Saturn retrograde · 2026
Saturn retrograde 2026: dates, degrees and what it means for each sign
Everything about Saturn retrograde in 2026 in one place: the exact station dates and degrees, the shadow periods, which other planets are retrograde at the same time, and a reading with practical advice for each of the twelve signs.
Saturn retrograde 2026 runs July 26 – December 10. Saturn stations retrograde at 14°45′ Aries and turns direct at 7°56′ Aries. Astrologers read it as a time to review commitments, limits, responsibility and long-term structure. The opposition, the midpoint, falls on October 4, 2026. The shadow lasts from April 20, 2026 to March 15, 2027.
Is Saturn retrograde right now?
Computed in your browser from NASA JPL Horizons positions (UTC dates). The app adds your own chart: which of these retrogrades touch your planets.
Key sky dates, late 2026 – early 2027
The transits most people feel in decisions, relationships and money.
Saturn retrograde 2026: the dates
- July 26 – December 10, 2026 (137 days). Saturn stations retrograde on July 26, 2026 at about 19:50 UTC, at 14°45′ Aries. Saturn stations direct on December 10, 2026 at about 23:30 UTC, at 7°56′ Aries.
Saturn is retrograde once a year, for about four and a half months. Compared with the previous retrograde (Jul 13 – Nov 28, 2025), this one begins about 13° further along the zodiac, still in Aries.
Times are UTC. Nothing reverses in space: retrograde motion is the apparent backward drift a planet shows when Earth overtakes it (or, for Mercury and Venus, when the planet overtakes Earth).
Saturn retrograde Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026: key dates
| Date (UTC) | What happens |
|---|---|
| Apr 20, 2026 | Pre-retrograde shadow begins: Saturn first crosses 7°56′ Aries, the degree where it will later turn direct |
| Jul 26, 2026, about 19:50 UTC | Saturn stations retrograde at 14°45′ Aries |
| Oct 4, 2026 | Opposition: Saturn is opposite the Sun at 11° Aries, closest to Earth and visible all night; the midpoint of the retrograde |
| Dec 10, 2026, about 23:30 UTC | Saturn stations direct at 7°56′ Aries |
| Mar 15, 2027 | Post-retrograde shadow ends: Saturn passes 14°45′ Aries again and covers new ground |
Computed from NASA JPL Horizons. A station in the first hours of a UTC day falls on the previous evening in the Americas. Saturn is almost motionless around a station, so the time is given to the nearest 10 minutes; the date is firm.
What else is retrograde at the same time
Retrogrades overlap, and astrologers read them together. These planets are also retrograde during at least part of each period:
- Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026: Mercury (Oct 24 – Nov 13, 2026), Venus (Oct 3 – Nov 14, 2026), Uranus (Sep 10, 2026 – Feb 8, 2027), Neptune (Jul 7 – Dec 12, 2026), Pluto (May 6 – Oct 16, 2026).
The whole year is on the retrograde calendar 2026.
What Saturn retrograde means in 2026
In astrology Saturn stands for commitments, limits, responsibility and long-term structure. Saturn retrograde is read as an audit: obligations you took on are tested, foundations get reworked, and lessons you thought were finished come back for a proper answer. In Aries the subject is independence, initiative, courage and how you start things.
Who notices it most. For Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026 astrologers look first at people with the Sun, Moon, rising sign or personal planets between 7° and 14° of Aries, and at the same degrees of Cancer, Libra and Capricorn. Everyone else can read it through the house it falls in, below.
What to do
Review commitments, contracts and long-term plans, and fix the weak points you already know about. It is a better time to renegotiate a responsibility than to walk away from it in frustration. The longer guide, with the astronomy and the reading of a natal Saturn retrograde, is on the Saturn retrograde page.
Saturn retrograde Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026 for each sign
Read your rising sign first if you know it, since it sets the houses; then your Sun sign. Houses are counted from your sign in whole-sign style. The birthdays show whose Sun the retrograde touches directly: Saturn covers 7° Aries to 14° Aries, and the Sun moves about one degree a day, so the dates are approximate.
Aries: 1st house
Area of life: your body, identity and how you come across. You feel the weight of your own standards; identity, body and self-discipline are being rebuilt. What to do: set fewer rules and keep them, and look after sleep, posture and basic health.
Strongest for Aries born around March 27 – April 4 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn retrogrades over your Sun.
Taurus: 12th house
Area of life: rest, solitude, endings and what you keep private. Old fears, isolation and unfinished endings: the things you carry alone. What to do: get proper rest and proper help, and finish what has been waiting to be closed.
Saturn makes no major angle to a Taurus Sun this time, so the house carries the reading.
Gemini: 11th house
Area of life: friends, groups and long-term hopes. Friendships and groups thin out, and long-term goals need a realistic timetable. What to do: keep the friends who show up, leave the committee that drains you, and put dates on your plans.
