Mercury retrograde, with computed dates

All Mercury retrogrades, 2026 to 2028

• February 26, 2026 to March 20, 202623 days
• June 30, 2026 to July 23, 202624 days
• October 24, 2026 to November 13, 202621 daysNext one
• February 10, 2027 to March 3, 202722 days
• June 11, 2027 to July 4, 202724 days
• October 8, 2027 to October 28, 202721 days
• January 24, 2028 to February 14, 202822 days
• May 21, 2028 to June 13, 202824 days
• September 20, 2028 to October 10, 202821 days

What Mercury retrograde actually is

Mercury never truly moves backwards. Because Mercury and Earth orbit the Sun at different speeds, there are windows when, seen from Earth, Mercury appears to drift backwards against the zodiac. Astronomers call this apparent retrograde motion: a perspective effect, a bit like a slower train seeming to reverse when you overtake it.

In a birth chart or an ephemeris, those windows are marked with the small letter R next to Mercury. They begin and end with a station: a day or two when the planet seems to stand still before changing direction.

What astrologers make of it

In astrological culture, Mercury rules exchanges: words, messages, travel, agreements. During its retrograde, many astrologers suggest a slower, more careful pace with anything that moves information around, and they often frame it as a season of re- verbs: reread, reconnect, revise, repair.

Treat that as an invitation to reflection rather than a rule of the sky. Plenty of contracts are signed and journeys completed during retrogrades; the value of the cycle, if you choose to use it, is the pause it suggests, not a danger it proves.

How these dates are computed

This page samples Mercury's position day by day across the whole period and detects the exact days its apparent motion flips between direct and retrograde. Dates are given to the day, sampled at noon UTC; depending on your time zone, a station can land a few hours into the previous or next day.