What’s My Moon Sign Meaning (and Hang On, What’s a Moon Sign, Anyway)?

Tonight, take a break from your phone and peer up at the moon. Waxing, waning, full or new—give the luminary a long stare and see how you feel. Calm? Dreamy? Contemplative? Ready to solve world peace? The meditative experience of gazing into the moon clues us into its astrological meaning: Your moon sign is a window into your subconscious mind and intuition (so get ready, it’s about to reveal all your secrets).

You’re probably pretty familiar with your sun sign: It’s the one you were reading about in Seventeen magazine when you were 12. But your moon sign is just as significant. While the sun radiates your outward ego and personality, the moon reflects your deepest inner emotions. Your moon sign helps you understand how you process feelings, your gut reactions and what makes you feel safe. (Booked an impulse flight to Bora Bora after a breakup? A moon sign in daring Sagittarius might be to blame.)

Ready to check out your own lunar sign? It all starts with your birth chart: the circular snapshot of where the sun, moon and planets were positioned at the exact time and place of your birth (you might have to text your mom for the deets). Once you calculate your chart, you’ll notice the zodiac wheel is divided into 12 sections that represent each sign, from Aries to Pisces. You’ll also see the planets scattered around each sign’s area of the chart. If Venus was orbiting through Libra’s domain in the sky at your birth, for example, you’d say your “Libra is in Venus.” To find the moon’s placement on your chart, look out for the crescent moon symbol: The sign it’s located in is your moon sign.

Moon in Aries
There are no hidden emotions to uncover with the Aries moon placement. This fire sign tells it like it is without fear of who might be offended. In fact, it’s almost impossible for Aries to lie about her opinions: Ask her how she feels about your new bucket hat and expect to receive the (harsh) truth in return. There’s a take-it-or-leave-it attitude with Aries, and she won’t shy away from conflict. Her emotional outbursts are like fireworks—they are a sudden explosion that dissipates just as quickly. Translation? They never hold grudges. Aries feels most secure when she’s able to rely on herself and herself alone, without rules or input from others.

Moon in Taurus
Taurus moons approach their feelings with a cool practicality. Her friends will appreciate her calming presence and rational advice. Taureans are soothed by stability, routines and sensory delights (think silk bathrobes and $50 sushi rolls). But once life gets messy (say, when The Office leaves Netflix), Lunar Taurus feels deeply unsettled. Set in her ways, Taurus will resist change and fight to stay inside her comfort zone at all costs. Just as Taurus clings to earthly materials (like her record or crystal collections), this sentimental sign also holds on to people and relationships. Lunar Taureans, let’s be honest: You have a hard time letting go.

Moon in Gemini
If the moon in your chart is perched in Gemini, you won’t take time to actually sit with your emotions. Instead, as a curious and quick-witted sign, you’ll try to dissect and rationalize your feelings (which might involve talking to yourself—no judgment). Despite their flightiness, Gemini moons are fascinated by people and find they can relate to almost anyone. Count on Gem to validate your feelings and lighten the mood with her jokes. She also takes comfort in life’s unknowns: Gemini will marvel at the possibility of new places to live, people to befriend and philosophical ideas she’s yet to discover. The air signs are constantly reinventing themselves, and they feel fulfilled by diving into whichever passion project (pottery, rock climbing, Russian literature) that currently excites them.

Moon in Cancer
The moon is Cancer’s ruling planet, so this is a cozy pairing. The water signs are highly attuned to their emotions, but Cancers might not feel safe sharing them with the harsh outside world. When she’s feeling down, a Cancer moon will take time to be fully present with her feelings—firing up her moody playlist, journaling and baking herself brownies—in order to process it. And she’s equally connected to the emotions of others. Intuitive (read: psychic) Cancer can sense the slightest shifts in the moods of friends and family, and wants nothing more than to care for and protect those she loves. Empathic Cancer needs to be needed and will go out of her way to make sure others feel understood.

Moon in Leo
Despite their blazing confidence and strong sense of self, Lunar Leos need validation to feel emotionally secure. Leo’s inner realm is inextricably linked with her outward identity: She’s driven to express her creative gifts with the world and is fueled by the praise she receives in return (so go check her out on open mic night). She also has a strong need to distinguish herself from others. She dreams of being the best in her field and can hold herself to impossibly high standards to win this title. Don’t mistake this focus on her self-image for narcissism, though. Generous Leo loves to make her friends feel just as special (especially if they have an invite to one of her lavish dinner parties). Leo is comfortable leading the pack, and her sunny outlook encourages others to follow.

