Qibla · Rabat-Salé-Kénitra
Qibla direction in Rabat
To face the Kaaba in Rabat, turn to 94.6° measured clockwise from true north, which is east (4.6° south of east). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 4,757 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Rabat should follow.
On the compass the green needle points to 94.6°. If your phone shows true north, rotate until the heading reads 95°; 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 Rabat
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 4.6° towards south: the result is the bearing of 94.6°. The direction is close to due east, which makes it easy to remember.
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 Rabat is a local mosque: its mihrab and prayer lines already point to the Qibla. See the mosques of Rabat. 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
A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Rabat to Mecca points to 107.0° (east), 12.4° away from the correct 94.6°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 30 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 angle on this page is the initial bearing of the great circle from 34.0133° N, 6.8326° W 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 Rabat to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 4,757 km from Rabat as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 4,589 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 6 h 06 min, although most pilgrims from Rabat connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Rabat 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 Rabat rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Rabat
On 194 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Rabat 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 1 April 2027 it happens at 07:31 local time.
On 158 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 May (31 days), for instance on 15 April 2027 at 18:01.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | — |
| 15 January 2027 | — | — |
| 1 February 2027 | — | — |
| 15 February 2027 | — | — |
| 1 March 2027 | — | — |
| 15 March 2027 | — | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 07:31 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 07:59 | 18:01 |
| 1 May 2027 | 08:30 | 17:24 |
| 15 May 2027 | 08:57 | 16:56 |
| 1 June 2027 | 09:24 | 16:32 |
| 15 June 2027 | 09:37 | 16:24 |
| 1 July 2027 | 09:39 | 16:29 |
| 15 July 2027 | 09:28 | 16:45 |
| 1 August 2027 | 09:01 | 17:13 |
| 15 August 2027 | 08:31 | 17:39 |
| 1 September 2027 | 07:50 | 18:12 |
| 15 September 2027 | 07:14 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | — | — |
| 15 October 2027 | — | — |
| 1 November 2027 | — | — |
| 15 November 2027 | — | — |
| 1 December 2027 | — | — |
| 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 Rabat: at 09:18 and 09:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Rabat compared with other cities
The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Kenitra (36 km), prays towards 95.0°, a difference of 0.4°.
Across the 34 cities in Morocco on this site, the Qibla ranges from 87.7° in Guelmim to 98.7° in Oujda, a spread of 11.0°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Morocco.
Qibla in cities near Rabat
- Kenitra95.0° · 36 km
- Mohammedia93.9° · 63 km
- Khemisset94.9° · 74 km
- Casablanca93.7° · 86 km
- Sidi Slimane95.5° · 88 km
- Bouskoura93.5° · 98 km
Qibla in Rabat: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Rabat?
It is 94.6° from true north, which is east: 4.6° south of east.
How far is Rabat from Mecca?
4,757 km in a straight line over the globe, and 4,589 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Rabat?
On 194 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 Rabat not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 107.0°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Rabat at 94.6°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 94.6° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.