Cancer is the moonchild of the zodiac. They are the only astrological sign ruled by the moon and have an intuitive, creative, affectionate, and compassionate nature. They are known for their sweet and caring approach to life and deeply value their loved ones and close relationships.
Don’t confuse Cancers with being emotional cry-babies who are too soft to stand up for themselves, however. Cancers are tenacious, boundary Queens who know how to stand their ground when necessary. Cancers are the type of people who not only excel in the home but are also quite business- and money-savvy. This dynamic sign brings a lot to the table, and many who have a Cancer in their life, know just how special they are.
Cancer (June 21 - July 22)
CancerKyra Jay for xoNecoleElement: Water
Modality: Cardinal
Symbol: The Crab
Planetary Ruler: The Moon
Tarot Card: The Chariot
Lucky Days: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays
Lucky Stones: Moonstone and Pearl
Colors: Blue, Silver, and Magenta
Cancers feel everything in a more in-tune and in-depth way than most. There are many sides to a Cancer, and they choose which sides they want to show you and when. They are the type of people who can go through many emotions in one day and are often seen as more moody than others. When they withdraw into their shell, it’s usually because emotions are running high for them or they need time and space to process.
Cancers are very self-protective of their energy, and rightly so. They prefer to be at home or in their safe spaces, and most Cancers are homebodies.
This makes sense because Cancer is the ruler of the fourth house in Astrology, which is the area of life that signifies the home, family, foundations, history, the inner world, privacy, and traditions. They are consistent in the way they give love and are some of the most loyal and dedicated people of the zodiac.
Goodboy Picture Company/Getty Images
Cancers are “the mother” in Astrology and often make great moms, wives, caretakers, or motherly figures, and they bring this type of nurturing quality to people’s lives effortlessly. They have a service-oriented mindset and are often thinking of how they can be there for others or support people in any way. They thrive when they have a good support system around themselves as well, and are very particular about the type of people they let into their lives. Once you’re in a Cancer’s inner circle, however, it’s usually forever, as the crab doesn’t easily let go of anyone.
Cancer Likes and Dislikes
Cancers love hosting, being around friends and family, building a legacy for themselves, all things cozy and comfortable, and being in more intimate settings. They value deep conversations and undivided attention, and their love language is quality time. A comfortable atmosphere is everything to a Cancer, and they love to feel safe and nurtured and to be giving this type of energy to others as well.
This is not to say that Cancers don’t like to travel and explore, but if they do so it’s usually to visit someone they know, to do something creative or inspiring, or it’s something they already have a stable plan for. Some of Cancer’s dislikes are large crowds or groups, unemotional people, instability, rejection, and isolation. They aren’t the best with change, and they don’t like anything that disrupts their routine, foundation, or familiarity, and can be stubborn in that way.
Career Life for Cancer
Cancers have a creative soul and love all things that are soul-expressive. They deeply value time and history, and have a sentimental heart that gives them a good eye for art, antiques, interior design, and real estate. They would also excel in careers as a teacher, doctor, nurse, chef, architect, social worker, and more.
Cancers overall thrive in professions that allow them to work with others in more team settings and that give them an outlet to be supportive or encouraging of another’s growth.
Security and financial stability are very important when it comes to a career for Cancer as well, and they need a career they feel safe in and one where they can see the opportunity for continual growth within the company or business. Cancers are a cardinal sign and they are more ambitious and hard-working than most people recognize or give them credit for when they think of Cancer. They are also very money-savvy and tend to be good at saving and acquiring assets for themselves.
jeffbergen/Getty Images
Compatible Zodiac Signs for Cancer
Cancers are devoted lovers. They wear their heart on their sleeve, and will always let you know where they stand with you and how much they care for you. In partnerships, Cancers often take on a more submissive role, and they truly just want to nurture and care for their partners in any way they know how to. They are highly emotional individuals, and being honest with them on how you are feeling and what you love about them, does wonders to the relationship with a Cancer.
Cancers find the most compatibility with water signs and earth signs. Scorpio and Pisces make great partners for Cancer because they understand where Cancer is coming from. The emotional world of this sign is not too much for a fellow water sign, and they often form a deep, unbreakable bond with one another.
Earth signs Virgo, Taurus, and Capricorn also make great matches for Cancer. Earth signs provide a stable, safe space for Cancer that they yearn for, and these two signs balance each other out well. Taurus specifically, is a great match for Cancer, as these two are a lot alike and can build a great life together.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Feature image by Mireya Acierto/Getty Images
- From Toxic Traits To Transformative Growth: Understanding Evolved Vs. Unevolved Zodiac Signs ›
- The Personality & Love Compatibility Of A Cancer, Explained. ›
- What Your Zodiac Sign Says About Your Work Ethic ›
RELATED
So, we handpicked one hundred It Girls who embody that palpable It Factor moving through us as young Black women, the kind of motion lighting up the world both IRL and across the internet.
It Girl 100 became xoNecole’s most successful program, with the hashtag organically reaching more than forty million impressions on Instagram in just twenty-four hours. Yes, it caught on like wildfire because we celebrated some of the most brilliant and influential GenZennial women of color setting trends and shaping culture. But more than that, it resonated because the women we celebrated felt seen.
