Easy Card Magic Tricks for Free
Magic tricks are one of the easiest ways to be the life of the party. Learning just a few easy magic tricks will give you the skills needed to amaze friends, family, and anyone else you meet. The best way to start is to with some easy card tricks, easy mentalism, and easy close-up magic tricks under your belt. This will immediately make you the most interesting person in the room. We're here to help you learn easy card magic tricks for free.
The easy card tricks for adults and kids below are super simple to learn. You’ll be able to perform all of them almost immediately after learning the secret. But, don’t let that fool you. These are the same type of amazing card tricks used by professional magicians like David Blaine, Dynamo, Michael Carbonaro and Justin Willman.
We do think that every beginner magician should try to learn card tricks and learn magic tricks from the best magic books for beginners . However, that doesn’t also mean we can’t help you with some great ways to learn magic online and become a magician.
So, grab some playing cards and let’s get started with some easy card tricks you can learn today!
Easy Card Magic Tricks for Free
The Best Easy Card Trick
This incredible card trick is a cross between a card magic trick and an easy mentalism trick. It will have your friends convinced you know how to read minds.
You can impossibly know any card a person chooses. All you need is an ordinary deck of cards, like Bicycle Playing Cards or any of the other best playing cards for magic tricks.
The Secret
Allow someone to shuffle the cards. It can be your deck of cards or you can even borrow a deck of cards during one of your favorite card games.
Perform a face down card spread and allow someone to select any card. (Learn how to spread cards like a magician and other essential card magic sleight of hand moves with these free card magic basics videos.)
Turn away from them and tell them to show everyone else their card. As you do this, peek at the bottom card of the deck and memorize it. (For this example, we’ll use the 2 of Clubs.)
After everyone has a chance to see the card, turn back around and cut about half the deck off and place it on the table.
Tell your volunteer to place their card face down on top of the packet of cards on the table.
Take the remaining half of the deck still in your hands and place it on top of all the cards on the table. This secretly places the card you already know above the card they selected. (This is known as the “Key Card” principle in magic).
Recap everything that’s happened. They chose any card they wanted and showed everyone but you. There’s no way for you to know what their card could be.
Pick up the cards and fan them with the faces toward you. Look for your Key Card (the 2 of Clubs in this example). Their selected card will be directly to the right of that card (Ace of Hearts in the photo below).
- Don’t immediately pull out the card or name it out loud. Instead, pretend like your struggling to find it by pulling out a few cards halfway and then pushing them back in as if changing your mind. Look into their eyes as if trying to read their mind. Then pull out the card with the face toward you. Let the suspense build before turning it over. Alternatively, you could close the spread and verbally reveal their card as if you’re channeling their thoughts.
2. The Easiest Mind Reading Trick
This is way different than your standard “pick a card” trick. Instead of choosing a card, your friend will just think of a card. Impossibly, as if you were a famous mentalist like Derren Brown, you’ll be able to read their minds and know the card.
The Secret
Remove any three cards from the deck. We suggest two similar cards and then a different card that’s easy to remember. For example, the Ace of Spades, Ace of Clubs and Queen of hearts.
Place the cards in a row on the table and memorize the middle card. In our example, it’s easy to do. Just put the odd card (Queen of Hearts) in the middle of the two black Aces.
Turn your back and tell your spectator to just think of one of the cards.
To keep them honest and make sure everyone else can enjoy the trick, you’ll now ask them to silently code the card to the audience so they'll all know the card but you can't overhear anything by accident. Your volunteer will do this by swapping the position of the 2 cards they didn’t pick. So, if they chose the Queen of Hearts, they would swap the positions of the Ace of Spades and Ace of Clubs.
Once they’ve swapped the cards, instruct them to turn all the cards face down before you turn back around.
Face them again and tell them to mix all 3 cards on the table like a wash shuffle a blackjack dealer would use. This ensures there’s no way you could know which cards they swapped. As they do this, don't take your eyes off the center card. The whole secret to this amazing card trick revolves around secretly keeping track of that center card.
Once they stop mixing, flip over the “center card” you were following, followed quickly by the other two cards. The identity of the card you followed will act as a secret code for which card they mentally chose. The following explanation seems confusing in writing. But, if you try it with playing cards in front of you, it’s much easier to understand.
