In this article, you'll learn how to configure Random Distribution — including how to set capacity limits per recruiter and what the Unlimited setting does.
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What Is Random Distribution?
Random Distribution assigns incoming candidates evenly and randomly across all recruiters on the job. No recruiter is prioritised — candidates are spread across the team as they come in.
You can optionally set a capacity limit on individual recruiters to cap how many candidates they receive. At least one recruiter must always be set to Unlimited to handle any overflow beyond the set capacities.
How to Set Up Random Distribution
In Step 3 (Team Members) of the job setup, enable the Auto-Distribute Candidates toggle.
In the Candidate Distribution panel, select Random Distribution.
By default, all recruiters are set to Unlimited. This means there is no cap on how many candidates they receive.
To set a capacity limit for a recruiter, toggle off the Unlimited switch next to their name. A capacity number field will appear.
Enter the maximum number of candidates this recruiter should receive.
Repeat for any other recruiters you want to cap.
Make sure at least one recruiter remains set to Unlimited — this recruiter will receive any candidates that exceed the capacity limits of others.
Click Save.
⚠️ Important: At least one recruiter must always be set to Unlimited in Random Distribution. If all recruiters have a capacity cap, the system has no overflow recipient and will not allow you to save.
How Random Distribution Works
Candidates are assigned to recruiters in a random, even spread — not in a fixed order.
When a recruiter reaches their capacity limit, new candidates skip them and go to the next available recruiter.
The recruiter set to Unlimited absorbs all remaining candidates once other caps are reached.
📌 Note: If you remove a recruiter from the job after distribution has run, a notification will appear asking you to reassign their candidates to another team member. The reassignment must be confirmed before the recruiter can be removed — their candidates are never left without an owner.
💡 Tip: Random Distribution is best for teams where workload should be shared equally and no recruiter specialises in a specific candidate type. If your team needs ordered assignment (e.g. a senior recruiter handles the first 50), use Sequential Distribution instead.
🕹️Try it out now
Smart Candidate Distribution was built on feedback from teams like yours — and we're not done yet. Got a suggestion? Drop it on our feedback board (recruitera.canny.io) or chat with us directly using the button below. 💬
Up next: How to Set Up Sequential Distribution