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How to make a chore chart with the chore wheel
The classic paper chore wheel has names on an inner ring and chores on an outer ring, turned one step each week. This one needs two lists and one button. The chore wheel's chart panel sits beside the wheel, or under it on a phone. The sample house of Alex, Sam and Jordan shows how it works before you type anything.
List the people
Type one name per line in People. Up to 30 people fit, and a repeated name counts once.
List the chores
One chore per line with its points after a comma, such as “Clean the bathroom, 4”. Up to 100 chores fit.
Pick the week
Choose This week or Next week, and whether your week starts on Sunday or Monday.
Assign and print
Press Assign chores. The chart lists each person’s chores and point total, ready for Print chart, Copy as text or Download CSV.
Reshuffle the chart deals the same week again. Want one job at a time instead? Switch What to do to Spin one chore, and the wheel becomes a chore spinner.
Effort points
Score each job so the chore chart stays fair
Effort points rate each chore from 1 for a quick job to 10 for a big one, and the chart balances points, not the number of chores. One person may get a single big job while another gets three small ones.
| Points | Size of job | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 1 point | Quick job | Feed the pet, take out the trash |
| 2 points | Short job | Dust the shelves, change the bed sheets |
| 3 points | Medium job | Wash the dishes, do a load of laundry |
| 4 points | Big job | Clean the bathroom, mow the lawn |
| 5 to 10 points | Daily or very big job | Dishes every night for a week, clean the garage |
- Clean the bathroom4
- Mow the lawn4
- Do a load of laundry3
- Mop the kitchen floor3
- Wash the dishes3
- Change the bed sheets2
- Dust the shelves2
- Vacuum the living room2
- Feed the pet1
- Take out the trash1
- Water the plants1
- Wipe the kitchen counters1
- 1–10Points per choreA chore with no number counts as 1
- 27Sample points12 chores in the starter list
- 9 eachFor 3 people27 ÷ 3, split exactly on every deal
A number outside 1 to 10 is moved into that range, and a note under the lists says so. Agree on the points as a group before the first chart, because a chore wheel is only as fair as its points.
Behind the deal
How the chore wheel balances the work
Each big chore goes to whoever has the fewest points so far, then chores move or swap until the totals are as even as they can be. The sample house always lands on 9, 9 and 9.
A deal starts by shuffling the list, so chores with equal points come up in a random order. The biggest chore goes to the person with the fewest points. A tie goes to whoever has fewer chores, then to a random pick.
Next, chores move or swap, always involving the busiest or the least busy person, while that evens the totals. The tool runs this deal up to 60 times per press and keeps the most even chart.
With no rotation limits, the gap between the busiest and the least busy person never goes over the points of the biggest chore. With fewer chores than people, a note names who has none this time. Shuffles, tie-breaks and spins use your browser's crypto.getRandomValues, and each spin's result is drawn before the wheel turns. The randomness test page shows how picks are checked.
One possible chart for the sample house
| Person | Chores (points) | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Alex | Clean the bathroom (4), Wash the dishes (3), Take out the trash (1), Feed the pet (1) | 9 |
| Sam | Mow the lawn (4), Do a load of laundry (3), Wipe the kitchen counters (1), Water the plants (1) | 9 |
| Jordan | Mop the kitchen floor (3), Vacuum the living room (2), Dust the shelves (2), Change the bed sheets (2) | 9 |
Week to week
How the weekly rotation moves the hard jobs
Nobody gets their hardest chore from the previous chart again, so the big jobs travel around the house. A person's hardest chore is the one with the most points on their list, or every chore tied for the most.
The next week, rotated from the chart in the previous section
| Person | Off-limits this week | This week's chores (points) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alex | Clean the bathroom | Mow the lawn (4), Mop the kitchen floor (3), Feed the pet (1), Water the plants (1) | 9 |
| Sam | Mow the lawn | Clean the bathroom (4), Wash the dishes (3), Take out the trash (1), Wipe the kitchen counters (1) | 9 |
| Jordan | Mop the kitchen floor | Do a load of laundry (3), Vacuum the living room (2), Dust the shelves (2), Change the bed sheets (2) | 9 |
Saved by week
Each chart is saved in this browser under the first day of its week. The 8 newest charts are kept.
Compared with the last chart
A new chart checks the latest saved chart from an earlier week, even if you skipped a week.
Reshuffle
A new deal for the same week replaces that week’s chart and still rotates from the one before it.
Plan ahead
Choose Next week to make next week’s chart now. It rotates from this week’s chart.
The rule gives way only when nobody else can take a chore, such as with 1 person, and a note says who repeats which chore. Names match without regard to capitals, so “sam” and “Sam” are the same person.
Chore spinner
Spin one chore at a time with the chore spinner
Spin one chore turns the wheel into a chore spinner: each spin picks a chore for the person whose turn it is. The popup shows the chore, its points and who it is for.
Choose a name in Spin for, or Anyone for a pick with no name attached. With Take turns on, the turn passes to the next person after each spin. With Take each chore off the wheel on, a picked chore can't come up twice.
Undo last spin puts the chore back and hands the turn back. Clear and put chores back starts over. The Spun so far table adds up each person's points, so you can see how even the picks came out.