If the card you were following was the original “center card” (Queen of Hearts), then that is the card they chose. If it’s one of two original outer cards, then their card is the opposite of the card you flipped over. For example, if the card you followed was the Ace of Spades, then they chose the Ace of Clubs (and vice versa).
Before you reveal you know the card, remind them that they only thought of a card. Nothing was said out loud. So, it should be impossible for you to know the card. Then, instead of just saying the card out loud, dramatically eliminate the other cards one by one. When it’s down to two cards, pretend like you’re going to eliminate their card before changing your mind at the last second. Watch their face as you do this and you’ll see how building suspense can make this impossible card magic trick seem even more incredible.
The Easy 4 Aces Card Trick
If you ask someone to name any playing card at random, they’re very likely to choose an Ace. Often, the Ace of Spades is the most chosen card. That’s because the Aces are most recognizable cards in a deck of cards. They’re also the strongest playing cards in most of the best card games (and, subsequently, the cards most often snuck into games when people cheat at cards).
Card magic tricks using the Aces always leave a lasting impact. And this easy four Ace card trick is truly awesome because you’ll be able to give your volunteer magical powers. All the magic happens in their hands, making it feel like a miracle. It’s self-working too, meaning you don’t have to worry about any difficult sleight of hand.
The Secret
The most important part of this trick actually happens before it begins. Secretly place all four Aces face down on the top of the deck.
To start the trick, turn the deck face up and show all the cards are shuffled (being carefully to stop just before you get to the four Aces at the top). Do this casually and nobody will suspect a thing. If you know a false shuffle, now would be a good time to do it.
Hand the deck of cards to your volunteer face down. Ask them to cut the deck into four roughly equal piles. Tell them it doesn’t have to be perfect, just to try their best to have about the same amount of cards in each pile.
While they do this, keep an eye on where the top pile with all the Aces lands. Almost every time it will end up on one of the far edges.
Tell your friend to pick up the pile farthest away from the pile with the Aces. (If the Aces are on the far right, start on the far left.)
Ask them to count three cards off the top of the deck and move them to the bottom. They should then deal one card on to the top of each of the three remaining piles.
Have them put this pile down. Then pick up the one next to it and repeat the process of moving three cards to the bottom and then dealing one card to the top of the other piles.
You’re going to have them repeat this with all four piles. The most important thing to remember though is that the Aces pile must go last. If the Aces pile somehow ended up in the second or third position instead of one of the edges, start with the pile to it’s right instead of the one “farthest away”. Now, by moving left to right, you’d eventually have to loop back to the beginning of the row and the Ace pile would go last.
After they’re done, recap everything that happened. Remind them that they held the deck of cards the entire time. They cut wherever they wanted. Yet, somehow a miracle still occurred. Flip over the top card of every pile to show that they’ve impossibly found all four Aces.
The Fortune Teller Card Trick
Nothing is more amazing than seemingly having the ability to see into the future. That’s why easy mentalism tricks are so popular. You can predict the future with this card trick. And it only takes a few seconds to learn. This is an easy magic trick kids and adults can learn today.
Beyond being an amazing card trick, the Fortune Teller Card Trick teaches you the Cut Deeper Force, which is the best easy card force. Card Forces are an essential part of card magic and are a must-have skill if you ever want to learn intermediate or advanced card tricks in the future.
Secretly peek at the top card before the trick begins. Write down that playing card on a piece of paper and fold it up. This will be your prediction. Even better, you could take a photo of the card and post it to your Instagram story or make a TikTok video announcing that “you have a strong feeling” your friend is about to choose this playing card.
Place the deck of cards face down on the table. Ask your volunteer to cut off approximately the top quarter of the deck and turn it face up before placing it back on the top of the deck.
Now, ask them to cut the deck again. But, this time, cut a little deeper. About half the deck. Again, they should flip everything face up and put it back on top of the deck.
Push aside the face-up playing cards as you remind your volunteer that they just made a variety of completely free choices. Their decisions led them to one single card. Stop when you see the first face-down card after all the face-up cards.
Flip over the face-down card and then reveal your prediction. Congrats! You just became a mindreader. Just like Patrick Jane from the classic TV show The Mentalist, you just gained what looks like supernatural powers.
