Qibla · Montserrado County
Qibla direction in Monrovia
To face the Kaaba in Monrovia, turn to 67.5° measured clockwise from true north, which is north-east (22.5° north of east). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 5,689 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Monrovia should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 67.5°, the Qibla of Monrovia. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 67° is all you need; a needle compass reads magnetic north and needs the local declination added or subtracted first.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Monrovia
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 22.5° towards north: the result is the bearing of 67.5°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 23° off.
Facing the Qibla is a condition of the prayer. Whoever prays inside the Sacred Mosque faces the Kaaba itself; whoever is far away, as in Monrovia, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. Any of the mosques of Monrovia is a handy reference, because the prayer rows were aligned when it was built. Once you know the direction at home, a discreet mark on the wall saves you from checking again.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Monrovia to Mecca points to 72.8° (east), 5.4° away from the correct 67.5°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 12 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.
How is the figure of 67.5° obtained? From the coordinates of Monrovia (6.3005° N, 10.7969° W) and of the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E), spherical trigonometry gives the starting bearing of the great circle joining them. Mosque architects and astronomical Qibla tables rely on exactly the same calculation.
Distance from Monrovia to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 5,689 km from Monrovia as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 5,730 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 7 h 12 min, although most pilgrims from Monrovia connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Monrovia run 3 hours behind Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Monrovia rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Monrovia
On 143 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Monrovia while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in May (31 days); for example, on 15 April 2027 it happens at 12:08 local time.
On 172 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 March (31 days), for instance on 15 January 2027 at 18:05.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | — |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 18:05 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 16:57 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 16:01 |
| 1 March 2027 | — | 15:06 |
| 15 March 2027 | — | 14:11 |
| 1 April 2027 | — | 13:04 |
| 15 April 2027 | 12:08 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 11:05 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 10:09 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 09:01 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | 07:30 | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 07:13 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 09:24 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 10:33 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 11:25 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 12:24 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 13:10 |
| 1 October 2027 | — | 14:02 |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 14:50 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 15:53 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 16:51 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 18:05 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | — |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Monrovia: at 09:18 and 09:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Monrovia compared with other cities
See all cities on the Qibla page for Liberia.
Qibla in Monrovia: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Monrovia?
It is 67.5° from true north, which is north-east: 22.5° north of east.
How far is Monrovia from Mecca?
5,689 km in a straight line over the globe, and 5,730 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Monrovia?
On 143 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.
Why is the Qibla in Monrovia not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 72.8°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Monrovia at 67.5°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 67.5° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.