The fifth sign of the zodiac, usually dated July 23 to August 22: a fixed fire sign ruled by the Sun itself, the Lion, read as generous, proud and made for the spotlight.
Leo at a glance
Leo, the fifth sign, sits at the height of the northern summer. It is a fire sign, with Aries and Sagittarius, and a fixed sign, one of the four at the center of a season, and it is the only sign ruled by the Sun itself. Its symbol is the Lion, its polarity the active one, and the tradition gives it the heart and the spine, the parts that keep a body upright and alive. Its opposite is Aquarius: where Leo is read as the individual who shines, Aquarius is read as the group and its ideals, and the tension between the two, me and us, is one of the zodiac's classic pairings.
The Leo character
The tradition reads Leo as the sign of self-expression. Fire gives it warmth and enthusiasm, the Sun gives it a sense of self and a wish to be seen, and the fixed mode makes that steady rather than fleeting. A Leo is described as generous, loyal, playful and proud, happiest when it can create, perform or lead, and quick to make the people around it feel special too. At its best it is the warm center of any room; at its most difficult it can need applause, take criticism as an insult and find it hard to share the stage. Astrologers often give Leo the lesson of shining without needing to be watched: the Sun gives its light whether or not anyone looks up.
Leo in love
Love is read as Leo's natural element. The sign is described as romantic, affectionate and openly devoted, fond of grand gestures and happiest with a partner it can admire and be admired by. The fire signs Aries and Sagittarius share its warmth and its pace, and the air signs Gemini and Libra are read as its friendliest companions, bringing lightness and conversation. Aquarius, the opposite sign, is the attraction of the heart to the mind: exciting, and demanding when Leo wants warmth and Aquarius wants space. Taurus and Scorpio square Leo, which the tradition reads as a clash of equally fixed wills. A whole-chart comparison always says more than two Sun signs.
Leo at work
The tradition's Leo belongs where it can lead or be seen: the stage, film and music, teaching, management, politics, entertainment, children's work and any creative field where its name goes on the work. It is read as a warm, encouraging leader who lifts a team's spirits, and as someone who works hardest for recognition and pride in what it makes. Being overlooked is said to drain it faster than hard work does. Astrologers often suggest that a Leo thrives when it can put its heart into a project and be credited for it, and struggles in jobs that ask it to stay invisible.
Leo beyond the Sun sign
A planet in Leo is read as expressing itself warmly and visibly. Leo rising gives a confident, radiant presence that people notice; the Moon in Leo a need for warmth, loyalty and appreciation; Venus in Leo a generous, dramatic way of loving; and Mars in Leo energy with pride and flair. The birth chart calculator shows every placement in your chart. The sections below give the Leo dates for the coming years, its compatibility with every sign, its three decans and when the slow planets pass through it.
Leo season dates
Leo season is the part of the year when the Sun is in Leo, and anyone born in it is a Leo. By the US Eastern calendar it began between July 21 and July 23 in the years 1950 to 2049, and ended on August 22 or 23, when the Sun moved on into Virgo: the dates shift by a day with the leap-year cycle and the time zone. Times are US Eastern, to the minute; almanacs can differ by a minute.
How Leo relates to each sign by the traditional rule: signs of the same element (four apart) and of friendly elements (two apart) are read as easy, squares and quincunxes as friction, neighbors and opposites as mixed. A whole chart says far more than two Sun signs.
Three of the four popular lists we compared give Leo gold (gold, deep gold). William Lilly gave Leo “red or green” in 1647, and its traditional ruler, the Sun, “yellow or yellow purple”.
Each sign splits into three decans of ten degrees, about ten days of the Sun's stay. The modern system gives each decan a sign of the same element; the older one gives it a planet in the Chaldean order, and the Golden Dawn a tarot card.
When Jupiter, Saturn and the outer planets pass through Leo: everyone born in those years shares that placement, with its retrograde loops counted as one stay.
Jupiter in Leo now, until Jul 26, 2027Last there 2014 to 2015.
Saturn next in Leo 2034 to 2037Last there 2005 to 2007.
Uranus next in Leo 2039 to 2046Last there 1955 to 1962.
Neptune next in Leo 2078 to 2093
Pluto not in Leo again before 2100Last there 1939 to 1958.
Leo in the sky
In 2026 the Sun stands in front of the constellation Leo from Aug 10, 2026 to Sep 16, 2026, about a month later than the sign's dates: the signs are measured from the equinox, which has drifted west against the stars since the zodiac was named.
Leo is usually dated July 23 to August 22, the part of the year called Leo season. From 1950 to 2049 the Sun entered Leo between July 21 and July 23 by the US Eastern calendar, and left on August 22 or 23, so a birthday on a border day is worth checking to the minute.
What is Leo's element and ruling planet?
Leo is a fire sign of the fixed mode, ruled by the Sun. Fire is read as warmth and creativity, the fixed mode as loyalty and persistence, and the Sun as the self and its light, which together give Leo its reputation for confidence and generosity.
Which signs are most compatible with Leo?
By the traditional rule, Aries and Sagittarius, the other fire signs, and Gemini and Libra, in the friendly element of air. Aquarius, the opposite sign, is read as an attraction between the personal and the collective.
Why does the Sun rule Leo?
In the traditional scheme the two lights, the Sun and the Moon, rule the two signs of high summer in the northern hemisphere, Leo and Cancer, and the planets rule the other signs in pairs outward from them. The Sun's rulership is read as Leo's warmth, pride and wish to shine.