Magic tricks are one of the easiest ways to be the life of the party. Learning just a few easy magic tricks will give you the skills needed to amaze friends, family, and anyone else you meet. The best way to start is to with some easy card tricks, easy mentalism, and easy close-up magic tricks under your belt. This will immediately make you the most interesting person in the room. We're here to help you learn easy card magic tricks for free.
The easy card tricks for adults and kids below are super simple to learn. You’ll be able to perform all of them almost immediately after learning the secret. But, don’t let that fool you. These are the same type of amazing card tricks used by professional magicians like David Blaine, Dynamo, Michael Carbonaro and Justin Willman.
We do think that every beginner magician should try to learn card tricks and learn magic tricks from the best magic books for beginners . However, that doesn’t also mean we can’t help you with some great ways to learn magic online and become a magician.
So, grab some playing cards and let’s get started with some easy card tricks you can learn today!
Easy Card Magic Tricks for Free
The Best Easy Card Trick
This incredible card trick is a cross between a card magic trick and an easy mentalism trick. It will have your friends convinced you know how to read minds.
You can impossibly know any card a person chooses. All you need is an ordinary deck of cards, like Bicycle Playing Cards or any of the other best playing cards for magic tricks.
The Secret
Allow someone to shuffle the cards. It can be your deck of cards or you can even borrow a deck of cards during one of your favorite card games.
Perform a face down card spread and allow someone to select any card. (Learn how to spread cards like a magician and other essential card magic sleight of hand moves with these free card magic basics videos.)
Turn away from them and tell them to show everyone else their card. As you do this, peek at the bottom card of the deck and memorize it. (For this example, we’ll use the 2 of Clubs.)
After everyone has a chance to see the card, turn back around and cut about half the deck off and place it on the table.
Tell your volunteer to place their card face down on top of the packet of cards on the table.
Take the remaining half of the deck still in your hands and place it on top of all the cards on the table. This secretly places the card you already know above the card they selected. (This is known as the “Key Card” principle in magic).
Recap everything that’s happened. They chose any card they wanted and showed everyone but you. There’s no way for you to know what their card could be.
Pick up the cards and fan them with the faces toward you. Look for your Key Card (the 2 of Clubs in this example). Their selected card will be directly to the right of that card (Ace of Hearts in the photo below).
- Don’t immediately pull out the card or name it out loud. Instead, pretend like your struggling to find it by pulling out a few cards halfway and then pushing them back in as if changing your mind. Look into their eyes as if trying to read their mind. Then pull out the card with the face toward you. Let the suspense build before turning it over. Alternatively, you could close the spread and verbally reveal their card as if you’re channeling their thoughts.
2. The Easiest Mind Reading Trick
This is way different than your standard “pick a card” trick. Instead of choosing a card, your friend will just think of a card. Impossibly, as if you were a famous mentalist like Derren Brown, you’ll be able to read their minds and know the card.
The Secret
Remove any three cards from the deck. We suggest two similar cards and then a different card that’s easy to remember. For example, the Ace of Spades, Ace of Clubs and Queen of hearts.
Place the cards in a row on the table and memorize the middle card. In our example, it’s easy to do. Just put the odd card (Queen of Hearts) in the middle of the two black Aces.
Turn your back and tell your spectator to just think of one of the cards.
To keep them honest and make sure everyone else can enjoy the trick, you’ll now ask them to silently code the card to the audience so they'll all know the card but you can't overhear anything by accident. Your volunteer will do this by swapping the position of the 2 cards they didn’t pick. So, if they chose the Queen of Hearts, they would swap the positions of the Ace of Spades and Ace of Clubs.
Once they’ve swapped the cards, instruct them to turn all the cards face down before you turn back around.
Face them again and tell them to mix all 3 cards on the table like a wash shuffle a blackjack dealer would use. This ensures there’s no way you could know which cards they swapped. As they do this, don't take your eyes off the center card. The whole secret to this amazing card trick revolves around secretly keeping track of that center card.
Once they stop mixing, flip over the “center card” you were following, followed quickly by the other two cards. The identity of the card you followed will act as a secret code for which card they mentally chose. The following explanation seems confusing in writing. But, if you try it with playing cards in front of you, it’s much easier to understand.
