Top 5 Tarot Spreads For Beginners

The options for Tarot spreads for beginners are virtually unlimited. Most guidebooks include at least one spread, and you can find more spreads than you would ever need on Pinterest.

But the reality is, most of those spreads are more complicated than what you actually need, and that can lead to confusion and overwhelm for beginners.

In this post, we’re exploring my top 5 Tarot spreads for beginners. Most of them are three-card spreads, which are simple but also provide deep insight. Even advanced Tarot readers can benefit from three-card spreads.

I've created a free PDF you can download to help you practice these spreads. As you get more comfortable with these spreads, you can start to mix and match them to create your own.

>>Download the Free PDF: Tarot Card Combinations Mini-Guide

Card-A-Day

This is exactly what its name suggests. Pull a card each day. You can ask what energy you need to focus on, and proactively work to manifest that energy throughout the day. Or ask the Tarot, “What might I experience today?” At the end of the day, match up your experiences of the day to what you know about the card you drew that morning.

As you draw your card each day, make a note about which card you drew and what you noticed about it. What did your intuition tell you? What symbolism and systems did you notice? What feels like the message? Write it down to reflect on later.

You can learn more about symbolism and systems of the Tarot in this post, The Best Way To Learn Tarot.

Past – Present – Future

The Past-Present-Future spread is perhaps the most popular of three-card spreads. This is a great spread when your question relates to timing.

When you draw your cards, you place them left to right in front of you. The card on your left – the first card that you drew – is in the Past position. The second card, in the middle, is in the Present position. And the third card, on the right, is in the Future position.

Now you might be wondering WHY you would want to know what’s already happened. What does it matter what’s in the past position?

It’s actually quite important for context and depth. The Past card can tell you what’s shaped both who you are and what’s happening in the Present. It’s part of the larger story.

The Present card tells you where you are right now, and can be an indicator of where you’re going in the future. You may also notice themes flowing through the Past and Present cards, which is also helpful for determining what changes have occurred. And both of these provide context for the Future card.

The Future card tells you what is ahead. Of course, this isn’t a crystal ball nor is it set in stone – it’s simply an indication of where the energy is flowing right now, in the moment when you read the cards, and it can be changed by actions in the Present.

When you read these cards together, you can get a really in-depth picture of what’s going on in your life or the specific circumstances you’re asking about, and you can even determine what you need to do (or not do!) to move forward.

Blessings – Challenges – Action

This is one of my favorites. It is incredibly helpful when dealing with a frustrating situation, or when you are seeking clarity about your next best step. As with the Past-Present-Future spread, you lay the cards left to right, in the order you draw them.

Learn to Interpret Card Pairs with the

Tarot Card Combinations Mini-Guide

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The card on your left is the Blessings card. This is where your Blessings are – where you will find what will help you in this situation.

The middle card is the Challenges card. This is what you’re up against – the wall to climb, the problem to solve.

And the card on your right is the Action card. This is what action you need to take (or not take) to address what’s coming up for you as a Challenge. This is the “answer” you are seeking, but it works hand-in-hand with the Blessings card.

Situation – Action – Outcome

Another excellent spread for finding your next best step in frustrating or unclear situations, the Situation-Action-Outcome spread follows the same setup as the others. Lay your cards left to right, in the order you draw them.

The card on your left is the Situation. It’s THE THING you’re asking about. It may not look like what you think it will, because often what is actually going on isn’t what we think is going on. Be open to this, especially when it’s not what you want it to be or think it should be.

The middle card is the recommended action you can take to get to the card on the right – the outcome.

No Spread Spread

The last of my top 5 Tarot spreads for beginners is the No Spread Spread. It’s a funny name, but it is exactly what it says it is.

In this spread, you pull three cards and lay them in front of you, but there is no particular position each card occupies. Each card supports the others and adds layers of meaning to the overall reading. Each card is a piece of the answer you seek.

Clarifying Cards

Sometimes, we feel we need a clarifying card. You can absolutely pull an additional card to give more context or additional information for your spread, but be careful not to do so as a crutch. Trust your intuition – do you need a clarifying card?

Once you’ve got the hang of these basic spreads, you can take them to the next level with card combinations! Download my FREE Tarot Card Combinations Mini Guide to learn my favorite techniques for interpreting Tarot card pairs in any reading.