October 23 – November 21 · Water · Fixed · ruled by Pluto (traditionally Mars)

Scorpio

Intensity, privacy and refusal to accept surfaces.

DatesOctober 23 – November 21
SymbolScorpion ♏
ElementWater
ModalityFixed
Ruling planetPluto (traditionally Mars)
House8
PolarityNegative
Lucky numbers8, 11
Lucky dayTuesday
ColourDeep red, black
BirthstoneTopaz, obsidian
Best matches Cancer, Pisces, Virgo
Hardest matches Sagittarius, Aries, Gemini
Rules the bodyReproductive and eliminative systems

Calculated, not approximated

Exact Scorpio dates for 2026

Sun enters Scorpio 23 October, 09:47 UTC
Sun leaves Scorpio 22 November, 07:29 UTC
Length this year 29.9 days

Every other site prints "October 23 – November 21" with a note that dates "may vary by a day". They vary because the Sun crosses the boundary at a specific moment, and that moment shifts each year — but it is not unknowable.

The figures above are computed: the Sun enters Scorpio when its ecliptic longitude reaches 210°, and that crossing is found to the minute. If you were born near a boundary, this is the answer you actually needed.

Rarely covered

The three Scorpio decans

Each sign divides into three ten-degree segments, and each has its own sub-ruler. Two people can both be Scorpio and read as noticeably different because they fall in different decans — roughly, early, middle or late in the sign.

Decan 1 · 1–10°

Sub-ruler: Pluto

Double Pluto — the most intense and most private version.

Roughly the first ten days of the sign.

Decan 2 · 11–20°

Sub-ruler: Neptune

Softer and more mystical. Intuition over investigation.

Roughly the middle ten days of the sign.

Decan 3 · 21–30°

Sub-ruler: Moon

Emotionally rawer. Feels everything and shows almost none of it.

Roughly the last ten days of the sign.

Scorpio personality

Perceptive
Secretive
Determined
Suspicious
All-or-nothing

Strengths

Sees through pretence instantly and commits completely once convinced.

Weaknesses

Tests people rather than asking, and remembers slights for a very long time.

Scorpio is the one fixed water sign — and that pairing is the whole explanation. The element sets temperament: water signs read the room before anyone speaks. The modality decides what happens when circumstances change: fixed signs resist it and hold their position.

There are exactly twelve combinations of four elements and three modalities, and each is occupied by one sign. That is why no two signs are interchangeable, and why Scorpio cannot be swapped for the other water signs without changing the meaning.

The Scorpio man and woman

Scorpio man

Intense, private and observant. Tests before trusting, and remembers the result.

Scorpio woman

Magnetic and self-contained. Gives access in stages and notices exactly who is paying attention.

Worth saying plainly: nothing in astrology assigns different meanings to a sign by gender. These descriptions reflect how the traits are conventionally written about, not a separate system — and plenty of people will recognise themselves in the other one.

Scorpio in each area of life

In love and relationships

Intense and private. Wants total honesty and gives it slowly.

As a friend

The friend who turns up in a crisis and never repeats what you told them.

At work

Suited to investigation, research and crisis. Poor at superficial collaboration.

Career that suits

Investigation, research, surgery, psychology, finance — anywhere the surface has to be got past.

With money

Strategic and private about it. Others rarely know the real figure.

As a child

Secretive and deeply feeling. Reacts badly to being handled or lied to, even kindly.

As a parent

Fiercely protective and perceptive. Risks controlling out of fear of loss.

Health and the body

Reproductive and eliminative systems — Scorpio rules them, hence the themes of regeneration.

Scorpio compatibility with every sign

Ranked by the angle between the two signs on the wheel — the same geometry astrology uses for aspects. Signs 120° apart share an element and form a trine; 90° apart is a square. Nothing here is a matter of opinion.

Compatibility of Scorpio with every sign
WithAspectAngleScoreElement
♋ Cancer Trine 120° 88% Water
♓ Pisces Trine 120° 88% Water
♍ Virgo Sextile 60° 82% Earth
♑ Capricorn Sextile 60° 82% Earth
♏ Scorpio Conjunction 78% Water
♉ Taurus Opposition 180° 75% Earth
♌ Leo Square 90° 62% Fire
♒ Aquarius Square 90° 62% Air
♎ Libra Semi-sextile 30° 58% Air
♐ Sagittarius Semi-sextile 30° 58% Fire
♈ Aries Quincunx 150° 55% Fire
♊ Gemini Quincunx 150° 55% Air

Famous Scorpios

Leonardo DiCaprio, Katy Perry, Bill Gates, Marie Curie

Lists like this are the weakest evidence in astrology and the most quoted. With roughly a twelfth of all people in any sign, every sign has impressive members — picking four of them proves nothing. Read it as trivia, not as support.

Common questions about Scorpio

What are the exact Scorpio dates?

October 23 – November 21 as usually published. In 2026 specifically the Sun enters on 23 October am31 09:47 UTC and leaves on 22 November am30 07:29 UTC.

Who is Scorpio most compatible with?

By aspect, Cancer, Pisces, Virgo. Those sit at the easiest angles on the wheel — but sun signs are one factor of many, and a difficult angle describes friction rather than failure.

What is a Scorpio decan?

A ten-degree third of the sign with its own sub-ruler: Pluto, Neptune, Moon. It is why two people of the same sign born three weeks apart can read quite differently.

What body part does Scorpio rule?

Reproductive and eliminative systems — Scorpio rules them, hence the themes of regeneration.

Is the Scorpio man different from the woman?

Not in the system itself — astrology assigns no gendered meaning to a sign. The separate descriptions above reflect convention in how signs are written about, nothing more.