How much do professional astrologers make?

[Charles]

I can’t find much (consistent) information about this online. Every astrologer I’ve gone to or looked up charges around $200 per session, with calendars fully booked weeks or months out, but I’ve read posts here that say that it’s very difficult to earn a living as an astrologer. I don’t see how the data I’ve seen coincides with that statement, so I’m confused.

I’m also looking to find more data points to see what the general range could be, as I know there might be a range depending on the type of clientele you have, the number of clients you have, and how long you’ve been practicing.

Thanks!

Discussion

[SnarletBlack]

Some things to keep in mind there. Most astrologers won’t start out charging that much. They’ve probably put in several years of charging less than that and working to build up a practice and following.

Also even though you only spend 60-90 mins with the astrologer, they’ve probably put in a few hours working with your chart and prepping for your session. That’s part of why astrologers are booked out so long – we don’t tend to book for this week or next week because of the prep time. Once you get more experience and/or you get more returning/regular clients, prep time can go down and that can make it more lucrative.

Astrology sessions are also, at least for me, quite intuitively engaging. That means that the astrologer probably needs some “recovery” time after the session. So most astrologers aren’t booking that many clients per day. And with the whole time spent per session, that $200 fee can translate to more like $30-40/hour of actual working time. And again, it can take a while to get to that point. Most will spend a few years charging less and building up a practice/clientele, much like in other counseling type practices.

And then you’re self-employed so you’re also paying for a website, booking system, taxes etc. All of which also takes (unpaid) time too. So that has to go into your session fee also.

Many astros also make additional income through things like offering courses online.

It is definitely possible to make a good living as an astrologer. It’s the practice building time that’s often the challenge.

[Badcatgoodcat]

Actually, this is a subject that strikes a deep nerve with me. I charge the same amount I’ve charged for the last ten years. I’ve been a practicing professional for twenty years and prior to that my prices were lower. I charge $75 to $95 for most readings, except synastry. I do not charge by the hour, but the general cut off is two hours, though synastry readings can run forever, for the obvious reasons, but also because of the nature of the client. Clients who come in for synastry/compatibility analysis are often bursting with questions.

It bothers me a fair bit to see astrologers charge $200 for a reading, or for the first hour of a reading. It actually hurts my heart. I mean that.

Most clients turn to astrology out of total desperation. When their lives are looking utterly bleak and nothing feels familiar or makes sense any longer. They’re looking for guidance and reassurance. Many of the people who need it most can’t afford to spend $200 on an hour of astrological insight, no matter how much they might *really, really* badly want it, or feel it would benefit their lives. $200 an hour is what upper middle class moms who shop at New Seasons and Trader Joe’s between yoga classes and hydrotherapy can afford. That’s not realistic for the majority of people who seek out astrologers or spiritual advisors.

I also like to spend time with people’s charts before a reading….but realistically, most of us use software now. I do own and use an ephemeris. But the vast majority of contemporary astrologers do not know how to use an ephemeris at all, so saying we need to spend hours plotting a chart is not believable when 99% of us are punching birth dates into software programs.

I don’t know any truly skilled astrologers that need to spend hours studying a single chart like it’s calculus homework. After a couple of decades it’s a lot like being bilingual- you look at a chart and it speaks to you all at once. Then you think about it. No one is really hunched over a chart for 3 and 4 hours on end before an actual reading intensely studying. We look at it, take some notes….drink some coffee….feed the dog….look at the chart again…..take some more notes…. Send some text messages…..Go take a shower. Respond to another client. So on and so on.

Unless you’re providing a written analysis of a client’s chart- which I often will and that is very time intensive (and I do charge extra for a full written reading)- astrologers aren’t treating any single chart like it’s an exam.

I would rather take four or five clients who really need it in a day at $75, still working less than nine hours, still earning a decent living wage, than take one or two clients in a day at $200 each who may not be in the same dire straits. I also have plenty of clients who *can* afford to pay that rate, and they usually insist on tipping, but I’d prefer to be accessible to everyone.

I’ll accept the downvotes.

[StellaGraphia]

Are you aware of the AYA? The [Association for Young Professionals](https://youngastrologers.org/)? You don’t have to be young in age. But it’s a great place for those getting started, whatever their age. They even offer scholarships to astrology conferences. It’s a great organization. I think Leisa Schaim and Austin Coppock are both former presidents, if you’re familiar with them.
There are also some episodes on becoming an astrologer at TheAstrologyPodcast.com .

SnarletBlack gave you an excellent rundown. I just want to say that there are indeed a lot of “starving astrologers” out there. It takes a lot of time to first, learn astrology well (years), with often a cost for education, for courses, which I think many skilled astrologers understand the importance of and have done. (For instance, Kepler College.) And then to build up any kind of practice that can actually pay your rent and all your bills. Understand also, that self-employed people pay (in the US) a significantly higher tax than those employed by others. (Because if you are employed, your employer is paying part of your social security tax). Plus, you have to pay for your own health insurance as well, and in the US that’s pretty darn expensive – can be $500-$700/month, depending. You may also be having to pay for your children’s health insurance. I’ve seen self-employed single moms paying close to a thousand dollars a month just for health care. Family coverage can be as much as US$1,500/month. It’s way more expensive to be self-employed.

There are other costs associated with being a professional, such as attending conferences and the cost of travel and accommodations (not required of course, but to build your professional status, not just attending, but presenting at these conferences can be important). And of course, study is always ongoing, so, paid courses perhaps, as well as upkeep on software, and organization member fees, etc.

