Lunar age calculator
Lunar age, 虛歲 (xusui) in Chinese, counts the calendar years you have lived in: one on the day you are born, one more at every Chinese New Year. It is the age used by the Chinese gender chart and in traditional fortune-telling. Enter a birth date to see it for any day.
How lunar age works
Two rules. You are one at birth, because you are already in your first year. And everyone gets a year older together at Chinese New Year, whatever their birthday. A baby born the week before New Year is one on the day of birth and two a week later, while still a newborn by the Western count.
That makes lunar age one or two years more than Western age: two from Chinese New Year until your birthday, one from your birthday until the next New Year.
Work it out by hand
1. Find your Chinese birth year. It is your birth year, unless you were born in January or February before that year’s Chinese New Year; then it is the year before. The table below has the dates.
2. Find the Chinese year of the day you are asking about, the same way.
3. Subtract and add one. Lunar age = Chinese year of the date − Chinese birth year + 1.
Example. Born January 20, 1995. Chinese New Year 1995 was January 31, 1995, so the birth falls in the Chinese year 1994, the Year of the Wood Dog. On March 8, 2027, after New Year 2027 (February 6, 2027), the lunar age is 2027 − 1994 + 1 = 34, while the Western age is 32.
Chinese New Year dates, 1968–2031
| Year | New Year | Animal | Year | New Year | Animal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Jan 30 | Monkey | 2000 | Feb 5 | Dragon |
| 1969 | Feb 17 | Rooster | 2001 | Jan 24 | Snake |
| 1970 | Feb 6 | Dog | 2002 | Feb 12 | Horse |
| 1971 | Jan 27 | Pig | 2003 | Feb 1 | Goat |
| 1972 | Feb 15 | Rat | 2004 | Jan 22 | Monkey |
| 1973 | Feb 3 | Ox | 2005 | Feb 9 | Rooster |
| 1974 | Jan 23 | Tiger | 2006 | Jan 29 | Dog |
| 1975 | Feb 11 | Rabbit | 2007 | Feb 18 | Pig |
| 1976 | Jan 31 | Dragon | 2008 | Feb 7 | Rat |
| 1977 | Feb 18 | Snake | 2009 | Jan 26 | Ox |
| 1978 | Feb 7 | Horse | 2010 | Feb 14 | Tiger |
| 1979 | Jan 28 | Goat | 2011 | Feb 3 | Rabbit |
| 1980 | Feb 16 | Monkey | 2012 | Jan 23 | Dragon |
| 1981 | Feb 5 | Rooster | 2013 | Feb 10 | Snake |
| 1982 | Jan 25 | Dog | 2014 | Jan 31 | Horse |
| 1983 | Feb 13 | Pig | 2015 | Feb 19 | Goat |
| 1984 | Feb 2 | Rat | 2016 | Feb 8 | Monkey |
| 1985 | Feb 20 | Ox | 2017 | Jan 28 | Rooster |
| 1986 | Feb 9 | Tiger | 2018 | Feb 16 | Dog |
| 1987 | Jan 29 | Rabbit | 2019 | Feb 5 | Pig |
| 1988 | Feb 17 | Dragon | 2020 | Jan 25 | Rat |
| 1989 | Feb 6 | Snake | 2021 | Feb 12 | Ox |
| 1990 | Jan 27 | Horse | 2022 | Feb 1 | Tiger |
| 1991 | Feb 15 | Goat | 2023 | Jan 22 | Rabbit |
| 1992 | Feb 4 | Monkey | 2024 | Feb 10 | Dragon |
| 1993 | Jan 23 | Rooster | 2025 | Jan 29 | Snake |
| 1994 | Feb 10 | Dog | 2026 | Feb 17 | Horse |
| 1995 | Jan 31 | Pig | 2027 | Feb 6 | Goat |
| 1996 | Feb 19 | Rat | 2028 | Jan 26 | Monkey |
| 1997 | Feb 7 | Ox | 2029 | Feb 13 | Rooster |
| 1998 | Jan 28 | Tiger | 2030 | Feb 3 | Dog |
| 1999 | Feb 16 | Rabbit | 2031 | Jan 23 | Pig |
Dates are for the Chinese calendar, counted in Beijing time. Born before the date in your birth year? Your Chinese year, and your zodiac animal, is the one before.
Lunar age, Korean age and Western age
| At birth | Goes up | |
|---|---|---|
| Western age | 0 | On your birthday |
| Chinese lunar age 虛歲 xusui | 1 | At Chinese New Year |
| Korean age 세는 나이 | 1 | On January 1 |
| Vietnamese age tuổi mụ | 1 | At Tết, the lunar New Year |
| Japanese kazoedoshi 数え年 | 1 | On January 1 |
All of East Asia once counted from one. China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam now use Western age for official purposes (Korea made it the legal standard in June 2023), and the old count lives on in family life, temples and fortune-telling. Korean age and lunar age agree for most of the year and differ between January 1 and Lunar New Year. Korean age calculator
What lunar age is used for
The Chinese gender chart. The chart’s rows are the mother’s lunar age on the day of conception. Chinese gender calendar 2027
Your zodiac year. The year of your own animal, 本命年 (benming nian), comes round at lunar ages 13, 25, 37, 49, 61 and 73. Tradition treats it as a year to be careful in, and many people wear something red through it.
Big birthdays. The sixtieth birthday that closes a full sixty-year cycle, and the longevity birthdays after it, are traditionally counted in lunar age, as are the ages written on memorial tablets.
A saju or BaZi chart does not use lunar age at all. It is built from the exact solar date and time of birth, and its year turns at the solar term Ipchun (立春) around February 4. Why saju starts the year at Ipchun
FAQ
What is my lunar age?
Your lunar age is the Chinese year of today’s date, minus the Chinese year you were born in, plus one. It is your Western age plus two before your birthday in a given Chinese year, and plus one after it. The calculator above does the New Year check for you.
Is lunar age just my age plus one?
Only for part of the year. Between Chinese New Year and your birthday it is your Western age plus two. People born in January or February need extra care, because their Chinese birth year may be the year before.
Which age do I use for the Chinese gender chart?
Your lunar age on the day of conception, not today and not on the due date. Set “Age on” to the conception date, or use the Chinese gender calendar page, which does both steps.
Is lunar age the same as Korean age?
Nearly. Both start at one, but Korean age goes up on January 1 and Chinese lunar age at Chinese New Year, so they differ for a few weeks each winter.
Why does lunar age start at one?
The traditional count numbers the years you have lived in rather than the years you have completed, so the year you are born in is your first. The months in the womb are sometimes given as a second reason.
Does my lunar age change on my lunar birthday?
No. In the traditional count everyone turns a year older together at New Year. A lunar birthday is a separate custom. Find your lunar birthday
Chinese calendar · Chinese gender calendar · Lunar age calculator · Korean age calculator · Lunar birthday calculator · Chinese zodiac calculator · Lunar New Year dates