Moon in Virgo
For a Virgo moon placement, serenity is crossing off the last errand on her to-do list (we just heard their sigh of relief). The helpers and healers of the zodiac see the world through a microscope—they can pinpoint the reason you’re clashing with your boss and will convince you it’s time to ask for a raise. Virgo feels fulfilled when she’s bettering the people and situations in her life. She has an eye for what can be fixed, and Lunar Virgo might apply this to her own feelings and shortcomings (so remind her of how amazing she is every once in a while). Deep down, she appreciates the little things others do for her, like remembering she likes oat milk in her latte and that she’s repulsed by the Oxford comma.

Moon in Libra
If the moon was floating through Libra when you came into the world, you strive to create peace and harmony in all aspects of life. As an air sign, Libra just wants to feel connected to her tribe, focusing on what they have in common instead of their differences. To avoid conflict, Libra might feel one way but express herself differently to satisfy the opinions of the room. (Translation: She’ll be bulldozed by an Aries moon.) A charming Libra moon will cherish her personal relationships above everything else. She finds beauty in the intricacies of each of her friends and family members (and OK, that well-dressed stranger at the dog park). This placement sees herself through the eyes of others (and is fulfilled when she’s perceived well).

Moon in Scorpio
Scorpio’s inner realm is shrouded in secrecy (cue the evil laugh). This moon placement is intensely private with her feelings and instead tries to uncover the hidden realities of others. The water signs are scary intuitive. They’ll dive deeply right away, trying to “figure out” a new friend or romantic partner (so don’t expect any superficial chatting about the weather). At the heart of Scorpio’s private investigation is her ultimate fear of betrayal. Before opening up in relationships, Lunar Scorpio tries to protect herself for as long as possible until she decides that a partner is worthy of her trust. Unlike the other water signs, the resilient Scorpio moon finds security in chaos: She’s comfortable with the dark aspects of life and feels stronger for having experienced them.

Moon in Sagittarius
This placement is fiery and impulsive. Never one to wallow in her feelings, a Sagittarian moon favors a more carefree approach. Your mother-in-law’s criticism can’t affect you if you don’t care what she thinks, right? Sagittarius speaks her truth, makes her own rules and values her freedom above everything else. When things don’t go her way, this fire sign often turns to recklessness or escapism to distract from her emotional reality. (But psst: Those feelings will still be there after a night of partying or a trip to the Rockies.) She’ll feel safe with open-minded people who don’t take life too seriously. So if she cancels on lunch, don’t get offended: It’s probably because she’s decided to take a cross-country road trip.

Moon in Capricorn
Rational to a fault, a Capricorn moon might struggle to find the appropriate time and place to release her emotions. This moon placement needs strong boundaries to feel fulfilled, and crying doesn’t seem to fit into her color-coded Google Cal. To really “let go” emotionally is terrifying to Lunar Capricorn since she’ll feel out of control. Convinced she’s burdening others by sharing her story, Capricorn will avoid showing people how she’s really feeling. Instead, this self-reliant sign will vow to deal with her lingering anger or anxiety when she has some (nonexistent) free time in her overbooked work schedule. Lunar Capricorns love using their strength to support others but struggle to ask for that same help in return.

Moon in Aquarius
Aquarian moons see themselves as being part of a larger community. So while this sign doesn’t dwell on her own feelings, she’s deeply concerned with the feelings of others (which, spoiler, is all of humanity). Aquarians are big-picture thinkers. They’re highly attuned to the needs of our society as a whole but might come off a little spaced out when dealing with the everyday emotions of their friends and family. Her higher calling transcends trivial family drama and workplace stress. Aquarius moon feels most fulfilled when she’s championing a cause (check our her collection of hand-designed protest signs) and rebelling against “the system.” In her close relationships, though, she might always feel like an outsider.

Moon in Pisces
The Pisces moon is eternally optimistic, diving heart-first into the world. This highly sensitive placement sees the light in all people and wants to believe everyone has the best intentions (even her neighbor who parties until 3 a.m.). Pisces just wants us all to get along. She becomes deeply invested in the lives of everyone she meets, from her best friend to her barista, and will spend hours offering her emotional support. But taking on so many people’s energy can weigh Pisces down, so she’ll need to retreat to her dream world to recharge. This could mean a solo escape into nature, her art studio or just inside her imagination. Pisces takes comfort in her peaceful fantasy world. (Watch the news. Can you blame her?)