How do I get just one random state?

Set How many to 1 and press Draw again, or press Space while focus is outside a control. The default draw is 5. Every draw starts fresh from the chosen pool; No repeats prevents duplicates within that draw. The count can be 1 to 500, though a unique draw cannot exceed its pool.

Does it include Washington DC, Puerto Rico and the other territories?

Only if you ask. The default pool is exactly the 50 states, which is what a quiz or a classroom exercise almost always means, so the District of Columbia and the five inhabited territories (American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) are off. With Pool set to Any region, switch DC on and the pool is 51; switch the territories on and it is 55; switch both on and it is 56. The stage header says which of them are on above every draw, so you are never guessing about what could have come out.

Can I draw a random state from one region?

Yes. Pool offers Northeast 9, Midwest 12, South 16 and West 13. DC joins only the South when switched on, making 17 places there. Territories have no Census region in this tool, so a region filter leaves them out even when their switch is on.

Can the same state come up twice?

Not with No repeats on, which is the default: the draw walks a shuffle, so each state that comes out is removed from that draw and the numbers under the list say how many are left. Asking for more than the pool holds is refused with both numbers rather than answered short, so 12 from the 9 states of the Northeast tells you the pool is 9. Turn No repeats off and each pick is an independent draw over the whole pool, which is how you get 12 from those same 9 states, and the line under the stage says repeats are allowed so the result is never a surprise.

Can I copy the list, with the state abbreviations?

Copy takes the whole draw in whichever of four shapes you pick: one name per line, one USPS postal code per line, the name and the code together as Oregon (OR), or the names on a single comma separated line. The stage shows the names and the codes in numbered columns whatever the copy setting is. If the browser refuses the clipboard, the tool says so and the list is on screen to select by hand rather than leaving a button that looks broken.

Is the draw actually random?

The tool uses crypto.getRandomValues and rejection sampling so every place in the chosen pool has an equal chance. No repeats draws without replacement within one set; Draw again starts a fresh set and can select a state from the previous set. The draw happens in your tab, and settings are kept in this browser.

Does it generate cities, capitals, flags or a state wheel?

It draws real US state names and postal abbreviations as a list. It does not generate cities, addresses, capitals, flag images, state outlines or a spinning wheel.

Can I use it on a phone or computer?

Yes. Use a current browser with secure random-number support. No account or program installation is needed. Tap Draw again on a phone, or use the same button on a computer.

Random State Generator

Pick one random US state or a list with USPS abbreviations. Choose a Census region, set whether repeats are allowed, and copy the result as names, codes or both.

pool      50 states             DC off      territories off
mode      unique draw, without replacement

Nothing drawn yet.

How many

Pool

Include: DC5 territories

Repeats: No repeats

Copy as

Nothing drawn yet. Draw again takes a fresh set out of the pool.

Press Space with the draw in view, or Draw again, for another set. Copy list takes the draw in whichever of the four shapes is selected: names, USPS codes, both, or one comma separated line. Up to 500 at a time, and asking for more than a unique draw can give is refused with the pool size rather than answered short.

Draw 550 states, unique
no state appears twice
Draw all 50unique
every state exactly once
DC and territories onpool becomes 56
DC and Puerto Rico can appear

