How to Shuffle Tarot Cards (4 Methods, Including One for Small Hands)

Q: Do you have to cut the deck after shuffling?

No. Cutting is optional. Some readers cut once, some into three piles, some never. Pick a habit and keep it.

Q: How do you shuffle tarot cards with small hands?

Use the pile shuffle (cut the deck into piles and restack them in any order) or the wash (spread the cards face down on the table, swirl, and gather). Neither needs a big grip.

Written by the Toe Bean Tarot team Sep 21, 2026 · 4 min read We built a full tarot curriculum: 98 guided lesson sections, spaced repetition, and two original 78-card decks.

How to shuffle tarot cards: any way that mixes them and doesn't bend them. Tarot cards are bigger and stiffer than playing cards, so the casino-style bridge riffle isn't the default. Most readers use one of the four methods below, and all four are correct. Pick the one your hands like.

The back of a Toe Bean Waite tarot card, gold moon and stars on indigo, the side you see while learning how to shuffle tarot cards. — Two decks, two card sizes. The shuffle that fits your hands is the right one.

The back of a Salty Bean tarot card, dense ink crosshatch with gold details. — Two decks, two card sizes. The shuffle that fits your hands is the right one.

1. The overhand shuffle

Hold the deck in one hand, and with the other pull small packets off the top and drop them into your palm, over and over. It's the shuffle most people already know, it's gentle on the cards, and it works fine on big cards. Do it for a good while: each pass only moves a few packets, so a quick overhand leaves the deck mostly in its old order.

2. The pile shuffle

Deal the deck into five or six face-down piles, then stack the piles back together in any order. Repeat once or twice. This is the method for small hands, for oversized decks, and for anyone whose overhand shuffle keeps spraying cards across the table. Turning one or two piles around as you restack is also the tidiest way to introduce reversed cards.

3. The wash

Spread the whole deck face down on a cloth or table, swirl the cards around with both hands like you're washing them, then gather them back into a stack. It's the most thorough mix of the four, it's gentle, and it takes zero dexterity. It's also the one that produces reversals on its own, so if you don't read reversals, straighten the cards as you gather them.

4. A gentle riffle

Split the deck in two, hold the halves at the corners, and let the edges interleave with as little bend as you can manage. It's fast and it works, and it's also the method most likely to crease a deck over time. Skip it on cards you love, on thick cardstock, and on anything oversized.

Adding reversed cards

If you read reversed tarot cards, turn half the deck 180 degrees before you shuffle, or turn a pile around during a pile shuffle, or use the wash. If you don't read them, keep every card facing the same way and straighten any that flip. Neither choice is more correct. Plenty of good readers never use reversals.

How long to shuffle, and what to do next

Ask your question while you shuffle. Say it out loud or hold it in mind. Doing it before you look at the cards is what keeps a self-reading honest; how to ask tarot questions has the wording.
Stop when it feels done. There's no number. When the cards feel mixed and the question feels clear, you're there.
Cut if you like cutting. Once, in three piles, or not at all. It's a habit, not a rule.
Draw from the top, or fan and pick. Both are standard. For a daily one-card draw, top of the deck is plenty.
If a card flies out, that's a jumper card. Decide what you'll do with jumpers before it happens, and then do that every time.

The daily card screen in the Toe Bean Tarot app on an Android phone, a face-down card ready to flip. — No cardstock to bend: shake the phone and the app reshuffles and deals.

A shuffle you don't have to do by hand is the thing the Toe Bean Tarot app does for you: ask a question, choose whether reversals are in, and shake the phone to shuffle and draw (Android only). With a paper deck, the shuffle stays yours, and the rest of owning one is covered in the tarot deck guide.

Quick answers

How many times should you shuffle tarot cards?

There's no magic number. Shuffle until the cards feel mixed and your question is clear in your head, then stop.

Can someone else shuffle my tarot deck?

Yes. Many readers have the person they're reading for shuffle or cut. Wash hands, be gentle, and the cards won't mind.

Do you have to cut the deck after shuffling?

No. Cutting is optional. Once, in three piles, or never. Pick a habit and keep it.

How do you shuffle tarot cards with small hands?

Use the pile shuffle or the wash. Neither needs a big grip.