If the card you were following was the original “center card” (Queen of Hearts), then that is the card they chose. If it’s one of two original outer cards, then their card is the opposite of the card you flipped over. For example, if the card you followed was the Ace of Spades, then they chose the Ace of Clubs (and vice versa).
Before you reveal you know the card, remind them that they only thought of a card. Nothing was said out loud. So, it should be impossible for you to know the card. Then, instead of just saying the card out loud, dramatically eliminate the other cards one by one. When it’s down to two cards, pretend like you’re going to eliminate their card before changing your mind at the last second. Watch their face as you do this and you’ll see how building suspense can make this impossible card magic trick seem even more incredible.
The Easy 4 Aces Card Trick
If you ask someone to name any playing card at random, they’re very likely to choose an Ace. Often, the Ace of Spades is the most chosen card. That’s because the Aces are most recognizable cards in a deck of cards. They’re also the strongest playing cards in most of the best card games (and, subsequently, the cards most often snuck into games when people cheat at cards).
Card magic tricks using the Aces always leave a lasting impact. And this easy four Ace card trick is truly awesome because you’ll be able to give your volunteer magical powers. All the magic happens in their hands, making it feel like a miracle. It’s self-working too, meaning you don’t have to worry about any difficult sleight of hand.
The Secret
The most important part of this trick actually happens before it begins. Secretly place all four Aces face down on the top of the deck.
To start the trick, turn the deck face up and show all the cards are shuffled (being carefully to stop just before you get to the four Aces at the top). Do this casually and nobody will suspect a thing. If you know a false shuffle, now would be a good time to do it.
Hand the deck of cards to your volunteer face down. Ask them to cut the deck into four roughly equal piles. Tell them it doesn’t have to be perfect, just to try their best to have about the same amount of cards in each pile.
While they do this, keep an eye on where the top pile with all the Aces lands. Almost every time it will end up on one of the far edges.
Tell your friend to pick up the pile farthest away from the pile with the Aces. (If the Aces are on the far right, start on the far left.)
Ask them to count three cards off the top of the deck and move them to the bottom. They should then deal one card on to the top of each of the three remaining piles.
Have them put this pile down. Then pick up the one next to it and repeat the process of moving three cards to the bottom and then dealing one card to the top of the other piles.
You’re going to have them repeat this with all four piles. The most important thing to remember though is that the Aces pile must go last. If the Aces pile somehow ended up in the second or third position instead of one of the edges, start with the pile to it’s right instead of the one “farthest away”. Now, by moving left to right, you’d eventually have to loop back to the beginning of the row and the Ace pile would go last.
After they’re done, recap everything that happened. Remind them that they held the deck of cards the entire time. They cut wherever they wanted. Yet, somehow a miracle still occurred. Flip over the top card of every pile to show that they’ve impossibly found all four Aces.
The Fortune Teller Card Trick
Nothing is more amazing than seemingly having the ability to see into the future. That’s why easy mentalism tricks are so popular. You can predict the future with this card trick. And it only takes a few seconds to learn. This is an easy magic trick kids and adults can learn today.
Beyond being an amazing card trick, the Fortune Teller Card Trick teaches you the Cut Deeper Force, which is the best easy card force. Card Forces are an essential part of card magic and are a must-have skill if you ever want to learn intermediate or advanced card tricks in the future.
Secretly peek at the top card before the trick begins. Write down that playing card on a piece of paper and fold it up. This will be your prediction. Even better, you could take a photo of the card and post it to your Instagram story or make a TikTok video announcing that “you have a strong feeling” your friend is about to choose this playing card.
Place the deck of cards face down on the table. Ask your volunteer to cut off approximately the top quarter of the deck and turn it face up before placing it back on the top of the deck.
Now, ask them to cut the deck again. But, this time, cut a little deeper. About half the deck. Again, they should flip everything face up and put it back on top of the deck.
Push aside the face-up playing cards as you remind your volunteer that they just made a variety of completely free choices. Their decisions led them to one single card. Stop when you see the first face-down card after all the face-up cards.
Flip over the face-down card and then reveal your prediction. Congrats! You just became a mindreader. Just like Patrick Jane from the classic TV show The Mentalist, you just gained what looks like supernatural powers.
