2024 Tarot Trends and What They Reveal About the Year Ahead
Interest in tarot continues to grow steadily, with 2024 revealing notable shifts in how people approach and use tarot as a reflective and planning tool. Rather than being viewed solely as a means of divination, tarot is increasingly understood as a resource for personal insight, decision-making, and wellness. Shifting behaviors reflect increased use of digital tools, changing generational habits, and a growing cultural focus on self-awareness and reflection.
Tarot decks and practices have diversified significantly in the past few years. Practitioners and enthusiasts are adopting fresh perspectives while revisiting traditional symbols for context and balance. In 2024, these contrasting directions are both visible in the market and reflected in how readers conduct their sessions. From niche deck creations to AI-driven readings, the changes reflect broader cultural developments that stretch beyond tarot itself.
In analyzing current tarot trends, it's essential to consider consumer behavior, social platforms that drive engagement (such as TikTok), and the incorporation of tarot into wellness routines. Each of these factors shapes the way people connect with tarot readings today, whether through apps or in-person consultations. The following sections explore the most notable developments in tarot practice this year.
1. Rising Demand for Personalized Tarot Decks
One of the clearest trends in 2024 is the move toward personalization in tarot decks. Many consumers now seek decks that reflect their identity or cultural background more directly. This includes greater representation across race, gender identity, sexuality, and spiritual traditions. Independent creators are leading this movement by publishing custom-designed decks through crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter and Etsy.
The mainstreaming of self-published decks has also influenced major publishers to diversify their offerings. While Rider-Waite-Smith decks still serve as a standard, more readers are turning to culturally rooted or visually distinct designs for a broader interpretive experience. Some decks focus on mythology from non-Western traditions, while others reinterpret classical archetypes through contemporary visual language.
This trend reflects broader consumer expectations around inclusivity and customization. Modern tarot readers typically select from several decks, tailoring their choice to the reading’s focus (like lineage, emotional insight, or specific goals) instead of using a single, general-purpose deck.
- Decks rooted in Afro-diasporic spiritual practices
- LGBTQIA+-inclusive tarot sets
- Minimalist or abstract art interpretations
- Bilingual or multilingual card labels
2. Integration with Mental Wellness Practices
Tarot is increasingly used alongside therapeutic or mindfulness tools such as journaling, meditation, and coaching. While not a substitute for clinical mental health support, many individuals find value in using tarot cards for self-reflection or daily intention setting.
Therapists and life coaches are incorporating tarot into their sessions when clients request symbolic tools to help process thoughts or emotions. The focus is on using tarot as a tool for reflection or dialogue rather than predicting specific outcomes.
This approach aligns with cognitive-behavioral principles that encourage pattern recognition and reframing one’s perspective. It also supports mindfulness practices aimed at grounding individuals in the present moment while exploring possible paths forward.
| Tarot Application | Wellness Benefit |
|---|---|
| Daily card pulls with journaling prompts | Improves self-awareness and emotional tracking |
| Card spreads focused on decision-making | Clarifies values and priorities |
| Guided meditations tied to Major Arcana themes | Encourages introspection and calmness |
| Therapeutic conversations using card archetypes | Aids expression of complex feelings |
3. Increased Use of Digital Tarot Tools
The expansion of digital platforms continues to affect how people engage with tarot. Mobile apps offering automated readings or card explanations are widely used, especially among younger audiences who view them as tools for quick insight rather than deep divination.
Certain apps offer tools such as reading history logs, mood tracking tied to past card draws, and built-in journaling prompts. Others allow users to design custom spreads or shuffle digital versions of physical decks they already own.
YouTube channels and TikTok creators also play a role in how trends spread quickly through visual demonstrations of card meanings and collective readings targeted at general audiences. While this method lacks personal specificity, it creates high engagement levels around certain energies or themes that resonate broadly.
A few platforms now utilize AI-based text generation to interpret combinations of cards dynamically rather than relying on static keyword lists. These systems aim to mimic how a human reader might connect multiple symbols across positions in a spread.
- Popular apps: Labyrinthos Tarot, Golden Thread Tarot, Galaxy Tarot
- Online courses: Skillshare offerings focused on beginner spreads or archetype analysis
- AI-enhanced reading generators appearing on paid subscription services
- YouTube channels offering pick-a-card readings with timestamps for ease of use
4. Shifting Generational Preferences in Reading Styles
Tarot reading preferences now vary significantly across different age groups. Gen Z users often look for fast insights delivered digitally but still appreciate authenticity from experienced readers. Their interest leans toward intuitive interpretation over rigid definitions found in guidebooks.
Millennials tend to blend tradition with modern frameworks like psychology or astrology when interpreting cards. They often pursue more involved readings tied to career planning or relationship dynamics using structured spreads across multiple sessions.
Older generations may still prefer face-to-face readings, either out of habit or trust built through longstanding relationships with local practitioners. Interest is growing in hybrid approaches that begin with virtual consultations and follow up through email reports or video summaries.
This segmentation has created varied demand across service styles, from one-card Instagram reels to hour-long Zoom consultations using mixed modality tools including oracle cards, numerology, and astrology overlays.
5. Focus on Collective Energy Spreads and Social Trends
A growing number of readers now produce collective energy readings intended for broad audiences rather than individuals alone. These often align with astrological transits or global events such as eclipses, elections, or economic shifts.
This approach allows practitioners to tap into broader emotional currents that impact many people simultaneously. These spreads aren't direct advice but are designed to help viewers interpret their surroundings using the symbolic language of the cards.
This method has become especially common on platforms like YouTube and Instagram Stories where creators deliver timely content that reacts to collective experiences, such as Mercury retrograde periods or notable lunar phases.
- New Moon intention spreads shared publicly each month
- Eclipse season guidance using 10-card layouts posted via video format
- Sociopolitical analysis framed through symbolic tarot figures such as The Tower and Justice
- Crowdsourced deck pulls where followers vote on which topic will be covered next week
6. Reconnecting With Classical Tarot Foundations
While innovation continues across many fronts, there’s renewed respect for foundational knowledge among serious practitioners in 2024. Books originally published decades ago, such as those by Rachel Pollack and Mary K. Greer, remain highly recommended for deep study alongside newer resources from respected authors like Benebell Wen (benebellwen.com).
Frustration with oversimplified online content is prompting a renewed interest in more thoughtful analysis. Seasoned practitioners stress the need to grasp suit symbolism, numerological patterns in the Minor Arcana, and the historical development from the Tarot de Marseille to Golden Dawn traditions before forming individual interpretive frameworks.
Workshops (held online and in metaphysical bookstores) now emphasize intermediate training in comparative symbolism, moving beyond the basic “card-of-the-day” lessons common in beginner materials.
The aim is to promote thoughtful, in-depth engagement with tarot’s symbolic system, not to exclude those new to it.
The combination of deeper educational content with accessible digital tools means new learners can advance quickly without sacrificing quality learning pathways when given proper guidance.
Toward a Multi-Purpose Future for Tarot Use Cases
The direction tarot is taking in 2024 reflects its adaptability more than any singular definition of what it should be used for. Some rely on it each morning as a steady routine, while others seek it only during moments of uncertainty that call for reflection over outside input.
People from diverse backgrounds are drawn to the adaptability of symbolic storytelling (using it for reflection, integration, and meaningful conversation) whether on their own or with the support of skilled, ethical practitioners.
If these trends persist (balancing new ideas with established practices) tarot will likely continue to play a meaningful role in personal growth for years to come.