Easier for Gemini born around May 28 – June 5 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn sextiles your Sun.
Cancer: 10th house
Area of life: career, reputation and public role. Career, reputation and responsibility: the role you hold and whether you still want it. What to do: review long-term career plans, repair your professional foundations, and take responsibility where it is yours.
Strongest for Cancer born around June 28 – July 6 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn squares your Sun.
Leo: 9th house
Area of life: travel, study, beliefs and publishing. A degree, a legal matter or a long journey meets delays, and your beliefs are tested by reality. What to do: complete the study or the application step by step, and keep the principles that hold up.
Easier for Leo born around July 29 – August 7 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn trines your Sun.
Virgo: 8th house
Area of life: shared money, debts, intimacy and trust. Debts, taxes, inheritance and shared obligations come due, and so does a fear you have been avoiding. What to do: make a repayment plan, put the paperwork in order, and be honest about what you owe and are owed.
Saturn makes no major angle to a Virgo Sun this time, so the house carries the reading.
Libra: 7th house
Area of life: partnerships, marriage and one-to-one relationships. A partnership is tested: commitment, distance, and what each of you is responsible for. What to do: rework the agreements in a relationship or a business partnership, and decide what you are both building.
Strongest for Libra born around September 30 – October 8 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn is opposite your Sun.
Scorpio: 6th house
Area of life: daily work, routines and health habits. Workload, routines and health habits reach a limit. What to do: redesign your schedule so you can sustain it, book the check-ups you postponed, and say no to extra duties.
Saturn makes no major angle to a Scorpio Sun this time, so the house carries the reading.
Sagittarius: 5th house
Area of life: romance, creativity, children and fun. Creative work, dating and children ask for commitment instead of spontaneity. What to do: give a creative practice regular hours, and decide what you are prepared to commit to in love.
Easier for Sagittarius born around November 29 – December 7 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn trines your Sun.
Capricorn: 4th house
Area of life: home, family, roots and where you live. Home and family duties: a lease, a mortgage, care for a parent, the foundations of your private life. What to do: fix the structural things at home, in the house and in the family, and renegotiate who carries what.
Strongest for Capricorn born around December 28 – January 6 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn squares your Sun.
Aquarius: 3rd house
Area of life: communication, learning, siblings and short trips. How you learn, speak and handle paperwork, and an obligation to a sibling or a neighbour. What to do: finish the qualification or the document you owe, and choose your words with care.
Easier for Aquarius born around January 27 – February 4 (Sun at 7°–14°): Saturn sextiles your Sun.
Pisces: 2nd house
Area of life: money, income, possessions and self-worth. Income, savings and self-worth are audited, and what you thought was secure is tested. What to do: rebuild the budget from the ground up, pay down what you can, and price your work properly.
Saturn makes no major angle to a Pisces Sun this time, so the house carries the reading.
Saturn retrograde 2026: questions
When is Saturn retrograde in 2026?
In 2026: July 26 – December 10 (Aries). Dates are UTC.
When does Saturn go direct in 2026?
Saturn stations direct on December 10, 2026 at about 23:30 UTC, at 7°56′ Aries.
Which sign is Saturn retrograde in during 2026?
Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026: from 14°45′ Aries back to 7°56′ Aries.
When is the Saturn retrograde shadow period in 2026?
For the Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026 retrograde the pre-shadow begins on April 20, 2026 and the post-shadow ends on March 15, 2027.
When is Saturn at opposition in 2026?
On October 4, 2026, at 11° Aries. Saturn is then opposite the Sun, closest to Earth for the year and visible all night; it is the midpoint of the retrograde.
Who is most affected by Saturn retrograde in 2026?
For Jul 26 – Dec 10, 2026 astrologers look first at people with the Sun, Moon, rising sign or personal planets between 7° and 14° of Aries, and at the same degrees of Cancer, Libra and Capricorn. Others feel it through the house it falls in for their rising sign.
Is Saturn retrograde in 2027?
Yes: August 9 – December 24, 2027.
Sources
The checkable facts on this page come from these external sources. The astrological interpretation is our own.
- Horizons System (planetary ephemeris service) · NASA Jet Propulsion LaboratorySaturn in 2026, computed from JPL Horizons positions: retrograde 2026-07-26 19:54 UTC at 14°45′ Aries, direct 2026-12-10 23:28 UTC at 7°56′ Aries
- Saturn: Facts · NASA ScienceSaturn makes a complete orbit around the Sun in about 29.4 Earth years (10,756 Earth days)
- What does it mean for Mercury to be in retrograde? · NASARetrograde motion is an apparent change in a planet's movement through the sky; the planet does not physically move backwards in its orbit
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