Random Name Picker — Complete Documentation

Free random name picker wheel tool by Uplup. Spin the wheel of names for classrooms, raffles, giveaways, team building, and more. Supports up to 1 million+ names per wheel.

Overview
Getting Started
Adding Names
Spinning the Wheel
Weighted Entries
Teams Mode
Customization
Winners Management
Live / Full-Screen Mode
Saving & Loading Wheels
Dashboard
Sharing & Embedding
Spin History & Audit Log
Comment Picker Integration
Discord Bot
API Reference
Plans & Limits
FAQ

1. Overview

The Uplup Random Name Picker is a free, ad-free spin-the-wheel tool for randomly selecting names. It supports:

Up to 1 million+ names per wheel via CSV upload
Weighted entries — assign custom probabilities to each name
Teams mode — organize names into color-coded teams
Multi-winner selection — pick multiple winners in one session
Cryptographically fair — uses the Web Crypto API (crypto.getRandomValues()) in the browser, with server-side selection for very large pools
Full customization — colors, fonts, audio, backgrounds, icons
Live/presentation mode — full-screen for classrooms and events
Embed on any website — script-based embedding
Winner certificates — downloadable PDF proof of fair selection
Complete audit trail — timestamped history of every action

URL: uplup.com/random-name-picker

2. Getting Started

Without an Account

Visit uplup.com/random-name-picker
Enter names in the text area (one per line, or comma-separated)
Click the SPIN button in the center of the wheel
A winner is randomly selected and announced

No signup required for basic use.

With a Free Account

Creating a free account unlocks:

Save up to 3 wheels
Access the dashboard to manage wheels
View spin history and audit logs
Share winners via public links

With a Pro Account

Pro unlocks:

Unlimited saved wheels
Unlimited monthly spins
CSV upload (up to 1M+ names)
Custom backgrounds & fonts
Weighted entries
Winner certificates (PDF)
API access

3. Adding Names

3.1 Manual Entry

The Names tab in the left panel provides a text area for entering participants.

Input formats:

One name per line
Comma-separated names
Mix of both

Actions:

Add — Appends entered names to the wheel
Shuffle — Randomizes the order of all names
Clear All — Removes all names from the wheel
Sort A-Z — Alphabetically sorts names

Names appear as colored segments on the wheel immediately after adding.

Display limit: The wheel canvas renders a maximum of 250 segments visually. If more names are added, all names are still in the pool — the wheel just displays a representative subset.

3.2 CSV Upload (Pro)

Upload a CSV file to bulk-import names:

Click the CSV tab in the left panel
Drag and drop a .csv file or click to browse
File is parsed and names are loaded

CSV format support:

Auto-detects header row (looks for columns named name, email, weight)
Supports comma and tab delimiters
First column treated as the name (if no header detected)
Optional weight column for weighted entries
Extra columns (email, department, etc.) preserved as metadata

Limits: Up to 1 million names per wheel via CSV (Pro plan).

Processing modes:

Server-side — Large files processed entirely on the backend
Hybrid — Split between client and server
Client-side — Small files parsed in the browser

Session tracking: A csv_batch_id is generated for each upload session with processing mode, total count, and session ID displayed. Clear session button to reset.

4. Spinning the Wheel

4.1 Basic Spin

Click the center SPIN button (or press spacebar) to spin the wheel.

Spin behavior:

Wheel begins rotating with acceleration
Tick sounds play as segments pass the needle (if audio enabled)
Wheel decelerates and stops on a random segment
Winner announcement modal appears with confetti animation
Winner is added to the winners list

Spin duration options:

Rapid — Lightning-fast spin (2-3 seconds, ideal for picking many winners quickly)
Standard — Default spin; duration auto-scales with list size (5-15 seconds)
Long — Extended dramatic spin; auto-scales with list size (15-30 seconds)

Configured in the Customize modal → Audio & Effects → Spin Length.

4.2 Multi-Winner Mode

Select multiple winners in a single session.

How to configure:

Open the Winners Count dropdown in the spin controls bar
Select a preset: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50, 100
Or enter a custom number

Winner count limits:

Free account (logged in or out): 10
Pro account: Unlimited (presets up to 100, custom values supported)

Multi-winner modes:

Sequential — Spins one at a time, each winner announced individually
Batch — All winners selected at once, shown in a combined modal

During sequential multi-spin, a floating toast shows each winner as they’re selected (e.g., “#1 — Alice”, “#2 — Bob”).

After all winners are picked, a Multi-Winner Modal displays the complete list with position numbers and icons.

