Chinese Zodiac Years Chart 1900–2100

How Often Each Animal Appears (1900–2100)

Across the 201-year span, each of the twelve animal signs recurs roughly every twelve years. The exact count varies slightly because the 60-year sexagenary cycle does not divide evenly into 201.

• Rat 17 years
• Ox 17 years
• Tiger 17 years
• Rabbit 17 years
• Dragon 17 years
• Snake 17 years
• Horse 17 years
• Goat 17 years
• Monkey 17 years
• Rooster 16 years
• Dog 16 years
• Pig 16 years

1900–1979 (approximated)

1980–2030 (precise Lunar New Year dates)

2031–2100 (approximated)

Reading This Chart

• Lunar New Year (start) — the first day of the Chinese lunar year; zodiac year begins here.
• Ends — the last day of that zodiac year (day before the next Lunar New Year).
• ~ — approximated boundary. Treat January and February signs in these years as estimates.
• Element — one of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, paired with the animal via the ten Heavenly Stems.

For a quick single-birthday lookup, use the Chinese zodiac calculator — it handles the Lunar New Year boundary automatically.

New Here?

If you landed on this chart without knowing your sign yet, start with the Chinese zodiac calculator — it turns your birthday into your animal sign and handles the Lunar New Year boundary for you. Once you know your sign, read its full page on the 12 animals index and check your 2026 horoscope. For background on why the zodiac works this way, the beginner's guide explains the 12-animal cycle and the 60-year element cycle in plain English.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Chinese zodiac years chart?

It is a table mapping every Gregorian year from 1900 to 2100 to its Chinese zodiac animal sign, Five Element, and the Lunar New Year start and end dates that define the zodiac year boundary. Because the Chinese zodiac follows the lunar calendar, a single Gregorian year can contain two zodiac signs depending on whether a date falls before or after Lunar New Year.

Why do some years say "approximated"?

Lunar New Year dates for 1980 through 2030 are precise, sourced from standard astronomical tables. Years from 1900 to 1979 and from 2031 to 2100 use an approximated February 4 boundary (the long-term average of Lunar New Year) and are flagged with a tilde (~). If your birthday falls in January or February of an approximated year, treat the sign as a close estimate rather than exact.

How often does each animal sign appear?

Each of the twelve animal signs appears once every twelve years, so in the 201-year span from 1900 to 2100 each sign appears roughly 16 or 17 times. The exact count varies because the 60-year sexagenary cycle (animal + element) does not divide evenly into 201 years. The breakdown is listed above.

Why does the zodiac year not start on January 1?

The Chinese zodiac is tied to the lunar calendar, whose new year falls between January 21 and February 21 on the Gregorian calendar. A zodiac year therefore starts on Lunar New Year and ends the day before the next Lunar New Year. Birthdays in January or early February belong to the previous zodiac year — this is why the chart lists explicit start and end dates for each row.

What is the sexagenary cycle?

The sexagenary cycle is the 60-year pattern formed by combining the twelve animal signs with the ten Heavenly Stems (which carry the Five Element in pairs: Wood-Wood, Fire-Fire, Earth-Earth, Metal-Metal, Water-Water). Each animal-element combination recurs once every 60 years. For example, 2020 was the Metal Rat and the previous Metal Rat year was 1960.

Does this chart use Lunar New Year or LiChun (Start of Spring)?

This chart uses Lunar New Year as the zodiac year boundary, which is the convention used across this site. Some traditions use LiChun (around February 4) instead. The two can disagree for birthdays between late January and early February; if you need the LiChun-based sign, check the Lunar New Year date for your birth year and compare it to February 4.