Random Team Generator

Paste or upload a list of names, choose how to split the group, and get instant random teams — with support for keeping people together or apart. No sign-up, no app.

Why use this over a basic name picker

Random sports team generators

Want to pick a real team at random instead? Random NFL Team Generator · Random NBA Team Generator · Random MLB Team Generator · Random NHL Team Generator · Random Premier League Team Generator.

How the teams are generated

Names are shuffled using a random, unbiased algorithm (Fisher–Yates shuffle) and dealt out evenly across teams. If you add "keep together" or "keep apart" constraints, we run multiple randomized attempts and keep the first one that satisfies every constraint — if a combination is impossible to fully satisfy, we tell you exactly which constraint couldn't be met rather than silently ignoring it.

How to split a group into random teams

Type or paste your names into the box, one per line, or upload a .txt or .csv file exported from a spreadsheet or sign-up sheet. If your list might contain repeats, tick Remove duplicates, and use Sort A-Z if you want a tidy list to check before you draw. Next choose how to split the group: by the number of teams you want, or by the number of people you want on each team. Press Generate teams and the groups appear straight away, each with its own editable name.

If the result is not quite what you wanted, Re-roll makes a fresh split with the same settings, and you can repeat it as often as you like. When you are happy, Copy teams puts the lists on your clipboard as text, Export CSV makes a file for a spreadsheet, and Print gives a clean roster sheet with nothing else on the page.

Uneven groups and how they are handled

Groups rarely divide perfectly. With 14 names and 4 teams, two teams get four people and two teams get three. The generator spreads the extra people across as many teams as it can so that no team ends up more than one person larger than another. If you split by people per team instead, the generator works out how many teams are needed (14 names at 4 per team means 4 teams) and shares everyone out between them, so a team can end up one person under the size you asked for. It is worth deciding in advance how you want to treat a short team, for example by letting it pick first or play one fewer round.

Using captains

Choose the captains option to treat the first names on your list as team captains. They are spread evenly across the teams, one to each, and everyone else is shuffled into the teams around them. This suits playground-style picks, club nights and classroom games where you want leaders in place before the rest of the group is drawn. Put the captains at the top of the list.

Keeping people together or apart

Fair does not always mean unrestricted. Siblings may need to be on the same team for practical reasons, two people who always dominate a game may be better split up, and a teacher may want to keep certain pupils apart. Add constraints under Keep together / apart by choosing two names and the relationship between them. The generator then runs many randomised attempts and keeps the first one that satisfies every rule. If your rules cannot all be met together, such as asking for two people to be both together and apart, the page tells you which rule failed instead of quietly ignoring it.

Where random teams are useful

Classrooms and training sessions

Random groups mix pupils who would not usually work together, remove the awkwardness of choosing, and save the time it takes to organise groups by hand. Re-rolling for each new activity means nobody is stuck with the same partners all term.

Sports, clubs and five-a-side

Splitting a squad at the start of a session avoids arguments about who picked whom. Paste the names of whoever turned up, set the number of teams, and print the sheet or paste it into a group chat. Use captains if you want the traditional pick order.

Work, workshops and hackathons

Random groups for a workshop break up cliques and bring different departments together. For a hackathon or quiz night you can keep an experienced person apart from another so that teams are balanced.

Parties, games and giveaways

Board game tournaments, trivia nights and family games all need quick, fair splits. The team names can be edited in place, so you can rename a group to something suitable for the occasion.

Is a random split really fair?

A random draw gives every person the same chance of landing on any team, but it does not guarantee equal strength. With a small group, you can easily get one team with all the strongest players by pure chance. If balance matters, use the random draw as a starting point, then apply constraints to separate the top players, or re-roll until the teams look reasonable. Re-rolling because you dislike a result is perfectly acceptable as long as everyone agrees on the rule beforehand, for example that the first draw is final or that a group gets one re-roll.

Tips for better results

• Check the list before you draw. Misspelled or duplicated names produce odd teams, so use Remove duplicates and read through the names once.
• Agree the rules first. Decide how uneven teams, captains and re-rolls will be handled before you press Generate.
• Keep constraints few. The more restrictions you add, the fewer valid splits exist, and the less random the result.
• Save the result. Export a CSV or print the sheet so you can refer back to who was on which team.
• Rename the teams. Clicking a team name lets you replace Team 1, Team 2 and so on with something more fun.

Privacy

Your names are processed in your browser. A list you entered last time may be offered back to you from this device so you do not have to retype it, and you can dismiss it at any time. See the privacy policy for details.

FAQ

Is the shuffle really random?

Yes — it uses your browser's random number generator with a Fisher–Yates shuffle, the standard unbiased shuffling algorithm, not a simple sort or a repeating pattern.

Is my list saved anywhere?

Only in your own browser (localStorage), so we can offer to restore it next time you visit on the same device. It's never sent to a server.

Can I rename the teams?

Yes — click directly on a team's name after generating to rename it (e.g. "Team 1" → "Red Dragons").

Is there a limit to how many names or teams I can use?

No hard limit — it's been used for everything from a 6-person pub quiz to a 200-person office event split into 20 teams. Very large lists may take a fraction of a second longer with constraints added.

What's it used for?

Classroom group work, sports team picks, office team-building days, pub quizzes, D&D session groups, family game night — anywhere you need a genuinely fair, no-favorites split fast.

Does it work on mobile?

Yes — the page is fully responsive, and CSV export/printing both work from a phone or tablet browser as well as desktop.

How do I make teams of a specific size?

Set Split by to people per team and enter the size. The generator works out how many teams are needed and shares the names between them, so if the group does not divide evenly a team may have one person fewer than the size you asked for.

What happens if the numbers do not divide evenly?

The extra people are spread across the teams so that no team is more than one person larger than another.

Can I choose captains?

Yes. Select the option that treats the first names as captains and put your captains at the top of the list. They are spread evenly across the teams.

Can I re-roll if I do not like the teams?

Yes. Re-roll makes a new random split with the same names and settings as many times as you like. Agree with your group beforehand how many re-rolls are allowed.

How do I keep two people on the same team?

Add a keep together rule with those two names. If the rules you add cannot all be satisfied at once, the page tells you which one failed.

Can I save or share the teams?

Yes. Copy teams puts them on your clipboard as text, Export CSV makes a spreadsheet file, and Print produces a clean roster sheet.