4.3 Auto-Remove Winners

When the Auto-Remove Winners toggle is enabled, selected winners are automatically excluded from subsequent spins.

Toggle found in the spin controls bar.

Behavior:

Winner’s segment is visually removed from the wheel after selection
Excluded indices tracked for CSV wheels
Names can be re-added by clearing winners

Use cases: Raffles, giveaways, classroom participation tracking.

4.4 Countdown Timer

A pre-spin countdown for dramatic effect.

Configuration:

Toggle on/off in spin controls
Set duration in seconds (default: 5 seconds)
Visual countdown displayed on the wheel

Flow: User clicks SPIN → Countdown appears: 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… → Wheel automatically begins spinning.

4.5 Manual Pick

Manually select a winner from the participant list without spinning.

How to use:

Click the Manual Pick button in the winners section
A modal appears with all participant names
Use the search box to filter names
Click Pick next to any name

Modal features: Search/filter input, scrollable name list with index numbers, weight indicator (if weighted mode active), pick button per name.

The manually picked winner is recorded in history with pick_method: "manual".

4.6 Server-Side Cryptographic Pick

For large datasets (500+ names), the winner is selected server-side using cryptographically secure randomness.

How it works:

Frontend sends spin request to the server
Backend uses cryptographically secure random number generation (Node.js crypto module)
Uniform random selection from the full name pool
Returns winner with complete audit trail

Audit response includes: algorithm name, timestamp, total pool size, excluded count, effective pool size, selected index, and probability percentage.

This ensures fairness even when the wheel can only display 250 segments visually.

5. Weighted Entries (Pro)

Assign custom probabilities to each name so some names are more likely to be selected.

Enabling Weighted Mode

Toggle Weighted Mode in the spin controls bar.

Configuring Weights

When weighted mode is active, each name shows weight controls:

Minus button — Decrease weight (minimum: 0.5)
Weight input — Direct number entry
Plus button — Increase weight (maximum: 100)
Probability % — Shows calculated chance of winning

Bulk Weight Actions

Reset All — Set all weights to 1.0
Double All — Multiply all weights by 2
Halve All — Divide all weights by 2

How Probability Works

Each name’s probability = (its weight / total of all weights) x 100%

Example: Alice (weight 3) = 50%, Bob (weight 2) = 33.3%, Charlie (weight 1) = 16.7%

The wheel segments visually reflect the weighted proportions — higher-weighted names get larger segments.

6. Teams Mode

6.1 Team Builder

Organize participants into color-coded teams with drag-and-drop.

How to access:

Toggle Teams on in the spin controls bar
Click the Team Builder button

Features:

Add/remove teams — create up to 10 teams
Edit team names — inline text editing
Drag-and-drop — move names between teams
Shuffle — randomly redistribute all members across teams
Copy All Teams — copy formatted team list to clipboard
Download CSV — export teams as CSV with Team/Name columns

10 Team Colors: Red (#ef4444), Blue (#3b82f6), Green (#22c55e), Yellow (#eab308), Purple (#a855f7), Pink (#ec4899), Indigo (#6366f1), Orange (#f97316), Teal (#14b8a6), Cyan (#06b6d4)

When teams mode is active, the wheel segments are color-coded by team. Spinning selects a winning team rather than an individual.

6.2 Team Split

Automatically distribute names evenly into teams.

How to use:

Open the Team Split modal
Select number of teams (2-10)
Click Generate Teams
Names are randomly distributed using Fisher-Yates shuffle

Actions: Reshuffle, Copy All, Download CSV (columns: Name, Team)

7. Customization

All customization is accessed via the Customize button in the top navigation bar, which opens the Customize Spinner modal with 5 tabs: Audio & Effects, Wheel Colors, Display, Text Style, and Page Background.

7.1 Audio & Effects

Audio:

Volume slider (0-100%)
Background audio options: None, Classic Tick, Drum Roll, A Little Night Dance, Rhythm Boulevard, Mixaund, Malcolm Martin Muhammad
Each track has a Play/Pause preview button

Effects:

Applause — crowd cheer when winner selected (default: on)
Confetti — particle animation on winner (default: on)

Spin Length: Rapid (2-3s), Standard (5-15s, default, auto-scales with list size), Long (15-30s, auto-scales with list size).

7.2 Wheel Colors

Preset Color Sets: Vibrant, Pastels, Cool Tones, Warm Tones, Rainbow, Grayscale, Neon, Ocean, Sunset, Forest, and more.

