Guide
Tarot Spreads
A spread is not a ritual. It is a way of organising a question so the cards can answer it properly. These seven layouts cover everything from a quick daily check-in to complex decisions. Each one is designed to give you something specific and actionable.
The One-Card Pull
1 card
The simplest spread and the most underrated. One card, one question, one answer. No positions to juggle, no narrative to construct. Just you and a single image telling you something you need to hear.
Shuffle while holding your question. Cut the deck wherever feels right. Turn over the top card.
Position 1 (Your Card): This card is the answer, the theme, the thing you need to sit with. Do not rush past it looking for more information. One card is enough when you actually read it.
Example Reading
Question: What do I need to know about today?
Card: The Star
Recovery is already happening. You have been through something difficult recently and today is not about pushing forward. It is about letting the healing continue. Do less than you think you should. Trust that rest is productive right now.
When to use this spread
Use this for daily practice, when you are overwhelmed by a bigger spread, when you need a straight answer, or when you are learning a new deck. If you only ever learn one spread, make it this one.
Three-Card Spread
3 cards
The workhorse of tarot. Three cards laid left to right, each one a different angle on the same question. This spread works with two different frameworks depending on what you need.
Variant A: Past / Present / Future
Use this when you want to understand how you got here and where things are heading. The past card shows what set the current situation in motion. The present card shows where you actually stand. The future card shows the trajectory if nothing changes.
Example Reading
Question: What is happening with my creative work?
Past: Five of Cups -- A disappointment knocked you off course. Something you created did not land the way you expected and you have been dwelling on that failure instead of looking at what survived it.
Present: Temperance -- You are in a period of recalibration. Mixing old skills with new directions, finding a sustainable pace instead of the frantic energy that burned you out before.
Future: Ace of Wands -- A fresh spark is coming. Not a repeat of what you tried before, but something genuinely new. The patience you are building now makes you ready to actually catch it when it arrives.
Variant B: Situation / Action / Outcome
Use this when you need practical advice. The situation card confirms what is really going on (which is not always what you think). The action card tells you what to do about it. The outcome card shows what happens when you follow through.
Example Reading
Question: How do I handle this conflict with my friend?
Situation: Eight of Swords -- You feel trapped, but the constraints are mostly in your head. You are assuming the worst about their intentions when you have not actually asked.
Action: Strength -- Gentle persistence, not force. Have the conversation you are avoiding, but lead with compassion rather than accusation. This is a situation for patience, not a fight.
Outcome: Six of Cups -- A return to the warmth you had. This friendship has history and genuine care underneath the current tension. The conversation clears it.
When to use this spread
The three-card spread is the default for almost any question. Use Past/Present/Future when you want to understand a story. Use Situation/Action/Outcome when you want to know what to do. If you are reading for someone else, this is usually the right place to start. See also our guide to reading tarot before a difficult conversation.
The Crossroads Spread
4 cards
For the moments when you are stuck between two options and cannot see past your own anxiety about choosing wrong. This spread does not tell you what to pick. It shows you what each path actually looks like so you can make the decision yourself.
Lay the cards in a diamond shape. Cards 1 and 2 go left and right (your two options). Card 3 goes above (what you are not seeing). Card 4 goes below (the real question underneath the choice).
Position 1 (Option A Outcome): What happens if you go with the first option. Not a guarantee, but the energy and likely direction.
Position 2 (Option B Outcome): What happens if you go with the second option. Compare honestly, do not just pick the nicer-looking card.
Position 3 (What You Are Not Seeing): The blind spot. The piece of the puzzle you have been ignoring, either about the situation or about yourself.
Position 4 (The Real Question): What this decision is actually about underneath the surface. Often the most revealing card in the spread.
Example Reading
Question: Should I stay at my current job or take the new offer?
Option A (Stay): Three of Pentacles -- Staying means steady collaborative growth. You would build something real with the people already around you. The work is not glamorous but it is solid.
Option B (Leave): Eight of Cups -- Leaving is emotionally necessary but harder than you expect. Walking away from something familiar always is. The new role offers growth, but it starts with grief for what you leave behind.
