Prayer Times

Prayer times: their religious basis and how they are calculated

Prayer is the pillar of the religion, and performing it on time is among the deeds most beloved to Allah the Exalted. Allah has given each prayer a specific time before which it is not valid, and it may not be delayed beyond it without an excuse. Allah the Exalted said:

﴿إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ كَانَتْ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ كِتَابًا مَّوْقُوتًا﴾“Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the believers a decree of specified times.”Surah An-Nisa: 103

That is, an obligation fixed at known times. The Quran mentions these times in summary in the saying of Allah the Exalted:

﴿أَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ لِدُلُوكِ الشَّمْسِ إِلَىٰ غَسَقِ اللَّيْلِ وَقُرْآنَ الْفَجْرِ ۖ إِنَّ قُرْآنَ الْفَجْرِ كَانَ مَشْهُودًا﴾“Establish prayer at the decline of the sun [from its meridian] until the darkness of the night and [also] the Quran of dawn. Indeed, the recitation of dawn is ever witnessed.”Surah Al-Isra: 78

The Prophetic Sunnah then explained these times in detail. The best-known report on this is the hadith of Jibril (peace be upon him) leading the Prophet ﷺ in prayer for two days at the House: on the first day he led him in each prayer at the beginning of its time, and on the second day at the end of its time, and then he said at the end:

"O Muhammad, this is the time of the prophets before you, and the time is between these two times."Narrated by Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi

On this page we explain the religious signs of each prayer, how these signs are translated into precise astronomical calculations, and why times differ slightly between apps and timetables.

The religious signs of the times of the five prayers

Fajr prayer

Its time begins with the appearance of the true dawn, the horizontal whiteness spreading across the eastern horizon, as opposed to the false dawn, which appears as a vertical streak like a wolf's tail and is then followed by darkness. Its time ends at sunrise.

Dhuhr prayer

Its time begins at the sun's decline from the zenith (zawal), that is, its inclination from the middle of the sky towards the west after reaching its highest point, which is recognised by the shadows of objects beginning to lengthen after shortening. Its time ends when the time of Asr begins.

Asr prayer

According to the majority (the Malikis, Shafi'is and Hanbalis), its time begins when the shadow of each thing equals its length beyond the shadow at zawal, and according to Abu Hanifah, when the shadow of a thing is twice its length. The preferred time extends until the sun turns yellow, and the time of necessity until sunset.

Maghrib prayer

Its time begins with the complete setting of the sun's disc, and ends with the disappearance of the red twilight according to the majority.

Isha prayer

Its time begins with the disappearance of the red twilight according to the majority, and of the white twilight according to Abu Hanifah. The preferred time extends to a third or a half of the night, and the time of necessity until dawn according to the majority.

These signs are supported by what Muslim narrated from the hadith of 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) explaining the times, which begins:

"The time of Dhuhr is when the sun has declined and a man's shadow is like his height, as long as Asr has not come."Narrated by Muslim

How are prayer times calculated astronomically?

Astronomical calculations rely on the location (latitude and longitude), the date and the time zone, from which the sun's position in the sky at every moment is calculated. Each religious sign is then linked to a specific astronomical position:

• Dhuhr: the moment the sun crosses the meridian (its highest point); some timetables add a few minutes as a precaution.
• Maghrib and sunrise: the moment the upper edge of the sun's disc touches the horizon, taking atmospheric refraction into account, i.e. when the sun is about 0.833 degrees below the horizon.
• Fajr and Isha: calculated by the sun's angle of depression below the horizon: the true dawn appears when the sun is a certain angle below the eastern horizon, and the twilight disappears when the sun sinks a certain angle below the western horizon. This is where the biggest differences between authorities lie, because the estimate of this angle is based on observation and independent judgement.
• Asr: calculated by the length of the shadow: according to the majority view (including the Shafi'is) it begins when the shadow equals the length of the object plus the shadow at zawal, and according to the Hanafi school when it is twice the length plus the shadow at zawal. This is why Asr is later in the Hanafi calculation, by roughly an hour depending on the season and location.

Table of adopted calculation methods

Note that the difference between an angle of 15 degrees and 19.5 degrees can amount to more than twenty minutes in the time of Fajr, and it increases in summer and in countries far from the equator. In high-latitude regions, where the twilight may not disappear on some summer nights, authorities resort to estimation methods such as the middle of the night, one seventh of the night, or estimation based on the nearest country where the time is distinct.

How to use the prayer times tool

1. Set your location: either by allowing the browser to access your location to determine the coordinates automatically, or by choosing your city manually from the list. Your coordinates are not sent to any server; they are used for the calculation on your device.
2. Choose the calculation method: the tool suggests a suitable method for your country, and you can change it to match the local timetable.
3. Choose the Asr school: the majority (one shadow length) or Hanafi (two shadow lengths).
4. View the results: the tool shows the times of Fajr, sunrise, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha for the day, with a countdown to the next prayer.

To perform the prayer correctly you also need to know the Qibla direction from your location, and you can use the digital tasbih for the adhkar after the prayer.