Mercury retrograde 2026 and 2027: every date, computed
Every Mercury retrograde from 2026 through 2027 with exact station times, signs and shadow periods, including the autumn stretch that overlaps with Venus. Computed from real positions, not copied from a calendar.
Illustration. The dates and positions in this article are computed; the picture is not a photograph of the event.
Mercury turns retrograde three times in most years, each time for about three weeks. Below is every one from 2026 through 2027, with the exact moment it stations, the degree and sign, and the shadow either side. Times are UTC. The next one to watch begins on Saturday 24 October 2026 in Scorpio.
| Stations retrograde | Stations direct | Signs | Shadow |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Feb 2026, 06:47 UTC | 20 Mar 2026, 19:34 UTC | 22 to 8 Pisces | 11 Feb 2026 to 9 Apr 2026 |
| 29 Jun 2026, 17:37 UTC | 23 Jul 2026, 22:56 UTC | 26 to 16 Cancer | 13 Jun 2026 to 7 Aug 2026 |
| 24 Oct 2026, 07:14 UTC | 13 Nov 2026, 15:53 UTC | 20 to 5 Scorpio | 4 Oct 2026 to 30 Nov 2026 |
| 9 Feb 2027, 17:36 UTC | 3 Mar 2027, 12:35 UTC | 5 Pisces to 20 Aquarius | 25 Jan 2027 to 23 Mar 2027 |
| 10 Jun 2027, 18:19 UTC | 4 Jul 2027, 19:40 UTC | 6 Cancer to 27 Gemini | 26 May 2027 to 19 Jul 2027 |
| 7 Oct 2027, 14:39 UTC | 28 Oct 2027, 14:11 UTC | 4 Scorpio to 19 Libra | 17 Sep 2027 to 13 Nov 2027 |
Why Mercury seems to go backwards
Mercury is the fastest planet, circling the Sun in 88 days. About three times a year it swings round the near side of the Sun, between us and it, and during those weeks its motion against the background stars appears to reverse. Each retrograde above is built around that pass, the inferior conjunction, which in the next one falls on Wednesday 4 November 2026. Nothing in the solar system changes direction; the reversal is a perspective effect from a moving Earth.
Astrologers also watch the shadow: from the moment Mercury first reaches the degree where it will turn direct, to the moment it returns to the degree where it turned retrograde. It roughly doubles the window, which is why the shadow dates matter to people who plan around it.
What astrologers read in it
Mercury is the planet of communication, travel, contracts, devices and the way we think things through. Its retrograde is the most famous in astrology, blamed for crossed wires, delayed parcels and emails sent to the wrong person. The traditional advice is the "re" words: review, revise, reconnect, reconsider, rather than signing and launching.
The sign colours the theme. A retrograde in a water sign such as Scorpio or Pisces is usually read as emotional and private communication resurfacing; in Cancer, family and home; in an air sign such as Gemini, Libra or Aquarius, ideas, networks and negotiations.
A sensible way to use it
There is no evidence that Mercury retrograde breaks laptops or ruins contracts, and there is no reason to put your life on hold three times a year. But the habits the tradition recommends are good ones anyway: back up your files, reread before you send, confirm travel details, give misunderstandings the benefit of the doubt. If the calendar reminds you to do that, it has done something useful.
Where these retrogrades fall in your own chart, and which houses they cross, is personal. The full reading calculates it from your birth moment.
In total that is 6 Mercury retrogrades across the two years, 134 days of retrograde motion.
Sources and method
- astronomy-engine, the open-source ephemeris these dates are computed with
- NASA: Mercury, facts and orbit
Every date and position above is recomputed on each build of this site from the ephemeris, geocentric and in the tropical zodiac, the same way our daily readings are made. Astrology is a reflective practice, not a science, and nothing here predicts an outcome.
