Old rule books put Jupiter at a low point in Virgo. Ptolemy gave Jupiter two homes, Sagittarius and Pisces. Virgo faces Pisces across the zodiac, so later authors called Virgo a sign of detriment for Jupiter. Detriment means a planet sits opposite its own home, far from the tools it knows best. So you might guess that Jupiter rushes through Virgo. It does the reverse.
I measured it over 67 full laps of Jupiter, 1607 to 2402. On each lap of the zodiac, Jupiter spends 393 days in Virgo. That puts Virgo second of the twelve signs, behind Libra at 396 days. Gemini, Jupiter’s other sign of detriment, gets only 344 days. Pisces, one of its homes, gets 334. Rank and time on the clock have nothing to do with each other. This page shows the numbers, the cause, and every date from 1944 to 2063, so you can check your own birth date.
Do you have Jupiter in Virgo? Every stay from 1944 to 2063
Jupiter takes close to twelve years to go round the zodiac. It comes back to Virgo about every twelve years and stays a bit over a year. Most visits are one clean run. Some are split in three. That happens when a retrograde phase falls near the edge of the sign. Retrograde means Jupiter seems to slide backwards against the stars for about four months. Nothing turns round in space. Earth, on the inside lane, simply passes Jupiter, the way a slow car seems to slip back as you pass it.
Here is every stretch of time with Jupiter in Virgo from 1944 to 2063. Each time is given twice. First comes UTC, the world clock used by astronomers. Then comes the clock time in New York, with daylight saving time where it applied. The two can fall on different days. Times are rounded to the minute.
| Jupiter enters Virgo | Jupiter leaves Virgo | Where it goes next. |
| July 26, 1944, 01:03 UTC (July 25, 21:03 in New York) | August 25, 1945, 06:05 UTC (02:05 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| November 17, 1955, 03:58 UTC (November 16, 22:58 in New York) | January 18, 1956, 02:04 UTC (January 17, 21:04 in New York) | Back into Leo. |
| July 7, 1956, 19:01 UTC (15:01 in New York) | December 13, 1956, 02:16 UTC (December 12, 21:16 in New York) | Ahead into Libra, for now. |
| February 19, 1957, 15:37 UTC (10:37 in New York) | August 7, 1957, 02:10 UTC (August 6, 22:10 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| October 19, 1967, 10:51 UTC (06:51 in New York) | February 27, 1968, 03:33 UTC (February 26, 22:33 in New York) | Back into Leo. |
| June 15, 1968, 14:43 UTC (10:43 in New York) | November 15, 1968, 22:43 UTC (17:43 in New York) | Ahead into Libra, for now. |
| March 30, 1969, 21:36 UTC (16:36 in New York) | July 15, 1969, 13:29 UTC (09:29 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| September 29, 1979, 10:23 UTC (06:23 in New York) | October 27, 1980, 10:10 UTC (05:10 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| September 12, 1991, 06:00 UTC (02:00 in New York) | October 10, 1992, 13:26 UTC (09:26 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| August 27, 2003, 09:26 UTC (05:26 in New York) | September 25, 2004, 03:23 UTC (September 24, 23:23 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| August 11, 2015, 11:11 UTC (07:11 in New York) | September 9, 2016, 11:18 UTC (07:18 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| July 26, 2027, 04:49 UTC (00:49 in New York) | August 24, 2028, 05:08 UTC (01:08 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| November 16, 2038, 21:20 UTC (16:20 in New York) | January 16, 2039, 14:54 UTC (09:54 in New York) | Back into Leo. |
| July 8, 2039, 00:24 UTC (July 7, 20:24 in New York) | December 12, 2039, 22:05 UTC (17:05 in New York) | Ahead into Libra, for now. |
| February 20, 2040, 05:35 UTC (00:35 in New York) | August 5, 2040, 22:03 UTC (18:03 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| October 18, 2050, 12:46 UTC (08:46 in New York) | February 26, 2051, 11:01 UTC (06:01 in New York) | Back into Leo. |
| June 15, 2051, 11:26 UTC (07:26 in New York) | November 15, 2051, 14:43 UTC (09:43 in New York) | Ahead into Libra, for now. |
| March 30, 2052, 20:29 UTC (16:29 in New York) | July 14, 2052, 00:22 UTC (July 13, 20:22 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
| September 28, 2062, 16:16 UTC (12:16 in New York) | October 27, 2063, 15:33 UTC (11:33 in New York) | Into Libra for good. |
Born inside one of those ranges? Then Jupiter was in Virgo when you were born. Born within a day of an edge? Check your birth time against the UTC column, or ask for a chart. Your Sun sign comes from your birthday, but your Jupiter sign comes from your birth year and month.