Custom Colors:

Add new colors with the color picker (hex input)
Delete individual colors (minimum 1 required)
Drag-and-drop to reorder colors (changes segment order on wheel)
Colors cycle through the sequence for wheel segments

The Wheel Colors tab also includes Center Button and Needle customization:

Center Button color — Background color of the SPIN button (default: #E8604C)
Center Button text color — Text color on the button (default: #FFFFFF)
Center Button label — Custom text (default: “SPIN”)
Needle style — Classic style
Needle color — Color picker (default: #E8604C)

7.3 Display

The Display tab controls wheel labels and the winner icon.

Show Title — Toggle to display/hide a title above the wheel
Title — Custom title text
Description — Optional description text below the wheel (up to 500 characters)
Winner Icon — Choose from Trophy (default), Gift, Star, Crown, Medal, Gem, Heart, Fire, Award
Icon Color — Hex color picker (default: #EAB308 golden yellow)

7.4 Text Style

Settings (Pro plan required):

Text Color — Hex color picker for wheel segment text
Font Family — Dropdown with 1,018 Google Fonts (searchable with live preview)

7.5 Page Background

Background type options:

None — Transparent/default background
Solid Color — Single color with hex picker
Custom Photo — Upload image (Pro feature, max 5MB, JPEG/PNG/GIF/WebP)

8. Winners Management

8.1 Winners List

The Winners tab in the left panel shows all selected winners:

Position number (#1, #2, #3…)
Winner name
Winner icon (customizable)
Remove button per winner (trash icon)
Team info (if teams mode is active)

Empty state: “No winners yet. Spin the wheel to select winners.”

Actions: Manual Pick button, Clear All button (with confirmation).

8.2 Winner Announcement Modal

Single Winner:

Header: “We have a winner!”
Large winner name display (auto-scales font)
Custom winner icon with color
Confetti animation (if enabled)
Close button and remove winner button

Team Winner:

Header: “Winning Team!”
Team name with color highlight
Team member list
Highlighted member who was the actual spin result

Comment Picker Winner:

Shows comment author name
Comment text excerpt
Link to original social media post

8.3 Export Winners

Export options:

Copy to Clipboard — Plain text list
Download CSV — CSV file with positions, names, timestamps
Download PDF — Formatted PDF document

8.4 Winner Certificates (Pro)

Generate a professional PDF certificate proving fair random selection.

Single Spin Certificate: winner name, selection method, timestamp. Options to include participant list and audit log.

Session Certificate: all winners from the current session, complete spin log, session summary statistics.

9. Live / Full-Screen Mode

Enter presentation mode for classrooms, events, and live streams.

How to enter: Click the Full Screen button in the top navigation.

Live Mode Features:

Dark gradient background
Wheel fills the entire viewport
All controls hidden (clean presentation)
Live Picker Dropdown (bottom-right) for quick winner count selection
Winner modal overlays in full-screen
Multi-spin toast notifications float over the wheel
Exit button to return to normal view

Ideal for: Classroom projectors, event raffles, live stream audience engagement, meeting icebreakers.

10. Saving & Loading Wheels

Saving a Wheel

Click the Save button in the top navigation. Requires a free account.

What’s saved: all names, color scheme, customization settings, winner history, background image, audio/effects preferences, teams configuration, weighted entries, display mode, and title.

Auto-save: If you have unsaved changes and navigate away, an Unsaved Work Modal prompts you to save or discard.

Loading a Wheel

Click the Load button to open the dashboard and select a previously saved wheel.

Local storage backup: Wheel data is cached locally as a fallback for unsaved work.

11. Dashboard

URL: /random-name-picker/dashboard (requires login)

The dashboard provides a central hub for managing all saved wheels.

Wheel List

Each wheel card displays: wheel name (editable inline), last updated timestamp, participant count, winner count, spin count, and visibility (public/private badge).

Actions Per Wheel

Live Page — Open the public results / live page for the wheel
Results — Open the dedicated winners page for that wheel
Actions — Open the spin history / audit log
Duplicate — Create a copy of the wheel
Delete — Delete with confirmation
If the wheel is public, a Share link active banner appears with copy and open-in-new-tab buttons. Click the wheel name to rename inline; click the wheel itself to load it into the spinner.

Dashboard Stats

Total wheels created, total spins across all wheels, total winners selected, plan tier and remaining limits.

12.1 Share Links

Public Share URL: When a wheel is set to public, a share URL is auto-generated with a 16-character random token. Format: uplup.com/random-name-picker/results/{shareUrl}

12.2 Embed Code

Embed the wheel on any website using a script tag:

<div id="uplup-wheel-{wheelId}"></div>
<script src="https://uplup.com/embed/wheel.js?id={wheelId}" async></script>

Embed features: Responsive (adapts to container), full spinning capability, winner tracking via localStorage, fullscreen button, winners log toggle.

