How a horoscope compatibility score out of 10 is calculated from the Tamil 10-porutham system and the 36-guna Kundali Milan, and what each verdict band means.
A horoscope compatibility score condenses a full astrological match — the Tamil 10-porutham checks or the North Indian 36-guna Ashtakoota — into a single number out of 10. Each check compares the couple's birth charts on one dimension of married life, the results are weighted and totalled, and the total maps to a verdict: Excellent, Good, Average or Low.
When two families exchange horoscopes, an astrologer compares the bride's and groom's birth charts across a fixed set of checks. Each check looks at one dimension of married life — health, temperament, prosperity, longevity, family harmony — and each has a traditional weight. A compatibility score is simply the honest total of those checks, expressed on a single scale so families can compare matches at a glance.
Two classical systems dominate in India. Tamil families use the 10-porutham system (thirumana porutham), which works from the couple's birth Nakshatras and Rashis. North Indian families use Kundali Milan, also called the Ashtakoota or 36-guna system, which awards points across eight kootas. Both answer the same question with different arithmetic, and both can be expressed as a score out of 10.
The Tamil system evaluates ten poruthams (agreements), almost all derived from the bride's and groom's birth Nakshatra and Rashi. Traditionally the count starts from the bride's star. Each porutham examines a different sphere of married life, and tradition assigns each one an importance level rather than equal weight. You can see this system in action on our free Thirumana Porutham Calculator.
| Porutham | What it checks | Traditional weight |
|---|---|---|
| Dina | Count from the bride's Nakshatra to the groom's — health and daily well-being of the couple | High |
| Gana | Temperament class of each Nakshatra (Deva, Manushya, Rakshasa) — behavioural harmony | High |
| Mahendra | Specific favourable star counts — progeny and continuation of the family line | Medium |
| Sthree Deergha | Sufficient distance from the bride's star to the groom's — the bride's prosperity and security | Medium |
| Yoni | Animal symbol of each Nakshatra — physical and instinctive compatibility | High |
| Rasi | Relative position of the two Moon signs — growth of family and wealth | High |
| Rasi Adhipathi | Friendship between the lords of the two Rashis — mutual affection and understanding | Medium |
| Vasya | Natural attraction between the two Rashis — mutual devotion | Medium |
| Rajju | Body-part grouping of the Nakshatras — longevity of the spouse; must not share the same Rajju | Essential (hard check) |
| Vedha | Mutually afflicting Nakshatra pairs — freedom from inherent obstruction | Essential (hard check) |
For a fuller walk-through of each porutham with examples, see Thirumana Porutham: all 10 poruthams explained, or the dedicated guides to Dina porutham and Yoni porutham.
The North Indian Ashtakoota system awards points across eight kootas, from 1 point for the lightest to 8 for the heaviest. The points are summed to a maximum of 36 gunas. Because the weights are explicit, Kundali Milan converts naturally into a percentage or a score out of 10.
| Koota | What it checks | Max points |
|---|---|---|
| Varna | Spiritual temperament and ego compatibility | 1 |
| Vashya | Mutual influence and attraction between the pair | 2 |
| Tara | Birth-star compatibility — health and fortune | 3 |
| Yoni | Animal symbol of the Nakshatra — physical compatibility | 4 |
| Graha Maitri | Friendship of the Moon-sign lords — mental connection | 5 |
| Gana | Temperament class (Deva, Manushya, Rakshasa) | 6 |
| Bhakoot | Relative position of the Moon signs — prosperity and family welfare | 7 |
| Nadi | Physiological constitution — health and progeny | 8 |
Tradition treats 18 out of 36 as the minimum acceptable total, with 25–32 considered very good. Notice that the two heaviest kootas — Bhakoot (7) and Nadi (8) — carry 15 of the 36 points between them, which is why Nadi dosha alone can pull an otherwise strong match below the threshold. The full system, including cancellation rules, is covered in Kundali Milan: 36 gunas explained.