Many were already known in their industries for keeping this generation fly and lit, but rarely received recognition or flowers. It Girl 100 became a safe space to be uplifted, and for us as Black women to bask in what felt like an era of our brilliance, beauty, and boundless influence on full display.
And then, almost overnight, it was as if the rug was pulled from under us as Black women, as the It Girls of the world.
Our much-needed, much-deserved season of ease and soft living quickly metamorphosed into a time of self-preservation and survival. Our motion and economic progression seemed strategically slowed, our light under siege.
The air feels heavier now. The headlines colder. Our Black girl magic is being picked apart and politicized for simply existing.
With that climate shift, as we prepare to launch our second annual It Girl 100 honoree list, our team has had to dig deep on the purpose and intention behind this year’s list. Knowing the spirit of It Girl 100 is about motion, sauce, strides, and progression, how do we celebrate amid uncertainty and collective grief when the juice feels like it is being squeezed out of us?
As we wrestled with that question, we were reminded that this tension isn’t new. Black women have always had to find joy in the midst of struggle, to create light even in the darkest corners. We have carried the weight of scrutiny for generations, expected to be strong, to serve, to smile through the sting. But this moment feels different. It feels deeply personal.
We are living at the intersection of liberation and backlash. We are learning to take off our capes, to say no when we are tired, to embrace softness without apology.
And somehow, the world has found new ways to punish us for it.
In lifestyle, women like Kayla Nicole and Ayesha Curry have been ridiculed for daring to choose themselves. Tracee Ellis Ross was labeled bitter for speaking her truth about love. Meghan Markle, still, cannot breathe without critique.
In politics, Kamala Harris, Letitia James, and Jasmine Crockett are dragged through the mud for standing tall in rooms not built for them.
In sports, Angel Reese, Coco Gauff, and Taylor Townsend have been reminded that even excellence will not shield you from racism or judgment.
In business, visionaries like Diarrha N’Diaye-Mbaye and Melissa Butler are fighting to keep their dreams alive in an economy that too often forgets us first.
Even our icons, Beyoncé, Serena, and SZA, have faced criticism simply for evolving beyond the boxes society tried to keep them in.
From everyday women to cultural phenoms, the pattern is the same. Our light is being tested.
And yet, somehow, through it all, we are still showing up as that girl, and that deserves to be celebrated.
Because while the world debates our worth, we keep raising our value. And that proof is all around us.
This year alone, Naomi Osaka returned from motherhood and mental health challenges to reach the semifinals of the US Open. A’ja Wilson claimed another MVP, reminding us that beauty and dominance can coexist. Brandy and Monica are snatching our edges on tour. Kahlana Barfield Brown sold out her new line in the face of a retailer that had been canceled. And Melissa Butler’s company, The Lip Bar, is projecting a forty percent surge in sales.
We are no longer defining strength by how much pain we can endure. We are defining it by the unbreakable light we continue to radiate.
We are the women walking our daily steps and also continuing to run solid businesses. We are growing in love, taking solo trips, laughing until it hurts, raising babies and ideas, drinking our green juice, and praying our peace back into existence.
We are rediscovering the joy of rest and realizing that softness is not weakness, it is strategy.
And through it all, we continue to lift one another. Emma Grede is creating seats at the table. Valeisha Butterfield has started a fund for jobless Black women. Arian Simone is leading in media with fearless conviction. We are pouring into each other in ways the world rarely sees but always feels.
So yes, we are in the midst of societal warfare. Yes, we are being tested. Yes, we are facing economic strain, political targeting, and public scrutiny. But even war cannot dim a light that is divinely ours.
And we are still shining.
And we are still softening.
And we are still creating.
And we are still It.
That is the quiet magic of Black womanhood, our ability to hold both truth and triumph in the same breath, to say yes, and to life’s contradictions.
It is no coincidence that this year, as SheaMoisture embraces the message “Yes, And,” they stand beside us as partners in celebrating this class of It Girls. Because that phrase, those two simple words, capture the very essence of this moment.
Yes, we are tired. And we are still rising.
Yes, we are questioned. And we are the answer.
Yes, we are bruised. And we are still beautiful.
This year’s It Girl 100 is more than a list. It is a love letter to every Black woman who dares to live out loud in a world that would rather she whisper. This year’s class is living proof of “Yes, And,” women who are finding ways to thrive and to heal, to build and to rest, to lead and to love, all at once.
It is proof that our joy is not naive, our success not accidental. It is the reminder that our light has never needed permission.
So without further ado, we celebrate the It Girl 100 Class of 2025–2026.
We celebrate the millions of us who keep doing it with grace, grit, and glory.
Because despite it all, we still shine.
Because we are still her.
Because we are still IT, girl.
Meet all 100 women shaping culture in the It Girl 100 Class of 2025. View the complete list of honorees here.
Featured image by xoStaff
So, we handpicked one hundred It Girls who embody that palpable It Factor moving through us as young Black women, the kind of motion lighting up the world both IRL and across the internet.
