Qibla · East Java
Qibla direction in Malang
To face the Kaaba in Malang, turn to 294.2° measured clockwise from true north, which is north-west (24.2° north of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 8,582 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Malang should follow.
On the compass the green needle points to 294.2°. If your phone shows true north, rotate until the heading reads 294°; with a classic magnetic compass, first correct for the local magnetic declination, which can shift the needle by several degrees.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Malang
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 24.2° towards north: the result is the bearing of 294.2°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 24° off.
Scholars agree that someone who can see the Kaaba must face it exactly, while someone far away faces its direction (jihat al-Ka‘bah) as precisely as reasonably possible. The simplest check in Malang is a local mosque: its mihrab and prayer lines already point to the Qibla. See the mosques of Malang. At home, mark the direction once with tape or a small arrow so the whole family prays the same way.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Malang to Mecca points to 292.4°, only 1.9° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 294.2° bearing remains the exact one.
The angle on this page is the initial bearing of the great circle from 7.9797° S, 112.6304° E to the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E). It is the method used by mosque architects and by every serious Qibla calculator, and it gives one exact answer for each point on Earth.
Distance from Malang to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 8,582 km from Malang as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 8,687 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 10 h 36 min, although most pilgrims from Malang connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Malang run 4 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Malang rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Malang
On 214 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Malang 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 1 March 2027 it happens at 11:45 local time.
On 138 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 January (31 days), for instance on 1 January 2027 at 08:28.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | 08:28 |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 09:09 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 10:09 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 10:58 |
| 1 March 2027 | 11:45 | — |
| 15 March 2027 | 12:28 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 13:20 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 14:03 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 14:53 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 15:38 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 16:30 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | — | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 16:57 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 16:28 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 15:37 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 14:50 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 13:50 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | 13:00 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | 12:02 | — |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 11:11 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 10:12 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 09:25 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 08:39 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | 08:14 |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Malang: at 16:18 and 16:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Malang compared with other cities
Compared with Jakarta, 668 km away, the Qibla in Malang is turned 0.9° further anticlockwise (294.2° against 295.2°), and Mecca is 662 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Batu (17 km), prays towards 294.2°, the same bearing to the tenth of a degree.
Across the 140 cities in Indonesia on this site, the Qibla ranges from 290.2° in Merauke to 295.5° in Pelabuhanratu, a spread of 5.3°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Indonesia.
Qibla in cities near Malang
Qibla in Malang: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Malang?
It is 294.2° from true north, which is north-west: 24.2° north of west.
How far is Malang from Mecca?
8,582 km in a straight line over the globe, and 8,687 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Malang?
On 214 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Is the Qibla the same everywhere in Indonesia?
No. It ranges from 290.2° to 295.5° across the country, so each city has its own bearing.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 294.2° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.
