Prayer Times Calculator

Understanding Islamic Prayer Times

Islamic prayer times are determined by the position of the sun relative to the observer's local horizon. The five daily prayers (salah) are Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, and Isha, with Sunrise marking the end of the Fajr prayer window. Each prayer begins when the sun reaches a specific position in the sky, which changes every day based on your geographic location and the time of year. This calculator computes all times using astronomical equations that model the sun's apparent motion across the sky.

The calculation begins with converting the calendar date to a Julian date, which provides a continuous day count used in astronomical formulas. From this, the calculator determines the sun's declination (its angle above or below the celestial equator) and the equation of time (the difference between solar time and clock time caused by Earth's elliptical orbit and axial tilt). These two values, combined with your latitude and longitude, allow precise calculation of when the sun crosses any given angle relative to your horizon.

Fajr begins when the first light of dawn appears on the horizon, which occurs when the sun is a specific number of degrees below the horizon. Different calculation authorities disagree on the exact angle, which is why multiple methods exist. Dhuhr occurs at solar noon when the sun reaches its highest point. Asr begins when an object's shadow reaches a specific length relative to the object's height. Maghrib starts at sunset when the sun drops below the horizon. Isha begins when twilight disappears, again defined by a specific sun angle below the horizon.

The five calculation methods offered in this tool represent the major Islamic authorities worldwide. The Muslim World League method is widely used internationally. ISNA is standard across North America. The Egyptian General Authority method is followed in much of Africa and the Middle East. Umm Al-Qura University is the official method in Saudi Arabia. The University of Islamic Sciences, Karachi method is predominant in South Asia.

All calculations in this tool run entirely in your browser. No data is sent to any server, no API calls are made, and your location is only used locally to compute prayer times. You can use this tool offline after the initial page load, making it a reliable reference for daily prayer scheduling anywhere in the world.