The Tarot de Marseille and the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot are two of the most influential tarot traditions. Discover how they differ in history, artwork, and reading approaches—and why both continue to shape tarot today.
If you’ve spent any time learning about tarot, you’ve probably encountered two names repeatedly: the Tarot de Marseille and the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot.
Because both contain 78 cards and share many familiar figures, they can appear very similar at first.
However, these two traditions emerged in different historical periods, reflect different artistic approaches, and have influenced tarot in different ways.
Rather than thinking of them as competing decks, it is more accurate to see them as two important chapters in tarot’s long history.
What Do They Have in Common?
Despite their visual differences, both traditions share the same fundamental structure.
Each contains:
- 78 cards
- 22 Major Arcana
- 56 Minor Arcana
- Four suits: Cups, Swords, Batons (or Wands), and Coins (or Pentacles)
Many familiar subjects—including the Fool, the Magician, the Empress, the Emperor, the Hermit, Justice, Death, and the World—appear in both traditions, although the artwork and some details differ.
This shared structure reflects tarot’s historical continuity across several centuries.
A Brief History
The Tarot de Marseille is not a single deck but a historical pattern of closely related tarot decks. Its visual form became established through French card-making traditions during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, while preserving many visual features found in earlier Renaissance tarot.
The Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot was published in 1909 under the direction of Arthur Edward Waite, with illustrations by Pamela Colman Smith.
Rather than replacing the Tarot de Marseille, the Rider–Waite–Smith deck introduced another influential approach that would later inspire many modern tarot decks.
Why Is It Called the “Tarot de Marseille”?
The name can be slightly confusing.
Although Marseille was an important centre of playing-card production, historians generally agree that not every deck belonging to this tradition was printed there.
In fact, the expression “Tarot de Marseille” became widely used only in the nineteenth century and was later popularized by French occult writers and publishers to describe this recognizable family of decks.
Today, the term refers to a historical style of tarot rather than a single published deck.
The Biggest Visual Difference
The clearest difference appears in the Minor Arcana.
In the Tarot de Marseille, the numbered suit cards generally show decorative arrangements of Cups, Swords, Batons, or Coins rather than illustrated scenes.
For example, a Three of Cups typically presents three cups arranged in a balanced design instead of people celebrating together.
The Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot took a different artistic approach.
Every Minor Arcana card was given its own illustrated scene, allowing readers to observe figures, gestures, landscapes, and symbolic details alongside the traditional meanings of the cards.
This became one of the defining features of the Rider–Waite–Smith tradition.
Does This Affect How the Cards Are Read?
It often does.
Because the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot includes detailed narrative illustrations, many readers consider the imagery as part of their interpretation.
With the Tarot de Marseille, readers often place greater emphasis on the symbolism of the suits, the numbers, historical traditions, and the relationships between cards within a spread.
Neither approach is inherently more accurate than the other.
Instead, they encourage attention to different aspects of the cards while sharing the same underlying tarot structure.
Which Deck Is Better for Beginners?
There is no universally accepted answer.
One reason many English-language beginner books introduce the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot is that its illustrated Minor Arcana can provide visual context while learning the cards.
At the same time, some readers are drawn to the Tarot de Marseille because its simpler suit cards encourage close study of symbolism, numbers, and card structure.
Neither deck was originally designed to be easier or more difficult to read.
The choice often depends on which style of learning feels more engaging to you.
Are the Meanings the Same?
The two traditions share many broad themes, but their interpretations are not always identical.
Both developed from earlier tarot traditions, yet different schools of reading have emphasized different symbolic systems over time.
For that reason, it is helpful to remember that tarot meanings are shaped not only by the cards themselves, but also by the interpretive traditions through which they have been studied.
Why Do So Many Modern Books Use the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot?
Today, a large proportion of English-language tarot books, websites, and beginner resources use Rider–Waite–Smith imagery when explaining card meanings.
One reason is practical: the deck became one of the most widely published tarot decks of the twentieth century, and many later decks were directly inspired by its illustrated Minor Arcana.
This does not make earlier traditions less important.
In fact, learning about the Tarot de Marseille often provides valuable historical context for understanding how later tarot traditions developed.
Which One Should You Choose?
Rather than asking which deck is objectively better, it may be more useful to ask what you hope to explore.
If you enjoy learning through illustrated scenes and visual storytelling, the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot may be a natural starting point.
If you are especially interested in tarot history or traditional card design, the Tarot de Marseille offers a direct connection to one of tarot’s most influential historical traditions.
Some readers eventually choose to study both traditions, finding that each offers a different perspective on the same 78-card structure.
Continue Exploring
The Tarot de Marseille and the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot are not competing systems. Instead, they represent different stages in tarot’s historical development.
If you’d like to continue exploring tarot’s history, you may also enjoy:
- The History of the Tarot de Marseille
- The History of the Rider–Waite–Smith Tarot
- Who Was Pamela Colman Smith? (Coming soon)
Understanding both traditions reminds us that tarot has continued to evolve over centuries. While its artwork and interpretive methods have changed, the underlying structure of the cards has remained remarkably consistent.