Venus Retrograde 2026: Dates, Degrees and What It Means for You

Venus is retrograde from October 3 to November 14, 2026. It turns retrograde at 8°29' Scorpio, backs into Libra on October 25, and turns direct at 22°52' Libra. This is the only Venus retrograde of 2026, and the next one does not arrive until May 2028. For six weeks the planet of love, money and taste looks backward, and the questions it raises are old ones: what do I value, who do I trust, and what am I no longer willing to pay for.

At a Glance

• Venus turns retrograde: October 3, 2026, about 07:10 UTC, at 8°29' Scorpio.
• Venus re-enters Libra: October 25, 2026, 08:56 UTC.
• Venus turns direct: November 14, 2026, about 00:20 UTC, at 22°52' Libra. That is the evening of November 13 across the Americas.
• Length: 42 days.
• Signs: Scorpio first, then Libra.
• Shadow period: August 31 to December 15, 2026.
• Midpoint: October 24, when Venus passes between the Earth and the Sun at 0°44' Scorpio.
• Core theme: Review of relationships, money and self-worth. Repair and renegotiate now. Commit later.

Venus Retrograde 2026 Key Dates

Every date below is in UTC. Clock times in the Americas are four to eight hours earlier, so an event listed in the early hours can fall on the previous evening there.

The station times in a few time zones:

A planet slows to a standstill before it changes direction, so the exact minute of a station is less sharp than the minute of a new moon. Treat the two or three days around October 3 and November 14 as the turning points.

What Venus Retrograde Means

Venus does not really move backward. Roughly every year and a half it overtakes the Earth on the inside track, and from here it appears to slide back through the zodiac for about six weeks. It is the rarest of the regular retrogrades. Venus spends only about 7 percent of its time retrograde, which is why the periods stand out.

In astrology Venus describes what you love, what you find beautiful, what you will pay for, and how you make peace. When it turns retrograde, those subjects go under review:

• Relationships. Old partners, old friends and old arguments return. Questions you settled quickly come back to be settled properly.
• Money. Prices, debts, subscriptions and salaries get a second look. What you thought was worth it may not be, and the reverse.
• Self-worth. How you treat yourself when nobody is watching. What you accept because you assume you cannot ask for more.
• Taste. A change of style feels urgent in the middle of the retrograde and often looks different once it ends.

The word that fits best is review. Venus retrograde is good for repairing, renegotiating, returning and reconsidering. It is less helpful for first dates you want to last, weddings, large luxury purchases and cosmetic changes that cannot be undone. Nothing is forbidden. The pattern astrologers have noticed for a very long time is that choices made in these weeks tend to be revised afterwards.

For the planet's meaning in your own chart, see the guide to your Venus sign in love and relationships.

Why This One Is Different: Scorpio First, Then Libra

Venus rules Libra and is said to be in detriment in Scorpio, the sign opposite its other home, Taurus. So this retrograde starts where Venus is least comfortable and ends where it is most at home. That gives the six weeks two clear chapters.

October 3 to October 25: Venus retrograde in Scorpio. Scorpio wants the truth more than it wants comfort. In these three weeks the review goes deep: trust, jealousy, shared money, debts, secrets, and the terms of intimacy. Venus squares Mars on October 10 and Pluto on October 20, so desire and control are both part of the story. This is the stretch when something hidden tends to come out. The Venus in Scorpio guide describes the style of the sign.

October 25 to November 14: Venus retrograde in Libra. Libra wants things to be fair. Once Venus backs into its own sign, the tone shifts from what is really going on to what would be a fair arrangement. Who gives more, who decides, what each person assumed without asking. Easy sextiles to Jupiter on November 4 and to Mars on November 10 make the last ten days the best window for an honest, generous conversation. The Venus in Libra guide covers the sign in detail.

Three more things mark this retrograde.

