Chinese Zodiac Calculator
Find your animal sign, its element, and your yin or yang polarity from your birth date.
The Chinese Zodiac (生肖, shēngxiào) runs on a twelve-year cycle of animals — Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig — each said to lend its character to the people born in its year. But the animal is only half the picture.
Layered over the twelve animals is a cycle of five elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) and a yin or yang polarity, which together repeat only every sixty years. A Wood Tiger and a Metal Tiger share an animal but carry very different energy. This calculator gives you all three.
One important note on dates
The Chinese year doesn't begin on 1 January — it begins at Lunar New Year, which falls between late January and mid-February. If you were born in that window, your sign may belong to the previous year's animal. This calculator flags that case so you can check against the exact Lunar New Year date for your birth year.
Frequently asked
How is the Chinese zodiac animal calculated?
Each year in a repeating twelve-year cycle is assigned an animal, in the order Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig. The animal for a given year is found by taking the year, subtracting 4, and finding the remainder when divided by 12. The year also carries one of five elements and a yin or yang polarity, which cycle alongside the animals.
What are the five elements and why do they matter?
The five elements are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. Each pairs with the animal of the year to refine its meaning — for example, a Fire Horse and a Water Horse are both Horses but are read quite differently. The element changes every two years and the full animal-plus-element combination repeats only once every sixty years.
I was born in late January — which animal am I?
The Chinese year begins at Lunar New Year (between roughly 21 January and 20 February, varying each year), not on 1 January. If your birthday falls before that year's Lunar New Year, your zodiac animal is the one from the previous year. This calculator warns you when your birth date is in that ambiguous window so you can verify against the exact Lunar New Year date.
Is this calculator free?
Yes — free, no sign-up, and computed entirely in your browser; nothing is uploaded. It is one of +100 readings offered by Arcana Origin. The full chart, including your complete BaZi (Four Pillars) reading, is available in the main engine.
Go deeper than the animal
Your zodiac animal is the surface. Arcana Origin computes your full BaZi — the Four Pillars of your birth moment — alongside +100 other readings from a single birth date.
Cast your full reading →