--- title: Why the Coin Toss is Random description: We all know that there's a roughly 50-50 chance the coin will land on either side. But, when a robot tosses the coin, it'll fall precisely on one side each time. So what if the coin toss isn't really because of the coin's weight? canonical: https://time.com/4040408/why-the-coin-toss-is-random/ author: Ainissa Ramirez article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-09-18T19:21:05.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:32:02.763Z article:section: Science og:title: Why the Coin Toss is Random og:description: Heads you win, tails you lose. og:url: https://time.com/4040408/why-the-coin-toss-is-random/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6d46fcfc7c4e472e/698864382dce01779b9e5944/1920-coin-toss.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4000 og:image:height: 2250 og:image:alt: Matthew Slater, Devin McCourty, Stephen Schilling og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why the Coin Toss is Random twitter:description: Heads you win, tails you lose. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6d46fcfc7c4e472e/698864382dce01779b9e5944/1920-coin-toss.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Why the Coin Toss is Random > Sponsored content. 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Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=fc94a8d2-4707-4fc1-bd57-375f4d6a85e4&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Why the Coin Toss is Random [Watch (HLS stream): Why the Coin Toss is Random](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/MHIwCFOn.m3u8) (0:46)  _Published 2015-06-30. Heads you win, tails you lose_ by [Ainissa Ramirez](https://time.com/author/ainissa-ramirez/) and [Salima Koroma](https://time.com/author/salima-koroma/) Sep 18, 2015 7:21 PM UTC by [Ainissa Ramirez](https://time.com/author/ainissa-ramirez/) and [Salima Koroma](https://time.com/author/salima-koroma/) Sep 18, 2015 7:21 PM UTC The coin flip is so synonymous with randomness that the phrase has become a metaphor for unpredictability itself. We even trust the coin toss with our nation’s most popular sport: Every NFL game begins with a flip to decide which team will kick or receive. But while everyone intuitively knows there’s a roughly 50-50 chance the coin will land on either side, few understand exactly what makes a coin toss random in the first place. Watch the video to find out the answer. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] The coin toss. Used in a lot of sports. It's seemingly random, but not for the reasons that you think. You see, if you had a robot flipping a coin and it did it precisely every time, the coin would flip maybe fifteen times and it would land on the same side every time. However, when we do a coin toss it doesn't land on the same side every time. Why is that? It's because we're beautifully imperfect. Our brains are not that precise, our muscles are not that precise. So when we flip the coin, that's why it's random. Unlike a robot which would be precise and give you the same heads or tails every time. Time. [ MUSIC ] [ NOISE ] Oh, a. [ INAUDIBLE ] [ NOISE ] And, then, go ahead. Jeez. 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