Qibla direction in Paris

How to face the Qibla in Paris

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 29.2° towards south: the result is the bearing of 119.2°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 29° off.

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 Paris, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of one of the mosques of Paris 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

A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Paris to Mecca points to 132.4° (south-east), 13.2° away from the correct 119.2°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 28 km longer than the true shortest route. The Qibla follows the great circle, the shortest path on the curved Earth, which is why the bearing differs.

The value of 119.2° is the direction in which the shortest route from 48.8534° N, 2.3488° 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 Paris to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 4,496 km from Paris as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 4,220 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 5 h 47 min, although most pilgrims from Paris connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Paris run 2 hours behind Mecca in winter and 1 hour behind 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 Paris rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Paris

On 273 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Paris while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in March (31 days); for example, on 15 February 2027 it happens at 08:54 local time.

On 43 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in June (30 days), for instance on 1 June 2027 at 21:08.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Paris: at 11:18 and 11:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Paris compared with other cities

The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Marne La Vallée (22 km), prays towards 119.5°, a difference of 0.3°.

Across the 37 cities in France on this site, the Qibla ranges from 111.4° in Brest, Brittany Region, France to 125.3° in Strasbourg, a spread of 13.8°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for France.

Qibla in cities near Paris

• Marne La Vallée119.5° · 22 km
• Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines118.7° · 26 km
• Cergy-Pontoise119.0° · 29 km
• Orléans, Centre-Val de Loire, France117.7° · 111 km
• Rouen118.4° · 112 km
• Amiens120.2° · 116 km