A linear surgical stapler includes upper and lower jaws, an anvil and a cartridge respectively mounted on opposite far ends of the upper and lower jaws, a handle portion, a slider, and a button base relatively fixed to the slider. The lower jaw therein includes a staple drive bar and a cutter pusher. The slider is mounted with the button base. Each lateral side of the button base is pivotally associated with an operation button which is rotatable between a first status where an operating surface of the operation button is perpendicular to an axis of the linear surgical stapler, and a second status where the operating surface of the operation button is parallel to the axis of the linear surgical stapler. Since the operation buttons can be simultaneously collapsed adjacent to the jaws, the profile of the whole instrument and the packaging costs can be reduced.