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Zodiac & Birth Chart Calculator

Find your exact sun sign from your birth date, an approximate rising sign from your birth time (timeless mode included), a daily & weekly horoscope for all 12 signs, a zodiac compatibility percentage, and an elements guide — all in one free tool, no sign-up, instant results.

12 signs full readings Rising changes ~every 2 hrs No sign-up, instant Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Enter your birth date to see your exact sun sign, its element, modality, ruling planet, and its strengths and growth areas.

Your sun sign depends only on your birth date — no time needed.

Enter your birth date, time, and city to find your approximate rising sign. Don't know your time? Explore how it shifts through the day with the slider.

City affects the horizon angle in a full calculation; here it's for context only. Enter your birth time as the local clock time at your birth location — this works the same no matter which time zone (U.S. or otherwise) you were born in.
I don't know my time (timeless mode)See how the rising sign shifts through the day
Time: 09:30drag to explore

Enter your birth date, time, and city to find your approximate moon sign — the layer of your chart that reflects your emotions and inner needs. Uses the same birth details as the Rising Sign tab.

The Moon moves through roughly one sign every ~2.5 days, so your exact birth time and date both matter. This is an approximate model — an exact moon sign requires a professional ephemeris.

Pick your sign to get a horoscope for today, this week, this month, or this year covering love, work, and health, plus your compatible sign and lucky number.

Choose two signs to see a compatibility percentage based on element, modality, and angle, broken down into love/communication/passion/long-term, with an explanation.

Don't know a moon sign yet? Find it on the Moon Sign tab above, then come back and select it here for an added emotional-compatibility sub-score.

Tap an element to explore its signs, temperament, and which element it pairs well with.

Enter your birth date (and year, for a Leap Month/late-January edge case) to find your Chinese zodiac animal, its element, and which animals it's most compatible with.

Based on the traditional 12-year animal cycle and 5-element 60-year cycle. Chinese New Year falls between Jan 21 and Feb 20, so birthdays in that window use the animal of the previous year until the new lunar year begins (approximated here to Feb 4).
Quick answer Your sun sign is found exactly from your birth date alone — the 12 signs each cover a fixed date range. Your rising sign needs your birth date, time, and location: at sunrise it usually matches your sun sign, then shifts to the next sign roughly every 2 hours. This tool gives an approximate rising sign; an exact degree needs a professional ephemeris.
Today's sun sign
~2 hrsRising sign change window
~2.5 daysMoon sign change window
144Zodiac compatibility combinations
✦ Entertainment & accuracy note: This is an entertainment and informational tool. Your sun sign is given exactly based on your birth date; your rising sign is calculated approximately with a simplified algorithm (the next sign roughly every ~2 hours from sunrise) and may not fully reflect daylight saving time (DST) or latitude differences. For a precise birth chart (planetary degrees, houses, aspects), you need a professional ephemeris based on something like the Swiss Ephemeris, along with an astrologer.
✦ Zodiac & Birth Chart Calculator — ToolPico ↗

What is a birth chart and sign calculation?

What the sun sign, rising sign, elements, and zodiac compatibility mean, and how they're calculated — explained simply.

A birth chart (natal chart) is a snapshot of the sky at the exact date, time, and place you were born; it shows where the Sun, Moon, and planets sat along the zodiac. In astrological tradition, this chart is read as a symbolic language describing tendencies and potential, not destiny. The best-known layer is your sun sign: the sign the Sun occupied on your birth date. But a full chart is far richer than the sun sign alone.

How is the sun sign determined?

Quick answerYour sun sign is determined by which sign the Sun was in on the day you were born. The 12 signs each have a fixed date range (e.g. Aries: Mar 21–Apr 19). If you were born on a cusp day (right when one sign ends and another begins), only the date matters — not the time or your rising sign — and this tool handles cusp days correctly.

How is the rising sign calculated?

Quick answerYour rising sign is whichever sign is rising on the eastern horizon at the moment you were born. It takes three things to calculate: an exact birth date, exact birth time, and your birth location. At the moment of sunrise the rising sign is usually the same as your sun sign; it then moves to the next sign roughly every ~2 hours. An exact degree needs an ephemeris and a daylight-saving-time correction.

This tool uses a simplified method that treats sunrise as a reference point and advances the sign based on your birth time. The result usually lands correctly between neighboring signs; if your birth time is near a boundary, your true rising sign could be the sign just before or after. That's why the result is shown as "approximate," and we recommend timeless mode if your birth time is uncertain, so you can see both candidate signs.

What does zodiac compatibility (synastry) look at?

