---
title: randomElement()
framework: swift
role: symbol
role_heading: Instance Method
path: swift/anycollection/randomelement()
---

# randomElement()

Returns a random element of the collection.

## Declaration

```swift
func randomElement() -> Self.Element?
```

## Return Value

Return Value A random element from the collection. If the collection is empty, the method returns nil.

## Discussion

Discussion Call randomElement() to select a random element from an array or another collection. This example picks a name at random from an array: let names = ["Zoey", "Chloe", "Amani", "Amaia"] let randomName = names.randomElement()! // randomName == "Amani" This method is equivalent to calling randomElement(using:), passing in the system’s default random generator. note: O(1) if the collection conforms to RandomAccessCollection; otherwise, O(n), where n is the length of the collection.