A tarot journal is where you write down what you pulled, what you thought it meant, and, later, what actually happened. Kept for a few months, it does something no guidebook can: it shows you how the cards speak to you, in your own hand. This guide covers what goes in one, how to start, ideas and prompts for when the page feels blank, and a free printable tarot journal template you can download at the end.
What Is a Tarot Journal?
A tarot journal is a record of your readings. At its simplest it's a date, a card, and a sentence. At its fullest it's the question you asked, the spread you used, what each position stood for, the cards that came up, your first read of them, what the book said, and a note a week later on how it played out.
You may hear it called a ta
rot diary or a tarot log. Same thing. Some people keep it in a notebook, some in a binder of loose pages, some in Notion or an app. The format matters less than the habit of writing your own read down before you reach for the guidebook.Why Keep a Tarot Journal?
Because memory is a poor reader. You will not remember, in March, that the Eight of Pentacles came up three times in January while you were deciding whether to take the course. The journal will.
A few things a journal does that nothing else does:
- It builds your personal card meanings. After you've pulled the Moon a dozen times and written what was going on each time, you have your own definition of the Moon. That is worth more than any book's.
- It shows patterns. Cards that keep returning, suits that dominate a season, reversals that cluster around one question.
- It keeps you honest. Writing your read down before you look it up means you can't quietly revise it after.
- It gives your readings a second act. A reading is a guess about a situation. Coming back a week later and noting what happened is how a guess becomes learning.
What to Write in a Tarot Journal
You can write anything, but these are the parts that earn their place. They are also, not by accident, the sections on our free tarot journal page.
The Date and the Deck
Date every entry. Note the deck too, because the same card reads differently across decks. The Tower in the Rider-Waite-Smith is not quite the Tower in a soft modern deck, and your journal should know which one you were looking at.
The Question
Write down what you asked, or what was on your mind when you shuffled. Half the value of a reading is lost if you can't remember, later, what it was about. "What do I need to know about the job offer?" is a question. "General" is also a question, and worth writing down as such.
The Spread and What Each Position Stands For
A one-card pull needs no explanation. A three-card spread does, because three cards can mean past, present, and future; now, next week, and next month; you, them, and the relationship; or three separate questions you asked in a row. Write what each position stood for next to the card that landed in it. Six months from now you will not remember.
The Cards, and Whether They Were Reversed
The card's name, and a mark if it landed upside down. If you don't read reversals, skip the mark. If you do, it changes everything about the entry, so record it.
Your Intuitive Read
This is the heart of the page. Before you open the book, before you search the card, write what you see. What the figure is doing. What color dominates. What the card feels like next to the question. Two or three lines is plenty. Your first read, before anyone else's opinion, is where your intuition shows itself, and it is the thing the journal exists to capture.
The Book Meaning
Then look it up, and note the book's meaning in a line or two. Note where it agrees with you and where it doesn't. The disagreements are the interesting part. Over time you'll find that for certain cards your read is consistently sharper than the book's, and for others the book catches something you keep missing.
The Revisit
Leave a date line and come back in a week or so. How did it play out? Spot on, partly, not really, or too soon to tell. This one line is what turns a stack of readings into an education. Most tarot journals skip it. Don't.
Notes
Symbols that stood out, a color, a figure's expression, a card you kept wanting to go back to. Anything that doesn't fit above.
How to Start a Tarot Journal
You need a deck, something to write in or on, and about five minutes. Here's the routine that sticks.
- Pick a format you'll actually use. A notebook you love, a binder of printed pages, or a fillable PDF on your tablet. The best tarot journal is the one that's within arm's reach when you shuffle.
- Start with one card a day. A daily draw is the easiest habit to keep and the fastest way to fill a journal with useful data. Our beginner tarot activities walks through a one-card pull if you've never done one.
- Write your read before you research. Even one line. Especially one line.
- Then check the book, and note the gap. Agreement, disagreement, or something the book saw that you didn't.
- Date a revisit. A week is a good default. Put it in your phone if you need to.
- Read back once a month. Flip through the month's entries in one sitting. This is where the patterns show up, and it's the most satisfying part of the whole practice.
Tarot Journal Ideas
When the daily draw gets stale, these keep the journal alive.
