How we calculate compatibility
Most compatibility calculators hand you a percentage and never explain where it came from. This page does the opposite. Every score on this site is generated from a small set of rules drawn from documented astrological traditions — not a black box, and not a number we made up to feel precise. Here is exactly how it works.
Primary sources
The Chinese side rests on Theodora Lau's The Handbook of Chinese Horoscopes, the most widely cited modern treatment of the tradition and the standard reference for the Triangle of Affinity. The Western side uses classical Hellenistic correspondences — element groupings and modalities — that predate any single author and sit in the public domain. We cite Lau's framework under fair use, for education, and we don't pretend either tradition is science. They are systems of belief with long histories, and we treat them as such.
Scoring Chinese pairs
The twelve animals divide into four trines — sets of three whose temperaments naturally align. This is the Triangle of Affinity: Rat–Dragon–Monkey, Ox–Snake–Rooster, Tiger–Horse–Dog, and Rabbit–Goat–Pig. Any two animals inside the same trine score highest, because the framework treats them as instinctively in tune.
Two more relationships matter. The six harmony pairs (also called secret friends — Rat–Ox, Tiger–Pig, Rabbit–Dog, Dragon–Rooster, Snake–Monkey, Horse–Goat) score nearly as high. The six conflicts — the clashing pairs directly opposite on the zodiac wheel (Rat–Horse, Ox–Goat, Tiger–Monkey, Rabbit–Rooster, Dragon–Dog, Snake–Pig) — score lowest. Everything else lands in a neutral middle. Concretely: a Triangle match scores 97, a harmony pair 94, a clash 42, and an unremarkable pairing 75. Two of the same animal score 88.
Scoring Western pairs
The twelve signs split across four elements — Fire (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius), Earth (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn), Air (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius), and Water (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces). Two signs of the same element share a basic wiring and score highest. Certain cross-element pairs are complementary in the classical reading — Fire with Air, Earth with Water — and score just below that. The traditionally opposing combinations — Fire with Water, Earth with Air — score lowest, and anything else sits neutral. In numbers: same element 93, complementary 89, opposing 45, neutral 71. Modality (Cardinal/Fixed/Mutable) and planetary rulers are described on each individual sign page to add context to the element-based score.
What the number means — and what it doesn't
The final score maps to a label: 95 and up reads as a “soulmate” tier, 90–94 as a strong match, 70–89 as good, 50–69 as neutral, and below 50 as challenging. Those bands are a reading aid, not a measurement. A “challenging” result doesn't mean a relationship is doomed, and a high score doesn't mean two people will get along — it means the traditions predict an easier or harder starting temperament. We wrote a longer piece on how to read your score without overweighting it.
How the written pages are made
The numbers are deterministic, but the prose isn't generated. The compatibility narratives, the animal and sign profiles, and the blog posts are written by hand, checked against the source frameworks, and dated. Where a claim traces directly to Lau's text, we note it. This is deliberate: a calculator can produce a score in a millisecond, but explaining what it means takes a person. If you spot an error, tell us — we correct things.
For entertainment and reflection
None of this is fortune-telling. Read every result as traditional belief and a prompt for reflection, never as a prediction or as advice for real decisions. The full disclaimer lives in our Terms.