Can Tarot Predict the Future? Here’s the Truth

Does tarot predict the future?

I get asked this constantly. “Can tarot cards predict the future?” “Does tarot tell the future?” These are usually the first questions people have about tarot, especially if their only exposure has been films where mysterious fortune tellers dramatically reveal someone’s fate.

The appeal makes sense. Life is uncertain. Big decisions are terrifying. The idea that someone could just tell you how things are going to turn out is incredibly comforting. You’d have certainty instead of anxiety. Direction instead of confusion. A clear path forward instead of a dozen possibilities that all feel overwhelming.

But here’s the thing: if the future is already fixed, why the fuck would you bother doing anything? And if you can’t change what’s coming, why would you even need a tarot reader?

That’s not me being difficult. That’s the fundamental problem with treating tarot as a prediction tool. The question “can tarot predict the future?” assumes something about how life works that doesn’t actually make sense when you think about it properly.

And if I could predict your future with certainty? That would actually be the least helpful thing I could do for you.

Let me show you what I mean.

The Exam Scenario

Imagine you’ve got an exam coming up. You’re nervous about it, so you book a tarot reading and ask: “Am I going to pass this exam?”

Let’s look at what happens depending on my answer.

If I Tell You You’ll Pass

I pull the cards, and they look good. I tell you with confidence: “Yes, you’re definitely going to pass this exam.”

You’re relieved. That’s brilliant news. And because you now “know” you’re going to pass, you think: well, I don’t need to stress as much. I was planning to revise all weekend and get an early night before the exam, but apparently I’m passing anyway, so why bother?

You go out instead. You have a few drinks. You wake up hungover on exam day, stumble in late, and your brain is complete mush. The exam is a disaster. It’s declared ungradable. You fail.

So… was my prediction wrong? Or did my prediction cause you to make choices that created the outcome?

If I Tell You You’ll Fail

Now let’s say I pull the cards and they look rough. I tell you: “No, I’m sorry, but you’re not going to pass this exam.”

You’re devastated. But you’re also stubborn. You think: fuck that, I’m going to prove this wrong. You work your arse off. You revise constantly, get your early nights, turn up prepared. You smash the exam. You pass.

So… was my prediction wrong? Or did telling you that you’d fail motivate you to work harder and change the outcome?

Either Way, You’re Fucked

See the problem? In both scenarios, my prediction influenced your behaviour in ways that affected the outcome. That’s not helpful – that’s manipulative, even if I didn’t intend it to be.

And that’s assuming I’m somehow magically correct about what I’m seeing in the cards. Which brings us to the bigger issue.

If the Future’s Fixed, Why Bother With Anything?

The whole idea of tarot predicting the future assumes that the future is completely fixed. Predetermined. Set in stone. And if that’s true, then what the fuck is the point of anything?

The Agency Problem

If everything’s already decided, then your choices don’t matter. Your efforts don’t matter. You might as well just sit back and wait for whatever’s coming to arrive.

And honestly? That’s depressing as fuck. It also makes no sense. If the future is completely fixed and nothing you do can change it, then why would you bother going to a tarot reader in the first place? You can’t change what’s coming anyway, so what’s the point?

The whole premise eats itself.

Life is Too Complex for Fixed Outcomes

Think about what would need to be true for the future to be completely predictable. Every single variable would need to be accounted for. Every choice you make, every choice everyone around you makes, every random event, every circumstance – all of it locked in place.

That’s just not how life works. You make decisions based on incomplete information. Other people make decisions that affect you. Random shit happens. The future isn’t a script – it’s a constantly shifting web of possibilities influenced by countless factors.

When someone asks me “am I going to lose my house?” – that’s not a simple yes or no question. That depends on your finances, your ability to find alternative income, whether your landlord decides to sell, whether there are housing programmes available, whether interest rates change, whether you get ill and can’t work. It depends on dozens of things, many of which are outside your control.

Tarot can’t account for all of that. Nothing can.

What About All the Variables You Can’t Control?

Let’s go back to that exam example. Say I tell you you’re going to pass, and you do revise, and you do turn up prepared. But on the way to the exam, a driver runs a red light and hits you. You end up in hospital. You don’t take the exam at all.

Was my prediction wrong? Or did something completely outside anyone’s control change the entire situation?

Life is full of variables like this. Chance encounters. Unexpected opportunities. Random accidents. Other people’s choices. You can’t predict all of that. And even if you could, what would you do with that information?

This is why I say the question “can tarot predict the future?” is the wrong question. Because even if it could, it wouldn’t help you.

What Tarot Actually Does (And Why It’s Better)

So if tarot doesn’t predict the future, what the fuck does it do? Why would anyone bother with tarot cards at all?

Because tarot does something more useful than prediction. It helps you reflect on your life so you can make better choices about what comes next.

Reflection, Not Prediction

Tarot is a tool for reflection. The cards represent different aspects of human experience – challenges, opportunities, patterns, emotions, dynamics. When I pull cards for someone, I’m not seeing their fixed future. I’m seeing themes and patterns that are showing up in their life right now.

And then we talk about them. We explore what they mean. We figure out what they’re pointing to.

That’s it. That’s what tarot does. It creates space to step back from your situation and look at it from a different angle. Not to tell you the future or what’s going to happen, but to help you understand what’s happening now and what your options actually are.

What Actually Happens in My Readings

Here’s how a reading with me actually works. I’ll pull cards for whatever question or situation you’ve brought. I look at the cards and start talking about what they mean – the themes they represent, the patterns they might be highlighting, the dynamics they’re pointing to.