- Deck interview. When a new deck arrives, pull six cards asking it what it's like to work with. Record it as the deck's first entry.
- Card of the week. One card, pulled Monday, revisited each evening for what it looked like that day.
- The reversal log. A page just for reversed cards and what was going on when they appeared.
- Suit tallies. At the end of each month, count how many Cups, Wands, Swords, and Pentacles you pulled. The imbalance tells you something about the month.
- Court card portraits. For each court card, a running page of the real people it has turned out to mean.
- Same question, different decks. Ask one question of two decks and record both answers side by side.
- Moon readings. A pull at each new and full moon, filed with the moon journal rather than the daily draws.
- The year card. One card pulled on your birthday or at the new year, revisited quarterly.
Tarot Journal Prompts
For the days when the card is clear but the pen isn't.
- What is the figure on this card doing, and what would I be doing in their place?
- Which detail did I notice first? Which did I notice last?
- If this card were weather, what would it be?
- Where in my body did I feel this card when I turned it over?
- What would this card say if it could speak one sentence to me today?
- Which card would I have preferred to pull? Why?
- What does this card have in common with the last card I pulled?
- If this card is the answer, what was the real question?
- What is this card asking me to stop doing?
- Who in my life is this card?
- What color dominates, and what does that color mean to me, not to the book?
- What would I tell a friend who pulled this card with my question?
Free Printable Tarot Journal Template
Our Tarot Journal Page puts everything above on a single sheet: date and deck, the question, a spread row with One card, Three cards, or My own spread, three card slots that each have a "this card is for" line so the positions mean whatever your spread means, three lines for your intuitive read, three for the book meaning, a revisit line with Spot on, Partly, Not really, and Too soon to tell, and a notes box for the rest.
It's a free fillable PDF. Tap through it on a tablet or computer, where every line is a text box and every square is a checkbox, or print it on US Letter paper and write by hand. It pairs with the Daily Practice Page if you keep one, and both live in our Journal Pages & Printables collection.
Paper, Tablet, or App?
Paper is the classic for a reason. Writing by hand slows you down, and slowing down is the point of the intuitive read. A printed page in a binder also lets you reorder entries by card, by deck, or by question later, which a bound notebook can't.
A tablet with a stylus gets you most of that with none of the storage. GoodNotes and Notability treat a PDF like paper, so a printable page works there as is. Apple Books, Preview, and PDF Expert let you tap the form fields and type instead.
Apps and Notion templates are the most searchable, which matters once you have a year of entries and want every time the Hermit appeared. They are also the easiest to abandon, because they live behind a lock screen instead of on the table next to the deck. If you go digital, keep the file somewhere you see it.
Whichever you pick, the entry is the same. Date, deck, question, spread, cards, your read, the book's read, and a revisit.
Tarot Journal FAQ
What should I write in a tarot journal?
The date, the deck, your question, the spread and what each position stood for, the cards and whether they were reversed, your own read before looking anything up, the book's meaning, and a note a week later on how it played out.
How often should I write in a tarot journal?
As often as you read. A one-card daily draw is the most common rhythm and the easiest to keep. There is no minimum; a journal with one entry a month is still a journal.
Do I need to know all the card meanings first?
No. The journal is how you learn them. Write your own read first, then look the card up and note the gap. That gap closes on its own with practice.
Should I record reversed cards?
If you read reversals, yes, because a reversal changes the meaning of the entry. If you don't read reversals, ignore them and note that your practice is upright only.
Is there a free tarot journal template?
Yes. Our Tarot Journal Page is a free fillable PDF with space for the spread, each card's position, your intuitive read, the book meaning, and a revisit. It prints on US Letter or fills in on a tablet.
Can I keep a tarot journal in Notion or an app?
Yes. Digital journals are the easiest to search later. The trade-off is that they're easier to forget about, so keep the file somewhere visible and consider printing a page for the days you read at the table.
What is the difference between a tarot journal and a Book of Shadows?
A Book of Shadows is a witch's whole working record: spells, correspondences, rituals, and often readings too. A tarot journal is only the readings. Many people keep the tarot journal as a section inside the Book of Shadows, and a page format makes that easy.
For the meanings to write against, our guide to all 78 tarot card meanings gives every card its keywords and its upright and reversed reading.
