Chinese Zodiac Calculator
Find your animal by the exact Lunar New Year date, with its element and yin or yang, your year pillar in Chinese characters, and the animals tradition pairs with yours.
Quick answer
Your Chinese zodiac animal is the animal of the Chinese year you were born in. Twelve animals take turns, one a year, and each year also carries one of five elements and is yin or yang. The year begins at Lunar New Year, which moves between January 21 and February 20, so a birthday in January or early February often belongs to the previous animal. BaZi (Four Pillars) starts its year at Lichun, around February 4, instead.
Frequently asked questions
What is my Chinese zodiac animal?
The animal of the Chinese year you were born in: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog or Pig, in that order, one a year. Each animal is one of the twelve earthly branches (地支), so the cycle repeats every twelve years.
Why does my animal depend on Lunar New Year?
The Chinese year begins on the first day of the first lunar month, which falls on a new moon between January 21 and February 20. Someone born on February 19, 1985 is a Rat, because Lunar New Year 1985 was on February 20; a day later is the Ox. This calculator uses exact dates from the Hong Kong Observatory’s calendar tables.
What is Lichun, and why can my year pillar differ?
Lichun (立春, “start of spring”) is the moment the Sun reaches 315° along the ecliptic, around February 4. BaZi, or Four Pillars astrology, starts its year there rather than at Lunar New Year. For a birth between the two dates the animal and the year pillar differ; both are shown, with a note.
How is the element of my year worked out?
From the year’s heavenly stem (天干). Years ending in 4 or 5 are wood, 6 or 7 fire, 8 or 9 earth, 0 or 1 metal, and 2 or 3 water, counted from Lunar New Year. Even years are yang and odd years yin. Stem and branch together give sixty combinations, so a Fire Goat year like 2027 comes round every sixty years.
Is the Japanese eto the same?
It uses the same twelve branches, with 未 read as the sheep and 亥 as the wild boar. In Japan the eto year is customarily counted from January 1 rather than from Lunar New Year, so a January birthday can carry a different animal there. In Vietnam the Cat takes the Rabbit’s place.
Which animals are most compatible?
The classical tables pair each animal with one six-harmony (六合) partner and two three-harmony (三合) partners, four years apart. The clash (六沖) is the animal six years away, opposite on the circle, and the harm (六害) a subtler mismatch. They describe tendencies, not a verdict on any couple.