And then – and this is crucial – I ask: does this resonate with you? Yes or no?

If you say yes, brilliant. Let’s dig deeper. If you say no, then I ask: okay, so what do you mean? Help me understand. Because the cards are prompts for dialogue, not scripts I’m reading off.

For example, I might pull the Empress and start talking about nurturing, self-care, creativity. And you might say “I’m not nurturing at all, that doesn’t fit.” So we explore that. Why aren’t you nurturing? Is that something you struggle with? Is it something these other cards are suggesting you need more of? What’s your self-care practice like at the moment?

The card becomes a starting point for reflection. We’re not talking about whether you’re going to meet a nurturing person in three months. We’re talking about what nurturing means in your life right now and whether you need more of it.

The Cards Are Prompts, Not Scripts

I did a reading yesterday for someone who described themselves as a complete sceptic. They didn’t believe in any of this. But the cards spoke directly to their situation in ways they couldn’t deny. Not because I predicted their future, but because the themes the cards raised resonated with what they were actually dealing with.

I always say at the start of every reading: if something doesn’t make sense, please tell me. And if it does make sense, tell me that too. Because the reading is a conversation. It’s collaborative. You’re not a passive recipient of prophecy – you’re an active participant in reflection.

That’s what makes tarot useful. Not prediction, but perspective. Not certainty, but clarity.

Why It Looks Like Prediction (But Isn’t)

I know tarot has centuries of history as a divination tool. I’m not pretending otherwise. Cartomancy has been used for fortune-telling for a very long time, and I respect that history.

And I get why some readers think tarot predicts the future. When you do a reading and weeks later the person comes back saying “holy shit, that’s exactly what happened” – it feels like prediction. I’ve had that experience countless times.

But here’s what’s actually happening.

You’re reading the trajectory they’re on. The patterns in their life. The direction they’re currently heading. You’re seeing where this path leads if nothing changes. And if nothing changes, that trajectory plays out exactly as you saw it in the cards.

So it looks like prediction. The person thinks you predicted their future. You might even think you predicted their future.

But you didn’t tell them a fixed future that was always going to happen regardless of their choices. You showed them the path they were on at that moment. And because they stayed on that path, the outcome you saw is the outcome they got.

That’s a crucial difference. Because paths can change. New information comes in. Circumstances shift. They make different choices. Someone else makes a different choice that affects them. Random shit happens.

The “prediction” that came true? It came true because the conditions you read remained consistent. If those conditions had changed, the outcome would have changed too.

This is why tarot works best as a reflection tool rather than a prediction tool. It’s showing you where you are and where you’re heading right now. What you do with that information is up to you.

What About Readers Who Do Make Predictions?

Look, I know some tarot readers do make predictions. They’ll tell you your ex is coming back in three months, or you’re going to get a new job by June, or you’ll meet someone tall with dark hair.

And I’m not here to say they’re all bad people or charlatans.

Most Aren’t Being Malicious

I genuinely think most readers who make predictions aren’t doing it from a bad place. They might believe they’re helping. They might genuinely think they can see the future. They might have had experiences where their predictions seemed to come true.

And fair enough. I’m not going to police how other readers work.

Why It’s Still Unhelpful

But here’s why I don’t do it, and why I’d encourage you to be cautious of readers who do.

When a reader tells you “this is definitely going to happen,” they’re taking away your agency. You start making choices based on what they’ve told you rather than on what actually makes sense for your situation. You become dependent on them for answers instead of learning to trust your own judgement.

I’ve had clients come to me after another reader told them their ex would come back. They spent months waiting. The ex didn’t come back. They felt like they’d wasted that time, and their trust in their own instincts was shot.

That’s not helpful. Even if the reader was sincere, even if they genuinely believed what they were saying, it didn’t serve the client. It created false hope and dependency.

And that’s my issue with prediction-focused readings. Even when they’re well-intentioned, they position the reader as the authority on your life. You keep coming back asking “what’s going to happen next?” instead of learning to reflect on your own situation and make your own decisions.

That’s not empowerment. And empowerment is what I think tarot should offer.

So, Does Tarot Predict the Future? The Bottom Line

Does tarot predict the future? Some readers will tell you yes. I’m telling you it’s the wrong question to ask.

Because if the future is fixed, your choices don’t matter and there’s no point seeing a reader anyway. And if the future isn’t fixed – which it’s not – then prediction isn’t possible in the way people want it to be.

What tarot actually offers is better than prediction. It offers reflection. Perspective. A way to step back from your situation and see it more clearly so you can make informed choices about what comes next.

After thousands of readings, here’s what I know: the people who get the most out of tarot aren’t the ones looking for certainty about the future. They’re the ones willing to look honestly at their present – at their patterns, their choices, their circumstances – and use that clarity to create the future they actually want.

That’s not magic. That’s not supernatural. That’s just honest reflection and informed decision-making.

And that’s more powerful than any prediction.

Ready for a Reading That Focuses on Reflection, Not Prediction?

If you’re ready for an honest tarot reading that helps you understand your situation so you can make better choices, book a session with me.

My readings are conversational, grounded, and focused on empowering you to take control of your life – not on creating dependency or false certainty.

Book a reading online, or in-person in Manchester, or explore Simply Tarot Circle for weekly tarot practice in community.

Let’s figure out what the fuck is actually going on – together.