How the group spin wheel works
- Paste your list of names. Tap anyone who isn’t here today so they sit out.
- Set Groups (2 to 20) and press Assign everyone.
- The wheel spins quickly for each person. The first pick goes to Group 1, the next to Group 2, and so on, wrapping around, so every group ends up the same size or one apart.
- The groups appear above the list as the wheel works. Press Copy groups to paste them into a chat, slide or worksheet.
How groups are balanced
Names are dealt round-robin, like cards. With 12 people and 3 groups you get three groups of 4. With 13 people, Group 1 gets the extra person. Each spin picks from everyone not yet placed, using crypto randomness, so every possible split is equally likely.
| People and groups | Group sizes |
|---|---|
| 12 people, 2 groups | 6 and 6 |
| 12 people, 3 groups | 4, 4 and 4 |
| 13 people, 3 groups | 5, 4 and 4 |
| 30 students, 6 groups | 5 in every group |
| 22 players, 2 teams | 11 a side |
Where a team picker wheel helps
- Classrooms: project groups and lab partners that aren’t always the same friends. Watching the spin makes the split feel fair.
- Sports and games: five-a-side football, futsal, basketball pickup games, and quiz-night teams.
- Workshops and offices: breakout rooms, hackathon teams, and Secret Santa groups.
- Online groups and Discord: share your screen, spin, and paste the copied groups into the chat.
Do it again
Everyone is sat out once they have a group. Press Everyone back, then Assign everyone for a brand-new split. To pick one person at a time, such as a team captain, just press Spin.
Tips for fairer teams
- Spin captains first. Use the main Spin button to pick one captain per team, tap them to sit out, then assign everyone else.
- Mix skill levels by hand. The wheel is random, not skill-based. If you need balanced sports teams, spin the strongest players into groups first, then the rest.
- Keep the screen visible. Groups feel fairer when everyone watches the spins than when names just appear in a list.
- Reroll once if needed. Agree beforehand that you’ll redo the whole draw at most once.
Breakout rooms in Zoom, Meet and Teams
- Paste the participant list from the meeting’s people panel.
- Set the number of rooms and press Assign everyone while sharing your screen.
- Press Copy groups and paste the list into the chat, so everyone sees which room they’re in.
- Create the rooms in your meeting app to match the copied groups.
Questions people ask
How do I make random groups with a spin wheel?
Add the names, set the number of groups and press Assign everyone. The wheel spins once per person and deals them into groups in turn.
Are the groups even?
As even as the numbers allow. People are dealt into groups one at a time in rotation, so the biggest and smallest group are at most one person apart.
Can I leave someone out?
Yes. Tap their name chip before assigning and they sit out of the draw.
How many groups can I make?
From 2 up to 20 groups, from a list of up to 1,000 names.
Can the team picker balance teams by skill?
No, every split is random. To balance skill, assign your strongest players first with one spin each, then assign everyone else.
Can I use it for breakout rooms?
Yes. Assign everyone, press Copy groups, and paste the list into your meeting chat before opening the rooms.
What happens if names don’t divide evenly?
The extra people go to the first groups. With 13 people and 3 groups, you get 5, 4 and 4.
Updated by the SpinnWheel team