Opposite Signs: The Six Pairs and Why They're Said to Attract

Every zodiac sign has an opposite: the sign directly across the wheel, six signs away. There are twelve signs, so there are six opposite pairs. Astrologers call each pair an axis, or a polarity, and treat the two signs as two ends of one subject.

This guide lists the six pairs, explains why opposites are said to attract, and describes what each pair is traditionally about.

The six pairs of opposite zodiac signs

Pair	Elements	Modality	Shared subject
Aries and Libra	Fire and air	Cardinal	Self and other
Taurus and Scorpio	Earth and water	Fixed	Mine and ours
Gemini and Sagittarius	Air and fire	Mutable	Facts and meaning
Cancer and Capricorn	Water and earth	Cardinal	Home and work
Leo and Aquarius	Fire and air	Fixed	The individual and the group
Virgo and Pisces	Earth and water	Mutable	Order and flow

How to find your opposite sign

Count six signs forward from your own. Or use birthdays: your opposite sign is the one whose season falls about six months from yours. Aries season is in spring in the northern hemisphere and Libra season in autumn; Cancer begins at midsummer and Capricorn at midwinter.

Why opposites are said to attract

Opposite does not mean incompatible. Look at the table and two patterns stand out.

Opposite signs always share a modality. Both are cardinal, both fixed or both mutable. That means they act in the same way: both start things, both hold on, or both adapt. They recognise each other's style.

Their elements are always the complementary ones. Fire is always opposite air, and earth is always opposite water. These are the combinations traditional astrology calls naturally supportive: air feeds fire, water nourishes earth.

So an opposite sign has a familiar way of operating and a different, complementary temperament. Astrologers describe that as the recipe for attraction: enough in common to understand each other, and enough difference to be interesting. The classic line is that each sign has what the other is missing.

The tension is real too. Astrologers call the 180-degree angle an opposition and read it as a tug-of-war that asks for balance. Opposite signs are said to project onto each other: the quality you find most irritating in your opposite is often one you have not developed in yourself.

The six pairs, one by one

Aries and Libra: self and other

Aries says "I". Libra says "we". Aries is direct, quick and independent, while Libra is diplomatic, considered and oriented towards partnership. Together they cover the question of how to be yourself and be in a relationship at once.

What they are said to teach each other: Aries learns to pause and consider someone else's view. Libra learns to decide and say what it wants.

Taurus and Scorpio: mine and ours

Both are fixed, loyal and famously stubborn. Taurus is about what you own, build and enjoy: comfort, security and the physical world. Scorpio is about what is shared and hidden: trust, intimacy and change. This is often described as the most magnetic of the six pairs.

What they are said to teach each other: Taurus learns that some things have to be let go. Scorpio learns that some things can be simple.

Gemini and Sagittarius: facts and meaning

Both are restless, talkative and curious. Gemini collects information: details, news, how things work, the view from every side. Sagittarius looks for the big picture: beliefs, philosophy and what it all adds up to. This is the pairing of long conversations.

What they are said to teach each other: Gemini learns to commit to a point of view. Sagittarius learns to check the facts.

Cancer and Capricorn: home and work

Both are cardinal and quietly ambitious. Cancer is about private life: home, family, care and emotional security. Capricorn is about public life: career, responsibility and achievement. Astrology gives the fourth and tenth houses of a chart to these two signs, the base of the chart and its peak.

What they are said to teach each other: Cancer learns structure and boundaries. Capricorn learns to rest and be looked after.

Leo and Aquarius: the individual and the group

Both are fixed and strong-willed. Leo is about personal expression: creativity, warmth and the wish to be seen. Aquarius is about the collective: friendship, ideals and the wish to belong to something larger. One is the performer and the other is the audience, and each needs the other.

What they are said to teach each other: Leo learns it is not all about one person. Aquarius learns that it is fine to want the spotlight sometimes.

This axis is the centre of attention in 2027. There is a solar eclipse in Aquarius on February 6, a total solar eclipse in Leo on August 2 and a lunar eclipse in Aquarius on August 17. Dates are US Eastern Time. More in our guide to the 2027 eclipses.

Virgo and Pisces: order and flow

Both are mutable, adaptable and helpful by nature. Virgo is practical and precise, and serves by fixing, sorting and improving. Pisces is imaginative and compassionate, and serves by understanding and accepting. One works with the details and the other with the whole.

What they are said to teach each other: Virgo learns that not everything needs fixing. Pisces learns that a plan can be a kindness.

Opposite signs and the full moon

You meet your opposite sign every year whether or not you know anyone born under it. At a full moon, the Moon is opposite the Sun, so the full moon during your birthday season falls in your opposite sign. Astrologers read every full moon as that pair's balancing act. You can see all twelve for the year in our 2027 full moon calendar.

Opposites in your own birth chart

The pairs run through every chart, not only between people. Your rising sign and your seventh house, the house of partnership, are always opposite signs. If you have Aries rising, Libra is on your seventh house. Astrologers read that as the quality you look for in a partner or close collaborator: by design, it is your opposite.

The same goes for the other houses. The fourth and tenth, second and eighth, and fifth and eleventh are all opposite pairs, each sharing a subject between them.

Are opposite signs a good match?

Traditional astrology calls opposites a strong match with a condition attached. The attraction and the complementary skills are there, and so is the risk of polarising, where one person does all the planning and the other all the feeling. The pairings that are said to work best are the ones where each person borrows a little of the other's approach.

It is also worth remembering that a sun-sign pairing is one comparison out of many. Two people have a Moon, a Venus and a rising sign each, and those matter just as much. For how all the distances between signs are read, see our zodiac compatibility chart explained.

Read every pairing

The Zodiac Compatibility Codex covers all 78 sign pairings, including the six opposite pairs, in one instant-download PDF.

Astrology content is for entertainment and reflection.