What you are not seeing: The Moon -- You are making this decision based on fear, not information. There are things about both options you do not know yet, and you are filling the gaps with anxiety.
The real question: The Hanged Man -- This is not really about which job is better. It is about whether you are willing to see your career from a completely different angle. The decision is asking you to let go of how you thought your professional life was supposed to look.
When to use this spread
Use this whenever you are choosing between two specific options and going back and forth. It is especially good for career decisions, relationship crossroads, and major life moves. If your question is not a binary choice, use the three-card spread instead. For career-specific decisions, you might also try the Career Compass below or read our tarot for career change guide.
The Relationship Check-In
5 cards
Relationships are not static. This spread gives you an honest snapshot of where a relationship actually stands, not where you want it to be. Works for romantic partnerships, close friendships, family dynamics, or any bond that matters to you.
Lay five cards in a row, left to right.
Position 1 (Your Energy): What you are bringing to this relationship right now. Your emotional state, your attitude, the version of you that shows up.
Position 2 (Their Energy): What they are bringing. Remember, this is your read on their energy, filtered through your perspective. It is useful but not the whole truth.
Position 3 (What Is Working): The genuine strength in this connection right now. The thing to protect and build on.
Position 4 (What Is Not Working): The friction point. What needs to be addressed, adjusted, or released.
Position 5 (Where This Is Heading): The trajectory based on the current dynamic. Not fate, but the natural direction of things if no one changes course.
Example Reading
Question: Where do my partner and I actually stand?
Your energy: Nine of Cups -- You feel satisfied and content. Things are good from your side and you are enjoying this phase of the relationship.
Their energy: Four of Pentacles -- They are holding back. Not out of malice, but out of self-protection. Something has them guarding themselves financially or emotionally, possibly both.
What is working: Two of Cups -- The core connection is genuine. Mutual respect, real attraction, shared values. The foundation is strong.
What is not working: Five of Swords -- Arguments where someone has to win. When you disagree, it turns into a competition rather than a conversation. Someone walks away feeling defeated, and that resentment builds.
Where it is heading: The Lovers -- Toward a deeper commitment, but only if you handle Position 4. The Lovers is a choice, not a guarantee. The relationship is asking both of you to choose each other consciously, including the hard parts.
When to use this spread
Use this when you sense something has shifted in a relationship and you cannot quite name it, or when you want a check-in before a big conversation. Not ideal when the relationship has already ended, in which case the tarot after a breakup guide is more useful. For new relationships, see tarot for a new relationship.
The Career Compass
4 cards
Work questions need structure because they mix practical concerns with emotional ones. This spread separates them so you can see what is actually going on in your professional life without everything blurring together.
Lay four cards in a cross: Card 1 in the centre (current position), Card 2 to the left (block), Card 3 to the right (opportunity), Card 4 above (next move).
Position 1 (Current Position): Where you actually stand in your career right now. Not where your resume says, but the real energetic truth of your working life.
Position 2 (What Is Blocking You): The obstacle. Could be external (a person, a policy, a market condition) or internal (a belief, a fear, a habit). Often it is both.
Position 3 (Hidden Opportunity): Something you have not noticed or have been dismissing. The path that opens when you stop staring at the block.
Position 4 (Next Move): The concrete action to take. Not a feeling, not an aspiration, a move.
Example Reading
Question: I feel stuck at work. What am I missing?
Current position: Seven of Pentacles -- You have put in the work and now you are waiting for results. The seeds are planted. This is not a failure, it is a growth period, but the waiting feels like stagnation.
What is blocking: Four of Pentacles -- You are holding too tightly to the way things have been. Financial security matters, but your grip on the current structure is preventing you from seeing alternatives.
Hidden opportunity: Three of Wands -- Something beyond your current sphere. A role, a collaboration, or a market that you have not seriously considered because it would require looking outward instead of inward.
Next move: Eight of Wands -- Move fast. Send the email, make the call, submit the application. The window is open but it will not stay open forever. Speed matters more than perfection right now.
When to use this spread
Use this for any career question: feeling stuck, considering a change, preparing for a review, starting a business, returning to work. For a deeper dive into career transitions specifically, read our complete guide to tarot for career change. If you have a job interview coming up, our tarot for a job interview guide pairs well with this spread.
