Kundli matching, or Guna Milan, scores two birth charts out of thirty-six points across eight kootas. It is the most widely used compatibility check in Indian marriage practice, and also the most widely misunderstood — the score is the starting point for a reading, not a verdict on a relationship.
Enter both sets of birth details to see the score broken down koota by koota, which doshas are present, and which of the classical cancellations apply to them.
Eighteen out of thirty-six is the traditional threshold, twenty-four to thirty-two is a strong match, and above thirty-two is genuinely uncommon. What the number does not tell you is why it landed where it did. A couple scoring seventeen because of one Nadi mismatch are in a very different position from a couple scoring seventeen through weakness spread across six kootas, and the two deserve opposite advice.
Note also how much of the total rests on the Moon nakshatra alone. Nadi, Bhakoot, Gana and Tara together account for twenty-four of the thirty-six points and all derive from it. That is why Guna Milan is quick, and why it is incomplete: it barely looks at the seventh house, at Venus and Mars, or at whether either person is running a period that supports marriage at all.
These two carry fifteen of the thirty-six points between them, so when either scores zero the total drops hard and a match can look alarming on paper. Both have well-established cancellations in the classical literature. Nadi dosha is exempted when a couple share a Moon sign but not a nakshatra, or share a nakshatra but sit in different padas, or when their Rashi lords match. Bhakoot dosha is exempted when the Rashi lords are identical or mutually friendly. A tool that reports the dosha without checking the cancellations is telling you half the story.
It cannot tell you whether two people like each other, communicate well, or want the same life. It is a compatibility model built from planetary positions, and it works best as one input among several — read alongside the seventh house of both charts, the condition of Venus and Mars, and the timing each person is actually in.
Eighteen out of thirty-six is the traditional minimum, twenty-four to thirty-two is considered a strong match, and above thirty-two is rare. Below eighteen does not mean a marriage cannot work — it means the eight kootas alone do not support it, and the rest of both charts needs looking at.
Nadi carries eight of the thirty-six points, the single largest block, so when both charts share the same Nadi the score drops sharply. It is traditionally read as a concern for progeny and health. It is also the dosha most often cancelled — same sign but different nakshatra, same nakshatra but different pada, or matching Rashi lords are all classical exemptions.
Bhakoot compares the distance between the two Moon signs and carries seven points. Certain distances, notably 6-8 and 2-12, score zero and are read as friction over finances, health or longevity of the bond. Like Nadi it has recognised cancellations, including when the Rashi lords are the same or mutual friends.
No, and no competent astrologer treats it that way. Thirty-six points measure eight specific factors, most of them derived only from the Moon nakshatra. They say nothing about the seventh house, Venus, Mars, the dashas each person is running, or whether the timing suits marriage at all.
For the eight kootas, no — they are calculated from the Moon nakshatra, which moves slowly enough that a birth time accurate to within an hour or two is usually sufficient. For the wider chart comparison, including the seventh house and the ascendant, an accurate time matters a great deal.