Being booked may or may not mean they are full of only astrology consultations. Depends how established they are. It can mean they have to still work another job to support themselves and so have less time for consultations. And yes, as mentioned, maybe the biggest misconception is that all one is paying for is the 60 to 90 minutes spent in the consultation. An astrologer, depending on experience, will likely spend 2 or 3 hours in preparation, going over the natal, transits, the progressed, and lots of other tools to really understand where the person is now. For some it may be more like an hour or two, especially if it’s a repeat client and you are already pretty deeply familiar with the chart.

[EverbrightRDT]

Short answer: It depends.

If we’re *just* talking about readings, then we have to take a couple of things into account like you said. First, what are you charging for your services? $50? $100? $200? Second, how often are you booked for a consultation? Are you doing two readings a day or two readings a month? Is every day of your calendar filled up or are you giving yourself a lot of breathing room between clients? Third, how consistent are your clients? Can you guarantee that you’ll get a certain amount every month, or does it change depending on the seasons?

Commission jobs like this usually don’t have an average salary that you can depend on, and if there is some information out there, it’ll depend entirely on who is being asked. You can have $200 readings and be fully booked months out, but only do one reading a week. You can have $50 readings and be booked twice a day every day. You can make $80,000 one year and $10,000 the next. There are so many factors that change depending on how you run your practice and who your clients are.

Another thing to take into account is what streams of income the astrologer has. Someone else in the replies briefly touched on this, but astrology is more than just one-on-one consultations and written reports. People apply it in all sorts of ways, be it writing for blogs, doing web series, being speakers at conferences, offering classes, doing artwork, and so on.

Most of the young astrologers I know who are making a living (or close to making a living) off of their knowledge have branched out a lot. I know a few people making a couple of thousand every year off of Patreon alone. If you add readings, video content, collaborations with media networks, and courses on top of all that, you have yourself a pretty substantial living. It’s just a matter of how creative you are with what you know and where you branch out.

As an aside, you usually have to learn more than just astrology in order to do these things, but not in a “pay thousands for classes” type of way. Understanding planetary archetypes, traditional systems, and modern systems is one thing. Learning to convey what you find through writing is another. Understanding how to be an effective counselor is another. Learning how to shoot and edit videos is another. Learning how to host a class and teach people is another. Learning how to write a book is another. There’s so much that can be done, but it requires additional time and learning. That’s not a bad thing, just something to keep in mind.

If I can ask, why are you looking into this? Is it just general curiosity about the disparity between booking and income? Or is it a “I want to become an astrologer but I’m not sure if I can pursue it full-time” type of thing? Or maybe something completely different altogether?

[tinythings_]

Hi i had a natal chart reading which took 2,5 hours for 155 Dollars. And i am planning to get a solar return chart reading which has around the same pricing.
I have seen some extremly high rates around but i think up to 200 its fine. I know there are smaller readings like chart ruler, sun moon earth and profector of the year which cost less.
How sucessful you will be depends on your Marketing strategies etc, as always.

[alhena-in-tx]

Just a few more comments to add:

1. astrology readings can start as a side gig, and you can still be professional (website, etc.)
2. any time I ever gave a freebie reading, it resulted in paid readings later (that person you gave a reading to will talk about it to their friends and family). It’s very easy to build up a steady stream of clients.
3. you *must* make sure the client records the reading (or receives a recording). Easy to do these days. I guarantee you will tell them things they are not prepared to hear in the heat of a reading, but they will hear it later if they relisten to their reading.
4. I always succeeded in readings where I both addressed the client’s needs and focus, but then there was always a special message from Spirit (their Guardian Angels, in my belief structure) and I made sure to get that on the tape (that dates me), even if just briefly.
5. You need to set your ground rules. Your clients would love to have their own low-cost (or no-cost) personal instant-access astrology slave. Don’t be that.
6. Very few clients come for a reading because everything is going great in their lives. They’re in trouble. They’re freaked out. They’re in grief. They’re in real pain. That is going to have it’s impact on you, unless you have a strong Earth-sign Ascendant, and even that may not be enough. You have to allow for recovery time for yourself.
7. Charge more for those relationship readings. Looking at two charts takes longer. I didn’t. I was stupid. One of the reasons I burned out and quit taking personal readings.
8. To prepare yourself for a career, I’d get familiar with the generational-planetary sign shifts (Uranus-Neptune-Pluto through the signs). You can find lots of blog posts and articles on each one. Then you understand the backdrop when your client’s Mercury conjuncts that Pluto in Sagittarius.
9. I’d also get familiar with the synodic challenges we all go through at different times of our lives. 28-30 years old? Saturn Return. Around 42? Uranus opposition (middle age crazies). Transiting Pluto square Pluto (ugh). Chiron return.
10. Everything about you supporting yourself as an astrologer depends upon your own chart. Study the aspects between your 2nd house ruler and your 11th house ruler to Uranus. Study any aspects between 2nd house planets/11th house planets to Uranus. Do you see money flow related to Uranus? And don’t forget that some times are better for launching an astrology career than others. (I’d be tempted to wait out the Saturn-Uranus square. There are some nice aspects in April and May of 2024 you might want to look at.)
11. Also, you don’t have to be famous to have a very profitable career that also helps and provides compassionate care for many many clients. I know an astrologer who’s been a professional for 4 decades. She has a website with contact information with a few articles, but that’s not what built up her clientele. For her, it was all word-of-mouth.

Best wishes for your future in astrology.

[rottingcheese]

I charge $50 per reading and how much I make depends on how much I work and how much I advertise my services.

[[deleted]]

[removed]

[[deleted]]

[removed]