How to Perform Coin Magic: Revealing the Secrets and Techniques of Simple Tricks
When you’re asked to do something funny on the spot—like at a party or when someone says, “Come on, show us something cool!”—it can be hard to decide what to do, right?
That’s where coin magic comes in: it’s easy to perform and a hit with just about anyone!
If you’ve got some loose change, you can perform right away, and when people see coin magic up close, they’re sure to enjoy it.
In this article, we’ll cover a wide range of tricks—from self-working routines you can do just by following the steps, to ones that require a bit of practice to learn the techniques.
Among them, if you master a few types of “palms,” techniques for secretly holding a coin, you’ll be able to adapt them to many different tricks.
Give it a try!
- A simple summary of coin magic: beginner tricks where palms and gimmicks are easy to try.
- Simple Magic! Fun Tricks Kids Can Do & Revealed Secrets!
- [Coin, Cards, Pen, etc.] Compilation of Magic Tricks Where Objects Disappear
- With Explanations: Easy Magic Tricks for Lower-Grade Elementary School Children — How to Do Simple Tricks
- A roundup of difficult coin magic: coin tricks that use a variety of techniques.
- Teleportation magic and its secrets: a roundup of tricks using coins, cards, and more
- Magic tricks using cups. Tricks you might want to try for entertainment or performances.
- Magic you can do using only your hands—no props needed! Perfect to perform at school.
- [Easy] Magic tricks that will liven up the classroom: Recommended tricks you can do even during recess
- A roundup of finger tricks: magic you can do using just your fingertips.
- [For Elementary School Students] Simple and Amazing! Magic Tricks You Can Do with a Handkerchief
- Simple magic tricks using stationery: recommended tricks for parties and performances
- Simple magic tricks using rubber bands. Magic you'd want to try for parties or small performances.
How to do coin magic: revealing the secrets and techniques of simple tricks (21–30)
Retention Vanish
A type of coin vanish technique, the retention vanish is one of the fundamental techniques in coin magic.
Put simply, it’s a “false transfer”: you appear to pass the coin from the right hand to the left, but it actually remains in the right hand.
Because it’s so simple, practice is essential; however, with a bit of practice, you should be able to perform it well enough for a casual demonstration.
Try practicing while filming with your smartphone or using a mirror.
Once you master this technique, you’ll be able to apply it to many more magic effects.
Coin change where 1 yen turns into 10 yen
This is a coin change magic trick that cleverly uses blind spots.
You start by showing a single 1-yen coin, but in an instant it transforms into two 10-yen coins.
In fact, the two 10-yen coins are hidden horizontally behind the 1-yen coin.
When you make the change, you use your thumb to push the 1-yen coin and conceal it by stacking it behind the 10-yen coins.
When performing this trick, it’s important to be mindful of your angles and to practice repeatedly in front of a mirror so you can switch the coins smoothly.
A coin that never increases no matter how many you add
It’s an easy magic trick that doesn’t require any special technique—just remember the rule! Arrange the coins in a square so that the total number of coins along each side adds up to 10.
Then have a spectator place one coin anywhere they like.
After the magician moves a few coins around… surprisingly, even though one coin was added, the total along each side still remains 10! You can repeat this several times, so it really entertains the audience.
Watch the video carefully to fully understand the method!
A 500-yen coin instantly turns into a 100-yen coin.
No blinking—this is a coin magic trick you can do in a split second.
The gimmick is crucial, so make sure you prepare carefully.
First, get a 500-yen coin and a 100-yen coin.
Attach a strong, thin neodymium magnet to the back of the 500-yen coin using double-sided tape.
Also, stick another neodymium magnet to your hand with double-sided tape.
Once that’s done, you’re ready.
Secretly place the 100-yen coin beneath the 500-yen coin in advance.
Then, wave the hand with the magnet over the 500-yen coin…
and in an instant, the 500-yen coin turns into a 100-yen coin.
After performing, quickly and discreetly clean up so the method isn’t exposed.
Parse Frame Routine
The Purse Frame routine is a coin magic trick that really sparks the viewer’s imagination.
Watching a coin appear from a transparent purse that’s just the metal frame is like witnessing telekinesis! In fact, it uses two techniques called the classic palm and the fake pass.
The classic palm is concealing a coin in the palm of your hand.
The fake pass makes it look as though you’ve transferred the coin to the other hand.
The routine combines these two.
With practice, you’ll develop the skill to create all kinds of variations!
The coin teleports into the other person’s hand!
You hold a coin in your left hand and grab the spectator’s hand with your right.
Then, the coin that was supposed to be in your left hand suddenly “teleports” into the spectator’s hand.
The spectator can actually feel the coin drop into their palm, so they can’t help but believe it really teleported! This trick actually uses two techniques: the classic palm and the fake pass.
The classic palm is concealing a coin in the palm of your hand.
The fake pass is making it look like you’ve transferred the coin to the other hand.
In this routine, you use the classic palm to execute the fake pass.
Once you’ve done that, all that’s left is to grab the spectator’s hand and let the palmed coin drop.
I recommend starting by practicing the classic palm.
It’s useful in many other coin tricks, so take your time and practice it thoroughly!
Take a coin out of a smartphone
Let’s try a simple coin magic trick using a smartphone.
In this trick, a coin that appears on the phone screen seems to appear in the real world.
All you need is the phone’s photo app.
The only preparation is to take a photo of a coin placed on a white background in advance.
When you’re ready, secretly hold a real coin behind the phone, aligned with the one on the screen, and then pretend to pinch the coin on the screen and pull it out to the side.
The way you take the photo and the motion of pulling out the coin require some practice, so try it a few times.
It’s a simple trick with an obvious method, but if performed well, it can look impressive.