Simple Ways to Riffle Shuffle and Bridge Playing Cards

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Professional poker player Alec Torelli shares tips for shuffling

Co-authored by Hunter Rising Reviewed by Alec Torelli

Last Updated: November 25, 2025 Fact Checked

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• Standard Riffle Shuffle & Bridge
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• Riffle Shuffle in Hands
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• Double Bridge Shuffle
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• Video
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• Q&A
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• Tips

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Whether you’re preparing for a card game or magic trick, the riffle shuffle and bridge are classic techniques to mix a deck of cards. While a riffle and bridge look impressive, it’s actually really easy to learn. We talked to professional poker player Alec Torelli and professional magician Magic Suzy for tips on how to riffle shuffle and bridge on a table or in your hands. We’ll even cover the double bridge to add some extra flourish to your shuffling.

Looking for the classic card game Bridge instead? Check out our article covering the rules!

Easy Way to Riffle Shuffle & Bridge Cards

Professional poker player Alec Torelli says to riffle shuffle, use your thumbs or index finger to bend the cards up in an arc. Hold the short edges close together, and move your thumbs up so the cards fall down. To bridge, press your thumbs where the cards overlap, push your hands together, and loosen your grip.

Steps

Section 1 of 3:

How to Riffle Shuffle and Bridge Cards on a Table

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1. 
   1
   Separate the deck into two equal stacks. Stack the deck of cards on the table in front of you, and pick up approximately half the deck. Try to get the stacks as even as possible so they’re easier to shuffle.

   • Torelli recommends using high-quality cards to practice shuffling. He says that professional-grade cards “slide a lot better. It also prevents them from getting torn or ripped,” or from having the edges damaged, and recommends KEM cards, which are "the gold standard."

   Meet the wikiHow Expert

   Alec Torelli is a professional high-stakes poker player, coach, and keynote speaker based in Las Vegas. He’s also the founder of Conscious Poker, a poker training platform.

   Magic Suzy is a professional magician from Tampa, Florida, with over 20 years of experience. Her signature show, The Magic Suzy Show, brings comedy magic to the whole family.
2. 
   2
   Hold the ends of the cards with your thumb and fingers. When you pick up a stack, hold one short end with your thumb and the other end with your middle, ring, and pinkie fingers. Press your index finger into the top of the stack near the middle. Hold the other stack in your other hand the same way.
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3. 
   3
   Bend the cards up with your thumbs. Position the stacks so the short edges held by your thumbs are next to each other. “Lift your thumbs up … to create an arc on the back of the cards,” says Torelli. Use your index fingers to press the stack down onto the table. As your thumbs move up through the stack, the cards snap back down one at a time and overlap the cards from the other stack.

   • Torelli suggests using your index fingers to curl the cards up if it’s too hard to do it with your thumbs.
   • Try to make the cards overlap by about 1 inch (2.5 cm) in the middle. If the cards are too close or far apart, they may be more difficult to make a bridge.
   • It might take a little practice to find the right hand position and speed to move your thumbs. If the cards aren’t intermixing, move your thumbs up the stack a little slower.
4. 
   4
   Grip the outer edges of the stack. Curl your middle, ring, and pinky fingers around the outer, short edges of the riffled cards. Keep the stacks separated besides the small section that’s overlapping.

   • Hold your index fingers lightly along the longer edges of the stacks to keep them stabilized and prevent a mess.
5. 
   5
   Put both thumbs on top where the cards overlap. Position your thumbs on top of the center of the stack, directly over the interwoven edges. Your thumbs help press the top arch of the "bridge," preventing the cards from flying upwards.
6. 
   6
   Push the cards upward into an arch. “Curl your hands inward, so your palms and fingers are facing each other,” says Torelli. Then, "curl the three fingers that are supporting the back of the cards upwards and close to each other." Use your hands to push the two sides of the stack together, forcing them into a high arch.

   • Keep your fingers underneath the stack for now.
   • This technique is called a bridge because of the arched shape you make with the cards.
7. 
   7
   Open your fingers to let the cards fall. Release your grip on the cards, holding the short edges close together. Then, Torelli says to “slowly and elegantly let the cards fall together.” The cards should fall in a "cascade" or "waterfall" pattern.

   • Keep your fingers together and flat so you can catch the cards.
   • Remember to keep your thumbs pressed on top of the arch the whole time so the cards don’t go flying everywhere.
   • Squeeze the cards together when you finish the bridge to make the stack look nice and even.
   • Most times, doing a bridge will help fix any bends you made in the cards when you did the riffle shuffle.
   EXPERT TIP

   

   Magic Suzy

   Professional Magician

   Suzy Seth, known professionally as Magic Suzy, is a Professional Magician based in Tampa, Florida. Known as Magic Suzy, she has over 20 years of experience as a magician, specializing in family-oriented comedy magic shows that entertain both kids and adults. She brings her signature show, The Magic Suzy Show, to kids’ birthday parties, school assemblies, PTA fundraisers, preschools, summer camps, and other private events. Her work has been featured on local TV stations in Tampa. Before that, she worked as an entertainer on Princess Cruises.