Magic tricks are one of the easiest ways to be the life of the party. Learning just a few easy magic tricks will give you the skills needed to amaze friends, family, and anyone else you meet. The best way to start is to with some easy card tricks, easy mentalism, and easy close-up magic tricks under your belt. This will immediately make you the most interesting person in the room. We're here to help you learn easy card magic tricks for free.
The easy card tricks for adults and kids below are super simple to learn. You’ll be able to perform all of them almost immediately after learning the secret. But, don’t let that fool you. These are the same type of amazing card tricks used by professional magicians like David Blaine, Dynamo, Michael Carbonaro and Justin Willman.
We do think that every beginner magician should try to learn card tricks and learn magic tricks from the best magic books for beginners . However, that doesn’t also mean we can’t help you with some great ways to learn magic online and become a magician.
So, grab some playing cards and let’s get started with some easy card tricks you can learn today!
Easy Card Magic Tricks for Free
The Best Easy Card Trick
This incredible card trick is a cross between a card magic trick and an easy mentalism trick. It will have your friends convinced you know how to read minds.
You can impossibly know any card a person chooses. All you need is an ordinary deck of cards, like Bicycle Playing Cards or any of the other best playing cards for magic tricks.
The Secret
Allow someone to shuffle the cards. It can be your deck of cards or you can even borrow a deck of cards during one of your favorite card games.
Perform a face down card spread and allow someone to select any card. (Learn how to spread cards like a magician and other essential card magic sleight of hand moves with these free card magic basics videos.)
Turn away from them and tell them to show everyone else their card. As you do this, peek at the bottom card of the deck and memorize it. (For this example, we’ll use the 2 of Clubs.)
After everyone has a chance to see the card, turn back around and cut about half the deck off and place it on the table.
Tell your volunteer to place their card face down on top of the packet of cards on the table.
Take the remaining half of the deck still in your hands and place it on top of all the cards on the table. This secretly places the card you already know above the card they selected. (This is known as the “Key Card” principle in magic).
Recap everything that’s happened. They chose any card they wanted and showed everyone but you. There’s no way for you to know what their card could be.
Pick up the cards and fan them with the faces toward you. Look for your Key Card (the 2 of Clubs in this example). Their selected card will be directly to the right of that card (Ace of Hearts in the photo below).
- Don’t immediately pull out the card or name it out loud. Instead, pretend like your struggling to find it by pulling out a few cards halfway and then pushing them back in as if changing your mind. Look into their eyes as if trying to read their mind. Then pull out the card with the face toward you. Let the suspense build before turning it over. Alternatively, you could close the spread and verbally reveal their card as if you’re channeling their thoughts.
2. The Easiest Mind Reading Trick
This is way different than your standard “pick a card” trick. Instead of choosing a card, your friend will just think of a card. Impossibly, as if you were a famous mentalist like Derren Brown, you’ll be able to read their minds and know the card.
The Secret
Remove any three cards from the deck. We suggest two similar cards and then a different card that’s easy to remember. For example, the Ace of Spades, Ace of Clubs and Queen of hearts.
Place the cards in a row on the table and memorize the middle card. In our example, it’s easy to do. Just put the odd card (Queen of Hearts) in the middle of the two black Aces.
Turn your back and tell your spectator to just think of one of the cards.
To keep them honest and make sure everyone else can enjoy the trick, you’ll now ask them to silently code the card to the audience so they'll all know the card but you can't overhear anything by accident. Your volunteer will do this by swapping the position of the 2 cards they didn’t pick. So, if they chose the Queen of Hearts, they would swap the positions of the Ace of Spades and Ace of Clubs.
Once they’ve swapped the cards, instruct them to turn all the cards face down before you turn back around.
Face them again and tell them to mix all 3 cards on the table like a wash shuffle a blackjack dealer would use. This ensures there’s no way you could know which cards they swapped. As they do this, don't take your eyes off the center card. The whole secret to this amazing card trick revolves around secretly keeping track of that center card.
Once they stop mixing, flip over the “center card” you were following, followed quickly by the other two cards. The identity of the card you followed will act as a secret code for which card they mentally chose. The following explanation seems confusing in writing. But, if you try it with playing cards in front of you, it’s much easier to understand.