12.3 Social Sharing

Share winners via: Facebook, Twitter/X, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Copy Link.

13. Spin History & Audit Log

URL: /random-name-picker/history/{wheelId} (requires login, wheel owner)

Action Types Tracked

wheel_created, wheel_loaded, wheel_saved, wheel_renamed, wheel_deleted, wheel_shared, wheel_unshared, wheel_duplicated, names_added, names_removed, names_cleared, names_shuffled, spin_started, spin_completed, winner_removed, winners_cleared, settings_changed, live_mode_entered, live_mode_exited, export_csv

Filtering

Action Type — Dropdown to filter by specific action
Date Range — Start and end date pickers
Search — Text search by action details

Display

Color-coded by action type (green=create, red=delete, blue=load, purple=settings, orange=update). Relative timestamps with full date on hover. Timezone-aware. Paginated at 100 entries per page.

14. Comment Picker Integration

Wheels can be created from a Facebook Comment Picker session, in which case the participants come from comments on a Facebook post. Comment Picker wheels lock winner selection to 1 at a time (multi-winner is disabled), and the winner modal shows the comment text plus a “View Comment on Facebook” link to the original post.

The shared Winners Page at /random-name-picker/winners/{wheelId} auto-refreshes and includes a Facebook-branded header for Comment Picker wheels.

16. Discord Bot

Commands:

/spin members — Select from server members
/spin custom — Custom comma-separated entries
/spin reactions — Select from message reactors
/spin voice — Select from voice channel users

Features: Animated GIF wheel spins, 5 color themes, open-source on GitHub.

17. API Reference

Base URL: https://api.uplup.com/api/v2/wheels

Authentication: Session-based (user_id + session_id) or API key (Bearer token).

26 REST endpoints available. See the full API documentation for request/response shapes, authentication details, and code examples.

Key endpoints:

GET /wheels — List all wheels
POST /wheels — Create wheel
GET /wheels/{wheelId} — Get wheel details
PATCH /wheels/{wheelId} — Update wheel
DELETE /wheels/{wheelId} — Delete wheel
POST /wheels/{wheelId}/spin-pick — Server-side cryptographic pick
POST /wheels/{wheelId}/csv — Upload CSV
GET /wheels/stats — Platform statistics

18. Plans & Limits

Feature	Free	Pro
Names per wheel	100	1,000,000+
Spins per wheel	10	Unlimited
Saved wheels	3	Unlimited
Winners at once	10	Unlimited (presets up to 100)
Teams in wheel picker	2	Unlimited
CSV upload	No	Yes
Weighted entries	No	Yes
Custom backgrounds	No	Yes
Custom fonts (1,018 Google Fonts)	No	Yes
Winner certificates (PDF)	No	Yes
Color presets & custom colors	Yes	Yes
Center button & needle customization	Yes	Yes
Audio effects	Yes	Yes
Teams mode	Yes	Yes
Live/full-screen mode	Yes	Yes
Share & embed	Yes	Yes
Spin history	Yes	Yes
Winner export (CSV/PDF)	Yes	Yes
API access	No	Yes

19. FAQ

Q: Is the random selection truly fair?

A: Yes. For small wheels, the browser uses the Web Crypto API (crypto.getRandomValues()) for cryptographically secure randomness. For large wheels (500+ names), the server performs the pick using a cryptographically secure random number generator. Every spin includes a full audit trail.

Q: How many names can I add?

A: Free accounts support up to 100 names. Pro accounts support over 1 million names via CSV upload.

Q: Can I use this for a classroom?

A: Absolutely. Popular with teachers for student participation, group assignments, and making activities fun. Full-screen mode works great on projectors.

Q: How do I prove the selection was fair?

A: Pro users can download a Winner Certificate (PDF) with the winner name, method, timestamp, participant list, and audit log.

Q: Can I embed the wheel on my website?

A: Yes. Save your wheel, then use the embed code (script tag) to add it to any website.

Q: What is weighted mode?

A: Weighted mode lets you assign different probabilities to names. A name with weight 3 is three times more likely to be selected than one with weight 1.

Q: Can I pick multiple winners?

A: Yes. Use the Winners Count dropdown to select how many (up to 100 for Pro users). Sequential or batch mode available.

Q: Does the wheel work on mobile?

A: Yes. Fully responsive with touch-friendly controls.

Q: Is there a Discord bot?

A: Yes. Open-source Discord bot available for random selection using server members, custom entries, reactions, or voice channel users.