The Shadow Spread
3 cards
This spread is not gentle. It is for the times when you know something is off but you do not want to look at it directly. The Shadow Spread does the looking for you.
Lay three cards in a row, left to right. Read them in order and do not skip ahead.
Position 1 (What You Are Avoiding): The thing. The pattern, the truth, the feeling, the conversation. Whatever you keep pushing to the side when it surfaces.
Position 2 (Why You Are Avoiding It): The fear driving the avoidance. This card usually explains a lot about why you have been stuck.
Position 3 (What Happens When You Face It): Not a punishment. This card shows what becomes possible once you stop running. It is almost always better than you expect.
Example Reading
Question: What am I not dealing with?
What you are avoiding: The Devil -- A dependency. Something you keep going back to, whether that is a person, a substance, a habit, or a way of thinking, because it feels like you cannot function without it. You know it is not good for you. You keep choosing it anyway.
Why you are avoiding it: Nine of Swords -- Because facing it means facing the anxiety you have been medicating with that dependency. The avoidance is not laziness, it is fear. You are terrified of what you will feel when the crutch is gone.
What happens when you face it: Judgement -- Resurrection. Not metaphorical, practical. You wake up. You stop carrying the weight of pretending everything is fine. There is grief involved, yes, but on the other side of it is a version of you that is free to actually live. The reckoning leads to renewal.
When to use this spread
Use this when you keep pulling the same cards over and over, when you feel blocked for no obvious reason, or when you catch yourself saying "I know I should but..." It pairs well with journalling. Do not use this spread if you are in a fragile emotional state; use the one-card pull instead and come back to this when you are ready. For anxiety-specific readings, see our tarot for anxiety guide.
The Weekly Forecast
7 cards
Seven cards, one for each day of the week. This is not prediction, it is preparation. Each card gives you a theme or focus for that day, something to watch for, lean into, or be mindful of.
Lay seven cards in a row, left to right: Monday through Sunday (or whatever day your week starts). If you read on Sunday night, you set the tone for the whole week ahead.
Each position represents one day. The card for that day is not telling you what will happen. It is telling you what to pay attention to.
Example Reading
Monday (Ace of Swords): A moment of clarity arrives early in the week. An idea lands, a decision becomes obvious. Write it down before you lose it.
Tuesday (Two of Wands): Planning day. Take Monday's clarity and map it out. Do not act yet, just plan. Look at the bigger picture.
Wednesday (The Empress): Nurture yourself mid-week. Good food, gentle movement, creative expression. If you have been pushing hard, Wednesday is for softening.
Thursday (Seven of Cups): Overwhelm. Too many options, too many distractions. Choose one thing and commit. Everything else can wait.
Friday (Eight of Pentacles): Heads down, do the work. Friday is a craft day. Refine, revise, practice. The effort you put in today pays off next week.
Saturday (Four of Cups): Rest, but watch for apathy. You might feel bored or disconnected. Something good is being offered that you are not noticing because you are focused on what is missing.
Sunday (The Sun): Joy. The week ends well. Spend time with people who make you feel alive. Celebrate something, even if it is small.
When to use this spread
Use this on Sunday evening or Monday morning to set intentions for the week. It works well as a weekly ritual alongside a journal. Not ideal for specific urgent questions, use the three-card spread or Crossroads for those. If you are going through a particularly uncertain week, our tarot when you are waiting for news guide can help you sit with the uncertainty.
How to choose the right spread
Do not overthink this. Match the spread to the shape of your question:
| If your question is... | Use this spread |
|---|---|
| Simple, one thing | One-Card Pull |
| A story or situation | Three-Card Spread |
| A choice between two options | The Crossroads |
| About a relationship | Relationship Check-In |
| About work or career | The Career Compass |
| Something you are avoiding | The Shadow Spread |
| Planning your week | The Weekly Forecast |
Still not sure? Start with the one-card pull. You can always pull more cards if one is not enough. If you want to learn tarot from the ground up, start with our complete beginner's guide and browse all 78 card meanings.
Ready to try one?
Pull a card on the home page. Free, no signup needed.
Pull a card →