If the card you were following was the original “center card” (Queen of Hearts), then that is the card they chose. If it’s one of two original outer cards, then their card is the opposite of the card you flipped over. For example, if the card you followed was the Ace of Spades, then they chose the Ace of Clubs (and vice versa).
Before you reveal you know the card, remind them that they only thought of a card. Nothing was said out loud. So, it should be impossible for you to know the card. Then, instead of just saying the card out loud, dramatically eliminate the other cards one by one. When it’s down to two cards, pretend like you’re going to eliminate their card before changing your mind at the last second. Watch their face as you do this and you’ll see how building suspense can make this impossible card magic trick seem even more incredible.
The Easy 4 Aces Card Trick
If you ask someone to name any playing card at random, they’re very likely to choose an Ace. Often, the Ace of Spades is the most chosen card. That’s because the Aces are most recognizable cards in a deck of cards. They’re also the strongest playing cards in most of the best card games (and, subsequently, the cards most often snuck into games when people cheat at cards).
Card magic tricks using the Aces always leave a lasting impact. And this easy four Ace card trick is truly awesome because you’ll be able to give your volunteer magical powers. All the magic happens in their hands, making it feel like a miracle. It’s self-working too, meaning you don’t have to worry about any difficult sleight of hand.
The Secret
The most important part of this trick actually happens before it begins. Secretly place all four Aces face down on the top of the deck.
To start the trick, turn the deck face up and show all the cards are shuffled (being carefully to stop just before you get to the four Aces at the top). Do this casually and nobody will suspect a thing. If you know a false shuffle, now would be a good time to do it.
Hand the deck of cards to your volunteer face down. Ask them to cut the deck into four roughly equal piles. Tell them it doesn’t have to be perfect, just to try their best to have about the same amount of cards in each pile.
While they do this, keep an eye on where the top pile with all the Aces lands. Almost every time it will end up on one of the far edges.
Tell your friend to pick up the pile farthest away from the pile with the Aces. (If the Aces are on the far right, start on the far left.)
Ask them to count three cards off the top of the deck and move them to the bottom. They should then deal one card on to the top of each of the three remaining piles.
Have them put this pile down. Then pick up the one next to it and repeat the process of moving three cards to the bottom and then dealing one card to the top of the other piles.
You’re going to have them repeat this with all four piles. The most important thing to remember though is that the Aces pile must go last. If the Aces pile somehow ended up in the second or third position instead of one of the edges, start with the pile to it’s right instead of the one “farthest away”. Now, by moving left to right, you’d eventually have to loop back to the beginning of the row and the Ace pile would go last.
After they’re done, recap everything that happened. Remind them that they held the deck of cards the entire time. They cut wherever they wanted. Yet, somehow a miracle still occurred. Flip over the top card of every pile to show that they’ve impossibly found all four Aces.
The Fortune Teller Card Trick
Nothing is more amazing than seemingly having the ability to see into the future. That’s why easy mentalism tricks are so popular. You can predict the future with this card trick. And it only takes a few seconds to learn. This is an easy magic trick kids and adults can learn today.
Beyond being an amazing card trick, the Fortune Teller Card Trick teaches you the Cut Deeper Force, which is the best easy card force. Card Forces are an essential part of card magic and are a must-have skill if you ever want to learn intermediate or advanced card tricks in the future.
Secretly peek at the top card before the trick begins. Write down that playing card on a piece of paper and fold it up. This will be your prediction. Even better, you could take a photo of the card and post it to your Instagram story or make a TikTok video announcing that “you have a strong feeling” your friend is about to choose this playing card.
Place the deck of cards face down on the table. Ask your volunteer to cut off approximately the top quarter of the deck and turn it face up before placing it back on the top of the deck.
Now, ask them to cut the deck again. But, this time, cut a little deeper. About half the deck. Again, they should flip everything face up and put it back on top of the deck.
Push aside the face-up playing cards as you remind your volunteer that they just made a variety of completely free choices. Their decisions led them to one single card. Stop when you see the first face-down card after all the face-up cards.
Flip over the face-down card and then reveal your prediction. Congrats! You just became a mindreader. Just like Patrick Jane from the classic TV show The Mentalist, you just gained what looks like supernatural powers.