Quick answerClassic zodiac compatibility looks at two signs' element (fire, earth, air, water), modality (cardinal, fixed, mutable), and their angle on the zodiac wheel (same sign, sextile, trine, square, opposition). The same element (trine) and elements that reinforce each other (fire-air, earth-water) tend to score highest. Real compatibility isn't determined by a single sign but by the interaction of two full charts.

Sun, moon, and rising sign: what's the difference?

All three represent different layers of your personality. It's the most commonly confused topic in astrology — here's a clear comparison.

Sun vs Moon vs Rising — what each one represents and depends on
LayerWhat it representsDepends onChange rate
☀️ Sun signCore identity, sense of self, life-force energyBirth date onlyAbout once a month
🌙 Moon signEmotions, inner world, needs, habitsDate + (ideally) timeAbout every 2.5 days
🌅 Rising signOutward appearance, first impression, "the mask"Date + time + locationAbout every 2 hours

In short: your Sun is the core "you" inside; your Moon is what you feel when you're alone; your Rising is what people see when they first meet you. The three can be very different from each other — that's completely normal, and it just means your personality has layers.

Elements and modalities

Every sign carries one element and one modality. Together, they define a sign's basic temperament and energy style.

The four elements and their signs
ElementSignsTemperamentCompatible element
🔥 FireAries, Leo, SagittariusEnergetic, driven, passionate, boldAir
🌱 EarthTaurus, Virgo, CapricornPractical, dependable, patient, realisticWater
💨 AirGemini, Libra, AquariusSocial, cerebral, communicative, freeFire
💧 WaterCancer, Scorpio, PiscesEmotional, intuitive, deep, tenderEarth
CardinalAries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn. The energy that starts things, initiates, and sets direction. Opens each season.
FixedTaurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius. The energy that sustains and commits, loyal but slow to bend.
MutableGemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces. The energy that adapts, flexes, and handles transitions.

The 12 zodiac signs and their traits

Date ranges, elements, and ruling planets at a glance. Use the tool above for full details and a daily horoscope.

Astrology terms glossary

Quick definitions of terms you'll come across.

Sun signThe zodiac sign the Sun occupies on your birth date; represents your core identity.
Rising sign (Ascendant)The sign rising on the eastern horizon at the moment of birth; your outward appearance and first impression.
Moon signThe sign the Moon occupies at birth; describes your emotions and inner needs.
ElementFire, earth, air, water. A sign's basic temperament group.
ModalityCardinal, fixed, mutable. The way a sign's energy operates.
SynastryComparing two people's birth charts to study relationship compatibility.
AspectThe angular distance between two points on the zodiac: conjunction, sextile, trine, square, opposition.
EphemerisA table or calculation engine giving celestial body positions for a given date and time (e.g. Swiss Ephemeris).
RectificationA method of estimating an unknown birth time by working backward from major life events.
TransitThe current position of the planets as they interact with your birth chart; the basis of daily/weekly horoscopes.
Ruling planetThe planet associated with governing a sign (e.g. Aries → Mars, Taurus → Venus).
ZodiacThe band of sky along the ecliptic, divided into 12 signs of 30 degrees each.

In-depth guides

Detailed answers to the most commonly asked astrology questions.

I don't know my birth time — how do I find my rising sign?

The most reliable place to find your birth time is your official birth certificate, hospital birth record, or state vital records office. Even a rough estimate from family members can help, since the rising sign changes about every 2 hours.

If you truly can't find it, there are two options: (1) this tool's Timeless mode shows a slider you can drag through the day to see how the rising sign shifts, letting you narrow it down to the 1-2 most likely signs; (2) astrologers use a technique called rectification, working backward from major life events (marriage, a move, a career change) to estimate a birth time.

My sun sign doesn't feel like me — why?

Because you're not just your sun sign. The most common reason people feel their "sign doesn't fit" is that their rising and moon signs are very different from their sun sign. For example, someone with their Sun in Capricorn (serious, disciplined) but their rising in Sagittarius (upbeat, adventurous) might feel disconnected from the typical sun-sign description.

To understand yourself better, look at all three layers together: your Sun (core identity), Moon (emotions), and Rising (how you come across). This tool calculates your sun sign and approximate rising sign together so you can compare them.

Is zodiac compatibility based only on the sun sign?

No — and that's the biggest shortcoming of popular "zodiac compatibility" tests. Matching just two sun signs is a rough guess. A serious compatibility reading (synastry) considers both people's Sun, Moon, Venus, Mars, and rising signs together: the Moon shows emotional compatibility, Venus shows love language and values, and Mars shows passion and conflict style.

The compatibility mode in this tool scores the element, modality, and angular relationship between two sun signs as a quick starting point. Keep in mind that a real relationship analysis compares two complete birth charts; a high or low percentage here is a hint of a tendency, not a verdict.

