Qibla direction in Cairo

How to face the Qibla in Cairo

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards south and move a further 43.8° towards east: the result is the bearing of 136.2°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “south” would be off by more than 40°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Cairo.

The scholars distinguish two cases: the one who sees the Kaaba aims at the building itself, while the one who cannot see it, as anywhere in Cairo, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of one of the mosques of Cairo is a quick way to confirm the result. If you travel or move house, check the angle again, since it changes from place to place.

Why a flat map shows a different direction

On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Cairo to Mecca points to 138.2°, only 2.0° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 136.2° bearing remains the exact one.

The value of 136.2° is the direction in which the shortest route from 30.0626° N, 31.2497° E sets off towards the Kaaba at 21.4225° N, 39.8262° E. Every accurate Qibla calculator, and the plans of well-oriented mosques, arrive at the same angle for this point.

Distance from Cairo to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 1,288 km from Cairo as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 1,034 km away. The distance is short enough that many pilgrims from Cairo travel to the Hijaz by road.

Clocks in Cairo run 1 hour behind Mecca in winter and the same time as Mecca in summer, because of daylight saving time. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Cairo rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Cairo

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Cairo while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in January (31 days); for example, on 1 January 2027 it happens at 09:02 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Cairo during daylight, so the shadow method does not apply here; the left-hand column is the one to use.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Cairo: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Cairo compared with other cities

The nearest city with its own Qibla page, New Cairo (22 km), prays towards 136.9°, a difference of 0.7°.

Across the 55 cities in Egypt on this site, the Qibla ranges from 111.3° in Aswān to 149.5° in Arish, a spread of 38.2°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Egypt.

Qibla in cities near Cairo

• New Cairo136.9° · 22 km
• Helwan135.7° · 25 km
• Al-'Ubūr137.6° · 29 km
• 6th of October City134.7° · 33 km
• Ashmūn136.1° · 37 km
• Banhā137.3° · 45 km