Tarot decks are as vast and numerous as the stars in the night sky.  The deck you chose will depend on the purpose for which you will use it.  Will the Tarot deck be used daily to read for yourself or others?  Are you looking to expand your Tarot collection?  How you will use your Tarot deck should be the first factor you will consider when choosing a Tarot deck.  I have Tarot decks I have never used to do readings for clients or for myself.  Others I have only touched occasionally in passing.  That does not mean that these Tarot decks are inferior in any way.  It simply means I have found a different deck which I feel is more in tune with my energy.

How should you choose a Tarot deck then?  Must you wait for your first deck to be given to you, as is the old tradition?  Personally, I find that if I am the one buying the Tarot deck, then I am drawn to those I feel connected.  It is hard for another to know what will strike your fancy.  We cannot always predict what we will like.  There may be a Tarot deck based on your favorite TV show but when you look at the deck the imagery does nothing for you or the archetypes chosen to represent the cards do not make sense to you.  Spend time in a New Age shop or bookstore.  Ask the owner of the shop for guidance when picking a Tarot deck as they are knowledgeable about different design styles.  Do your research thoroughly.

I currently own these decks:  the Gilded Tarot, the Tiny Universal Waite Tarot, and the Quick and Easy Tarot.  My first Tarot deck was The Tarot of the Witches.  If you were to go look up these decks, you would be hard pressed to find a common theme among them.  Some of them are more functional for me than others.  They are all beautiful works of art, nonetheless.  Each of these decks means something different to me.  The Quick and Easy Tarot is very aptly named.  It indicates both upright and reversed positioning on the Tarot cards themselves.  The Tiny Universal Waite Tarot is a measly two by three and a half centimeters.  It is very cute, and I use it more as a quick reference point than as a full Tarot deck.  The Gilded Tarot almost shimmers the coloring is so vivid.  It is a Tarot deck for the artist in us all.  The Tarot of the Witches I found to be too aloof and abstract a deck to even keep for reasons I will explain in the next paragraph.

The Tarot of the Witches is a deck unlike all the other Tarot decks I own.  This deck only has pictorial images for the royal court cards and the Major Arcana.  The Ace through Ten of each Minor Arcana suit has the accompanying number of Batons (Wands), Cups, Swords, or Coins (Pentacles).  No story-like image is included on these cards.  Each suit has a small picture which is the unifying theme for that suit.  The Two of Swords shows two daggers pointing toward a winged foot flying over a minuscule mountain the rest of the card is red. It is not a deck for those beginning to discover the Tarot for the first time as it does not clearly paint a picture of what the Two of Swords represents.

You may find that a deck that called to you six months, or a year, ago no longer speaks the way it first did to you.   That is fine; do not panic if that happens. It is only natural that as we grow so will or interest in other Tarot decks. I would advise you against pruning the Tarot decks that no longer speak to you as actively as they once id for you may regret doing so when you feel the pull toward using that one specific you no longer own and none of your other decks can fill that void. Only give a Tarot deck away if you are certain that you will not be using it now or ever in the future, as is the case with my Tarot of the Witches, as the Tarot deck does not connect with you at all, period.

Skill level is the next thing on the list to be given consideration when choosing a Tarot deck.  Not all decks are as easily accessible as the Quick and Easy Tarot.  Some are designed to the artist’s choosing and have no recognizable associations because of this.  Tarot decks styled after the Rider-Waite imagery are the most common type of Tarot decks available.  The Tarot card images which appear on this site are of the Rider-Waite design.  Decks in this style are dynamic and help the reader to actually see what is happening.  This style of Tarot  deck is recommended for the less experienced reader because it tells an intriguing story from start to finish!

Any Tarot deck is a good deck.  The great Tarot decks are those that stick with you and make you feel in tune with the Tarot.  With enough bonding time, you will be looking at your Tarot deck as though it was an old friend.  You will recognize the signposts and landmarks from the tales they tell.  “There’s the Two of Pentacles!  It’s time for balancing activities.”  As you grow and develop as a Tarot reader, so will your the number of Tarot decks you own. Choose your  first  Tarot deck carefully for it will be an invaluable tool in aiding your readings for years to come!