A freestyle skateboarding trick is a trick performed with a skateboard while freestyle skateboarding. Some of these tricks are done in a stationary position, unlike many other skateboarding tricks. The keys to a good freestyle contest run are variety, difficulty, fluidity, and creativity. This is an incomplete list, which includes most notable tricks.

Terminology

nose – the part of the board that is normally leading in the riding direction tail – the part of the board that is normally trailing in the riding direction truck – the collective name for the front and rear axle assemblies of a skateboard fakie – to ride backwards pivot – to "kickturn", "spin", or "turn the board horizontally" varial – to spin 180 degrees or more, as in a varial kickflip (180 pop shove-it + kickflip), body varial (body spins 180 degrees landing in an opposite stance), or 360 varial (often in vert, a 360 pop shove-it that's caught) scoop – to push down on the tail/nose with a foot and move it forward or backward, usually to do a pop shove-it (board rotates 180 degrees or more) or any trick including a rotation wrap – moving a leg around the board, as in a saran wrap airwalk – in the air, when the board is held (usually by the nose) and the feet are not touching the ground tailstop – to come to a stop with the tail of the board in contact with the ground nosestop – to come to a stop with the nose of the board in contact with the ground frontside – indicates the skater is facing the outside of the turn; in slides, indicates that the rail or ledge is to the front (toe side) of the board. backside – indicates the skater is facing the center point of the turn; in slides, indicates that the rail or ledge is to the back (heel side) of the board.

Standing tricks These tricks involve stationary balancing.

50/50 Truckstand/pogo A 50/50 truckstand is when the board is balanced nearly vertical with the back foot standing on the truck and the front hand holding the nose. The typical way to perform a 50/50 truckstand is to put the board into nosestop, grasp the board with the back hand, jump and toss it to the front hand and land with the back foot on the truck, then execute a half-finger flip to land it.

Casper

A freestyle stance where the skateboard is upside down and balanced on the point of the tail. The skater's back foot is on the underside of the tail and the front foot is hooked under the deck (touching the front foot to the ground is not a proper Casper). Named for inventor Bobby "Casper" Boyden.

While performing this trick, some skateboarders will drop the front part of the board and repeatedly catch it with the front foot, which grabs the attention of spectators due to the rhythm and noise.

Railstand In a Railstand, the skateboard is balanced on one edge with the rider standing on the opposite edge, usually with the feet also on the wheels. This position can be used as a set-up for many other tricks, and was invented in the 1970s by Bobby "Casper" Boyden.

A Heelside Railstand is to stand on the board in railstand, with the griptape facing the rider's back, and a Toeside Railstand is the reverse. A common variation is a Cooperstand, which is a Railstand with one foot on a wheel and the other on the nose.

Handstand A handstand on a skateboard. Many variations evolved from this, including One-Handed Handstands, Headstands, Frogstands, Handstand Wheelies, Handstand Pivots, Handstand Handflips and Fingerflips, Railstand Handstands, etc. Also TV Stands, which are Handstands done in a 50/50.

Street Plant A hand-plant trick in which the rider holds the board in one hand, does a one-handed handstand, puts the board under the feet, then comes down on top of the board. It is used as a way to get onto one's board. This is like an Invert on Vert, but done on flatground.

A difficult variation is the YoYo Plant, done without the feet touching the ground. It is usually done by rolling fakie with one hand planted on the ground as the other grabs the board. This is one of numerous variations developed by Joachim "YoYo" Schulz.

The HoHo Plant involves a handstand with both hands on the ground and the board resting on the feet. The YoHo Plant begins with a YoYo Plant then places the free hand on the ground to take the HoHo stance. The trick is often seen performed by Terry Synnott.

Spins

360 Spin 1970s skate competitions such as the ones shown in Lords of Dogtown would often have an event to see who could do the most consecutive 360 spins on a skateboard. Variations include one-foot spins (on the nose or tail, or grabbing the foot while spinning), two-foot spins (on the nose or tail), crossfoot spins, two-board spins, etc.

Bigspin A trick in which the board rotates 360-degrees while the skateboarder turns 180 degrees in the same direction above it. If the skateboarder rotates in the opposite direction of the skateboard it is called Anti-Bigspin. This can be done in any direction from any position, and in freestyle is often done following a Casper.

Higher rotations are possible, with the rotation of the board noted before the name of the trick; e.g.: a 540 Bigspin combines a 540 Shove-It and a 180 turn of the body.

Gazelle A Gazelle is a 540-degree rotation of the board while the rider spins 360 degrees in the same direction above it. It is usually done off the front end of the board and spun backside while travelling forwards, but can be done in any direction and combined with flips. Effectively, this is the next step up from a Bigspin.

Shove-it A Shove-it is a 180-degree spin (instead of a flip) of the board. The name may have qualifiers added to describe the direction of spin (frontside or backside) or a higher amount of spin. In freestyle, the trick is usually performed off the front of the board while riding forwards, which helps ensure flat and fast spins. In streetstyle, Shove-Its are often popped (called a Pop Shuvit) from either end of the board. Frontside or backside rotations are possible. A Shove-it should spin totally flat, in contrast to an Impossible which should spin totally vertical.

