Kua Number Guide: Find Your Lucky Directions, Colors & Numbers
In Feng Shui, your Kua number is a personal energy number that reveals your lucky directions, colors, numbers, and element. Derived from your birth year and gender, it places you in one of two groups — the East Group or the West Group — each with its own set of auspicious and inauspicious directions. Once you know your Kua number, you can align your bed, desk, and front door to enhance your luck in health, love, career, and wealth.
How to Calculate Your Kua Number
The Kua number formula is simple. Add all the digits of your birth year and reduce to a single digit. Then:
- For males: subtract the result from 11
- For females: add 4 to the result
Reduce the answer to a single digit. If the result is 5, it becomes 8 for males and 2 for females (because 5 belongs to no group and is reassigned). For example, a man born in 1990: 1+9+9+0 = 19 → 1+9 = 10 → 1+0 = 1; 11 − 1 = 10 → 1+0 = 1, so his Kua number is 1.
Use our Kua Number Calculator to find yours instantly — just enter your birth year and gender.
East Group vs West Group
Kua numbers divide into two groups:
- East Group: Kua 1, 3, 4, 9 — lucky directions generally toward the east
- West Group: Kua 2, 6, 7, 8 — lucky directions generally toward the west
People in the same group are considered compatible, and their lucky directions align harmoniously.
The Four Lucky Directions
Each Kua number has four auspicious directions, each governing a different area of life:
- Sheng Qi (Wealth/Prosperity): your best direction for career and wealth
- Tian Yi (Health): supports your physical wellbeing
- Yan Nian (Love/Marriage): enhances romance and relationships
- Fu Wei (Personal Growth): aids self-improvement and stability
The Four Inauspicious Directions
- Jue Ming (Total Loss): avoid facing this direction for important matters
- Wu Gui (Five Ghosts): associated with obstacles and gossip
- Liu Sha (Six Killings): linked to illness and legal issues
- Huo Hai (Harm): associated with accidents and disappointment
How to Use Your Kua Number
Once you know your Kua number, apply it practically:
- Sleeping: point your head toward a lucky direction (preferably Sheng Qi or Yan Nian)
- Working: face your Sheng Qi direction at your desk
- Front door: ideally faces a lucky direction
- Colors & numbers: incorporate your lucky colors and numbers into your home, wardrobe, and important dates
Kua Number Meanings at a Glance
Kua 1 (Water, East): adaptable, intuitive, philosophical — lucky in Southeast, East, South, North. Kua 2 (Earth, West): stable, nurturing — lucky in Northeast, West, Northwest, Southwest. Kua 3 (Wood, East): ambitious, pioneering — lucky in South, North, Southeast, East. Kua 4 (Wood, East): graceful, artistic — lucky in North, South, East, Southeast. Kua 6 (Metal, West): strong, authoritative — lucky in West, Northeast, Southwest, Northwest. Kua 7 (Metal, West): vibrant, communicative — lucky in Northwest, Southwest, Northeast, West. Kua 8 (Earth, West): steady, loyal — lucky in Southwest, Northwest, West, Northeast. Kua 9 (Fire, East): radiant, passionate — lucky in East, Southeast, North, South.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Kua number the same as the Chinese zodiac?
No. Your Chinese zodiac animal is based on your birth year alone. Your Kua number also incorporates your gender, making it gender-specific. They are complementary systems in Chinese metaphysics.
What is the best Kua number to have?
No Kua number is 'best' — each has four lucky and four unlucky directions. What matters most is using your personal directions correctly. That said, Kua 1, 6, and 8 are traditionally considered very strong numbers.
Can two people with different groups be compatible?
Yes. While same-group pairings share aligned lucky directions, cross-group relationships work fine in practice — each person simply uses their own lucky directions for their own activities.
Written by the KundaliMatches Feng Shui Team. Last updated August 2026.