Libra Zodiac Sign

The Libra zodiac sign is the seventh sign of the zodiac, and its symbol is the Scales (♎︎). In the tropical zodiac, the Sun's passage through Libra runs from about September 22 to October 23, US Eastern Time, and the start date moves by a day in some years. Libra is a Cardinal Air sign ruled by Venus.

Libra at a glance

• Dates (usual): September 22 – October 23 (US Eastern Time)
• Symbol: The Scales
• Glyph: ♎︎
• Element: Air
• Modality: Cardinal
• Ruling planet: Venus (traditional and modern)
• Polarity: Positive / masculine (yang, active)
• Opposite sign: Aries

Born near the start or end of Libra? Check your Sun sign in your birth chart

Libra dates follow the Sun, not the calendar: Libra starts when the Sun reaches 180° of celestial longitude, counted from the March equinox, and ends at 210°, where Scorpio begins. Because the Sun's yearly cycle does not fit the calendar year exactly, and leap years adjust the calendar, the crossing comes at another hour every year.

In US Eastern Time, Libra starts on September 22 in nine years from 2020 through 2030 and on September 23 in two. Its last day is October 22 in five of those years and October 23 in six. Exact entry times, from NASA JPL Horizons ephemeris data, are below:

Born on one of those late-September or late-October change days? Then your time and place of birth decide. A sign includes its starting degree and stops just short of the next one, so your birth moment puts the Sun in a single sign. "Cusp" is the popular word for these birthdays; it names a date near the boundary, not a mix of two signs.

Time zones matter too. In 2027 the Sun enters Libra at 2:02 AM EDT (06:02 UTC) on September 23, which is still September 22 in Pacific Time. In 2026 the entry comes at 8:05 PM EDT on September 22, already 00:05 UTC on September 23. Typing your birth time and city into the birth chart settles it.

Astrology builds its picture of the Libra sign from three parts: Air as the element, Cardinal as the modality and Venus as the ruler. The Sun reaches Libra at the September equinox, when day and night are equal in length, so the sign opens northern autumn. Its modality is Cardinal, shared with Aries, Cancer and Capricorn, and it sits between Mutable Virgo and Fixed Scorpio. Air places Libra in the positive, expressive half of the zodiac, and the sign is one of the four interpersonal signs, along with Leo, Virgo and Scorpio. From those pieces astrologers draw a sign that thinks in pairs: this view and that one, my turn and yours.

None of this has been scientifically validated: astrology is an interpretive tradition, and the lists below are themes to test against your own life, not a verdict on it.

Strengths in the tradition

• Hearing both sides (Air, the Scales): Libra is read as the sign that asks what the other person thinks before settling on its own answer.
• Getting people together (Cardinal Air): The tradition pictures Libra sending the group text, picking the date for the dinner, or introducing two people who ought to meet.
• A feel for proportion (Venus): Astrologers link the Venus-ruled sign with an eye for what looks right, from the frame that suits a photo to a well-spaced week.

Challenges in the tradition

• Drawn-out choices (Air, the Scales): Comparing one more option can push a simple decision, like a paint color, well past the point where it matters.
• Keeping things pleasant (Venus, interpersonal): A wish for smooth company is read as a habit of nodding along in the moment and raising the real objection later.
• Starting more than it settles (Cardinal): Cardinal energy goes into opening things, so a plan Libra launched can stall while it waits for everyone's input.

The Libra symbol is the Scales, written with the glyph ♎︎. The name is Latin for "scales," and the Ancient Greek name is Zygós. The Libra sign of the zodiac is the only one represented by an object; the other eleven are animals or mythological characters, though some depictions show a man holding the scales.

The image comes from the Scales of Justice held by Themis, the Greek personification of "ancient sacred law," who later inspired modern depictions of Lady Justice. The sign is also associated with the Roman deity Iustitia, and the Moon was said to be in Libra when Rome was founded.

In ancient Greek times the constellation between Virgo and Scorpio was so closely identified with the Scorpion that the area went by the Latin word chelae, "the claws."

The sign and the constellation differ. The sign is a 30° slice of the ecliptic, 180° to 210° measured from the March equinox, while the constellation is a patch of stars with its own uneven boundaries. Axial precession moves the equinox point westward against the stars; its discovery, about 130 BC, is attributed to Hipparchus. As a result the seasonal, tropical signs and the sidereal zodiac, which follows the constellations, separate by roughly 1.4° every century. Western astrology, and Astrolivo, use the tropical zodiac.

In relationships, astrologers read Libra through Venus and its place among the interpersonal signs, so the partnership itself gets much of the sign's attention. The tradition describes a Libra who likes to plan things as a pair, checks in before making a choice that affects both people, and keeps an eye on whether the give-and-take feels even. On compatibility, astrology speaks of element and polarity, not ratings: Libra shares Air with Gemini and Aquarius, and positive polarity with the Fire signs Aries, Leo and Sagittarius.

At work, Cardinal Air is tied to getting people moving together: running the kickoff meeting, drafting the first version for others to react to. Venus adds a design sense, so the tradition links the sign with work where how something looks or reads matters as much as whether it runs.

Being "a Libra" usually means the Sun was in Libra at birth. For most birthdays the date alone settles your Sun sign, with one exception: on a late-September or late-October change day, the exact birth time and place are what count, and the Libra dates section shows why.

The Sun is one placement among many. Moon in Libra is a separate placement with its own page, read for emotional needs rather than for the sign as a whole. The rising sign, or Ascendant, is the rising degree of the ecliptic when you were born, so it depends on the clock. Take an example chart with the Sun in Libra, the Moon in Scorpio and Sagittarius rising: an astrologer would set a sociable Air Sun beside a Fixed Water Moon and a Mutable Fire Ascendant.

Your own Sun, Moon and rising sign appear side by side in the free birth chart once you add your birth date, time and city. There is no sign-up.

Libra follows Virgo, the sixth sign, Mutable Earth ruled by Mercury. Next comes Scorpio, the eighth sign, Fixed Water with Pluto as its modern ruler and Mars as its traditional one. To compare the whole wheel, open all zodiac signs.

FAQ

When are the Libra dates? Usually September 22 to October 23, US Eastern Time. Libra begins on September 22 in 2025 and 2026 and on September 23 in 2027 (Eastern Time); the table above gives the exact minutes.

Which planet rules Libra? Venus, under both traditional and modern rulership. Venus rules Taurus as well.

Is Libra an air sign? Yes. Libra is the Cardinal member of the three Air signs. Gemini is Mutable Air and Aquarius is Fixed Air.

How this page was made

Prepared by the Astrolivo editorial team from the Wikipedia articles on Libra in astrology, planets in astrology, astrology and science, the zodiac and astrological signs, plus Sun positions from NASA JPL Horizons ephemeris data, and fact-checked against them. Meanings are given as the tradition reads them.