Spinning the chore wheel is fun, but it does not balance anything. Spin out all 12 sample chores in turns and each person gets 4, with a gap of up to 10 points. For one quick job with no chart, the random name picker can choose who does it.
- An exact 9–9–9 split4.4%
- One person gets both 4-point chores27.3%
- A gap of 3 points or more71%
- A gap of 4 points or more52.9%
Assign for fairness, spin for fun
Use Assign the week when the points must come out even. Use the chore spinner for a quick Saturday job, a kids' game or classroom jobs where every task is worth the same.
Take it with you
Print, copy or save the chore chart
Print chart prints only the chart, with a tick box for each day of the week, ready for the fridge. Pressing Ctrl + P on this page prints the same chart while one is showing.
| Button | What you get | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Print chart | A black-and-white table: person, chore, points and 7 day boxes. In spin mode, one Done box per chore. | The fridge door or a dorm bulletin board |
| Copy as text | One line per person, with each chore and its points. | A family group chat or a phone note |
| Download CSV | A comma-separated values (CSV) file with Week, Person, Chore and Points columns. | A spreadsheet that tracks months of charts |
What Copy as text gives you for the rotated week
- Chore chart, week of Nov 8 to Nov 14
- Alex (9 points): Mow the lawn (4), Mop the kitchen floor (3), Feed the pet (1), Water the plants (1)
- Sam (9 points): Clean the bathroom (4), Wash the dishes (3), Take out the trash (1), Wipe the kitchen counters (1)
- Jordan (9 points): Do a load of laundry (3), Vacuum the living room (2), Dust the shelves (2), Change the bed sheets (2)
Starter lists
Chore lists to paste into the chore wheel
Copy a list, paste it over the Chores box of the chore wheel, then change the points to suit your home. Each line is already in the “chore, points” form the box reads.
Family with kids
8 chores · 13 points
- Feed the pet, 1
- Set the table, 1
- Take out the recycling, 1
- Load the dishwasher, 2
- Fold the laundry, 2
- Tidy the playroom, 2
- Vacuum the stairs, 3
- Water the plants, 1
Roommates
8 chores · 23 points
- Clean the bathroom, 4
- Deep clean the kitchen, 4
- Clean the stove, 3
- Mop the floors, 3
- Vacuum the living room, 3
- Take out trash and recycling, 2
- Wipe out the fridge, 2
- Buy shared supplies, 2
Dorm suite
6 chores · 12 points
- Scrub the shower, 4
- Clean the toilet and sink, 3
- Sweep the hallway, 2
- Wipe the mirror and counter, 1
- Empty every trash can, 1
- Restock toilet paper, 1
Classroom jobs
8 chores · 8 points
- Line leader, 1
- Board cleaner, 1
- Plant waterer, 1
- Paper passer, 1
- Library helper, 1
- Lights and door, 1
- Supply checker, 1
- Calendar helper, 1
Classroom jobs are all worth 1 point, so they suit Spin one chore with Take turns on. An office kitchen works the same way: deal the weekly fridge clean-out and dishwasher duty with Assign the week, then keep the CSV. For a big clean-up day, split the group into crews first with the team generator, then give each crew its own list.
House rules
Keep the chore chart fair week after week
A chore wheel can only split the work you describe. These habits keep the points honest and the chart in use.
Habits that make a chore wheel stick
- Set the points together. A job one person calls a 2 may feel like a 4 to someone else. Agree first, and nobody feels short-changed.
- Price daily jobs for the whole week. Feeding the pet every day is closer to 7 points than 1.
- Make a separate chart for young children. Give them only the chores they can do, so the big jobs don't land on a six-year-old.
- Deal on the same day each week. Sunday evening works well, and the rotation always has last week's chart to compare with.
- Keep the chart where everyone passes it. Tick the day boxes as jobs get done, and nobody has to ask who did what.
- Re-score after a month. If one chore keeps causing grumbles, raise its points and deal again.
Stuck on which weekend project comes first, the garage or the yard? Put the options on a decision wheel and let one spin settle it.
FAQ
Chore wheel FAQ
Is the chore wheel free?
Yes. Charts, printing and exports are free, with no account. Your lists and charts stay in this browser.
How do I make chores fair when some take longer?
Give longer chores more points. The chart evens out points per person, not the number of chores.
Will someone get the same chore every week?
Not their hardest one. A new chart never gives a person their hardest chore from the previous chart, unless nobody else can take it. Smaller chores can repeat.
What happens with more people than chores?
Some people get a week off. A note under the chart names who has no chore this time, and the rotation carries on next week.
Does the chore wheel remember last week on another device?
No. Charts are saved only in the browser that made them. Use the same device each week, or keep the CSV file.
Can I print a blank chore chart?
No. Print chart prints a filled chart. Assign chores first, then print it with the day boxes empty for ticking.
How many people and chores can I add?
Up to 30 people and 100 chores. Repeated names in the People list count once.
Can kids use the chore wheel on their own?
Yes, with a grown-up setting the list. Switch to Spin one chore, turn on Take turns and let each child press Spin. Undo last spin fixes a mis-tap.
Does the wheel change when I edit the chore list?
Yes. A moment after you stop typing in the Chores box, the wheel shows the new list.
Last updated · Written and tested by Melissa T. Brown