A name's Heart Number (also called the Heart's Desire or Soul Urge number) is calculated from the vowels only. Where the Personality Number describes how a person appears to others, the Heart Number describes what actually motivates them underneath: the private wants and values that drive their choices even when no one else can see them. Vowels are considered the "soul" of a name in Pythagorean numerology, carried through in speech even when consonants are dropped or mumbled.

A Heart Number of 8 points to an inner drive for achievement and material success. Underneath whatever this person shows the world, what they privately want most is recognition for what they've built, a tangible measure of their own capability.