The last visit and the next one, step by step
The last clean run began on August 11, 2015, at 11:11 UTC, which was 07:11 in New York. Jupiter then turned retrograde on January 8, 2016, at about 04:40 UTC. In New York, that was still the evening of January 7, at about 23:40. It stood at 23 degrees 14 minutes of Virgo. It turned direct, which means forward again, on May 9, 2016, at about 12:15 UTC, at 13 degrees 16 minutes. It left for Libra on September 9, 2016, at 11:18 UTC.
The next visit starts on July 26, 2027. Jupiter arrives from Leo at 04:49 UTC by JPL, and 04:45 by our second route. In New York, that is just before 01:00 on the same day. Our guide to Jupiter in Leo covers the year before it.
| Step in the 2027 to 2028 visit | Time in UTC | Time in New York | Place in the sign. |
| Jupiter enters Virgo | July 26, 2027, 04:49 | July 26, 2027, 00:49 | At 0 degrees of Virgo. |
| Jupiter turns retrograde | January 12, 2028, about 08:50 | January 12, 2028, about 03:50 | At 27 degrees 31 minutes of Virgo. |
| Jupiter turns direct | May 13, 2028, about 20:00 | May 13, 2028, about 16:00 | At 17 degrees 32 minutes of Virgo. |
| Jupiter enters Libra | August 24, 2028, 05:08 | August 24, 2028, 01:08 | At 0 degrees of Libra. |
A station is the moment Jupiter seems to stand still before it turns. It moves so slowly then that the exact minute is soft. That is why the table says “about” for the two turns. The entry and exit times are sharp, because Jupiter crosses the sign line at full speed.
After Virgo comes Libra, the one sign that holds Jupiter even longer. Our page on Jupiter in Libra picks up from there.
A weak sign that holds Jupiter a long time
In the old system, a planet has four kinds of rank by sign. It is strong in its home, called its domicile, and in its exaltation, a sign where it is honored like a guest. It is weak in its detriment, the sign opposite its home, and in its fall, the sign opposite its exaltation. For Jupiter, the homes are Sagittarius and Pisces. The exaltation is Cancer, and the fall is Capricorn. The detriments are Gemini and Virgo.
Ptolemy set out the homes in the Tetrabiblos, in the second century. The word “detriment” as a formal rank came later. William Lilly lists it in his table of dignities in Christian Astrology, printed in 1647. There, Jupiter’s detriment is Gemini and Virgo. Our page on detriment in astrology explains the rule for all seven old planets.
Now compare those ranks with the time Jupiter spends in each sign. The table below gives the days per lap, measured over 67 full laps of Jupiter, 1607 to 2402.
| Sign | Days per lap of the zodiac | Jupiter’s rank there. |
| Libra | 396 days | No rank. |
| Virgo | 393 days | Detriment. |
| Scorpio | 391 days | No rank. |
| Sagittarius | 380 days | Home. |
| Leo | 372 days | No rank. |
| Cancer | 367 days | Exaltation. |
| Capricorn | 354 days | Fall. |
| Gemini | 344 days | Detriment. |
| Aquarius | 341 days | No rank. |
| Pisces | 334 days | Home. |
| Taurus | 333 days | No rank. |
| Aries | 328 days | No rank. |
The two signs of detriment sit near the top and near the bottom. The two homes do the same. So the old ranks tell you nothing about how common a placement is. They describe the quality of a sign for a planet. They do not count days. For the full cycle of the planet, see our main guide to Jupiter in astrology.
In share of time, Virgo holds Jupiter 9.06 percent of the time over 67 full laps of Jupiter, 1607 to 2402. A flat split would give each sign 8.33 percent. So about one person in eleven is born with Jupiter in Virgo.
