BaZi compatibility (合盘, hepan) puts two people's Four Pillars charts side by side. Each chart is built from a birth date, time and place. The comparison looks at how the two Day Masters relate, which of the Five Elements the charts cover, and how the two birth-year animals interact. It cannot tell you what another person thinks, and it does not predict whether a relationship will last. You can compare your two charts for free. This guide shows how a score is built, using two invented examples, so you can judge any number you see, ours included.
People use "compatibility" for three different things. They answer different questions.
| What it looks at | What you get | |
|---|---|---|
| Zodiac matching | Only the two birth-year animals | One answer per pair of animals. Everyone born in a Horse year gets the same result with a Goat. |
| Free BaZi score on XuanSeal | Two Day Masters, Five Elements across both charts, and the two birth-year animals | A 0–100 score with a short note on each of the three parts |
| Written reading (Compatibility Book) | Both full charts and the relationship type you choose | A written interpretation of your pair, with a sample you can read first |
If you only want the animal pairing, the Chinese zodiac compatibility chart is the right tool. Two people born in the same animal year can still have very different charts once the month, day and hour are included. That is the reason to compare charts: the method uses more detailed birth data and can tell different charts apart. It does not make the result a prediction.
Traditional practitioners also look at things the free score leaves out, such as the Day Branch (called the Spouse Palace in marriage readings) and each person's favorable elements. We say so here because a score of 85 or 92 should never be read as "everything was checked".
New to charts? Start with how to read one BaZi chart, because this guide assumes you can find a Day Master.
The free score has three parts with fixed weights:
| Part | Weight | What it compares |
|---|---|---|
| Day Masters | 40% | The element and yin or yang of the two day stems |
| Five Elements | 30% | How many of the five elements appear across the visible characters of both charts (eight each when the birth time is known, six when it is not), plus a small bonus when one chart supplies an element the other lacks |
| Birth-year animals | 30% | How the two animals relate: harmony, clash, harm, break or none of these |
Two details matter. First, clashes and harmonies are checked between the birth-year animals only. The Day Branches are not part of the number. Second, the Five Elements part counts visible characters, not the hidden stems inside each branch, and it is not a favorable-element analysis.
This is XuanSeal's own rule set, described further in our calculation method. It is not a universal BaZi standard, and the result is a score for discussion, not a probability.
These are invented teaching examples, not real clients. All three people were born at 14:30 Singapore clock time, with true solar time switched on. The correction moves them to about 13:25, 13:22 and 13:31, all inside the Wei hour (13:00–15:00). The pillars come from XuanSeal's calendar engine and were checked against an independent day-cycle calculation. That checks the arithmetic, not whether any reading predicts anything.
| Person | Born | Year | Month | Day | Hour | Day Master | Wood / Fire / Earth / Metal / Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 15 June 1990 | 庚午 Geng-Wu | 壬午 Ren-Wu | 辛亥 Xin-Hai | 乙未 Yi-Wei | Xin, Yin Metal | 1 / 2 / 1 / 2 / 2 |
| B | 20 Aug 1991 | 辛未 Xin-Wei | 丙申 Bing-Shen | 壬戌 Ren-Xu | 丁未 Ding-Wei | Ren, Yang Water | 0 / 2 / 3 / 2 / 1 |
| C | 10 Dec 1991 | 辛未 Xin-Wei | 庚子 Geng-Zi | 甲寅 Jia-Yin | 辛未 Xin-Wei | Jia, Yang Wood | 2 / 0 / 2 / 3 / 1 |
Person A was born in a Horse year and B in a Goat year. Horse and Goat form a Six Harmonies pair, so the birth-year part scores 94. A's Metal Day Master generates B's Water Day Master in the traditional cycle, which scores 85. Together the two charts contain all five elements, which scores 100.
85 × 40% + 100 × 30% + 94 × 30% = 92.2, shown as 92.
"Generates" is a traditional name for the Metal-to-Water relationship. It does not show who gives more in daily life. One question this pair could discuss: when one person offers advice or help, does the other want to be asked first? Each could give one recent example.
Keep A and swap B for C. C is also born in a Goat year, so the birth-year part is the same 94. The Five Elements part is again 100. The Day Master part changes. A's Metal Day Master controls C's Wood Day Master, which scores 50.
50 × 40% + 100 × 30% + 94 × 30% = 78.2, shown as 78.
| Part | A + B | A + C |
|---|---|---|
| Day Masters (40%) | 85, Metal generates Water | 50, Metal controls Wood |
| Five Elements (30%) | 100 | 100 |
| Birth-year animals (30%) | 94, Horse and Goat | 94, Horse and Goat |
| Total | 92 | 78 |
The two zodiac pairings are identical, yet the totals differ by 14 points. A zodiac lookup cannot show that, because it never reads the Day Master. The A + C discussion question is different: when one person wants to set rules and the other wants to change how things are done, which decisions need both people to agree? They could try it on one small decision first.
One caution about the Five Elements part. On the visible characters, B has no Wood and C has no Fire. But B's Wei branches carry hidden Yi Wood, and C's Wei branches carry hidden Ding Fire. A zero in the count does not mean an element is completely absent from the full chart.
The score tells you which parts of the pattern deserve a conversation, not what the relationship will do.
The free comparison shows the two charts' key facts, the three scores and short reflection notes. The Compatibility Book is a one-time purchase. It adds a written reading of your own pair.
| You get | It does not mean | |
|---|---|---|
| Free comparison | Both charts' key facts, the three-part score, short notes | That every traditional marriage factor is in the number |
| Compatibility Book | An opening summary and four chapters, written for your two charts | That your result matches the sample, or that the relationship will improve |
| Public sample | One invented Wood and Earth pair, to show the writing | That it is a report on examples A, B or C, or your own result |
The four chapters are Paired Day Master Commentary, Elemental Pattern Coaching, a timing chapter, and Conversation Starters. The timing chapter depends on your answers. For a partner pair where both people are recorded as male or female, it is "Marriage Palace, Spouse Star & Timing". For family, friends, other relationships, or a partner pair where either person prefers not to say, it is "Timing and Relationship Rhythm", with no marriage palace or spouse star content. The reading also looks across pillars, not only at the two Day Masters.
You can read a Compatibility Book sample before deciding. It is a different, invented pair.
The calculation is checkable: the same inputs always give the same charts and the same score. What a score says about a real relationship has not been tested. Treat it as a structured way to start a conversation, not as a prediction.
No. A low score marks the parts of the pattern that pull in different directions, such as how you make decisions. Those are topics to talk through. The method cannot see much of what shapes a relationship, such as how the two of you treat each other.
Mark it as unknown. The tool then leaves out the hour pillar, and it does not guess a time for you. You still get the Day Master, the birth-year animal and a six-character element count. The reading is less detailed, and that is the honest result.
The zodiac match only reads the birth-year animals. Day Masters and element coverage can differ even when the animals are the same, as the 92 and 78 examples show.
Yes. Choose the relationship type when you enter the two charts. The comparison method is the same. In the written reading these pairs get the timing chapter without marriage content, and the pair is described as a family, friendship or working relationship.
The free score does not use gender at all, so it works the same for any two people. In the written reading, each person's chart is read on its own terms. The marriage-related chapter follows each person's own chart and does not assume who plays which role. If either person prefers not to say, the timing chapter is used instead.
No. The sample uses a different, invented pair. It shows how a reading is written, not what yours will say.
For cultural and personal reflection only. Not medical, legal, financial, or relationship advice.
Start with the free comparison. Enter both sets of birth details, then read the sample before choosing a Compatibility Book for your pair.
Guides by sign: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig.
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