Magic tricks are one of the easiest ways to be the life of the party. Learning just a few easy magic tricks will give you the skills needed to amaze friends, family, and anyone else you meet. The best way to start is to with some easy card tricks, easy mentalism, and easy close-up magic tricks under your belt. This will immediately make you the most interesting person in the room. We're here to help you learn easy card magic tricks for free.
The easy card tricks for adults and kids below are super simple to learn. You’ll be able to perform all of them almost immediately after learning the secret. But, don’t let that fool you. These are the same type of amazing card tricks used by professional magicians like David Blaine, Dynamo, Michael Carbonaro and Justin Willman.
We do think that every beginner magician should try to learn card tricks and learn magic tricks from the best magic books for beginners . However, that doesn’t also mean we can’t help you with some great ways to learn magic online and become a magician.
So, grab some playing cards and let’s get started with some easy card tricks you can learn today!
Easy Card Magic Tricks for Free
The Best Easy Card Trick
This incredible card trick is a cross between a card magic trick and an easy mentalism trick. It will have your friends convinced you know how to read minds.
You can impossibly know any card a person chooses. All you need is an ordinary deck of cards, like Bicycle Playing Cards or any of the other best playing cards for magic tricks.
The Secret
Allow someone to shuffle the cards. It can be your deck of cards or you can even borrow a deck of cards during one of your favorite card games.
Perform a face down card spread and allow someone to select any card. (Learn how to spread cards like a magician and other essential card magic sleight of hand moves with these free card magic basics videos.)
Turn away from them and tell them to show everyone else their card. As you do this, peek at the bottom card of the deck and memorize it. (For this example, we’ll use the 2 of Clubs.)
After everyone has a chance to see the card, turn back around and cut about half the deck off and place it on the table.
Tell your volunteer to place their card face down on top of the packet of cards on the table.
Take the remaining half of the deck still in your hands and place it on top of all the cards on the table. This secretly places the card you already know above the card they selected. (This is known as the “Key Card” principle in magic).
Recap everything that’s happened. They chose any card they wanted and showed everyone but you. There’s no way for you to know what their card could be.
Pick up the cards and fan them with the faces toward you. Look for your Key Card (the 2 of Clubs in this example). Their selected card will be directly to the right of that card (Ace of Hearts in the photo below).
- Don’t immediately pull out the card or name it out loud. Instead, pretend like your struggling to find it by pulling out a few cards halfway and then pushing them back in as if changing your mind. Look into their eyes as if trying to read their mind. Then pull out the card with the face toward you. Let the suspense build before turning it over. Alternatively, you could close the spread and verbally reveal their card as if you’re channeling their thoughts.
2. The Easiest Mind Reading Trick
This is way different than your standard “pick a card” trick. Instead of choosing a card, your friend will just think of a card. Impossibly, as if you were a famous mentalist like Derren Brown, you’ll be able to read their minds and know the card.
The Secret
Remove any three cards from the deck. We suggest two similar cards and then a different card that’s easy to remember. For example, the Ace of Spades, Ace of Clubs and Queen of hearts.
Place the cards in a row on the table and memorize the middle card. In our example, it’s easy to do. Just put the odd card (Queen of Hearts) in the middle of the two black Aces.
Turn your back and tell your spectator to just think of one of the cards.
To keep them honest and make sure everyone else can enjoy the trick, you’ll now ask them to silently code the card to the audience so they'll all know the card but you can't overhear anything by accident. Your volunteer will do this by swapping the position of the 2 cards they didn’t pick. So, if they chose the Queen of Hearts, they would swap the positions of the Ace of Spades and Ace of Clubs.
Once they’ve swapped the cards, instruct them to turn all the cards face down before you turn back around.
Face them again and tell them to mix all 3 cards on the table like a wash shuffle a blackjack dealer would use. This ensures there’s no way you could know which cards they swapped. As they do this, don't take your eyes off the center card. The whole secret to this amazing card trick revolves around secretly keeping track of that center card.
Once they stop mixing, flip over the “center card” you were following, followed quickly by the other two cards. The identity of the card you followed will act as a secret code for which card they mentally chose. The following explanation seems confusing in writing. But, if you try it with playing cards in front of you, it’s much easier to understand.