Why Virgo holds Jupiter so long
The cause is the shape of Jupiter’s path, not the sign. Jupiter’s orbit is a slight oval. Its far point from the Sun is called the aphelion. Near that point, Jupiter moves more slowly, as Kepler showed in 1609. Its near point, the perihelion, sits on the other side.
Seen from the Sun, Jupiter’s far point now lies near 15 degrees of Libra. I found it at 194.5 degrees of the zodiac at the aphelion of February 17, 2017. Libra holds that far point, so Libra wins. Virgo covers the stretch just before it, from 45 to 15 degrees ahead of the far point. Scorpio covers the same stretch just after it. So Virgo and Scorpio are near twins.
How close are they? Over 67 full laps of Jupiter, 1607 to 2402, Virgo gets 392.8 days per lap and Scorpio 391.1. Over the first 50 of those laps, 1607 to 2200, the gap is 393.1 days to 390.6. Over the last 50, 1809 to 2402, it shrinks to 392.7 days and 392.3. The far point creeps forward through the zodiac, by about 1.6 degrees each century. In 1601 it sat at 186.9 degrees, and in 2396 it will sit at 199.7 degrees. As it moves toward Scorpio, Scorpio gains and Virgo loses. So Virgo’s second place is real on the long window, but thin, and slowly slipping.
Mars shows a similar pattern. Its own far point lies in Virgo, and Mars in Virgo crosses the sign more slowly than any other placement of Mars.
Every visit to Virgo has a retrograde loop
From 1600 to 2400, Jupiter made 68 full visits to Virgo. In every one of them, it turned retrograde at least once while inside the sign. That fits the clock. Jupiter turns retrograde about every 399 days, and each visit lasts about as long.
- 46 visits were one clean run, with one retrograde loop fully inside Virgo.
- 22 visits were split in three parts, with two retrograde turns.
- The time inside Virgo per visit ran from 384.1 to 395.5 days, with a median of 394.3 days. The median is the middle value when you sort them.
- A clean run lasted between 393.5 and 395.5 days.
- A split visit stretched up to 637 days from first entry to final exit, about 21 months.
Mind the gap between two kinds of “shortest stay”. The shortest full crossing of the sign took 393.5 days. The shortest single stay of any kind lasted just 11.2 days, in 1732. That was a brief dip back into Virgo during a retrograde turn. It is a return visit, not a crossing.
Born during a split visit? For part of that time, Jupiter was back in Leo or ahead in Libra. That is why the dates table matters more than the year alone.
What the old authors say about Jupiter in Virgo
Virgo is ruled by Mercury, the planet of words, trade and craft. Virgo is also Mercury’s exaltation. So when Jupiter enters Virgo, it becomes a guest in a house run by Mercury. In the old books, a guest does well or badly by the state of its host. Demetra George uses this same picture of host and guest in her work on ancient astrology.
Vettius Valens, a Greek astrologer of the second century, wrote his Anthologies as a working manual. He ties Jupiter to children, friends, gifts, honors and trust. He ties Virgo to Mercury and counts it as a double sign, one that closes a season. Read together, the old picture is plain. Jupiter’s gifts arrive, but they come through Mercury’s channels: skill, study, records, trade, and useful work.
Lilly, in Christian Astrology, scores a planet in detriment as weak. It works against the grain of its setting. For Jupiter in Virgo, that means faith that wants proof, and generosity that wants a plan. Jupiter does hold one small patch of Virgo, its bound, from 17 to 21 degrees in the Egyptian table that Ptolemy reports. A bound is a slice of a sign lent to a planet. In 2028, Jupiter turns direct at 17 degrees 32 minutes, right inside that patch.
Chris Brennan, in Hellenistic Astrology, explains how these ancient rules worked as a system. He shows that a planet in detriment still acts. It works with less support, or by odd means. Modern writers push the same point in a new way. Liz Greene reads a sign as a planet’s style, not a verdict on it. Robert Hand, in Horoscope Symbols, pairs Jupiter with Saturn: one widens, the other sets limits. Stephen Arroyo reads Jupiter as the urge to grow and to trust in a larger order. Virgo gives that urge a checklist.
How Jupiter in Virgo reads in a real chart
The sign is one layer. These steps give you the rest, in the order an old astrologer would use them.
