Transit guide · now: Oct 3 – Nov 13, 2026
Venus retrograde: dates, meaning and what to do
Venus retrograde is the six-week stretch, about every 19 months, when Venus appears to move backwards through the zodiac and questions of love, taste and money come up for review. This guide lists the dates from 2018 to 2042, explains what is happening in the sky, and separates the astronomy from the astrological reading.
Venus retrograde is the period when Venus appears to move backwards from Earth's viewpoint: about 40–43 days, roughly every 19 months. The current one runs October 3 – November 13, 2026, from 8° Scorpio back to 22° Libra. There is none in 2027; the next is May 10 – June 22, 2028 in Gemini. Astrologers read it as a time to review relationships, values and spending.
Is Venus 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.
When is Venus retrograde?
Venus is retrograde right now: October 3 to November 13, 2026. It turned retrograde at 8°29′ Scorpio and will turn direct at 22°52′ Libra. The full day-by-day breakdown, with degrees and effects by sign, is in our Venus retrograde 2026 guide.
Venus is retrograde less often than any other planet: about 40–43 days once every 19 months or so, which is around 7% of the time. That is why some years, such as 2024 and 2027, have no Venus retrograde at all.
Venus retrograde dates, 2018–2042
| Retrograde (UTC dates) | Stations retrograde at | Stations direct at | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 5 – Nov 16, 2018 | 10° Scorpio | 25° Libra | 41 days |
| May 13 – Jun 25, 2020 | 21° Gemini | 5° Gemini | 43 days |
| Dec 19, 2021 – Jan 29, 2022 | 26° Capricorn | 11° Capricorn | 40 days |
| Jul 23 – Sep 4, 2023 | 28° Leo | 12° Leo | 42 days |
| Mar 2 – Apr 13, 2025 | 10° Aries | 24° Pisces | 42 days |
| Oct 3 – Nov 14, 2026 | 8° Scorpio | 22° Libra | 41 days |
| May 10 – Jun 22, 2028 | 19° Gemini | 3° Gemini | 42 days |
| Dec 16, 2029 – Jan 26, 2030 | 24° Capricorn | 8° Capricorn | 40 days |
| Jul 20 – Sep 1, 2031 | 26° Leo | 10° Leo | 43 days |
| Feb 27 – Apr 10, 2033 | 8° Aries | 22° Pisces | 41 days |
| Sep 30 – Nov 11, 2034 | 6° Scorpio | 20° Libra | 41 days |
| May 8 – Jun 20, 2036 | 17° Gemini | 1° Gemini | 42 days |
| Dec 14, 2037 – Jan 24, 2038 | 21° Capricorn | 6° Capricorn | 40 days |
| Jul 18 – Aug 30, 2039 | 24° Leo | 7° Leo | 43 days |
| Feb 25 – Apr 8, 2041 | 6° Aries | 20° Pisces | 41 days |
| Sep 28 – Nov 9, 2042 | 3° Scorpio | 18° Libra | 41 days |
Computed from NASA JPL Horizons. Venus is retrograde about every 19 months and repeats almost the same zodiac zone every eight years: the 2018 retrograde covered nearly the same degrees as 2026. There is no Venus retrograde in 2027; the next one starts on May 10, 2028 in Gemini.
Venus retrograde by year
Each year has its own guide: exact station times, shadow dates, which other planets are retrograde at the same time and a reading for each sign. Years without a Venus retrograde (2027, 2032, 2035, 2040) have a short page that says so and gives the nearest dates.
2026 · 2027 · 2028 · 2029 · 2030 · 2031 · 2032 · 2033 · 2034 · 2035 · 2036 · 2037 · 2038 · 2039 · 2040 · 2041 · 2042
What is happening in the sky
Nothing reverses. Retrograde motion is an apparent change of direction seen from Earth. Venus orbits the Sun in about 225 days, faster than Earth, and when it overtakes us on the inside it appears to drift backwards against the stars. The midpoint of every Venus retrograde is the inferior conjunction, when Venus passes between Earth and the Sun and changes from evening star to morning star.
The eight-year pattern
Thirteen Venus orbits take almost exactly eight Earth years, so Venus retrogrades repeat in nearly the same part of the zodiac every eight years, slipping back about two degrees each time. The table shows it: October 2018 (10° Scorpio to 25° Libra) and October 2026 (8° Scorpio to 22° Libra); May 2020 and May 2028 in Gemini; December 2021 and December 2029 in Capricorn; July 2023 and July 2031 in Leo. Five retrograde zones in all, which is why astrologers suggest looking back eight years for a preview of the themes.
What Venus retrograde means in astrology
Venus stands for love, attraction, taste, values and money, and the retrograde is read as a review of all of them. Past partners and unfinished conversations tend to come back, spending habits get questioned, and what you thought you wanted is tested against what you actually value. The sign shows the flavor: Scorpio brings trust, intensity and shared resources; Libra brings fairness and partnership; Gemini brings mixed messages and choices; Capricorn brings commitment and status; Leo brings pride, romance and being seen.
What to do during one
Use it for review, repair and renegotiation. Revisit a budget, mend what you own, have the conversation you postponed, and let new connections develop slowly. Leave optional, hard-to-reverse choices (a big purchase, a drastic new look, making a brand-new relationship official) until Venus is direct, and ideally until it clears the post-retrograde shadow about a month later. If something cannot wait, do it carefully. The sky suggests; you decide.
Venus retrograde: questions
When is Venus retrograde?
Venus is retrograde from October 3 to November 13, 2026 (November 14 in UTC), moving from 8° Scorpio back to 22° Libra. Before that it was retrograde March 2 – April 13, 2025 (Aries into Pisces). After 2026 the next dates are May 10 – June 22, 2028 (Gemini), December 16, 2029 – January 26, 2030 (Capricorn) and July 20 – September 1, 2031 (Leo).
When is the next Venus retrograde?
If you are reading this between October 3 and November 13, 2026, Venus is retrograde now. The one after that begins on May 10, 2028 in Gemini and ends on June 22, 2028. There is no Venus retrograde in 2027.
How often is Venus retrograde?
About once every 19 months (584 days), for 40 to 43 days each time. That makes Venus retrograde about 7% of the time, less than any other planet. Mercury, by comparison, is retrograde three or four times every year.
How long does Venus retrograde last?
Between 40 and 43 days from station to station. Counting the shadow periods before and after, when Venus covers the same degrees going forward, the full cycle lasts about three and a half months: in 2026 from August 31 to December 15.
Is Venus retrograde real?
The motion is real as an observation and not real as a reversal. Venus never changes direction in its orbit; it appears to move backwards from Earth because it overtakes us on a faster inner orbit. The astrological meaning attached to it is an interpretive tradition, not a physical effect.
What does it mean to be born during Venus retrograde?
Astrologers read a natal Venus retrograde as a more private, self-defined approach to love and worth: values worked out from the inside rather than taken from others, and relationships that often start slowly. Only about one person in fourteen has it. Your birth chart shows it with an R next to Venus.
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 LaboratoryVenus retrograde station dates and degrees for 2018–2042, computed from JPL Horizons positions
- Venus: Facts · NASA ScienceA Venus year takes about 225 Earth days; Venus spins backward compared to Earth, so the Sun rises in the west; it appears as a morning star and an evening star
- 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
- Retrograde motion · Encyclopaedia BritannicaDefinition of retrograde motion as an apparent reversal seen from Earth
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