Random Location Generator

What does a random location generator do?

A random location generator picks a place on Earth for you at random, either a real named place or a set of coordinates you can open on a map. Our Random Location Generator does both: it draws from 179 famous places in 73 countries, and it also gives you random coordinates from anywhere on the planet.

The list holds real places you can visit or look up, from a landmark like the Eiffel Tower to Salar de Uyuni or Point Nemo, each with its coordinates. The second panel, below the list, picks a random place anywhere on Earth with an equal chance for every square kilometre. Both work in one click, so you can switch between a famous destination and a true surprise in a few seconds.

How do you use the Random Location Generator?

You use the Random Location Generator by setting how many places you want, choosing a type, continent or country if you like, and pressing Generate.

1. Set the number. Type 1 to 30 in the How many box; the default is 3.
2. Pick filters. Choose a type such as Waterfall, a continent or a country, or leave them on "Any" to draw from all 179 places.
3. Generate. Each card shows the place with its type, continent, country and approximate coordinates.
4. Save or share. Copy a name or the whole list, download a CSV with decimal coordinates, or copy a share link that reopens the same settings.

For a spot that is not on any list, scroll to the random coordinates panel, choose the whole Earth or one hemisphere, and press New coordinates. Each result has links to open it on a map.

Which kinds of places can you get?

You can get nine kinds of places, from natural wonders to famous buildings. The table shows each type with a few examples from the list.

Choose mountains, volcanoes or waterfalls for a nature theme, deserts and islands for faraway trips, or national parks and landmarks for a travel list. We left out places of worship so the list stays neutral for every family and classroom.

How do latitude and longitude work?

Latitude and longitude are two numbers that pin down any point on Earth. Latitude measures how far north or south a place is from the equator, from 0° up to 90° at each pole.

Longitude measures how far east or west a place is from the Prime Meridian, the line through Greenwich in London that countries agreed on in 1884. It runs from 0° to 180° in each direction.

Our cards show coordinates in decimal degrees, such as 27.99°N, 86.93°E for Mount Everest. Maps and GPS devices also use degrees, minutes and seconds, where each degree splits into 60 minutes and each minute into 60 seconds; the coordinates panel shows both forms.

Why do random coordinates land in the ocean?

Random coordinates usually land in the ocean because about 71 percent of Earth's surface is water, according to the US Geological Survey. A fair draw over the whole planet will find land less than one time in three.

Our panel keeps the draw uniform by area. If you simply picked a latitude between −90° and 90°, points would bunch up near the poles, because the lines of longitude squeeze together there. We correct for that, so half of all points fall within 30° of the equator, just as half of the planet's area does.

Flat maps can make results look odd. On a common map projection called Mercator, Greenland and Antarctica look far larger than they are, so a polar point may seem to sit in a huge region.

What are the most remote places on the list?

The most remote places on the list sit in the "Edge of the world" type, which collects poles, capes and ocean points that make good trivia.

Point Nemo, in the South Pacific, is the spot in the ocean farthest from any land, roughly 2,700 kilometres from the nearest coast. Challenger Deep, in the Mariana Trench, is the deepest known point of the ocean, nearly 11 kilometres below the surface.

Null Island is not an island at all: it is a nickname for 0°, 0° in the Gulf of Guinea, where map data often lands by mistake when a location is missing. The South Pole, the North Pole and Cape Horn complete the set.

How can you use a random location?

You can use a random location for virtual trips, lessons, games and writing. These ideas suit most ages.

• Armchair explorer: take a virtual travel break by opening a place in satellite view or street view and looking around.
• Map challenge: in a geography quiz, read out a place and ask players to name its country and continent.
• Writers' room: use a random spot as a story setting and describe what a traveller would see there.
• Dream trips: draw five places to start a family bucket list.
• Lesson starter: in a classroom, give each pupil a place and ask for three facts and its coordinates.

The random coordinates panel adds a twist to any of these: guess what is at the point before you open the map.

How does the Random Location Generator pick a place?

The Random Location Generator picks a place by filtering the 179 places to those that match your settings and then drawing from that filtered pool with your browser's cryptographic random source, so every matching place has the same chance. Nothing is sent to a server.

The draw uses the Web Crypto API (crypto.getRandomValues, documented on MDN Web Docs) with rejection sampling, then a Fisher–Yates shuffle. Each press is independent, and one list never shows the same place twice unless you switch on "Allow repeats"; repeats across separate presses are normal.

Frequently asked questions

More tools in this category: Place & Name Generators.