When is the next retrograde?
On November 1, 2026, Neptune, Saturn, Uranus, Venus and Mercury are retrograde. The next planet to turn retrograde is Jupiter, on December 13, 2026 in Leo, until April 13, 2027. Mercury turns direct on November 13, 2026.
Each planet's current or next retrograde
| Planet | Retrograde | Shadow |
|---|---|---|
| Neptune now | in Aries, to in Aries 158 days | March 16, 2026 to April 2, 2027 |
| Saturn now | in Aries, to in Aries 137 days | April 20, 2026 to March 15, 2027 |
| Uranus now | in Gemini, to in Gemini 151 days | May 25, 2026 to May 26, 2027 |
| Venus now | in Scorpio, to in Libra 42 days | August 31, 2026 to December 15, 2026 |
| Mercury now | in Scorpio, to in Scorpio 20 days | October 4, 2026 to November 30, 2026 |
| Jupiter | in Leo, to in Leo 121 days | September 17, 2026 to July 11, 2027 |
| Mars | in Virgo, to in Leo 81 days | November 5, 2026 to June 8, 2027 |
| Pluto | in Aquarius, to in Aquarius 163 days | January 13, 2027 to February 9, 2028 |
Dates are in UTC. The planet's row links to its page for the year, with what its retrograde is read as.
Every turn in the next 12 months
A planet turns twice in each retrograde: retrograde at the start and direct at the end. On those days it barely moves against the stars, and astrologers read its themes as loudest then.
| Date | Turn | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Mercury turns direct | 5°02' Scorpio | |
| Venus turns direct | 22°51' Libra | |
| Saturn turns direct | 7°55' Aries | |
| Neptune turns direct | 1°36' Aries | |
| Jupiter turns retrograde | 27°01' Leo | |
| Mars turns retrograde | 10°25' Virgo | |
| Uranus turns direct | 1°40' Gemini | |
| Mercury turns retrograde | 5°58' Pisces | |
| Mercury turns direct | 20°55' Aquarius | |
| Mars turns direct | 20°55' Leo | |
| Jupiter turns direct | 16°59' Leo | |
| Pluto turns retrograde | 7°10' Aquarius | |
| Mercury turns retrograde | 6°21' Cancer | |
| Mercury turns direct | 27°28' Gemini | |
| Neptune turns retrograde | 6°39' Aries | |
| Saturn turns retrograde | 27°52' Aries | |
| Uranus turns retrograde | 9°57' Gemini | |
| Mercury turns retrograde | 4°55' Scorpio | |
| Pluto turns direct | 4°44' Aquarius | |
| Mercury turns direct | 19°18' Libra |
How often each planet turns
- Mercury: three or four times a year, for about three weeks.
- Venus: about every 19 months, for about six weeks.
- Mars: about every 26 months, for about ten weeks.
- Jupiter: once a year, for about four months.
- Saturn: once a year, for about four and a half months.
- Uranus: once a year, for about five months.
- Neptune: once a year, for more than five months.
- Pluto: once a year, for more than five months.
What the shadow is
A retrograde backs over a stretch of the zodiac, and the planet passes over that same stretch three times in all. The shadow is the whole of it: from the day the planet first reaches the degree it will back up to, until the day it finally passes the degree it turned at. Astrologers read the days before a retrograde as the first look at what comes up, and the days after as the follow-through.
How these dates are worked out
A planet is retrograde when its position along the zodiac, as seen from Earth, runs backward. We take each planet's position from astronomy-engine, the open-source astronomy library behind our birth charts, find the moment its motion changes direction, and narrow it down to the hour or better. Each planet's retrograde is the stretch from one turn to the next. This page is worked out for today's date in UTC, so the list always starts from now. How we calculate the sky shows the checks, with tables you can repeat them against.