Whichever system applies, the arithmetic follows the same shape: run every check, apply its traditional weight, and normalise the weighted total onto a 0–10 scale. In the Tamil system, the essential poruthams count more heavily than the medium ones; in Kundali Milan the weights are already built into the koota points. The resulting score maps to one of four verdict bands:
| Verdict | What it indicates |
|---|---|
| Excellent | The great majority of checks agree, including the essential ones — traditionally a match to proceed with confidently |
| Good | Most checks agree and no essential check fails — a sound match with minor points to note |
| Average | A mixed result — worth reviewing the breakdown with the family astrologer before deciding |
| Low | Few checks agree or an essential check fails — tradition advises caution and a closer chart reading |
Date, time and place of birth fix each person's Nakshatra, Rashi and Lagna — the raw inputs for every check.
All 10 poruthams for a Tamil-tradition match, or all 8 kootas for a Kundali Milan match — no check is skipped.
Essential checks influence the score more than flexible ones, mirroring how a traditional astrologer would judge the same charts.
Excellent, Good, Average or Low — always shown with the full text label, never a bare number.
Most poruthams describe degrees of harmony — more agreement is better, less is workable. Rajju and Vedha are different: tradition treats them as pass-or-fail gates. Rajju porutham groups the 27 Nakshatras into five body-part categories (head, neck, chest, waist, feet), and a couple whose stars fall in the same Rajju is said to face risk to the spouse's longevity — the one outcome no family will trade away for strengths elsewhere. Vedha identifies specific pairs of Nakshatras held to mutually afflict each other, an inherent obstruction no other porutham offsets.
This is why a match can score well on eight of ten poruthams and still receive a cautious verdict: when a hard check fails, no accumulation of soft points repairs it. The classical texts do describe narrow exceptions — same Rajju but different feet (paadams), for instance — which is exactly why the full breakdown matters more than the headline number. Read the detailed treatment in our Rajju porutham guide.
Porutham and guna matching compare two charts against each other. Dosham analysis looks inside each chart individually for afflictions that affect marriage regardless of the partner. The main ones checked alongside compatibility scoring are:
On MatrimonyTrust, all of this runs automatically. When both profiles carry birth details, the platform computes the compatibility from both birth charts — the Tamil 10-porutham system or the 36-guna Kundali Milan, whichever suits the match — and shows the horoscope compatibility score out of 10 with its verdict on every profile you browse. Opening the full breakdown shows each porutham or koota individually, along with the dosham flags. Where a community's tradition requires it, same-gothram matches are blocked as well.
In the Tamil system, tradition looks for at least 5–6 of the 10 poruthams to agree, provided the essential checks Rajju and Vedha both pass. In Kundali Milan, 18 out of 36 gunas is the accepted minimum, with 25 or more considered very good. On a 10-point scale, scores in the Excellent and Good bands reflect these traditional thresholds.
Porutham is the Tamil system of 10 named checks (Dina, Gana, Mahendra, Sthree Deergha, Yoni, Rasi, Rasi Adhipathi, Vasya, Rajju, Vedha), judged as agreements with traditional importance levels. Kundali Milan is the North Indian system of 8 kootas carrying explicit points that total 36 gunas. Both compare the couple's birth Nakshatras and Moon signs and answer the same question with different arithmetic.
Classical Tamil tradition treats Rajju as a pass-or-fail check because it concerns the spouse's longevity, so a same-Rajju match is conventionally avoided even when other poruthams are strong. The texts do note narrow exceptions, such as the couple's stars falling in different paadams of the same Rajju, so families usually consult their astrologer on the specific charts before deciding.
Tradition sets 18 out of 36 gunas as the minimum acceptable total. Totals of 18–24 are considered acceptable, 25–32 very good, and 33–36 excellent. Because Nadi carries 8 points and Bhakoot 7, a dosha in either of these two kootas can pull a match below the threshold on its own, which is why their cancellation rules are examined separately.
No. Horoscope matching is a tradition many Hindu families follow, not a legal or universal requirement, and practice varies by family and community. Platforms such as MatrimonyTrust let users opt out of horoscope matching entirely, in which case profiles show "No Horoscope" and matching proceeds on preferences, community and other factors instead.
When both profiles include birth details, the platform casts both birth charts and evaluates every check in the applicable system — all 10 poruthams for Tamil-tradition matches or all 8 kootas of the 36-guna Kundali Milan. The weighted results are normalised to a score out of 10, labelled Excellent, Good, Average or Low, and shown on every profile with the full check-by-check breakdown and dosham flags available.
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