Choose the rule before the draw
Do you already have a fixed number of tables or breakout spaces? Use By number of groups. If each table has a seat limit, use By maximum people per group. The preview shows the resulting group sizes before you generate.
- Paste one name per line. Check the entry count against your attendance list.
- Choose a mode and enter a positive whole number. In group-count mode, the number cannot exceed the entries in your list.
- Generate, check the groups, and download the result you intend to use. Editing the list or settings clears the old result and its downloads.
A twelve-entry practice draw
The sample button loads twelve invented labels, from Aster / 01 through Lake / 12. Choose 3 groups and the preview is 4 people per group. Switching to a maximum of 4 people also produces 3 groups of 4. Those settings agree for this list, but they express different rules.
Add a second line reading Aster / 01 and you now have 13 entries. With 3 groups, the sizes become 5, 4, 4. The two Aster lines both appear in the result. If they represent different people, give them separate labels before drawing; the tool cannot tell them apart for you.
What does a maximum of five mean?
For 31 entries with a maximum of 5, the tool calculates 7 groups, then spreads the entries evenly: three groups of 5 and four groups of 4. It does not fill six groups of 5 and leave one person alone.
Choose 6 groups for those same 31 entries and the rule changes: one group has 6 people and five groups have 5. A fixed group count can exceed a five-seat limit. Use maximum-size mode when the limit matters.
With 13 entries and a maximum of 2, you get six two-person groups and one one-person group. A maximum is a ceiling, not a promise that every group will be full. If the maximum exceeds the entire list, everyone goes into one group; a maximum of 1 gives each entry its own group.
Keep the labels you actually entered
Leading and trailing spaces are removed, and empty lines do not create participants. Repeated labels stay repeated. For example, the lines “ Aster / 01 ”, a blank line, “Aster / 01”, and “Birch / 02” produce three entries, including two copies of Aster / 01. Case and punctuation inside a label are retained.
Save one result in two formats
CSV uses the columns Group,Name; TXT places each member under a Group heading. Both download buttons use the current visible draw. A name such as Chen, Mei remains one CSV cell, and a quote in Jo “JJ” is escaped for CSV.
Names beginning with =, +, @, or - receive a leading apostrophe in CSV to prevent spreadsheet formula interpretation. TXT keeps the original label. If you inspect raw CSV text, that apostrophe is deliberate. Editing any input removes both download links until you generate again.
Does random mean balanced by ability?
Only group sizes are balanced. This page shuffles entries using browser random numbers; it does not read skills, friendships, prior rounds, or preferences. Reshuffling can repeat a previous partner or even a whole group. Save a draw before reshuffling if you need to keep it.
Need help with your input or files? Read the roster preparation guide, the uneven group size example, or the CSV checking guide.