A north side of the magnet is attracted to the south side of another magnet . However , the north side of the compass points to the north pole , this can only mean that the `` north pole '' is really the magnetic south , and the `` south pole '' is really the magnetic north . For a bar magnet , the direction of the magnetic moment points from the magnet 's south pole to its north pole , and the magnitude relates to how strong and how far apart these poles are .