No spread fits the question you have in mind? Here you create your own tarot spread: choose how many cards to draw (1 to 10), name each position, pick the shape of the layout and shuffle all 78 Rider-Waite cards. The reading appears right away, card by card, and you can send the empty spread on WhatsApp so your friends can draw their own cards in it.
How to create a tarot spread in five steps
- Start from the question. A spread is a question broken into pieces. Write down what you want to understand (“should I move city?”, “what is this relationship asking of me?”), then think about its parts: what weighs, what holds you back, what helps and what you can do.
- Decide how many cards you need. One card gives an answer; three tell a story; five or six look at the matter from several sides. Beyond ten, the reading gets hard to pull together.
- Name each position. Every card answers a small question: “what holds me back”, “what I am not seeing”, “the advice”. The more specific the name, the easier it is to read the card that lands there.
- Pick a shape. In a row for processes over time; a grid to compare areas of your life; a pyramid to go from the base to the top; a horseshoe for a full journey; a cross to put the matter in the centre.
- Shuffle, cut and pick. Just like a real table: you shuffle, cut the deck into three piles and pick your cards from the fan. The first one you touch goes to position 1.
Six templates to get you started
If you would rather not start from scratch, the table comes with six ready-made spreads. Use them as they are or change any position before you shuffle.
- Decision spread (4 cards, in a row): option A, option B, what you miss and the advice. For choosing between two paths without letting fear decide.
- New moon spread (5 cards, horseshoe): what I plant, what holds me back, what helps me, what to release and what will bloom. An intention ritual for the start of the lunar cycle.
- Self-discovery spread (5 cards, cross): who I am now in the centre; what I show and what I hide on either side; what I need above and my next step below.
- Reunion spread (4 cards, in a row): what there was, what remains, what stands in the way and what could happen. For the person who keeps coming back to your mind.
- Birthday spread (6 cards, grid): the year you close, what you learned, what is coming, love, work and the year’s advice.
- Shadow work spread (3 cards, pyramid): what I avoid, where it comes from and how to integrate it. Short, but it stays with you.
Ideas for naming your positions
The positions that work best are short questions a card can answer. These families combine well:
- Time: past, present, future, what is coming.
- People: you, the other person, what binds you.
- Forces: what holds you back, what helps you, your strength.
- The unsaid: what you miss, what you fear, what you want.
- Action: the advice, your next step, what to let go.
A useful rule: make the last position something you can do. A spread that ends in “the advice” or “your next step” leaves you with a concrete task; one that ends in “the outcome” leaves you with a prediction, and tarot is a far better tool for the first.
Which shape to give your spread
| Shape | When to use it |
|---|---|
| In a row | Processes with a before and after: past, present and future, or the steps of a plan. |
| Grid | Comparing areas that weigh the same: love, work, health, money. |
| Pyramid | Going from the root to the top: what lies underneath holds up what you see. |
| Horseshoe | A full journey from one end to the other, with the turning point in the middle. |
| Cross (5 cards) | Putting the matter in the centre and looking at what surrounds it: sides, above and below. |
How to read a spread you made up
Like any other: first each card in its position, then all of them together. When you finish, the site gives you three aids. What they say together ties the cards into one sentence using the names you chose. The cards’ advice comes from the position that talks about advice or a step (if there is none, from the last one). And the spread as a whole counts the major arcana, the dominant element, reversed cards and repeated numbers.
Every card links to its full meaning, upright and reversed, in love and at work. If a card throws you, open it in the library of all 78 cards and read it slowly.
Share your spread on WhatsApp
There are two ways to share. “Share this spread” sends the empty spread: whoever opens the link sees your positions and draws their own cards, perfect for doing the same spread as a group or as a couple. And when a reading is done you can send your spread with its cards on WhatsApp, copy the link or save an image for your stories.
Everything travels inside the link: we do not store your spreads or your questions on any server, and your question is never part of what you share. Your recent readings and designs stay in your browser only.
Frequently asked questions
How many cards can my spread have?
From one to ten: the same range that goes from the card of the day to the Celtic cross, the longest classic spread. With more cards the reading loses its thread; if a matter needs more, it is usually better to split it into two questions.
Is my spread saved?
It is saved in your browser: when you start a reading, your design appears under “Your saved spreads” so you can repeat it another day. No account or email needed. If you clear your browser data, it goes too.
Can other people use my spread?
Yes. Tap “Share this spread” and send the link on WhatsApp or copy it anywhere. Everyone who opens it shuffles and draws their own cards in your positions.
Do reversed cards come up?
By default, yes: about three in ten cards come up reversed, as with a real shuffled deck. You can switch them off before shuffling. If you get many, see what each card means reversed.
Can I use the spread with my own deck?
Of course. Design the positions here, send them to yourself on WhatsApp or take a screenshot, and draw the cards from your physical deck. Positions work the same with the Rider-Waite as with the Marseille deck.
Keep reading
If you prefer a classic spread, there is the three-card reading, the love reading, the yes or no tarot and the Celtic cross, all together on our free readings page. Your birth card and your 2027 year card are one click away too.
Free, no sign-up. Tarot Vera Luna is an entertainment site: no reading replaces medical, legal, financial or psychological advice.