It Girl 100 became xoNecole’s most successful program, with the hashtag organically reaching more than forty million impressions on Instagram in just twenty-four hours. Yes, it caught on like wildfire because we celebrated some of the most brilliant and influential GenZennial women of color setting trends and shaping culture. But more than that, it resonated because the women we celebrated felt seen.
Many were already known in their industries for keeping this generation fly and lit, but rarely received recognition or flowers. It Girl 100 became a safe space to be uplifted, and for us as Black women to bask in what felt like an era of our brilliance, beauty, and boundless influence on full display.
And then, almost overnight, it was as if the rug was pulled from under us as Black women, as the It Girls of the world.
Our much-needed, much-deserved season of ease and soft living quickly metamorphosed into a time of self-preservation and survival. Our motion and economic progression seemed strategically slowed, our light under siege.
The air feels heavier now. The headlines colder. Our Black girl magic is being picked apart and politicized for simply existing.
With that climate shift, as we prepare to launch our second annual It Girl 100 honoree list, our team has had to dig deep on the purpose and intention behind this year’s list. Knowing the spirit of It Girl 100 is about motion, sauce, strides, and progression, how do we celebrate amid uncertainty and collective grief when the juice feels like it is being squeezed out of us?
As we wrestled with that question, we were reminded that this tension isn’t new. Black women have always had to find joy in the midst of struggle, to create light even in the darkest corners. We have carried the weight of scrutiny for generations, expected to be strong, to serve, to smile through the sting. But this moment feels different. It feels deeply personal.
We are living at the intersection of liberation and backlash. We are learning to take off our capes, to say no when we are tired, to embrace softness without apology.
And somehow, the world has found new ways to punish us for it.
In lifestyle, women like Kayla Nicole and Ayesha Curry have been ridiculed for daring to choose themselves. Tracee Ellis Ross was labeled bitter for speaking her truth about love. Meghan Markle, still, cannot breathe without critique.
In politics, Kamala Harris, Letitia James, and Jasmine Crockett are dragged through the mud for standing tall in rooms not built for them.
In sports, Angel Reese, Coco Gauff, and Taylor Townsend have been reminded that even excellence will not shield you from racism or judgment.
In business, visionaries like Diarrha N’Diaye-Mbaye and Melissa Butler are fighting to keep their dreams alive in an economy that too often forgets us first.
Even our icons, Beyoncé, Serena, and SZA, have faced criticism simply for evolving beyond the boxes society tried to keep them in.
From everyday women to cultural phenoms, the pattern is the same. Our light is being tested.
And yet, somehow, through it all, we are still showing up as that girl, and that deserves to be celebrated.
Because while the world debates our worth, we keep raising our value. And that proof is all around us.
This year alone, Naomi Osaka returned from motherhood and mental health challenges to reach the semifinals of the US Open. A’ja Wilson claimed another MVP, reminding us that beauty and dominance can coexist. Brandy and Monica are snatching our edges on tour. Kahlana Barfield Brown sold out her new line in the face of a retailer that had been canceled. And Melissa Butler’s company, The Lip Bar, is projecting a forty percent surge in sales.
We are no longer defining strength by how much pain we can endure. We are defining it by the unbreakable light we continue to radiate.
We are the women walking our daily steps and also continuing to run solid businesses. We are growing in love, taking solo trips, laughing until it hurts, raising babies and ideas, drinking our green juice, and praying our peace back into existence.
We are rediscovering the joy of rest and realizing that softness is not weakness, it is strategy.
And through it all, we continue to lift one another. Emma Grede is creating seats at the table. Valeisha Butterfield has started a fund for jobless Black women. Arian Simone is leading in media with fearless conviction. We are pouring into each other in ways the world rarely sees but always feels.
So yes, we are in the midst of societal warfare. Yes, we are being tested. Yes, we are facing economic strain, political targeting, and public scrutiny. But even war cannot dim a light that is divinely ours.
And we are still shining.
And we are still softening.
And we are still creating.
And we are still It.
That is the quiet magic of Black womanhood, our ability to hold both truth and triumph in the same breath, to say yes, and to life’s contradictions.
It is no coincidence that this year, as SheaMoisture embraces the message “Yes, And,” they stand beside us as partners in celebrating this class of It Girls. Because that phrase, those two simple words, capture the very essence of this moment.
Yes, we are tired. And we are still rising.
Yes, we are questioned. And we are the answer.
Yes, we are bruised. And we are still beautiful.
This year’s It Girl 100 is more than a list. It is a love letter to every Black woman who dares to live out loud in a world that would rather she whisper. This year’s class is living proof of “Yes, And,” women who are finding ways to thrive and to heal, to build and to rest, to lead and to love, all at once.
It is proof that our joy is not naive, our success not accidental. It is the reminder that our light has never needed permission.
So without further ado, we celebrate the It Girl 100 Class of 2025–2026.
We celebrate the millions of us who keep doing it with grace, grit, and glory.
Because despite it all, we still shine.
Because we are still her.
Because we are still IT, girl.
Meet all 100 women shaping culture in the It Girl 100 Class of 2025. View the complete list of honorees here.
Featured image by xoStaff