Show all 56: the 50 states, DC and the 5 territories, with postal codes

Place	Code	Region
Alabama	AL	South
Alaska	AK	West
Arizona	AZ	West
Arkansas	AR	South
California	CA	West
Colorado	CO	West
Connecticut	CT	Northeast
Delaware	DE	South
Florida	FL	South
Georgia	GA	South
Hawaii	HI	West
Idaho	ID	West
Illinois	IL	Midwest
Indiana	IN	Midwest
Iowa	IA	Midwest
Kansas	KS	Midwest
Kentucky	KY	South
Louisiana	LA	South
Maine	ME	Northeast
Maryland	MD	South
Massachusetts	MA	Northeast
Michigan	MI	Midwest
Minnesota	MN	Midwest
Mississippi	MS	South
Missouri	MO	Midwest
Montana	MT	West
Nebraska	NE	Midwest
Nevada	NV	West
New Hampshire	NH	Northeast
New Jersey	NJ	Northeast
New Mexico	NM	West
New York	NY	Northeast
North Carolina	NC	South
North Dakota	ND	Midwest
Ohio	OH	Midwest
Oklahoma	OK	South
Oregon	OR	West
Pennsylvania	PA	Northeast
Rhode Island	RI	Northeast
South Carolina	SC	South
South Dakota	SD	Midwest
Tennessee	TN	South
Texas	TX	South
Utah	UT	West
Vermont	VT	Northeast
Virginia	VA	South
Washington	WA	West
West Virginia	WV	South
Wisconsin	WI	Midwest
Wyoming	WY	West
District of Columbia	DC	South, not a state
American Samoa	AS	territory, no region
Guam	GU	territory, no region
Northern Mariana Islands	MP	territory, no region
Puerto Rico	PR	territory, no region
U.S. Virgin Islands	VI	territory, no region

What is in the pool, and what is not

The 50 states are the whole default pool, with the USPS two-letter codes beside them. District of Columbia is not a state and the 5 territories are not states, so each sits behind its own switch: with Pool set to Any region, turning both on takes the pool to 56. The regions are the four the Census Bureau publishes, which count District of Columbia in the South and give the territories no region at all, so a region filter leaves the territories out. DC still joins the South when switched on. Nothing here is uploaded and nothing needs an account: the settings stay in this browser, and the draw happens in the tab.

Common questions

How do I get just one random state?: Set How many to 1 and press Draw again, or press Space while focus is outside a control. The default draw is 5. Every draw starts fresh from the chosen pool; No repeats prevents duplicates within that draw. The count can be 1 to 500, though a unique draw cannot exceed its pool.
Does it include Washington DC, Puerto Rico and the other territories?: Only if you ask. The default pool is exactly the 50 states, which is what a quiz or a classroom exercise almost always means, so the District of Columbia and the five inhabited territories (American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) are off. With Pool set to Any region, switch DC on and the pool is 51; switch the territories on and it is 55; switch both on and it is 56. The stage header says which of them are on above every draw, so you are never guessing about what could have come out.
Can I draw a random state from one region?: Yes. Pool offers Northeast 9, Midwest 12, South 16 and West 13. DC joins only the South when switched on, making 17 places there. Territories have no Census region in this tool, so a region filter leaves them out even when their switch is on.
Can the same state come up twice?: Not with No repeats on, which is the default: the draw walks a shuffle, so each state that comes out is removed from that draw and the numbers under the list say how many are left. Asking for more than the pool holds is refused with both numbers rather than answered short, so 12 from the 9 states of the Northeast tells you the pool is 9. Turn No repeats off and each pick is an independent draw over the whole pool, which is how you get 12 from those same 9 states, and the line under the stage says repeats are allowed so the result is never a surprise.
Can I copy the list, with the state abbreviations?: Copy takes the whole draw in whichever of four shapes you pick: one name per line, one USPS postal code per line, the name and the code together as Oregon (OR), or the names on a single comma separated line. The stage shows the names and the codes in numbered columns whatever the copy setting is. If the browser refuses the clipboard, the tool says so and the list is on screen to select by hand rather than leaving a button that looks broken.
Is the draw actually random?: The tool uses crypto.getRandomValues and rejection sampling so every place in the chosen pool has an equal chance. No repeats draws without replacement within one set; Draw again starts a fresh set and can select a state from the previous set. The draw happens in your tab, and settings are kept in this browser.
Does it generate cities, capitals, flags or a state wheel?: It draws real US state names and postal abbreviations as a list. It does not generate cities, addresses, capitals, flag images, state outlines or a spinning wheel.
Can I use it on a phone or computer?: Yes. Use a current browser with secure random-number support. No account or program installation is needed. Tap Draw again on a phone, or use the same button on a computer.

The default pool is exactly the 50 states and nothing else. With Pool set to Any region, the District of Columbia and the five territories are added only when you switch them on, which takes the pool to 56. A unique draw removes each state as it is picked, so the pool empties rather than repeating, and the randomness is your browser's crypto source.