Random Group Generator
One list in, three tools out: split everyone into random groups, rotate icebreaker pairs that never repeat, or match two lists (sign-ups to mentors) one to one. The shuffle runs in your browser on a seed you can keep and replay — nothing is uploaded, and the result exports as CSV or fills the room display.
Running a session and want the room to see more than a slide? A QR Card collects the sign-ups and check-ins on the room display while this page keeps the grouping — make one: one sentence in, no signup needed.
01
What "random" means here
The names are shuffled with the Fisher–Yates algorithm on a seeded generator, so every permutation is equally likely and the same seed gives back the same result. Hand-splitting a room is neither: it drifts towards friends standing near friends and arrivals grouped in order. Keep the seed printed under the result and anyone can check that nothing was doctored afterwards.
02
Why pairs never repeat
The pair schedule uses the circle method: one person stays fixed, everyone else rotates one seat per round. Built that way, no two people meet twice inside one schedule — the non-repetition is a property of the construction, not luck. An odd head count gets a bye that travels around the circle, so someone sits out one round instead of two people being squeezed into a trio.
03
Getting the roster in
Paste from a spreadsheet or CSV: one name per line, commas and semicolons work as separators too. Exactly duplicated names are removed and the count is announced in the same breath — the tool never silently eats a name. Everything is computed locally; no list leaves the browser.
04
Getting the result on the wall
Present full screen puts one group (or one round) per page and arrow keys step through it — built for a projector, a TV on a wall, or a laptop plugged into the room display. For paper, download the CSV: it carries a byte-order mark, so spreadsheet software opens Chinese names without mangling them.
Grouping questions, answered
Is this tool free, and do I need an account?
Neither. The generator runs in your browser, there is no signup, and the names you paste are never sent anywhere — the same discipline as the Wi-Fi and vCard generators on this site.
Can I force two people into (or out of) one group?
Not with this shuffle — it has no constraint solver, and pretending otherwise would mislead you about the draw. What does work: fix the people you care about on one side and use the two-list match, which keeps List A in the order you typed and randomises only the partners.
What if the head count is odd?
For groups, sizes stay balanced — no group ends up more than one person bigger than another. For pairs, one person gets a walkover each round and the walkover rotates, so everyone sits out the same number of rounds across a full schedule.
Can I reproduce a result?
Yes. Type the shown seed back into the seed box with the same list and you get the identical draw — handy when someone asks you to run it again for the second half of the room.
No statistics are quoted here about learning outcomes or engagement — the page describes the shuffle and what its output can be used for.