Year of the Rat: Rat Zodiac Years, Dates, Traits and Compatibility

The Rat (鼠) is sign number 1 of the twelve Chinese zodiac animals. People born in a Year of the Rat are traditionally described as resourceful, quick-witted and adaptable. In the traditional story of the Great Race, the Rat finished first by riding on the Ox's back and leaping ahead at the finish line, a tale often told to illustrate the sign's cleverness and timing.

The Rat is linked with the earthly branch Zi (子), midnight (11 pm to 1 am) and the start of the cycle, so it is often associated with beginnings and new ideas. The twelve animals are known as the twelve earthly branches, and they work together with the ten heavenly stems to name each day, month and year, as explained by the Smith College Museum of Art.

Year of the Rat: exact dates

A Rat year begins on Chinese New Year, not on January 1. Encyclopaedia Britannica notes that the zodiac year begins with Chinese New Year, so a person born in January or early February may belong to the previous animal. If you are unsure, check the start date below or use the zodiac finder to be sure.

Zodiac year	Starts	Ends
1924	Feb 5, 1924	Jan 23, 1925
1936	Jan 24, 1936	Feb 10, 1937
1948	Feb 10, 1948	Jan 28, 1949
1960	Jan 28, 1960	Feb 14, 1961
1972	Feb 15, 1972	Feb 2, 1973
1984	Feb 2, 1984	Feb 19, 1985
1996	Feb 19, 1996	Feb 6, 1997
2008	Feb 7, 2008	Jan 25, 2009
2020	Jan 25, 2020	Feb 11, 2021
2032	Feb 11, 2032	Jan 30, 2033

These dates come from the Hong Kong Observatory Gregorian-Lunar Calendar Conversion Table, which lists the exact day each lunar year starts.

Why the boundary is not January 1

The Chinese calendar is lunisolar. Its months follow the moon, with 12 months of 29 or 30 days each, and extra intercalary months are added from time to time to keep the calendar in step with the seasons, as Britannica's entry on the Chinese calendar describes. Years are also counted in a 60-year cycle that combines the 10 stems with the 12 branches. Because the lunar year does not match the Gregorian one, the Rat year can start in late January or in February.

Worked examples

Birthday	Zodiac year it falls in	Sign
Jan 27, 1960	1959	Pig
Jan 28, 1960	1960	Rat
Feb 14, 1972	1971	Pig
Feb 15, 1972	1972	Rat
Feb 1, 1984	1983	Pig
Feb 2, 1984	1984	Rat

In each case, the birthday decides the sign, not the calendar year alone. A person born on Jan 27, 1960 belongs to the Pig year, while one born the next day belongs to the Rat.

Rat personality in Chinese tradition

Traditional descriptions of the Rat focus on being resourceful, quick-witted and adaptable. These are cultural associations, not scientific findings, and they describe the sign as a shared story rather than a personal reading. A full Four Pillars (Bazi) chart uses much more than the year animal. The Victoria and Albert Museum notes that personality-by-sign is a fairly recent development and is not found in older Chinese texts, which is worth remembering when you read trait lists.

Rat compatibility

In the tradition, compatibility describes patterns between animals rather than scores:

Six Harmonies (secret friend): Ox
Three Harmonies (allies): Dragon and Monkey
Clash (opposite sign): Horse

For every pairing with the Rat, including harm, break and punishment tags, use the compatibility tool.

Year of the Rat and Tai Sui in 2026 and 2027

In folk belief, Tai Sui is a year-god. The Kew Ong Yah Temple in Singapore explains that sixty Tai Sui gods take turns by year in the sixty Jiazi cycle, and each person has a birth-year natal god. Our Tai Sui checker follows a folk year-sign rule:

2026 (Horse year): Clash (chong)
2027 (Goat year): Harm (hai)

Meeting Tai Sui is a traditional reminder to be steady and considerate. It is not a forecast of events.

Do birth years change outcomes?

It is natural to wonder whether the zodiac affects births or children. The evidence is mixed. A study of mainland China from 1949 to 2008 by Ma Yan (2010) found no zodiac birth preference at the national level, and the yearly ups and downs were explained by population momentum. In Hong Kong, Yip, Lee and Cheung (2002) found that births in Dragon years in 1988 and 2000 rose 7.8% and 4.2% over the preceding year, but the effect was mainly one of timing with little effect on total fertility. A separate NBER paper by Mocan and Yu on Dragon-born children found that the apparent school advantage disappeared once parents' expectations were taken into account. For a Rat-year reader, the lesson is that tradition and data often tell different stories.

How to check your sign

The Rat sign depends on your birth date relative to Chinese New Year, which falls between January 21 and February 20. Use the tables above, or run your date through the zodiac finder for a quick check. For background on how the festival is observed, see Wikipedia's Chinese New Year article. You can also read the Rat horoscope, see Rat in the 2027 Year of the Goat, or learn how Chinese New Year decides your sign.

Frequently asked questions

When does a Year of the Rat actually start?

A Year of the Rat starts on Chinese New Year, not on January 1. Chinese New Year falls on the new moon between January 21 and February 20. Someone born in early January or before that year's New Year belongs to the previous animal. The table in this guide lists the exact start and end dates for each Rat year from 1924 to 2032, taken from Hong Kong Observatory conversion tables.

What are the most recent Year of the Rat dates?

The most recent Year of the Rat ran from January 25, 2020 to February 11, 2021. The next one begins on February 11, 2032 and ends on January 30, 2033. Between these, the 2008 Rat year ran from February 7, 2008 to January 25, 2009. Always check the birth date against the start date, because a birthday in the first few weeks of the year can change the sign.

Is a Rat personality scientifically proven?

No. Rat traits such as being resourceful and quick-witted are cultural traditions, not scientific findings. The Victoria and Albert Museum notes that personality-by-sign is a fairly recent development that does not appear in older Chinese texts. Studies of birth patterns in China and Hong Kong have not established any link between zodiac sign and personality, so treat trait descriptions as a cultural story.

What does Tai Sui mean for a Rat in 2026 and 2027?

In folk belief, Tai Sui is a year-god, and the sign of each year decides which animal it relates to. For Rat people, the folk rule gives a Clash (chong) in 2026, the Horse year, and a Harm (hai) in 2027, the Goat year. Tradition reads these as reminders to stay steady and considerate. They are not forecasts, and the tradition does not predict outcomes for health or money.

Which signs are the best matches for the Rat?

In the traditional system, the Ox is the Six Harmonies secret friend of the Rat, and the Dragon and Monkey form the Three Harmonies allies. The Horse is the opposite sign and is listed as a clash. These are patterns from folk tradition, not scores. The compatibility tool on this site shows every pairing, including harm, break and punishment tags, for anyone curious about the Rat.

How can I check whether I was born in a Year of the Rat?

Find your birth date and compare it to the Chinese New Year start date for that year. If your birthday is before that date, use the previous year's animal. The Rat table in this guide lists each Year of the Rat from 1924 to 2032, and the zodiac finder on the home page can run your exact date for you.