Three-Option Picker
Three options are already in the box. Edit them and press Spin to pick one at random. The winner is decided fairly before the wheel moves, and the wheel is then made to stop on it, so what you see always matches the result. Your input never leaves the browser.
How to use the three-option picker
The box already holds three lines. Replace them with your own options and press Spin. That is the whole flow.
- Write your three options: each line becomes one slice. Add more lines and it works as a four- or five-way picker.
- Press Spin: the wheel slows down and the pointer at the top marks the winner.
- Use the result: it appears in large type below, and Copy result puts it on your clipboard.
Why three is the hardest number to choose from
With two options you simply pick a side. With three, the number of comparisons jumps: A against B, B against C, and A against C. Those three comparisons can also contradict each other. You may prefer B to A, C to B, and yet still prefer A to C. When that happens no amount of reasoning produces a ranking, and the decision never closes.
That deadlock is a property of how the comparisons are structured, not of the options themselves, which is why sleeping on it rarely helps. If the three genuinely feel close, drawing lots costs you less than continuing to deliberate.
How it differs from two or four
A two-way choice is about giving something up, so the hesitation is about cost. A three-way choice usually appears when none of them is bad, so the hesitation is about ranking. Once you reach four or more, people stop holding the whole set in mind and quietly narrow it to their top two first. Three is the largest set most people still try to compare all at once, which is exactly why it drags on.
When to use it
Choosing between three places to eat
Decide before you spin that you will go with whatever comes up. Agreeing to the rule first is what makes the result feel acceptable.
Assigning a chore to one of three people
Faster than discussing it, and nobody has to argue their case. If you need the full running order rather than one name, use the order picker.
Picking a weekend plan
The two that lose are not discarded, only postponed. Remove the winner and spin again to rank the rest.
Is it fair?
The wheel does not decide anything. The winner is chosen first with Math.random(), and the rotation is then calculated so that slice comes to rest under the pointer. All slices are the same size, so with three options each covers 120 degrees and has exactly a one in three chance.
The animation is presentation only. Editing the list mid-spin does not change the winner that was already drawn.
What to do with the two that lost
Some people re-run the draw because the rejected options keep nagging at them. That happens when losing is read as being thrown away. Nothing was thrown away: an order was produced. Delete the winner, spin again, and you have second and third place too.
And if the result makes you think "no, not that one", you have just learned something. You are not obliged to follow it. A draw is a way of deciding, but it is also a way of surfacing a preference you could not articulate.
Combining it with other methods
With more than three candidates, cut the list down with one mechanical rule first, then spin on the survivors. Rules that give a clean yes or no work best, such as whether it fits the budget or can be finished today. Filtering on taste just moves the hesitation earlier.
If several people are involved and you want the draw itself to be part of the fun, amidakuji works better. For simply picking one thing, this is faster.