats in a row.
Can I change a seat after the shuffle?
Yes. Tap one seat, then another, and the two swap. If the swap seats two keep-apart pupils side by side, a warning names them.
Why does it say the rules cannot be met?
There are too few seats for the keep-apart and front-row rules together. Add a row or seats per row, or drop a rule, and arrange again.
Is my class list stored online?
No. It is kept only in this browser so you find it next time; nothing is sent to a server when you arrange seats.
Can I print just the chart?
Yes. The print button prints the seating plan on its own, without the rest of the page.