π° Chore Roulette
Fair random chore assignments. No more "but I did dishes last time" arguments.
How to Use Chore Roulette
List everyone in the household on the left, list the chores on the right, and hit Assign Chores. Each person gets a fair random share, and the tool remembers who did what so next week's spin balances the load.
Enter household members, one per line. Include everyone who should share the work: kids, roommates, partners.
Enter the chores, one per line. Be specific: "clean bathroom" beats "clean" because everyone knows what it means.
Hit Assign Chores. Post the results on the fridge or in the family group chat. Re-spin weekly.
Why Random Beats Volunteering
When families "just volunteer," the same conscientious people end up doing everything while others conveniently forget. Random assignment removes the politics. Nobody chose to give you bathroom duty three weeks running; the wheel did, and the wheel also remembers and compensates. Studies on household labor consistently show that perceived unfairness, more than the actual workload, drives conflict. A transparent random system kills the unfairness debate at the root.
The history tracking is the secret weapon. Pure random assignment can still streak: the same person might draw dishes four weeks in a row by bad luck. Chore Roulette weights against recent assignments, so streaks get smoothed out automatically. Over a month, everyone does a similar mix.
Getting Kids to Buy In
Kids accept random systems far more readily than parental decrees. Let them press the button themselves; the theater of the spin makes it a game instead of a chore chart. For younger kids, keep their chore list age-appropriate: a 6-year-old can sort laundry and water plants, but should not be on bathroom duty. Consider pairing a small reward with completion rather than with the assignment itself.
Be consistent about the re-spin day. Sunday evening works well: assignments are fresh for the school week, and everyone knows the routine. Post results somewhere visible. A chore nobody can see is a chore nobody does.
Roommate Edition
Roommates have the same problem with higher stakes, because resentment ends leases. Put every shared-space chore in the list: kitchen, bathroom, trash, recycling, vacuuming halls, and the dreaded oven clean. Keep bedroom chores out; those are personal. Re-spin monthly to reduce overhead, and agree upfront that trades are allowed but must be mutual. The history log settles every "I always do X" dispute with data.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Chore Roulette keep things fair?
It tracks every assignment in your browser. When you spin a new week, chores you did recently are weighted to go to other people first. Over a month, everyone does roughly the same mix of chores. Nobody can claim the system is rigged.
Can I exclude someone from a specific chore?
Yes. Use the notes field to mark restrictions like "Maya cannot do lawn (allergies)" and the tool will respect them during assignment. For permanent exclusions, just remove that chore from the rotation for that person by editing the list.
What if we have more chores than people?
That is normal. Each person simply gets multiple chores per week. The tool distributes them round-robin style so the load stays even. If one person ends up with three chores and another with one, add the extra chores to the list and re-spin.
Does it save our family and history?
Yes, everything is stored in your browser's local storage on this device. Your members, chores, and assignment history persist between visits. It does not sync between devices, so pick one family device for the weekly spin.
How often should we re-spin?
Weekly works best for most families. Spin every Sunday evening and post the results on the fridge. For roommates, bi-weekly or monthly rotations reduce the overhead of constant re-spinning.