Guna milan from two birth dates: the 36-point Ashtakoota score

Last updated 25 October 2026

Enter both birth dates, with times if you have them, to get the Ashtakoota guna milan score out of 36 and a koota by koota breakdown. Below the calculator: how the points are built from the two Moons, what the score leaves out, and how to read it before you sit down with an astrologer.

From two birth dates to a score out of 36

Ashtakoota guna milan, the matching method used across much of North India, compares two people through one body only: the Moon. For each person the calculator turns the birth date and local clock reading into Universal Time using the offset you pick, places the Moon in the sidereal zodiac (Lahiri ayanamsa), and notes three facts about it: its sign (rashi), its birth star (nakshatra) and the quarter of that star (pada). Every koota is then a lookup on those values.

The eight kootas carry different weights, from one point for Varna to eight for Nadi, and they add up to 36. Some compare the two Moon signs, some the two birth stars, and Graha maitri compares the planets that rule the two signs. Tara is counted in both directions, the boy's star from the girl's and hers from his, with 1.5 points for each direction that does not land on an unfavourable count. The result shows every koota with the value used for each person, so you can see exactly where points were gained or lost.

The total is placed in one of the conventional bands (very good from 33, good from 25, acceptable from 18 points). When the Nadi or Bhakoot koota scores zero, a short section explains why and lists any exception that is commonly cited for that pair: for Nadi, the two Moons sharing a sign but not a star, sharing a star but not a sign, sharing a star in different padas, or having sign rulers that are one planet or natural friends of each other; for Bhakoot, the two sign rulers being one planet or friends. When both Moons are in the same star and the same pada, no Nadi exception is offered. The exceptions are listed for discussion and never change the points.

What the 36 points leave out

Because guna milan reads only the two Moons, two couples with the same Moon signs and birth stars get the same score whatever the rest of their charts look like. The number says nothing about the seventh house of either chart, the condition of Venus, the rising signs, the navamsa, or the planetary periods each person is entering. It also knows nothing about the two people: their ages, values, health or how they handle disagreement.

That is why an experienced astrologer treats the score as a screening step. A high total with a troubled seventh house in one chart is not reassuring, and a modest total between two well-supported charts is often accepted. Practitioners also differ on small points inside the tables themselves, such as half-point Vashya values, so two calculators can disagree by a point or so on the same pair.

Reading your result before the consultation

A few habits make the score more useful when you take it to an astrologer:

• Look at the zeros, not only the total. A zero in Nadi or Bhakoot draws more attention in most traditions than a low Varna or Vashya, even though the total may look comfortable.
• Check the uncertainty notes. If either birth time is missing, or a Moon sits within about an hour of its motion of a pada edge, the score could change. Settle the birth star first.
• Bring both full sets of birth details. Date, time and place for each person let the astrologer cast both charts and look past the Moon.

Our guide to kundli matching consultations covers how a full matching session runs and how to prepare for it.

Questions to ask your astrologer about the score

• Which kootas cost us the most points, and how much weight do you give each of them?
• Do you accept the Nadi or Bhakoot exception listed for our pair?
• What do our two seventh houses and the navamsa charts add to the picture?
• Have you checked Mangal dosha in both charts, and from which reference point?
• Which periods are each of us entering over the next few years?

If you are unsure how to frame a question so the answer is useful, see questions to ask an astrologer.