If the card you were following was the original “center card” (Queen of Hearts), then that is the card they chose. If it’s one of two original outer cards, then their card is the opposite of the card you flipped over. For example, if the card you followed was the Ace of Spades, then they chose the Ace of Clubs (and vice versa).
Before you reveal you know the card, remind them that they only thought of a card. Nothing was said out loud. So, it should be impossible for you to know the card. Then, instead of just saying the card out loud, dramatically eliminate the other cards one by one. When it’s down to two cards, pretend like you’re going to eliminate their card before changing your mind at the last second. Watch their face as you do this and you’ll see how building suspense can make this impossible card magic trick seem even more incredible.
The Easy 4 Aces Card Trick
If you ask someone to name any playing card at random, they’re very likely to choose an Ace. Often, the Ace of Spades is the most chosen card. That’s because the Aces are most recognizable cards in a deck of cards. They’re also the strongest playing cards in most of the best card games (and, subsequently, the cards most often snuck into games when people cheat at cards).
Card magic tricks using the Aces always leave a lasting impact. And this easy four Ace card trick is truly awesome because you’ll be able to give your volunteer magical powers. All the magic happens in their hands, making it feel like a miracle. It’s self-working too, meaning you don’t have to worry about any difficult sleight of hand.
The Secret
The most important part of this trick actually happens before it begins. Secretly place all four Aces face down on the top of the deck.
To start the trick, turn the deck face up and show all the cards are shuffled (being carefully to stop just before you get to the four Aces at the top). Do this casually and nobody will suspect a thing. If you know a false shuffle, now would be a good time to do it.
Hand the deck of cards to your volunteer face down. Ask them to cut the deck into four roughly equal piles. Tell them it doesn’t have to be perfect, just to try their best to have about the same amount of cards in each pile.
While they do this, keep an eye on where the top pile with all the Aces lands. Almost every time it will end up on one of the far edges.
Tell your friend to pick up the pile farthest away from the pile with the Aces. (If the Aces are on the far right, start on the far left.)
Ask them to count three cards off the top of the deck and move them to the bottom. They should then deal one card on to the top of each of the three remaining piles.
Have them put this pile down. Then pick up the one next to it and repeat the process of moving three cards to the bottom and then dealing one card to the top of the other piles.
You’re going to have them repeat this with all four piles. The most important thing to remember though is that the Aces pile must go last. If the Aces pile somehow ended up in the second or third position instead of one of the edges, start with the pile to it’s right instead of the one “farthest away”. Now, by moving left to right, you’d eventually have to loop back to the beginning of the row and the Ace pile would go last.
After they’re done, recap everything that happened. Remind them that they held the deck of cards the entire time. They cut wherever they wanted. Yet, somehow a miracle still occurred. Flip over the top card of every pile to show that they’ve impossibly found all four Aces.
The Fortune Teller Card Trick
Nothing is more amazing than seemingly having the ability to see into the future. That’s why easy mentalism tricks are so popular. You can predict the future with this card trick. And it only takes a few seconds to learn. This is an easy magic trick kids and adults can learn today.
Beyond being an amazing card trick, the Fortune Teller Card Trick teaches you the Cut Deeper Force, which is the best easy card force. Card Forces are an essential part of card magic and are a must-have skill if you ever want to learn intermediate or advanced card tricks in the future.
Secretly peek at the top card before the trick begins. Write down that playing card on a piece of paper and fold it up. This will be your prediction. Even better, you could take a photo of the card and post it to your Instagram story or make a TikTok video announcing that “you have a strong feeling” your friend is about to choose this playing card.
Place the deck of cards face down on the table. Ask your volunteer to cut off approximately the top quarter of the deck and turn it face up before placing it back on the top of the deck.
Now, ask them to cut the deck again. But, this time, cut a little deeper. About half the deck. Again, they should flip everything face up and put it back on top of the deck.
Push aside the face-up playing cards as you remind your volunteer that they just made a variety of completely free choices. Their decisions led them to one single card. Stop when you see the first face-down card after all the face-up cards.
Flip over the face-down card and then reveal your prediction. Congrats! You just became a mindreader. Just like Patrick Jane from the classic TV show The Mentalist, you just gained what looks like supernatural powers.
Useful Articles
