How to Randomize a List in Google Sheets?

If you’re in the world of business operations, chances are you’ve encountered a situation where knowing how to randomize a list in Google Sheets was important. For example, maybe you’re balancing lead distribution for a sales team. Knowing how to harness the power of randomness in your spreadsheet can ensure each representative gets their fair share of hot, warm, and cold leads. This guide will provide you with a tutorial on four different ways to randomize a list in Google Sheets.

1. Randomize a List Using Random Sort in the Data Menu

The Random Sort feature is the easiest method to randomize a list in Google Sheets. Let’s see how to apply it:

1. First, select the range of cells you want to randomize. It can be a list of names, numbers, etc.

2. Tip: Be careful not to accidentally select the column headers in the first row of your spreadsheet. If you do, Google Sheets will shuffle and randomize your headers along with the data.

3. Go to the top ribbon of your spreadsheet and open the Data menu.

4. Click on “Random Sort.”

5. Google Sheets will automatically rearrange your list into a new random order.

2. Randomize a List Using Random Sort in the Help Menu

Google Sheets’ Help menu offers another easy-to-access option for randomizing your list in just a few clicks.

• Start by selecting the range of cells you want to randomize.

• Right-click to open Google Sheets’ Help menu.

• Scroll down the menu until you find “Show more actions on cells.”

• Hover over it and select “Random Sort” from the options.

• The selected ranges will now appear in a completely random order.

3. Randomize a List Using Random Sort with the SORT and RANDARRAY Functions

While less straightforward than the Random Sort feature, the SORT and RANDARRAY functions offer more power and flexibility when randomizing a list.

Let’s see how to use them with our existing dataset:

1. Start by adding a new column in your Google Sheet. In this example, name it “Random Sort.”

2. Apply the formula for the RANDARRAY function, for example: =RANDARRAY(COUNTA(A:A))

3. This will generate a column of random numbers for each entry in column A.

4. Next, we’ll sort the list using the random numbers we just generated.

5. Enter the following formula in an open cell in column C: =SORT(A:A, B:B, FALSE)

6. Note: The “FALSE” argument sorts your list in descending order. Use “TRUE” if you want to sort your list in ascending order. The results will still remain randomized.

7. Press Enter. Your randomized list will now appear in column C.

4. Randomize a List Using Random Sort with the QUERY Function

The QUERY function in Google Sheets allows you to perform SQL-like queries on your data. When combined with the RAND function, you can use it to randomize a list.

Let’s go back to our original dataset to see how this works:

• Start by clicking on an empty cell next to your list. Type the formula: =RAND()

• Press Enter to generate a random number for each entry in your list.

• Now, we can use the QUERY function to randomize the list.

• Select an empty cell in column C.

• Enter the following formula: =QUERY(A:B, "SELECT A ORDER BY B", 0)

• • “A:B” is the range of your data.
• • “SELECT A ORDER BY B” represents your query. In this example, we’re asking Google Sheets to select the data from column A and sort it by the random numbers in column B.
• • “0” indicates there are no header rows. Change it to 1 if your list contains headers.

• Press Enter to apply the formula in column C. This will re-randomize the list from column B.

Use AI to Write Formulas for Randomizing Your List

As you can see, there are multiple alternatives to randomize a list in Google Sheets. It can be overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it alone.

You can use GPT Copilot from Coefficient, which is free, to automatically generate any spreadsheet formula, pivot, or chart, including your conditional formatting formulas. To use GPT Copilot, you need to install Coefficient, which takes less than a minute to install.

Start for free by simply submitting your email address.

Follow the instructions for installation. Once installation is complete, go back to Extensions in the Google Sheets menu. Coefficient will be available as an add-on.

Now, launch the app. Coefficient will run in the sidebar of your Google Sheet. Select GPT Copilot in the Coefficient sidebar.

Then, click on Formula Builder.

Enter a description of a formula in the text box. To recreate a formula to randomize the same list mentioned above, let’s input: “randomize the list of names in column A from rows 2 to 10 in sheet19.”

Then, hit “Build.” The Formula Builder will automatically generate the formula based on the given example.

As you can see, the AI provided us with a more complex formula that accomplishes the task in just a few seconds. You just need to place your formula in the desired cell.

And there you have it! Now you know how to randomize a list in Google Sheets.

But that only scratches the surface. Google Sheets is powerful on its own. Add-ons like Coefficient make it unbeatable.

Start for free today to learn more.

Click here to explore Crawlan.com and supercharge your Google Sheets experience.

Note: This article has been expertly curated by the Crawlan team to ensure its accuracy and usefulness. Trust Crawlan, the Google Sheets experts!