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Quran Gallery Calculation methods

Prayer Time Calculation Methods: All 23 Compared

Fajr and Isha are set by how far the sun is below the horizon, and each authority picks its own angle. That is why two apps can show different times for the same city.

23 methodsFajr and Isha anglesAsr by madhab

Every method and its angles

Angles are degrees of the sun below the horizon. These values are read from the same settings that calculate the times in the app.

Prayer time calculation methods with Fajr, Isha and Maghrib settings
MethodFajrIsha
Muslim World League18°17°
Egyptian General Authority19.5°17.5°
University of Islamic Sciences, Karachi18°18°
Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah18.5°90 min after Maghrib
Dubai18.2°18.2°
Moonsighting Committee18°18°
ISNA (North America)15°15°
Kuwait18°17.5°
Qatar18°90 min after Maghrib
Singapore20°18°
JAKIM (Malaysia)18°18°
Kemenag (Indonesia)20°18°
Tehran17.7°14°
Jafari (Leva Institute, Qum)16°14°
Turkey18°17°
Gulf Region19.5°90 min after Maghrib
France (UOIF)12°12°
Russia (Spiritual Administration of Muslims)16°15°
Tunisia18°18°
Algeria18°17°
Morocco19°17°
Portugal (Comunidade Islamica de Lisboa)18°77 min after Maghrib
Jordan (Ministry of Awqaf)18°18°

Some authorities also add a few minutes of caution to each prayer: Kemenag adds 2 minutes to every prayer, Turkey adds 5, 4 and 7 minutes to Dhuhr, Asr and Maghrib, and Dubai adds 3 minutes to Dhuhr, Asr and Maghrib. Umm al-Qura lengthens Isha to 120 minutes in Ramadan. Morocco adds 5 minutes to Dhuhr and Maghrib, Portugal adds 5 to Dhuhr and 3 to Maghrib and Isha, and Jordan adds 5 to Maghrib.

The Moonsighting Committee uses 18° as its base and adjusts Fajr and Isha by season and latitude, so its fixed row is a starting point.

What the angle means

Fajr begins at the first true light on the eastern horizon, and Isha when the twilight in the west has gone. Astronomers state both as the sun's depth below the horizon. A larger angle means an earlier Fajr and a later Isha, so an 18° Fajr starts before a 15° Fajr.

Far from the equator

At high latitudes in summer the sun may never sink far enough to reach the Fajr or Isha angle, so the angle alone gives no time, or a very early Fajr and a very late Isha.

Above about 48° latitude the app applies the seventh-of-the-night rule, which keeps Fajr and Isha within one seventh of the night of sunrise and sunset. Below that it uses the middle-of-the-night rule, which keeps them within half the night. A prayer time that cannot be calculated at all is left out.

You can change this. In the prayer settings, choose the middle-of-the-night, one-seventh-of-the-night or angle-based rule instead of the automatic one. Open the prayer settings

Asr: Shafi or Hanafi

The method does not set the Asr rule. The madhab does. Asr begins when an object's shadow reaches a set multiple of its length, counted on top of the shadow it had at noon.

Shafi (also Maliki and Hanbali)
Asr begins when the shadow equals the object's length. This follows the hadith of Jibril leading the Prophet ﷺ in prayer (Sunan Abi Dawud 393, Jami at-Tirmidhi 149) and is the position stated in al-Nawawi's al-Majmu'.
Hanafi
Asr begins when the shadow is twice the object's length. This is the position of Abu Hanifa as given in al-Marghinani's al-Hidaya; his students Abu Yusuf and Muhammad held that it begins at one length.

Hanafi Asr falls later than Shafi Asr, and the gap depends on season and latitude. Choose the madhab you follow in Settings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do prayer apps show different Fajr times?

They use different calculation methods. Fajr is defined by the sun's angle below the horizon, and authorities choose angles from 15° (ISNA) to 20° (Singapore, Kemenag). A smaller angle gives a later Fajr. High-latitude rules and added safety minutes widen the gap further.

Which method should I use in the USA?

Most mosques in the United States and Canada follow ISNA, which uses 15° for both Fajr and Isha. Some follow the Moonsighting Committee instead. If your mosque publishes a timetable, pick the method whose times match it.

Which method should I use in the UK?

The UK has no single official method. Mosque timetables vary: some use 18° as in the Muslim World League, others follow the Moonsighting Committee, which allows for the long summer twilight at UK latitudes. Compare the app with your local mosque and pick the one that matches.

Which method should I use in Pakistan?

Use the University of Islamic Sciences, Karachi method, which sets Fajr and Isha at 18°. Pakistan mostly follows the Hanafi madhab, so set Asr to Hanafi.

Which method should I use in Indonesia?

Use Kemenag, the method of the Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs: 20° for Fajr, 18° for Isha and 2 minutes of caution added to every prayer. Most Indonesians follow the Shafi madhab, so set Asr to Shafi.

Which method should I use in Malaysia?

Use JAKIM, the method of the Islamic Development Department of Malaysia. It lowered the Fajr angle from 20° to 18° in 2019, so Subuh is about 8 minutes earlier than older timetables show.

Which method should I use if I am not sure?

If your local mosque publishes a timetable, choose the method whose times match it. If not, choose the method of your country's religious authority from the table on this page.

Where do I change the method in the app?

Open Settings on the prayer times page and choose the calculation method and the madhab for Asr.

Prayer Times

Now pick yours

Open today's times for your city, then choose the method and madhab that match your mosque in Settings.

Prayer Times