Walk The Dog A footwork trick which spins the board. The front foot is positioned in the middle of the board while the back foot steps to the nose and brings it backwards, spinning the board 180 degrees. With practice, this trick can be done in quick repetition – or backwards – though a slow performance can create an illusion of speed.

Pivots

End-Over An End-Over is a series of 180-degree pivots, beginning on the nose (or the tail when rolling fakie). Pressure is placed on the nose to lift the back wheels, then the rider quickly turns 180 degrees (frontside or backside), pivoting on the nose while maintaining speed and direction of travel. One pivot is immediately followed by another in the opposite rotation; when these pivots are done in consecutive lines, they are considered End-Overs (end-over-end). It is not uncommon to mix more difficult pivots in to a sequence of End-Overs, such as a 360 pivot or one-foot pivot.

A Jaywalk is an advanced version of the End-Over, in which the foot not performing the pivot is lifted clear of the board and brought to step down at the location the board will be after completing the pivot. This was invented by Brian Remmer.

In the Monster Walk version, instead of alternating pivots, the rider pivots frontside and frontside or backside and backside (fakie), giving the appearance of taking very large steps forward or backward.

Flips Flip tricks impart momentum to the unweighted board while the skater jumps, and may be used to reorient the board to a desirable position for landing.

Butter Flip The Butter Flip is executed following a Heelside Railstand. Both feet hop to one side of the board, side by side with no more than a gap. The rider puts pressure onto the end of the board, using the foot that is not on the wheel. This pops the board up, allowing it to be grasped with the hand opposite the foot which applied pressure. This trick is used to transition from Heelside Railstand to a Pogo or 50/50. The board can also be caught with the foot, making it a Butter Flip to a No Handed 50/50. The trick is named for its inventor, Keith Butterfield.

Fingerflip A Fingerflip uses a flick of the fingers to flip the skateboard. Typically, the rider rolls forward, grabs the nose of the board with the front hand, then simultaneously jumps and flips the unweighted board with their hand. The rider will then come down on the board or catch the board in mid-air. There are numerous variations including the Double Fingerflip, Varial Fingerflip, Backhand Fingerflip, and 360 Fingerflip, and Fakie versions of these. Ollie Fingerflip variations are considered to be more difficult because the rider must Ollie before initiating the Fingerflip. Professional freestyler Darryl Grogan is known for his Ollie 360 Fingerflip, and Rodney Mullen is known to use an Ollie Varial Fingerflip in many of his runs and videos.

Note that fingerflips are different from handflips, which involve grabbing the edge of the board and use the full hand to throw the board into a flip.

Kickflip This trick begins with the rider positioned with feet side-by-side pointed toward the nose; one foot (typically the back foot) is hooked around the edge of the board. The opposite foot pushes down and the hooked foot kicks sideways as the rider jumps, the rider's body turning to land in a normal riding position. Invented by Curt Lindgren.

The feet should never touch the ground in the trick, and turning the hooked foot so that it points directly at the other foot is technically an underflip and considered bad form. Variations include Doubleflips, Varial Flips, 360 Flips and M-80s.

Kickback A trick involving a half flip backwards followed by one half or one-and-a-half flips forwards. From a stance with the front foot on the front bolts and the toes of the back foot along the heelside edge in the middle of the board, it can be accomplished by pushing down on the toes of the back foot, then jumping, kicking the board forwards, and catching it on the grip tape.

Hops and jumps Ollie The Ollie is a trick in which the rider and board leap into the air without use of the rider's hands. The rider stomps on the tail of the board to bring it mostly vertical, jumps, bends the knees as the skateboard springs up, and slides the front foot forward to level the skateboard at the peak of the jump. It was originally developed by Alan "Ollie" Gelfand in a bowl, and brought to flat ground by Rodney Mullen. It is considered a fundamental skill in skateboarding, needed to leap onto, over, or off of obstacles.

A Nollie (short for "nose ollie") is the most common variation of an Ollie, reversing the roles of the two legs so that the front foot pops the nose to the ground and the rear foot guides the board.

Pogo A trick in which the skateboard is used like a pogo stick. The board is held vertical against the boarder's legs, with one foot on the bottom truck and one or both hands holding the nose to lift the board up as the rider hops. It can also be done by squeezing the board between both legs in a no-handed variant, or stood with one foot on the truck and the other crossed over behind it with the toes of that foot pushing against the griptape for a cross-footed pogo.

A Switchfoot Pogo is performed by alternating the foot on the truck with each of a series of continuous Pogo hops, so that it looks like the skater is walking on the truck.

Slides and grinds Slides and grinds involve riding the skateboard as it moves across a ledge or rail on its board (slides) or trucks (grinds).

Primo Slide This trick requires balancing like a Railstand but is done while moving, with the side of the board sliding along the ground. Invented by Primo Desiderio, the original version involved sliding backside 180 degrees, but many skaters now hold them in a straight line, flipping into and out of them.