Frequently asked questions

How is a rising sign calculated?
Your rising sign is the zodiac sign rising on the eastern horizon at the moment you were born, and it requires three pieces of information: your exact birth date, exact birth time, and your birth location. At sunrise, the rising sign is usually the same as your sun sign; it then shifts to the next sign roughly every ~2 hours. An exact degree requires a professional ephemeris (such as Swiss Ephemeris) and a daylight-saving-time correction — this tool gives an approximate result.
How often does the rising sign change?
Roughly every 2 hours. Since the 12 signs cross the eastern horizon over 24 hours, each sign rises for about 2 hours on average. That means even the minute of your birth time can change your rising sign; near a boundary, the true rising sign could be either of two neighboring signs.
What if I don't know my birth time — how do I find my rising sign?
You can usually find your exact birth time on your birth certificate, hospital paperwork, or state vital records. If you truly can't find it, this tool's Timeless mode shows a slider you can drag through the day to see how the rising sign shifts hour by hour. Professional astrologers also use a technique called rectification, working backward from major life events to estimate a birth time.
What's the difference between sun, moon, and rising signs?
Sun sign represents your core identity; moon sign represents your emotions and inner needs; rising sign represents your outward appearance and first impression. The sun depends only on your birth date; the moon and rising also depend on your birth time (and, for rising, your location). Together, the three form the layers of your personality.
What determines zodiac compatibility?
Classic compatibility looks at two signs' element (fire/earth/air/water), modality (cardinal/fixed/mutable), and their angle on the zodiac wheel (same sign, sextile, trine, square, opposition). The same element (trine) and elements that reinforce each other (fire-air, earth-water) score highest. Real compatibility requires a synastry reading that also includes the moon, Venus, Mars, and rising signs.
What do the elements (fire, earth, air, water) mean?
Fire (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) is energetic and passionate; earth (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn) is practical and dependable; air (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius) is social and cerebral; water (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) is emotional and intuitive. Element shows a sign's basic temperament; modality (cardinal/fixed/mutable) shows how its energy operates.
Which signs are most compatible?
Tradition says the highest compatibility comes from the same element (a trine angle) or from elements that reinforce each other: fire-air and earth-water pairings are strong. For example, Aries-Leo, Taurus-Virgo, Gemini-Libra, and Cancer-Pisces are traditionally seen as compatible. Still, real compatibility is determined by the whole chart, not one sign — this is meant as an entertaining guide only.
Does this tool perform an exact astrological calculation?
No. This tool is for entertainment and information. Your sun sign is exact based on your birth date; the rising sign is calculated approximately using a simplified algorithm and may not fully reflect daylight saving time or latitude differences. For a precise birth chart (planetary degrees, houses, aspects), you need a professional ephemeris and an astrologer.
How is a moon sign calculated?
Your moon sign is the zodiac sign the Moon occupied at the moment you were born. The Moon completes a full trip around the zodiac roughly every 27.3 days, moving into a new sign about every 2.28 days on average, so your birth date and birth time both matter. This tool uses your birth date, time, and city (the same inputs as the Rising Sign tab) to estimate your moon sign with a simplified model; an exact position requires a professional ephemeris.
Can I get a monthly or yearly horoscope, not just daily?
Yes — the Horoscope tab includes a Period selector with Today (daily), This week (weekly), This month (monthly), and This year (yearly) options for all 12 signs, each covering love, work, and health, plus a lucky number, lucky color, and compatible sign for that period.

Methodology & sources

ToolPico's Zodiac & Birth Chart Calculator is a free, independent astrology tool. Your sun sign is determined exactly using the tropical zodiac's fixed date ranges. Your rising sign is calculated approximately with a simplified model that treats sunrise as a reference point and advances the sign roughly every ~2 hours based on your birth time; daylight saving time (DST) and latitude corrections are not fully applied, so a neighboring sign may be the true result near a boundary time. Your moon sign is estimated with a similarly simplified model that advances the sign roughly every ~2.28 days (a full lunar cycle of ~27.3 days divided across the 12 signs), anchored to a known reference date, using your birth date and time. Zodiac compatibility is a score derived from traditional astrological rules based on two signs' element, modality, and angular relationship (conjunction/sextile/trine/square/opposition). Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly horoscopes are varied text drawn from pools keyed to a sign's element and modality, rotating by period.

Basis: Content is based on Western (tropical) astrology tradition. Astrology makes no claim to scientific precision; results are for entertainment and self-reflection and should be read as tendencies, not destiny. For a precise birth chart, a professional ephemeris based on something like the Swiss Ephemeris and an astrologer are required. Last updated: July 19, 2026.

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