Random Number Between 1 and 4
The box above gives 1, 2, 3 or 4, each a quarter of the time. Press the button for another one. Nothing carries over: every draw starts from the same four options.
1 to 4 1
4 possible values, each equally likely. Tick nothing and repeats can happen; that is what random means.
The odds
Four outcomes, 25 per cent each. The ends are included, so 1 and 4 come up as often as 2 and 3.
Two coins do the same job
Flip two coins and read them as an ordered pair: heads-heads is 1, heads-tails is 2, tails-heads is 3, tails-tails is 4. Four orders, 25 per cent each, exactly the split on this page. The order matters. Calling it “one head and one tail” merges two of the four outcomes into one and hands that option 50 per cent, which is the usual way this trick goes wrong. Try it on two flips.
Dice that work, and one that does not
A d4 is the obvious answer. A d12 read in threes, with 1 to 3 as one, 4 to 6 as two, 7 to 9 as three and 10 to 12 as four, is exact, and so is a d20 read in fives. An ordinary d6 is not: six faces will not divide into four, and taking the remainder gives 1 and 2 a 33.3 per cent chance each while 3 and 4 get 16.7 per cent. Reroll on 5 and 6 instead.
Four draws will usually repeat
If you draw four numbers hoping for one of each, that works only 9.4 per cent of the time. Nine times in ten you get a duplicate and a gap. To hand out four things without repeats you need a shuffle, not a draw, so use the picker. For other ranges, try 1 to 3, 1 to 5 or the generator.