Quick answer
A standard tarot deck has 78 cards, and the quickest way to stop feeling overwhelmed by them is to see how they are organised. There are 22 Major Arcana cards, numbered 0 to 21, which cover big themes such as change, choice and endings. The other 56 are the Minor Arcana, split into four suits of 14 cards each: Ace to Ten plus four court cards. Once you can see that structure, every card has an address, and learning the deck becomes a matter of learning a few patterns rather than 78 separate meanings.
The 78 cards at a glance
The Major Arcana run from the Fool at 0 to the World at 21 and are usually read as the weightier cards in a spread. Readers often treat them as a story in sequence, which the Fool’s Journey guide walks through card by card. The Minor Arcana are closer to daily life. In the Rider-Waite-Smith tradition each suit is linked to an element and a broad area: Wands with fire and energy or work, Cups with water and feelings, Swords with air and thought or conflict, Pentacles with earth and money, home and the body. Within each suit, the numbers follow a loose arc. Aces are beginnings, Fives tend to show difficulty, Tens show completion. The court cards, Page, Knight, Queen and King, are read as people, roles or moods in that suit’s style. A Page of Cups is a tender beginner’s feeling; a King of Swords is settled, clear judgement.
| Group | Cards | Count | What they usually cover |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major Arcana | The Fool (0) to the World (21) | 22 | Life themes: change, choice, learning, loss, renewal |
| Wands | Ace to Ten, Page, Knight, Queen, King | 14 | Energy, work, projects, ambition (fire) |
| Cups | Ace to Ten, Page, Knight, Queen, King | 14 | Feelings, relationships, intuition (water) |
| Swords | Ace to Ten, Page, Knight, Queen, King | 14 | Thought, truth, conflict, decisions (air) |
| Pentacles | Ace to Ten, Page, Knight, Queen, King | 14 | Money, home, health, practical matters (earth) |
| Whole deck | 22 Major plus 56 Minor | 78 | 40 numbered pips, 16 court cards, 22 trumps |
A practical first exercise: sort the deck into these six piles, then lay each suit out Ace to Ten and look at how the pictures change along the row. You will notice the same shape repeating across suits, and that pattern is most of what a beginner needs.
Keep in mind: The elements, numbers and meanings above are conventions from the Rider-Waite-Smith deck of 1909 and the guidebooks built on it, not findings about how the world works. A reading is a structured way to reflect on a question, and no card predicts an event or reveals another person’s thoughts. For health, legal, money or safety concerns, talk to a qualified professional.
Read the full guide
The beginners hub goes deeper into each group of cards, your first spreads and how to build a steady reading habit.