The midpoint falls on the day Mercury turns retrograde. On October 24 Venus passes directly between the Earth and the Sun at 0°44' Scorpio. This is the heart of the retrograde, the point where an old cycle of desire ends and a new one starts, and Venus changes from evening star to morning star. A few hours later, Mercury turns retrograde at 20°59' Scorpio. From October 24 to November 13 both planets are retrograde, which doubles the theme of looking back. The 2026 Mercury retrograde dates cover that side of it.

The two moons of the period are both Venus moons. The Full Moon in Taurus on October 26 is ruled by Venus, which sits on the last degree of Libra that day. The New Moon in Scorpio on November 9 lands in the sign where the retrograde began.

It repeats 2018. Venus retrogrades return to nearly the same part of the zodiac every eight years. From October 5 to November 16, 2018, Venus was retrograde from 10° Scorpio back to 25° Libra, two degrees away from this year's path. If you can remember what was happening in your relationships and finances then, you have a preview of the subject matter now.

What to Do, and What to Leave Until After November 14

Good uses of a Venus retrograde:

• Have the conversation you postponed. About money, about the division of work at home, about what you each expected.
• Settle a debt or ask for one to be settled. Scorpio rests when accounts are even.
• Review what you pay for. Cancel the subscriptions you forgot. Check the joint account. Reprice your own work on paper, and announce it later.
• Answer an old message, once. People from the past do reappear. Reply if there is something to finish. You do not have to restart anything.
• Return to a creative project you abandoned. Venus rules art as well as love, and retrogrades favour second drafts.
• Wear what you already own. Repair, alter and rediscover before you replace.

Better left until Venus is direct, if the timing is yours to choose:

• Weddings and engagements. If the date is already set, go ahead and enjoy it. If you are still choosing, pick one after mid-November.
• Starting a relationship you hope will last. Meet people, by all means. Let it define itself after the retrograde.
• Large purchases of beautiful things. Jewellery, art, a car, a renovation. Tastes shift during these weeks.
• Permanent changes to your appearance. A dramatic haircut is a classic Venus retrograde regret.
• Final breakups made in anger. A decision that is right will still be right on November 15.

Venus stays in the shadow zone until December 15. Many people find that what was reviewed in October and decided in November only settles into its new shape by the middle of December, after the third square to Pluto on December 9.

Venus Retrograde 2026 by Rising Sign

Your rising sign shows which two areas of life are under review. The first house listed is where the retrograde begins in Scorpio, the second is where it finishes in Libra. If you do not know your rising sign, a free birth chart will show it.

• Aries rising: Eighth house to seventh. Shared money and intimacy first, then the partnership itself. A commitment is renegotiated on more honest terms.
• Taurus rising: Seventh house to sixth. Your ruler is retrograde, so the whole period is personal. A partner or an ex comes into focus, then your daily routines and health.
• Gemini rising: Sixth house to fifth. Work habits and wellbeing first, then romance and creativity. An old creative idea or an old flame returns.
• Cancer rising: Fifth house to fourth. Matters of the heart and of children first, then home and family. A question about where and with whom you live.
• Leo rising: Fourth house to third. Family and home first, then conversations with siblings, neighbours and close friends. Something unsaid at home gets said.
• Virgo rising: Third house to second. Words and agreements first, then income and what you charge. Reprice yourself carefully.
• Libra rising: Second house to first. Your ruler is retrograde and ends in your own sign. Money first, then your appearance and how you present yourself. Be patient with the urge to reinvent.
• Scorpio rising: First house to twelfth. The retrograde begins in your sign. Identity and looks first, then a private withdrawal to rest and let go.
• Sagittarius rising: Twelfth house to eleventh. Hidden feelings and old grief first, then friendships and groups. You find out which circles still fit.
• Capricorn rising: Eleventh house to tenth. Friends and long-term hopes first, then career and reputation. A professional relationship is reassessed.
• Aquarius rising: Tenth house to ninth. Career and public standing first, then beliefs, study and travel. A plan made earlier this year is rethought.
• Pisces rising: Ninth house to eighth. Beliefs and distant plans first, then shared finances and trust. A joint financial matter needs a second look.

