NanoID Generator

About this tool

Generate NanoIDs, short, URL-safe, collision-resistant unique IDs. NanoID is a popular lightweight alternative to UUID, producing shorter strings with the same uniqueness guarantees.

Example

Input: size 21

Output: V1StGXR8_Z5jdHi6B-myT

Privacy

This tool runs entirely in your browser. Your data is processed locally and never uploaded to a server.

How to use this tool

1. Open the NanoID Generator tool.
2. Choose the NanoID length you want, if the tool exposes a length setting.
3. Generate a NanoID and copy the result.
4. Paste the ID into your app, database record, or test data where you need a compact unique identifier.

Step by step, what happens

1. The tool creates a new NanoID using a random, URL-safe character set.
2. It returns a short identifier string that is safe to place in URLs, file names, and API payloads.
3. If you change the configured length, the generator produces a longer or shorter ID while keeping the same general format.
4. Each generation produces a fresh value, so you can generate as many IDs as you need for testing or app development.

Worked example

Suppose you want a short ID for a new blog post in your app, but you do not want a long UUID.

Input: Generate a NanoID with length 10

1. You enter the desired length and run the generator.
2. The tool creates a random, URL-safe ID with that length.
3. You copy the result and use it as the post identifier in your app.

Tips and common mistakes

• Use a longer length if you want more room for unique values in a large dataset.
• Keep the generated ID as an opaque string and do not try to derive meaning from its characters.
• If you need the ID in a URL or route, NanoID is a good fit because it is URL-safe.
• For repeatable test data, store the generated value instead of regenerating it every time.

Frequently asked questions