Magic tricks using cups. Tricks you might want to try for entertainment or performances.
We’ve gathered ideas for magic tricks using cups and glasses that are perfect for beginners who want to try magic for the first time.
From the classic cups and balls to coin-through-glass tricks, quick and easy effects, and routines that require a bit of practice, there’s a wide range to choose from.
These tricks use props that are simple to prepare, so you can give them a try the same day you get inspired.
If you want to expand your magic repertoire or are planning to perform magic for an event or entertainment segment, be sure to use this article as a reference.
- How to Perform Coin Magic: Revealing the Secrets and Techniques of Simple Tricks
- Simple Magic! Fun Tricks Kids Can Do & Revealed Secrets!
- [Easy] A Beginner’s Guide to Card Magic: Tricks Even Elementary School Kids Can Do Right Away
- Hilarious magic! Crowd-pleasing tricks perfect for parties and performances
- With Explanations: Easy Magic Tricks for Lower-Grade Elementary School Children — How to Do Simple Tricks
- Magic tricks with plastic bottles: a roundup of penetration and vanishing illusions
- Magic tricks with a handkerchief: crowd-pleasing tricks for parties and performances
- [Coin, Cards, Pen, etc.] Compilation of Magic Tricks Where Objects Disappear
- [For Upper Grades] Simple Magic Tricks for Elementary School Students: Astonishing and Impressive Magic
- Simple magic tricks using stationery: recommended tricks for parties and performances
- [Magic] Crowd-Pleasers for Elementary Schools! A Collection of Magic Trick Ideas Perfect for Fun Parties
- Magic tricks that liven up drinking parties and banquets: Recommended tricks for entertainment and performances
- Simple magic! Magic tricks recommended for entertainment and performances.
Magic tricks using cups: 21–30 tricks you’ll want to try for parties and performances
A cup that produces coins
I’m introducing a magic trick video where a 100-yen coin suddenly appears out of nowhere.
All you need is a paper cup and a 100-yen coin.
After letting your spectator examine the paper cup, you place it on the table and tap it a few times.
Then, a 100-yen coin suddenly appears on the table from seemingly nothing.
There are no gimmicks or hidden mechanisms in this video, so if you watch it to get a sense of the successful performance and also check out the explanation video before trying it yourself, you should be able to pull it off.
If you’re curious, try looking up how it’s done.
Magic where a coin instantly teleports into a cup
A coin appears from the hand that wasn’t holding it and drops into the cup.
Somehow, the coin has vanished from the hand that was supposed to be holding it.
At first glance, it looks like the coin really teleported, but in fact, the magician only pretended to grasp it—the coin was in the left hand the whole time.
It’s a magic trick that uses a technique called palming.
Disappearing cup
It’s a simple yet astonishing magic trick using a cup.
All you need is a cup, a round piece of paper, and a handkerchief—easy to try anytime.
Preparation is simple: just cut the paper to fit the cup.
Drape the handkerchief over the cup, say the magic words, and when you remove the handkerchief…the cup has vanished! Where the audience looks and the timing of your reveal are key points.
Because it’s easy to perform, it’s perfect for surprise moments at parties or as a fun sideshow.
You can start right away, so it’s also recommended as a first step in your magic debut.
Paper Cup Transformation Magic
A face that changes in an instant! Here’s a fun idea for a paper cup transformation magic trick.
Wouldn’t it be amusing if an angry face drawn on a paper cup suddenly turned into a big smile? This time, let’s try an easy magic trick that even kids can enjoy.
You’ll need two paper cups, elastic fishing line, a utility knife, scissors, a pen, and an awl.
As an introduction to spark interest in magic, incorporating this trick is likely to draw visitors’ attention.
Give it a try!
A tissue passing through a cup
This magic trick is about making a tissue pass through a cup.
You stack three cups, but prepare it so that a crumpled tissue is hidden inside the middle cup.
Then line the cups up horizontally and start the trick.
Make sure the hidden tissue can’t be seen.
As you stack the cups, the tissue you showed the audience appears to be in the middle, just as they saw.
In reality, the prepared tissue is in the bottom cup.
The trick is to make it look as if, by sheer willpower, the tissue has appeared in the bottom cup.
The magic trick of guessing which cup has the ball
It’s a magic trick where you have to correctly pick the one cup out of three that has a small item inside, with 100% accuracy.
In fact, there’s a tiny mark, and by tracking where that marked cup is, you can tell which cup contains the item.
Even small children could do it.
A ball that teleports from a pocket into a cup
It’s a very mysterious magic trick where the sponge ball that was supposed to be in your pocket somehow appears from the cup.
In fact, you only pretend to put it in your pocket and keep holding it in your hand, then drop the sponge ball when you lift the cup.
It looks like you could substitute a tissue as well.