- Find Mercury. As Virgo’s ruler, Mercury decides how well Jupiter is hosted. Mercury in its own signs, or well placed, helps a lot.
- Find the house. With whole sign houses, the house is the full sign. If Virgo is your sixth sign from the rising sign, Jupiter sits in the house of work and health.
- Look for a retrograde birth. Born between January 8 and May 9, 2016, or between January 12 and May 13, 2028, in UTC? Then Jupiter was retrograde at your birth.
- Check the degree. A Jupiter from 17 to 21 degrees of Virgo stands in its own bound, a small plus in the old scheme.
In daily life, Jupiter in Virgo grows by fixing things. People with it find luck in skill, in good habits and in useful help. The shadow side is doubt. Faith that waits for proof can wait too long. The cure is simple: set a limit on how much checking is enough, then act.
At work, this placement thrives where care pays. Health, editing, teaching, research, craft and data all fit. In love, it shows care through small acts done well. A partner gets a fixed shelf, not a grand speech.
For the traits of the sign itself, see our page on the Virgo sign.
Jupiter’s transit through Virgo in 2027 and 2028
From July 26, 2027, to August 24, 2028, Jupiter will cross Virgo for everyone. The whole sign house that holds Virgo in your chart gets the lift. For a Virgo rising, that is the first house, the self. For a Leo rising, it is the second, money and means. For an Aries rising, it is the sixth, work and health.
The retrograde phase, from January 12 to May 13, 2028, runs back over the degrees from 27 to 17 of Virgo. Anyone with a planet in that range gets three passes of Jupiter instead of one. That is a long, slow review, not a single event.
How I measured this
I used two separate routes. The first is the astronomy-engine library. It gives Jupiter’s place as seen from Earth, on the tropical zodiac, with the ecliptic of the date. I scanned each day from 1600 to 2410 and found every sign change by halving the gap down to one second. I then added up the time spent in each sign over 67 full laps of Jupiter, 1607 to 2402. Each lap runs from one entry into Aries to the next, so no sign gets an extra part of a lap. For the turns, I found where Jupiter’s daily motion changes sign.
The second route is JPL Horizons, the NASA service built on the DE441 model. It serves Jupiter itself from 1601 to early 2200 only. So I used the center of Jupiter’s system, the planet and its moons together. I took one reading every three days over the same 67 laps and counted the readings in each sign. The two routes agree to within 0.01 percentage points for every sign. For Virgo, they give 9.064 and 9.065 percent. For the dates in the tables, I took JPL readings every minute around each sign change. Those match the first route within 30 minutes, and within 11 minutes for the 2015 and 2027 visits. The tables give the JPL time.
To find the far point, I searched Jupiter’s distance from the Sun for each peak, from 1601 to 2396, and read its place in the zodiac at each one.
Frequently asked questions
When is Jupiter in Virgo next?
From July 26, 2027, at 04:49 UTC, to August 24, 2028, at 05:08 UTC. In New York, those times are 00:49 and 01:08 on the same dates.
When was Jupiter last in Virgo?
From August 11, 2015, to September 9, 2016. It turned retrograde on January 8, 2016 in UTC, which was January 7 in New York.
How long does Jupiter stay in Virgo?
About 394 days per visit. From 1600 to 2400, the time inside the sign ran from 384 to 396 days. Split visits stretch up to 21 months from first entry to final exit.
Is Jupiter weak in Virgo?
By the old rules, yes. Virgo is the sign of its detriment, opposite its home in Pisces. The rank describes quality, not frequency. Jupiter spends more time in Virgo than in almost any other sign.
Is Jupiter in Virgo rare?
No. Jupiter spends 9.06 percent of its time in Virgo over 67 full laps of Jupiter, 1607 to 2402. Only Libra gets more, and Scorpio is almost level.
Why does Jupiter stay so long in Virgo?
Its orbit is a slight oval, and it moves slowest near its far point from the Sun. That point now lies near 15 degrees of Libra. Virgo sits on the slow stretch just before it.
Go deeper with your own chart
Dates are a start. Your chart is the rest. An Astrovision report reads your Jupiter with its sign, its house, its ruler and its aspects. It comes as a written guide and as a personal podcast you can play on a walk.