   

   Magic Suzy
   Professional Magician

   Constantly practice your card shuffle until it becomes muscle memory. Shuffling cards is all about building your dexterity and strengthening the muscles around the fingers. Carve out a little time every day to practice your shuffles until they’re perfect.
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Section 2 of 3:

How to Riffle Shuffle in Your Hands

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1. 
   1
   Separate the deck into two halves. Split the deck of cards into two stacks that are roughly the same size. Hold one stack in each hand so they’re face-down.
2. 
   2
   Grip the ends of each stack with your thumb and fingers. Place your middle and ring fingers at the short end of the stack, and curl your fingertips around so they’re on the bottom of the pile. Grip the other short end of the stack with your thumb. Place your pinky lightly along one of the stack’s long edges. Then, push your index finger knuckle into the top-center of the stack.
3. 
   3
   Riffle the cards together. Hold the stacks close together so a long edge faces you and your thumbs are next to each other. Move your thumbs up to bend the cards upward. Slowly move your thumbs upward and outward so the bent cards snap back into your fingers and interlace with the cards from the other stack.

   • Try to overlap the card stacks by about 1 inch (2.5 cm) so they’re easier to bridge.
   • Push your index fingers down into the centers of the piles to help bend the cards.
   • If the cards fall out of your hands, extend your middle finger underneath the piles for additional support. It may take a little practice to shuffle the cards properly without making a mess.
4. 
   4
   Bend the cards up into a bridge and let them fall into place. Put your thumbs on top of the stack where the cards overlap. Then, push your hands closer together so the cards bend into a curved arch. Loosen the grip with your fingers so the cards fall down into a single stack.

   • If you have trouble performing the bridge, just push the 2 stacks together instead.
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Section 3 of 3:

How to Do the Double Bridge Shuffle

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1. 
   1
   Split the deck into 2 equal piles. Cut the deck in half and hold each stack in your hand. Make sure the stacks stay face-down so no one sees the cards.

   • The double bridge just adds a little extra flourish to your card shuffle, so it’s great if you want to impress your friends or do it before performing a card trick.
2. 
   2
   Grip the ends of the cards with your thumb and fingers. Hold one short edge of a stack with your thumb, and grip the other short edge with your middle, ring, and pinkie finger. Place your index finger in the top-center of the stack. Hold the second stack in your other hand the same way.
3. 
   3
   Riffle the cards together so the piles are askew. Hold the stacks next to each other so the short edges with your thumbs are next to each other. Position one stack a little further forward by about a third of the card’s width. Move your thumbs up and press your index fingers down to bend the cards. As you move your thumbs up, the cards fall into a single, interlocking stack.
4. 
   4
   Bend the cards into an arch to perform the first bridge. Place your thumbs directly over where the cards overlap. Move your hands closer together so the cards bend into an upward arch. Loosen your grip with your fingers so the cards fall down into a single stack.

   • The cards in the stack will still be a little offset, so don’t worry if it doesn’t look perfect.
   • Keep your thumbs on top of the stack, or else the cards may fly up when you try doing a bridge.
5. 
   5
   Squeeze the long sides of the cards into an arch to do the second bridge. Reposition your hand so your thumb is along one long side of the stack and your other fingers are on the opposite side. Squeeze the cards tightly so they bend up into your palm and form a bridge shape. Put your other hand underneath the stack, and loosen your grip so the cards fall into your palm.
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• Question

  Can I do the bridge finish with plasticized cards?

  

  Community Answer

  Yes.

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• Question

  Where do I put the cards after I shuffle them?

  

  Lara

  Community Answer

  This depends on the game. A certain game may or may not require the cards to be put in a certain place. If you're just shuffling them for no apparent reason, it doesn't really matter where you put them.

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• Question

  Are there any other ways I could shuffle cards that are still pretty easy but look cool?

  

  Community Answer

  Try the dynamo or Sybil cut.

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Tips

• To ensure your cards are thoroughly mixed, riffle shuffle them at least 7 times.
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• Keep a deck of cards with you so you can practice your card shuffles whenever you want. Plus, you’ll be able to play a card game or magic trick no matter where you are!
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• After you learn the riffle shuffle and bridge, check out our walkthroughs of other card shuffles you can try out!
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