How Do I Find My Zodiac Sign? Zodiac Sign Dates Explained

Your Zodiac Sign

Your zodiac sign is usually found from your date of birth. In Western astrology, the sign people normally mean when they ask for your zodiac sign is your Sun sign, the zodiac sign occupied by the Sun when you were born.

For most birthdays, finding the Sun sign is straightforward. If you were born close to the date when the Sun changes signs, however, a simple zodiac date table is not always enough. The exact change happens at a specific time, and that time changes from year to year.

This is where an ephemeris provides a more accurate answer.

Use our Zodiac Astrology Horoscopes Ephemeris to see the planetary positions on your birth date.

Zodiac Sign Dates

The following dates are commonly used as a general guide to the twelve Sun signs:

• Aries: 21 March to 19 April
• Taurus: 20 April to 20 May
• Gemini: 21 May to 20 June
• Cancer: 21 June to 22 July
• Leo: 23 July to 22 August
• Virgo: 23 August to 22 September
• Libra: 23 September to 22 October
• Scorpio: 23 October to 21 November
• Sagittarius: 22 November to 21 December
• Capricorn: 22 December to 19 January
• Aquarius: 20 January to 18 February
• Pisces: 19 February to 20 March

These dates work as a quick guide, but they should not be treated as fixed boundaries for every year.

Why Zodiac Sign Dates Can Change

The Sun does not enter each zodiac sign at exactly midnight on the same calendar date every year.

Astrologers divide the zodiac into twelve signs of 30 degrees each. Your Sun sign is determined by the Sun's actual position within those 360 degrees at the time of your birth.

When the Sun reaches 0° of the next sign, it changes signs. This event is called an ingress.

For example, the Sun can enter Aries on 20 March in one year and at a different time on another date in another year. Someone born around the change from Pisces to Aries therefore needs more information than a general date range provides.

The same applies at every boundary between two zodiac signs.

What If I Was Born on the Cusp?

The word cusp is commonly used for a birthday close to the change between two zodiac signs.

Being born near a sign boundary does not normally mean your Sun is in both signs. At the moment of birth, the Sun has a specific zodiac position. It is either still in one sign or it has entered the next.

If your birthday falls comfortably within a sign's normal date range, there is little uncertainty. If you were born on or very close to one of the changeover dates, you should check the planetary positions for your actual year of birth.

Your birth time can also become important if the Sun changed signs on that particular day.

Use an Ephemeris to Find Your Zodiac Sign

An ephemeris records the calculated positions of the Sun, Moon and planets for particular dates.

This gives you a direct way to check your Sun sign rather than relying entirely on a general zodiac date table.

Start with your date of birth and open the ephemeris for that year, month and day. Find the position of the Sun. The zodiac sign shown beside the Sun is your Sun sign.

For example, if the ephemeris shows the Sun at 14° Leo on your birthday, your Sun sign is Leo. If it shows the Sun at 29° Leo, it is still Leo. Once the Sun reaches 0° Virgo, the Sun sign has changed to Virgo.

This is particularly useful for birthdays close to a sign change because you can see the actual planetary position for that date.

Why the Exact Degree Matters

Every zodiac sign covers 30 degrees, beginning at 0° and ending just before 30°.

A Sun at 2° Taurus and a Sun at 28° Taurus are both Taurus Suns. The degree tells you where within Taurus the Sun was positioned.

Near a sign boundary, this becomes important.

If the Sun is at 29°59' of one sign, it has not yet entered the next sign. Once it crosses 0°00' of the following sign, the ingress has occurred.

This is why the astronomical position is more useful than assuming that everybody born on a particular changeover date has the same Sun sign.

Your Zodiac Sign Is Your Sun Sign

Your Sun sign is only one part of a birth chart.

The Moon has its own zodiac sign, and the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn also occupy particular signs when you are born. Uranus, Neptune and Pluto add slower-moving positions to the chart.

Your Rising sign is different again. It is calculated from the zodiac sign rising on the eastern horizon at the time and place of birth, so an accurate birth time is essential.

When someone simply asks, "What is my zodiac sign?", however, the answer normally refers to the Sun sign.

How to Find Your Zodiac Sign Accurately

For most people, the standard zodiac date ranges provide the answer immediately.

If your birthday falls close to the beginning or end of a sign, check an ephemeris for the year you were born. Look at the Sun's zodiac position on your date of birth and, if the Sun changed signs that day, use your birth time to determine whether you were born before or after the ingress.

The zodiac dates are therefore a useful guide, while the ephemeris provides the actual planetary data behind them.