How to Read Tarot Cards

I’ve been reading tarot for almost two decades and started out like most beginners do, by trying to memorize the booklet that comes with the cards. But here’s the thing I’ve learned: if you want to learn how to read tarot, the most important thing to rely on is your intuition, not your skills at rote memorization. Save that for algebra class.

Below are my recommendations on how to get started with the tarot and how to do your first reading. Take what serves you, leave what does not.

A Beginner’s Guide to Reading Tarot Cards

1. Have Patience

I don’t care how many TikTokers or YouTube channels will try and sell you on the idea that you can “learn tarot instantly.” You won’t. What you can do is have a basic grasp on the cards and begin your journey of understanding, interpreting, and reading them.

But, give yourself at least a few months to really learn the cards. And, expect that as you delve deeper into the cards — whether you go the Rider-Waite or Thoth route — they will reveal more of themselves to you. And with those revelations come more mysteries to unlock.

2. Start with the Major Arcana

To start reading tarot, you will need a deck. These are the five decks I recommend for beginners, but I would probably recommend starting with a standard size Rider-Waite deck, like this one.

The Major Arcana has 22 cards, while the rest of the deck has 56. So that’s a less intimidating place to begin. You can begin your journey by learning any of the 78 cards. But, since you can do a reading with just the Major Arcana, understanding those 22 paths will allow you to begin reading and will give you a good foundation to build your knowledge.

I wrote this article on the Major Arcana that walks you through the basic meanings of each of the cards. If you want to go deeper, on the Pagan Grimoire you’ll also find articles focusing on the meanings of each individual tarot cards in the deck.

3. Learn the Meanings of the Tarot Cards

There’s really no way around this. Some teachers — including mine — will tell you to toss aside the book that comes with the deck. And, while I understand the intention behind this (it’s so you don’t over rely on it and rely on your inner wisdom instead), you also need to comprehend the basic meanings.

In theory, you could forsake the book entirely and have the cards speak to you. And, over time, I imagine their meanings would reveal themselves, but you’ll save yourself a lot of time if use the booklet in tandem with your readings at first. Which brings me to my next point.

4. Begin by Reading for Yourself

One great way to begin is to read for yourself. Every day, pull three cards for the day. This can be in the morning to see what is to come or in the evening as a way to interpret how the day unfolded.

See if you’re sensing any particular messages coming through when you look at them. Are they all dark, light, one suit, perhaps? Are there characters that stick out such as the Devil or one of the court cards that relate to someone in your life or who you interacted with that day?

Now, open the booklet and read the meaning for each of the three cards. With this understanding, look again at the cards and see if this changes your interpretation.

Repeat this process every day for at least a month.

During this time, write down the three cards for the day in a journal (like our witchy planner) or your grimoire. Over time, it’ll be interesting to see which cards are popping up frequently for you. (Don’t forget to shuffle well.)

You may also want to journal a bit at the end of the and see if there was any correlation between the events and emotions of the day or not. (I’d recommend doing your readings at the end of the day so they don’t influence your experience, but do them whenever you feel most called to do so.)

5. Go Deeper With Your Knowledge

Once you comprehend the meanings of each of the cards, you’ll slowly start to be able to combine them. This is where having that knowledge of their basic meanings will help but also where you’ll need to start relying on your intuition more, because the meanings of the cards shift depending on what other cards they’re combined with and the situation.

A great example of this is the Devil card. Even without combining it with another card, it can mean the querent (person asking questions of the deck) has some shadow work to do. It could mean they need to adopt a more devil-may-care attitude and loosen up. It could mean there’s an important Capricorn energy in their life. And so on.

You’ll also begin to learn some of the meanings of the colors, numbers, suits, or symbols within the deck (especially if you’re working with the Rider-Waite or Thoth deck) and integrate those into your reading. Seeing a lot of fives come up? This could be an indication that there is change or challenges ahead. Getting a lot of aces? New beginnings or ideas could be on their way.

By zooming out and listening to your intuition, you can see more of the whole picture and what message the cards are trying to convey to you. For most, this is the hardest part of tarot reading. Be patient. The more you read and the more you work with the cards, the more natural this will feel.

And, remember that journal you kept with your original readings? If you also journaled about your day, after you’ve been reading for some time, you can go back and look at how your interpretation compared with the day then versus how you might interpret those cards now.