May 16 zodiac sign: Taurus, third decan
If you were born on May 16, your sign is Taurus, the earth sign ruled by Venus: the Sun is in Taurus on this date in every year from 1980 to 2030. The Sun sits about 25° into Taurus on this date, in the third decan, where Taurus's core takes on a Saturn flavour. Here's what the date fixes, and what only your birth time can tell you.
Your sign: Taurus
The fixed earth sign that builds slowly, holds firmly, and refuses to be hurried.
A Taurus Sun makes your identity around steadiness, sensuality, and the long game. You build slowly — and that's a feature, not a bug. While faster signs sprint and burn out, you're still walking, still showing up, and twenty years later you have something built. Comfort matters to you in a way that surprises people who think comfort is shallow: a good meal, a familiar bed, a body that feels at home in itself. You don't apologise for any of it.
- ElementEarth
- ModalityFixed
- RulerVenus
- SeasonApril 20 – May 20
The date fixes the Sun; the year and hour fix the rest. A Taurus born May 16 with the Moon in Pisces runs on a different inner weather from one with the Moon in Taurus: see Taurus Sun, Pisces Moon. Your rising sign needs the birth time; the twelve Taurus Sun combinations show what each one changes.
Taurus dates, traits & compatibility → · What a Taurus birth chart looks like →
In the US (2000–2014), an average of 11,664 babies were born on each May 16, rank 100 of 366 dates; Taurus is number 6 of 12 signs (8.29%). What's the most common zodiac sign?
The Moon on May 16, 1980–2030
Across the 51 years from 1980 to 2030, the Moon at noon UTC on May 16 was most often in Gemini (7 years) and least often in Cancer, Virgo, and Pisces (3 years each). Unlike the Sun, the Moon sign depends on the birth year. On May 16, 2026, the Moon stays in Taurus the whole UTC day.
- 1980 Gemini
- 1981 Libra → Scorpio 15:37
- 1982 Aquarius → Pisces 14:46
- 1983 Cancer
- 1984 Sagittarius
- 1985 Aries
- 1986 Leo
- 1987 Sagittarius → Capricorn 02:36
- 1988 Taurus → Gemini 06:31
- 1989 Libra
- 1990 Aquarius
- 1991 Gemini → Cancer 16:14
- 1992 Scorpio → Sagittarius 23:22
- 1993 Pisces → Aries 15:24
- 1994 Cancer → Leo 10:58
- 1995 Sagittarius
- 1996 Taurus
- 1997 Virgo
- 1998 Capricorn
- 1999 Gemini
- 2000 Libra → Scorpio 02:16
- 2001 Pisces
- 2002 Cancer
- 2003 Scorpio → Sagittarius 11:43
- 2004 Aries → Taurus 19:57
- 2005 Leo → Virgo 17:46
- 2006 Sagittarius → Capricorn 02:59
- 2007 Taurus
- 2008 Libra
- 2009 Aquarius
- 2010 Gemini → Cancer 17:46
- 2011 Scorpio
- 2012 Aries
- 2013 Leo
- 2014 Sagittarius
- 2015 Aries → Taurus 07:02
- 2016 Virgo → Libra 17:33
- 2017 Capricorn → Aquarius 17:50
- 2018 Gemini
- 2019 Libra → Scorpio 21:26
- 2020 Pisces
- 2021 Cancer
- 2022 Scorpio → Sagittarius 11:50
- 2023 Aries
- 2024 Virgo
- 2025 Capricorn
- 2026 Taurus
- 2027 Libra
- 2028 Aquarius → Pisces 18:39
- 2029 Gemini → Cancer 13:45
- 2030 Scorpio
In 21 of those 51 years (41%) the Moon changed sign during May 16 itself, so in those years the birth time decides the Moon as well as the rising sign. Cells with an arrow mark them, with the UTC time of the change. The Moon was exactly full on May 16 in 1992, 2003, and 2022, and new in 2007 and 2026.
Find your birth year. One sign means the Moon spent the whole UTC day there; an arrow means it changed sign that day, at the UTC time shown: born before it, the first sign; after it, the second. The Moon sign calculator settles it in seconds; your birth chart adds the rising sign and houses.
Times in UTC: a birth late in the evening in the Americas, or early in the morning in Asia, can fall on the neighbouring UTC date.
May 2026: full moon May 1, 2026, Scorpio / May 31, 2026, Sagittarius · new moon May 16, 2026, Taurus.
Your decan: the third decan of Taurus
Each sign is divided into three 10° decans, and each decan has a sub-ruler that shades the sign's core. Degrees 20–30 of Taurus belong to Saturn: where you face limitation and, through facing it, build mastery. Read it as Taurus with a Saturn accent — the earth core is unchanged, the emphasis moves.
Seven of Pentacles
Patience · Assessment · Long-term reward. The card assigned to this ten-degree slice of the zodiac — a birthday card in the same sense a sun sign is a birthday sign: one lens on the date, not a verdict.
Read the Seven of Pentacles in full on My Day Check →All the tarot cards for May 16: decan, sign, ruling planet and year card →
What the date can't tell you
The Sun is one placement out of ten. Your Moon sign changes every two to three days, so Taureans born on May 16 in different years have different Moons; your rising sign changes every two hours and needs a birth time and place. Those two carry most of what people mean by "personality" in a chart.
Born May 16? Add your year, time and place
Your Moon and rising depend on the year and hour. Computed here in a few seconds — then your full chart with a preview of its reading, no sign-up.
Your big three
- Sun
- Moon
- Rising
If you want it read afterwards: the full reading of your chart, written by AI, is $3.99, one-time. See a sample reading
Or browse the twelve possibilities: Taurus Sun with each Moon → · just my Moon sign · how the free birth chart calculator works
Classic matches for a May 16 birthday
By sun sign, Taurus pairs most easily with Virgo, Capricorn, Cancer, Pisces. Sun-sign compatibility is the coarse layer; the couple reading compares both full charts.
Common questions
What zodiac sign is May 16?
May 16 is Taurus, the fixed earth sign ruled by Venus. The Sun sits at roughly 25° Taurus on this date, in the third decan.
What decan is May 16?
The third decan of Taurus (20°–30°), sub-ruled by Saturn. Decans divide each sign into three 10° slices; the sub-ruler adds a second flavour to the sign's core — here where you face limitation and, through facing it, build mastery.
What tarot card is May 16?
In the Golden Dawn system each decan has a minor arcana card: for the third decan of Taurus it is the Seven of Pentacles (patience, assessment, long-term reward). It's a birthday card in the same way a sun sign is — one lens, not a verdict.
What Moon sign is someone born on May 16?
It depends on the year, and in 41% of years on the hour too. For example: in 1980, Gemini; in 1990, Aquarius; in 2000, Libra or Scorpio; in 2010, Gemini or Cancer; in 2020, Pisces. Over 1980–2030 the Moon on May 16 was most often in Gemini. A birth time and place pin it down.
Does everyone born on May 16 have the same chart?
No. They share the Sun in Taurus, but the Moon changes sign every two to three days, the rising sign every two hours, and the outer planets by year. Two people born May 16 in different years can have almost nothing else in common in their charts.