diff --git a/test/test_randomness.py b/test/test_randomness.py
index 99e00ba984..ce79e85f45 100644
--- a/test/test_randomness.py
+++ b/test/test_randomness.py
@@ -58,6 +58,15 @@ class TestRandomness(unittest.TestCase):
     self.assertFalse(normal_test(Tensor.rand))
     self.assertTrue(equal_distribution(Tensor.rand, torch.rand, lambda x: np.random.rand(*x)))
 
+  def test_rand_half(self):
+    N = 128
+    x = Tensor.rand((2, N, N), dtype=dtypes.half).realize().numpy()
+    ones = np.take(x, np.where(x == 1))
+    zeros = np.take(x, np.where(x == 0))
+    self.assertTrue(ones.size == 0)
+    self.assertTrue(zeros.size > 0)
+    equal_distribution(lambda *x: Tensor.rand(*x, dtype=dtypes.float16), torch.rand, lambda x: np.random.rand(*x), shape=(2, N, N))
+
   def test_randn(self):
     self.assertTrue(normal_test(Tensor.randn))
     self.assertTrue(equal_distribution(Tensor.randn, torch.randn, lambda x: np.random.randn(*x)))
diff --git a/tinygrad/tensor.py b/tinygrad/tensor.py
index 891e13075c..1aeccb897c 100644
--- a/tinygrad/tensor.py
+++ b/tinygrad/tensor.py
@@ -1014,5 +1014,6 @@ def custom_random(out:Buffer):
   Tensor._seed += 1
   if DEBUG >= 2: print(f"*** {out.device}   rand  seed {Tensor._seed} size {out.size:<15d} dtype {out.dtype}")
   rng = np.random.default_rng(Tensor._seed)
-  rng_np_buffer = rng.random(size=out.size, dtype=np.float32).astype(dtype=out.dtype.np, copy=False)
+  if out.dtype == dtypes.half: rng_np_buffer = (rng.integers(low=0, high=2047, size=out.size) / 2048).astype(np.half, copy=False)
+  else: rng_np_buffer = rng.random(size=out.size, dtype=np.float32).astype(dtype=out.dtype.np, copy=False)
   out.copyin(rng_np_buffer.data)