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Generator Hut

Random Team Generator

Paste a list of names, get balanced random teams.

Your list

0 names ready. Commas work too.

Teams

Paste your names above, then press Make teams.

Paste a list of names and split it into random teams of even size. Useful for picking sides without anyone feeling picked last, splitting a class into working groups, or settling who is on which team when nobody wants to captain. Team sizes never differ by more than one, and nothing you type leaves your device.

Why use this tool?

Teams stay balanced

Sizes never differ by more than one person, however awkward the total. Eleven people across three teams gives 4, 4 and 3 rather than 5, 5 and 1.

Nobody picked last

The oldest problem with captains choosing sides is that someone is always chosen last, in public. A shuffle removes that entirely.

Tidies your list

Blank lines are skipped and duplicate names are ignored case-insensitively, with a count shown so the total is never a surprise.

Names never leave your device

The list is processed in your browser and never uploaded — which matters when the names are pupils, staff or customers.

How this random team generator works

The list is shuffled with a Fisher–Yates shuffle driven by the Web Crypto API, then dealt round-robin into the teams — first name to team one, second to team two, and so on around again.

Dealing rather than selecting is what keeps the teams even. The obvious approach — pick five at random for team one, then five for team two — leaves the final team with whatever remains, and with an awkward total that can be badly lopsided. Round-robin dealing guarantees sizes within one of each other no matter how the numbers fall.

Names are parsed from lines or commas, trimmed, and de-duplicated case-insensitively, so “Sam” and “sam” count as one person. Both the duplicate and blank counts are reported rather than silently applied — a team list that quietly lost someone is worse than one that says so.

How to use it

  1. Step 1: Paste your names

    One per line, or separated by commas. The count updates as you type.

  2. Step 2: Choose how many teams

    Two or more, up to the number of people you have.

  3. Step 3: Make teams

    Press Make teams, then Shuffle again for a different split, or copy and export the result.

Example usage

PE lessons and sports days
A class list split into four groups in front of everyone, so no one is chosen last.
Workshop breakout groups
Thirty attendees into six tables, re-shuffled after lunch so people meet different colleagues.
Quiz and party games
Whoever turned up, split into two even sides without anyone negotiating.

Frequently asked questions

How does it keep the teams even?

It shuffles the whole list and then deals round-robin, one person to each team in turn. That guarantees sizes differ by at most one. Selecting a full team at a time does not — it leaves the last team with the remainder.

Can I make teams of a set size instead?

Not directly — you choose the number of teams rather than the size. Divide your headcount by the size you want and enter that as the team count.

What happens to duplicate names?

They are ignored, case-insensitively, and the number removed is shown under the box. If you genuinely have two people with the same name, distinguish them — “Sam K” and “Sam T”.

Is my list sent anywhere?

No. Everything runs in your browser with no server involved, so the names exist only in the tab. That matters when the list is pupils, staff or customers.

How many names can I paste?

Up to five hundred. Beyond that the result stops being readable on screen, though the CSV export handles it fine.

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