Pick a number between 1 and 500
This page is a random number generator 1-500: five hundred equal slices on a wheel, one spin and one number. Use it to pick a number between 1 and 500 for a fundraiser, a book page, a contest entry or a sample from a long list.
It is free, runs in your browser and needs no account. The wheel opens ready on 1 to 500, so you can press Spin and read your number straight away.
How to spin the wheel for numbers 1-500
- Decide what the numbers mean. Tickets, pages, entries or rows.
- Press Spin. You can also click the wheel or press Ctrl (⌘ on a Mac) plus Enter.
- Read the number in the result window. The Results tab lists every spin, newest first.
- Draw several winners by switching on No repeats. Each picked number comes off the wheel until you put them back.
Odds on a five-hundred-number wheel
Each number has a one-in-five-hundred chance, exactly 0.2%, on every spin. The number is picked by your browser’s secure random number generator before the wheel starts moving, and the wheel is steered to stop on it. The spin lets you watch the result arrive and cannot change it. See how WheelSpinny picks for more.
Five hundred slices are slivers, so the wheel labels every tenth slice, like the marks on a dial. The result window names the exact number in large text, and the Results tab keeps a plain list. Nothing depends on reading a single slice.
A fundraiser draw
Five hundred is a long ticket run for a school fundraiser, a club draw or a community event. Number the tickets, switch on No repeats, and spin once for each prize. A ticket that has won comes off the wheel, so it cannot win twice.
Be open about how the draw works. Show the page on a screen, read each number aloud, and post the list from the Results tab afterwards. For a draw with real prizes, remember that this is a casual tool and not a certified system, and follow any local rules for raffles.
More ideas for a number up to 500
- A random page. Pick a page of a five-hundred-page book for a reading challenge or a book-club game.
- Contest entries. Number every entry as it arrives and spin for the winner.
- Spreadsheet samples. Pick rows to check from a long list and copy the Results tab into a column.
- Large events. Draw seat numbers, badge numbers or race numbers.
- Estimation games. Spin and ask the group to guess how many steps it is to the door.
- Challenge targets. Pick a number of words, steps or minutes to aim for.
Guess the number from 1 to 500
A guessing game with five hundred numbers is a proper puzzle. A random guess is right one time in five hundred, but a player who always guesses the middle of what remains will find any number in nine guesses or fewer, because nine halvings cover up to 512 numbers.
It makes a good lesson on how quickly halving shrinks a big problem. After the first guess, 250 numbers remain, then 125, then about 62, and by the ninth guess there is one.
Other ways to pick from five hundred
If you want a log of winners with names, use the raffle generator. To shuffle a long list in one click, use the list randomizer. For a smaller wheel, try 1 to 200, and for the biggest, 1 to 1,000.
You can change the range on this page by editing From and To, or open the general random number generator to count in steps or leave numbers out.
Picking a page in a long book
Five hundred pages is a thick novel or a reference book. A random page makes a good reading game: spin, open the book at that page, and read aloud the first sentence. Book clubs use it to pick a passage for discussion, and teachers use it for a spot of random reading practice.
If the book has fewer pages, change To to the page count so that every slice is a real page. The wheel rebuilds to match, and each page keeps the same chance. If you want to skip the cover pages, change From to the first numbered page.
Keep a record of the draw
The Results tab is your record. It lists every number drawn in order, and Copy puts the list on your clipboard so you can paste it into a message, a spreadsheet or a newsletter. The list lasts only until you close or reload the page, so copy it before you leave.
Ask a second person to write the numbers down as they are called. Two records are better than one, and it keeps the draw open to everyone watching.
Good to know
- The wheel holds the numbers 1 to 500, with both ends included.
- Your range and settings are saved in your own browser, and the Results tab lasts until you close or reload the page. Nothing is sent to a server.
- It works on phones, tablets and desktop browsers, and with a keyboard. The result is announced to screen readers.
- A device set to reduce motion skips the long spin.
- It is for games and informal draws, not for regulated lotteries or security.