TIMING · ZODIAC STATS
The Rarest Zodiac Sign (and the Most Common), From 62 Million US Births
Capricorn is the rarest zodiac sign: 7.63% of US births in this set. Leo is the most common zodiac sign at 8.96%, with Virgo close behind at 8.94%.
By Timing · 62,187,024 US births · 2000 to 2014
Most common to least common zodiac sign
Leo takes the top spot. Capricorn comes last. Every sign has millions of births.
Share of 62,187,024 births. Gold marks the most. Purple marks the fewest.
Births per day: Virgo takes the lead
Two things shape this chart. Each sign spans a different number of days: 29.5 to 31.5 per year. US births also peak in late summer in this set.
Count births per day, and Virgo comes first. Capricorn is last. Leo wins the total count, with a few more days than Virgo.
The daily rate is the average across all 15 years. It accounts for the days each sign covers.
| Sign | Days per year | Births per day |
|---|---|---|
| Virgo | 30.9 | 11,988 |
| Leo | 31.3 | 11,870 |
| Cancer | 31.5 | 11,657 |
| Libra | 30.4 | 11,619 |
| Scorpio | 29.9 | 11,363 |
| Gemini | 31.3 | 11,329 |
| Sagittarius | 29.6 | 11,155 |
| Pisces | 30.0 | 11,122 |
| Aquarius | 29.6 | 11,113 |
| Taurus | 31.0 | 11,101 |
| Aries | 30.5 | 11,079 |
| Capricorn | 29.5 | 10,739 |
How we counted
We used 62,187,024 US births from 2000 to 2014. The source is Social Security Administration data, saved via FiveThirtyEight.
On each day, we split births by the hours the Sun spent in each sign. We use US Central time. A day when the Sun changes signs adds births to both signs.
We do not know each baby’s birth time. The split is an estimate. Counts and rates are rounded. This is a count of births in these years, not all people alive today.
Saved source: US births 2000–2014, Social Security Administration (via FiveThirtyEight data repo) Method: Each day split across signs by the hour the Sun changes sign (US Central time).
Questions you may have
What is the rarest zodiac sign?
Capricorn is the least common zodiac sign in this US birth set. It has 7.63% of births. The set spans 2000 to 2014.
What is the most common zodiac sign?
Leo is the most common zodiac sign in the US data here, at 8.96%. Virgo is next at 8.94%. This set does not cover the whole world.
Is Capricorn rare?
Capricorn has the smallest share here. But 7.63% is still about 1 in 13 births. That is a lot of people.
Why are there more Virgos?
More babies in this set were born in late summer. Virgo has the most births per day. Leo has more births in all, as it spans more days. These counts do not tell us why birth rates change through the year.
Why does Leo rank above Virgo?
Leo spans 31.3 days per year here. Virgo spans 30.9. Virgo has more births per day, but Leo has more days and a small lead in total births.
How do you count a birth on the cusp?
On a day when the Sun changes signs, we split that day’s births by the hours in each sign. We use US Central time. We do not have each baby’s birth time.
Does this show the rarest sign in the world?
No. This set covers US births from 2000 to 2014. Other places and years may have a different rank.