Random UUID Generator

If you need a globally unique identifier for databases, APIs, events, or distributed systems, UUIDs are still the default choice. A UUID is a 128-bit value (16 octets) with standardized text representations and well-defined versioning rules. The current IETF/RFC Editor standard describing UUID formats and versions is RFC 9562.

Which UUID version should you use?

• UUID v4 (random): Great for general uniqueness when you don’t care about chronological ordering.
• UUID v7 (time-ordered): Ideal when you want UUIDs that generally sort by creation time (helpful for database indexes, event streams, and logs). RFC 9562 defines v7 as a Unix timestamp in milliseconds plus randomness.
• UUID v5 (name-based, deterministic): Useful when the same input should always produce the same UUID (idempotency, stable IDs from names/slugs), via a namespace + name.

JavaScript / TypeScript examples

Using the popular uuid NPM package:

import { v4 as uuidv4, v5 as uuidv5, v7 as uuidv7 } from "uuid";

// v4: random UUID
const idV4: string = uuidv4();

// v7: time-ordered UUID
const idV7: string = uuidv7();

// v5: deterministic UUID from (name + namespace)
const DNS_NAMESPACE = uuidv5.DNS;
const userSlug = "ben@example.com";
const stableId: string = uuidv5(userSlug, DNS_NAMESPACE);

console.log({ idV4, idV7, stableId });

Browser-native option (Web Crypto):

const id = crypto.randomUUID();

Practical tips developers care about

• Need sortable IDs? Prefer UUID v7 over v4 for better locality (newer values tend to cluster), which can reduce index fragmentation in many databases.
• Need stable IDs from names? Use v5 so the same (namespace + name) always maps to the same UUID.
• Security note: UUIDs are identifiers, not secrets. Don’t treat them like access tokens. If exposing UUIDs publicly, enforce authorization checks on the server.

Looking for a reliable random number generator or UUID generator? Our tool creates standard UUIDs, functioning as a robust random generator and random object generator for your applications. It provides a structured alternative to a basic google random number generator or generic random nr tools when you need statistically unique identifiers.