Everything To Know About An Aries-Scorpio Matchup, In Friendship, Love & More

Before we dive into Aries and Scorpio compatibility, let's look at what these two signs are all about. Aries, for instance, is a fire sign of cardinal modality. Its ruling planet is Mars, and it's represented by the Ram, which relates to this sign's headstrong, bold approach to life.

Scorpio, on the other hand, is a water sign of fixed modality. Its ruling planet is Pluto (or Mars in ancient astrology) and is represented by the Scorpion, which relates to this sign's guarded, mysterious nature.

When you put all those factors together, these two don't exactly make a classically compatible combo. As astrologer and holistic psychiatrist Kayse Budd, M.D., tells mindbodygreen, "Fire and water make steam, [which] can definitely make for a passionate connection—but, it can also overheat Scorpio and dampen Aries."

As Budd explains, Aries may find Scorpio intense, unrelenting, and controlling, while Scorpio may find Aries erratic, impulsive, and self-serving. "If Aries hurts Scorpio's feelings," she says, "the Aries may not be able to understand or own the transgression in a way that is satisfying to the Scorpio." Aries simply isn't built with the emotional range that comes so naturally to Scorpio, she notes.

"Similarly," Budd adds, "Aries may find itself frustrated by Scorpio's emotional needs and drama. To an Aries, a Scorpio seems to overreact to everything and create problems out of nothing."

According to Budd, Aries and Scorpio will likely fare better as friends than lovers, especially if they're able to unite for a specific reason, such as working out together, which they'll both enjoy.

"They can do interesting things paired up on a work or community project, as well," Budd notes, with Aries bringing the enthusiasm and Scorpio bringing the focus.

In the romance department, Aries and Scorpio do have one thing in common: high sex drives. According to Budd, both of these signs have strong libidos, although they'll express this different.

"Aries tends to be a high energy, active lover who (often) races passionately into intimacy, [and] Scorpios tend to be deeper, more emotional lovers who seek subtle, energetic connections with their partners," Budd explains. And that difference in expression may show up in other areas of the relationship as well, such as how well these two are able to emotionally connect.

That's not to say Scorpio can't "bend" toward Aries' style, Budd adds, but whether Scorpio can sustain that shift is a different story. And similarly, Aries can struggle to fulfill the emotional needs of Scorpio, who requires deep intimacy, trust, and loyalty. "Generally," Budd adds, "this pairing sizzles initially but fizzles with time."

But again, as aforementioned, only taking your sun signs into account isn't enough to get the full picture. Budd tells mindbodygreen that if a Scorpio has a strong Aries placement, or Mars has a strong influence on their birth chart, they'd have better luck with an Aries. And vice versa, if the Aries has some Scorpio placements or a prominent Pluto in their birth chart, "the two will find common ground and will likely have quite a bit of fun together," according to Budd.

While these two signs may be pretty different, one thing they do share is high energy with an abundance of drive and passion, according to Budd. As she explains, Mars is the ruler of Aries in modern astrology, but it was also the ruler of Scorpio in classical astrology before Pluto was discovered. "This shared ruler by history reveals these signs' best options for connecting," she notes.

Mars is, after all, the planet of action, sex, passion, and energy, so both of these signs connect well when they're able to initiate or engage in active pursuits together, such as sports, traveling, games, dance, yoga, as well as business, community projects, activism, etc.

As you might be gathering already, Scorpio is emotionally intense, while Aries is less deep. As Budd explains, all of the water signs are emotionally focused with a strong need to share their feelings and connect on an emotional level. The fire signs, on the other hand, are more action-oriented, she adds, with a strong need to express and exert themselves (and their will) through action.

As such, "Scorpio often wants to explore their deepest thoughts and wounds in romantic relationships—Aries does not have much natural capacity for emotional depth," Budd tells mindbodygreen. They would rather hit start and go out and do something, she adds.