To envision your future, all you really need is a deck of tarot cards. While this usually means shuffling a physical deck and laying out a spread on a table, with the Labyrinthos app you can do it all on your phone.
This buzzy tarot reading app — which has over 36,000 positive reviews on Google — has virtual tarot cards that you can use to answer questions wherever you are. The app offers unbiased AI-generated readings of its own, too, which are often shared by an animated cat named Catssandra. As a bonus, it also functions as a mini tarot reading school.
As someone who got hooked on reading tarot cards a few years ago, I’ve been all about this app. I find it relaxing to light a candle, shuffle my deck, and create tarot spreads to unwind, think, and get to know myself better. (Tarot reading is also a really fun party trick, just FYI.)
But it does take a lot of practice to remember what the cards mean and how they all relate, which is why it’s been so nice to have Labyrinthos on hand. The app details the meaning of each card, and it also helps you form a solid foundation of knowledge so you can make connections — and ultimately get better at reading for yourself and others.
Here’s what it’s been like to try Labyrinthos and my honest review of the app.
Fast Facts
- Price: Free to download, $.10/tarot reading, $.99/33 credits, $9.99/premium
- Best for: Learning the tarot deck, daily readings, practicing new spreads
- My rating: 5/5
- What I like: Lots of information, easy to use, cute artwork
- What I don't like: A few glitches, but no big deal
What To Know About Labyrinthos
According to Labyrinthos, tarot reading is one of the best ways to get in touch with the truest version of yourself, find meaning in chaos, and reframe difficult situations. Their tagline is fitting: “discover tarot, discover yourself.”
Traditionally tarot has been used as a mystical divination tool, but Labyrinthos takes a more unique and psychological approach. “We don’t believe in divination,” the creator writes in the app. “We are here to empower you, not the cards. The magic isn’t in the cards. It’s in you.”
They go on to say that, “Tarot is your mirror. It reflects the self. It is a language whose vocabulary is comprised of our universal experiences, giving you the perspective to see your life in novel ways.” This explains why tarot is such a useful tool to learn more about your hopes, dreams, and perspectives — while also having fun.
For a quick rundown, a tarot deck has 78 tarot cards with artful images, specific numbers, and interpretable meanings. The deck has 22 cards called the “major arcana” representing the “fool’s journey” through life from beginning to end.
The major arcana includes The Fool card, The World, The Hermit, The Moon, The Sun, The Empress, The Hanged Man, Justice, Temperance, etc. The major arcana represents big changes, while the other 56 cards fall into the minor arcana. These come in four suits — wands, swords, and pentacles/coins — and those help you dive deeper into life’s nitty, gritty details.
How To Use The App
Labyrinthos has five tabs: Daily, Journal, Reading, Learn, and Decks. The Daily tab offers three-card tarot readings, each day’s moon phase and what it means, a spot that describes your personal tarot cards associated with your birthday — mine are The Hermit and The Moon and together they represent my unique “life path” — as well as a daily tasks list, which reminds you to study.
The Journal tab allows you to save your fave readings to look back on later and it’s also a space to jot down notes and questions, while the Reading tab is where you’ll go to flip pre-made tarot spreads or create your own. You’ll see the traditional Celtic cross tarot spread, quick “yes or no” spreads, and love, career, moon phase, and astrology spreads that get extra specific.
While most of the app is free you will eventually have to buy credits to try some of the extras, like the AI-generated readings from Catssandra. To get more credits, you can buy 33 for $.99, 333 for $4.99, or 777 for $6.99. (So cute that credits are sold in angel numbers.)
To dive deeper into the world of tarot, tap on the Learn tab. This is where you’ll work through lessons from the Labyrinthos Academy, like an Intro to Tarot class and a Major Arcana class, and also take quizzes to test your knowledge.
As you move through your studies, you’ll level up a cute little avatar character and get a report card of your progress. The premium version of the app unlocks customizable lessons.
Finally, there’s the Decks tab which allows you to toggle through various deck designs to personalize your readings. There’s the luxurious Golden Thread tarot deck designed by the app’s creator, the colorful Seventh Sphere tarot deck, and a few others. Tarot decks are supposed to feel special and unique to you, so this feature is so important.
My Experience
What I like to remember when I’m reading tarot cards is that they don’t decide your fate, predict your future, or anything spooky like that. Instead, they’re a tool that you can use to interpret your thoughts and make decisions. As I pull cards, I’m always amazed at what they make me think about or what they confirm.
When I first opened the app, I immediately flipped over my three daily tarot cards to get a personal reading. I got a sweet message from the Page of Swords about being more in “awe” of the world around me, and it felt like a nice reminder.
Everything in the app is clickable, too. If you tap the screen a bubble will pop up with all the info you could ever want or need about a card, including what it means and how to interpret it.
I like that it also explains each card’s properties, including suit, numerology number, and the associated element and zodiac sign. All of this info was helping me figure out what the card meant and how to interpret it.
I also got a kick out of my reading from Catssandra, the app’s AI-generated tarot reader. There’s a space to type in a question, so I asked what I needed to know about my upcoming plans for a night out and three cards popped up, including Temperance, which reminded me to be patient if my plans went awry.
The app comes with 33 credits so you can get a Catssandra reading for free, but I don’t think it’s a bad deal at all that you have to pay a little extra for more readings, especially since the app is founded and ran by one person.
I’ve made it a habit to do my three-card spread every morning while I have an iced coffee. It’s a nice way to see what the day has in store.
I’ve also popped into the Reading tab quite a bit to try different spreads, including the one-card readings, which are perfect for asking simpler questions. Today, I flipped a card to see what the general feeling of my day might be and I got the Five of Swords, which represents rest and restoration. (So yes, I will be taking a nap later.)
Whenever I have more time I’ll take a quick tarot lesson to practice my skills, and then follow up with a quiz to see if it stuck. The quizzes remind me a lot of the Duolingo quizzes that test your knowledge: If I get the answer wrong, it’ll ask again in a different way later on to help me remember.
These quizzes are the perfect way to study an image and interpret what it means, while also thinking about each card’s traditional message.
The High Priestess card, for instance, with its fancy cloaked woman on a throne, represents your intuition. If it were to pop up in a tarot reading, I’d now know to start thinking about connections, gut feelings, or how I need to listen to myself more often.
The Takeaway
After using this app for a few weeks, I’ve also noticed it’s easier to use my IRL tarot deck too. As I shuffle and pull cards, I can make connections more easily — without having to Google every card.
While this app does lean heavily into the learning side of things, it’s also the perfect form of self-care. It gives me an excuse to sit down, ponder life’s questions, and figure out how to handle certain situations. It puts me back in touch with myself and my goals, and that’s the point of tarot, after all.
I highly recommend Labyrinthos to any newbie tarot readers out there, as well as anyone who wants a pocket-sized tarot deck to take with them wherever they go.