Who Feels It Most

The retrograde covers the stretch from 22°52' Libra to 8°29' Scorpio. It is strongest for people with planets or angles in that zone, and next strongest for those with placements at the same degrees of Aries, Taurus, Cancer, Capricorn, Leo and Aquarius.

• Birthdays from about October 16 to November 1. Venus crosses your Sun three times this autumn.
• Taurus and Libra risings and Suns. Venus is your ruling planet, so its retrograde colours the whole season.
• Anyone with natal Venus at 22° to 30° Libra or 0° to 9° Scorpio. This is a Venus return with a retrograde in the middle, a rare and thorough review of how you love.
• Children born during these weeks. They have Venus retrograde in the birth chart, a placement often linked with unconventional tastes and a private, carefully considered way of loving.

To check your own chart, open the free birth chart calculator and look for anything between 22° Libra and 9° Scorpio. To compare the sky with your chart day by day, use live transits. For two people, the Venus and Mars compatibility tool shows how your Venus signs meet.

FAQ

When is Venus retrograde in 2026?

Venus is retrograde from October 3 to November 14, 2026. It turns retrograde at 8°29' Scorpio at about 07:10 UTC on October 3 and turns direct at 22°52' Libra at about 00:20 UTC on November 14, which is the evening of November 13 in the Americas.

Is Venus in retrograde right now?

Venus is retrograde on any date from October 3 to November 14, 2026. Before and after those dates it is direct. The retrograde before this one ended in April 2025 and the next one begins on May 10, 2028.

What sign is Venus retrograde in during 2026?

It begins in Scorpio and ends in Libra. Venus is retrograde in Scorpio from October 3 to October 25 and in Libra from October 25 to November 14.

When does Venus retrograde end in 2026?

Venus turns direct on November 14, 2026 (UTC) at 22°52' Libra. It re-enters Scorpio on December 4 and clears the last of the retrograde zone on December 15.

What should you not do during Venus retrograde?

The traditional advice is to wait on weddings, new long-term relationships, expensive luxury purchases and permanent changes to your appearance, when the timing is yours to choose. These are guidelines for timing, and they matter less than the facts of your own situation.

Is Venus retrograde bad for relationships?

It is a testing period more than a harmful one. Weak points show, and old issues return to be dealt with. Relationships that can talk honestly through it usually come out with clearer terms. An ex getting in touch is common and does not by itself mean anything should restart.

How often is Venus retrograde?

About once every 19 months, for roughly 40 to 43 days. That makes it the least frequent of the regular retrogrades. Every eight years it returns to almost the same degrees, so 2026 echoes October and November 2018 and will be echoed again in 2034.

When is the next Venus retrograde after 2026?

The next Venus retrograde runs from May 10 to June 22, 2028, in Gemini, from 19° back to 3° of the sign. There is no Venus retrograde in 2027.

What is the Venus retrograde shadow period?

It is the stretch of zodiac Venus crosses three times: forward, backward and forward again. In 2026 Venus enters it on August 31 and leaves it on December 15. Themes of the retrograde often appear first in September and reach their conclusion in early December.

Related Guides

• Venus Sign: Love and Relationships
• Venus in Scorpio
• Venus in Libra
• Mercury Retrograde 2026: Full List of Dates
• Full Moon in Taurus October 2026
• New Moon in Scorpio November 2026
• 2026 Planetary Ingress Dates
• Understanding Synastry

Venus retrograde in 2026 asks for honesty first and fairness second. Scorpio shows you what is really there, and Libra helps you decide what to do about it. The clearest way to see where it lands for you is to find the houses that hold late Libra and early Scorpio in your own chart.

Track This in Your Own Chart

• Free Birth Chart Calculator: find your Venus sign, degree and house
• Live transits: today's sky against your placements
• Venus and Mars Compatibility: how two people's Venus and Mars signs meet
• Compatibility Report: a full comparison of two birth charts
• Today's sky: the Moon's sign and phase and what is active right now

Further reading

• Retrograde and prograde motion on Wikipedia
• Zodiac on Wikipedia