From Zodiac signs to psychic readings: You won’t believe how many Americans make life choices based on the stars

You’ve most likely been asked your star sign—and maybe you’ve even spent time researching it yourself, or had someone walk you through your birth chart.

But how many choices do even the most devoted astrology followers truly leave to the stars? Similarly, when someone sees a psychic or gets a tarot reading, are they really taking business advice from it? Or, in both cases, are these experiences more about finding explanations for why life is unfolding the way it is?

According to a 2024 Pew Research poll, around 30 percent of US adults reported reading their horoscope, seeing a psychic, or receiving a tarot reading at least once in the past year.

As far as horoscopes are concerned, only about 5 percent of those surveyed checked in weekly, while 7 percent checked in monthly

Only around 6 percent had seen a psychic over the last year, with a slightly higher 11 percent having received a tarot reading.

Astrology’s strongest supporters

Pew also found that younger adults and women tended to engage in these activities at higher levels. Around 43 percent of women between the ages of 18 and 49 reported that they believed in astrology; the figure fell to 27 percent when women over 50 were asked. Nevertheless, that level was higher than that of both groups of men.

Why do some people find astrology so compelling?

Perhaps these systems—astrology, tarot, the supernatural—are simply tools that help some people make sense of themselves, their circumstances, and their relationships. Others might not pay them much attention. You’re told you and your partner have great celestial chemistry—amazing news! But if the opposite were said, that your signs could lead to astrological hell, would you break up? Probably not. Still, that language might become a way to describe the tension: maybe they’re too stubborn, and I’m too independent.

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In that sense, these concepts don’t dictate reality; they are a way to interpret it. That doesn’t mean they’re not helpful for some. But it’s worth asking: how much are you being influenced by a belief system that, while compelling, is ultimately arbitrary? A system that might be masquerading as fate.

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