How to Pick a Giveaway Winner Fairly (Free Random Picker)

Holiday giveaways are a great way to grow followers and thank customers. The part people trust least is the draw: "How was the winner chosen?" Here's a simple, fair and transparent way to pick a winner without paid apps.

Gift boxes with red ribbons

Step 1: Write simple rules first

Before you post, decide and publish:

How to enter — e.g. comment and follow, or sign up by email.
Closing date and time, with the time zone.
One entry per person (or how extra entries work).
Who can enter — country, age, employees excluded.
How and when the winner will be announced and contacted.

Check the platform's promotion rules too; Instagram, Facebook and TikTok each have their own.

Step 2: Collect the entries into a list

Copy the entrants' usernames or emails into a plain list, one per line. Most platforms let you export comments, or you can copy them by hand for small giveaways.

Step 3: Remove duplicates

If the rule is one entry per person, someone who commented five times should appear once. Paste the list into Remove Duplicate Lines to clean it in one click. Optionally sort it with Sort Lines so it's easy to check.

Person wrapping gifts by a Christmas tree

Step 4: Draw the winner

Open the free Random Generator.
Choose Pick from a list.
Paste the cleaned list — one entry per line.
Click Pick. The result is chosen at random, and every entry has the same chance.

More than one winner? Remove the first winner from the list and pick again, so nobody wins twice.

Step 5: Make it transparent

Record your screen while you paste the list and click Pick, and share the clip.
Announce the number of valid entries — it shows the list was complete.
Have a backup plan: if the winner doesn't reply within, say, 48 hours, draw again the same way.

Bonus: number-based draws

If entries are numbered (raffle tickets, order numbers), use the Random number mode with the first and last number as the range instead.

FAQ

Is the draw really random? Yes — every line has an equal chance. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere; the pick happens in your browser.

Can I pick from thousands of entries? Yes. Paste the whole list; there's no practical limit for a giveaway.

Try it now

Pick your winner with the free Random Generator.