Beginner’s Guide to the Birth Chart

You are so much more than just “your sign”

Your birth chart—sometimes called a natal chart—is essential for expanding your astrology knowledge beyond "I'm a Sagittarius because I was born in late November."

When most people talk about "their sign," they're talking about their sun sign, even if they don't know it's called a sun sign—it’s simply the zodiac sign that the sun seemed to be passing through when you were born.

But the sun wasn't the only thing in the sky.

Sure, the sun was in a particular zodiac sign when you were born, but so was the moon, Venus, Saturn, etc, which means you have a moon sign, a Mars sign, and so on. Even the zodiac sign that was rising on the eastern horizon at the exact moment you were born matters (a lot)—that's your ascendant, or rising sign.

That’s where the birth chart comes into play.

The birth chart—often called the wheel—is a little circle graph thing that shows where every planet landed at your time of birth. Each one sits in a specific sign and a specific house.

Those are your placements.

Here’s an example, though don’t get overwhelmed if it doesn’t mean anything just yet:

Mars in Libra in the 9th house.

☝️ That’s a placement.

It’s these combinations of planet + sign + house that matter take astrology beyond horoscopes.

You’re not just “Aries = bold” or “Taurus = stubborn.”

Real astrology is layered. If “I’m a Libra” never quite fit, it’s because you’re not just a Libra because you’re born in Oct/Nov. Your Moon might be in Scorpio, Mars in Aquarius, and so on.

That said, there’s something known as The Big 3. Your Sun, Moon, and Rising—they get a lot of airtime for a reason. They cover your core identity (Leo Sun? fabulous), your emotional language (Cancer Moon? crying in IKEA), and your external vibe (Virgo Rising? polished AF).

If you’ve ever discarded or dismissed astrology because your late June birthday makes you a “sensitive” Cancer, whereas you’ve always been kind of a loudmouth badass, or because you’re early September birthday insists that you’re an organized Virgo, when you’re really a delightful hot mess, you may want to pull up your birth chart to see what else is going on!

  • Not sure how to access your birth chart? Click here for my beginner friendly guide.

  • Want some real-world insight into how each placement shows up in real life? Subscribe to the Vault.