Qibla · Balochistan Province
Qibla direction in Quetta
To face the Kaaba in Quetta, turn to 256.7° measured clockwise from true north, which is west (13.3° south of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 2,881 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Quetta should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 256.7°, the Qibla of Quetta. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 257° 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 Quetta
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 13.3° towards south: the result is the bearing of 256.7°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 13° 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 Quetta, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. Any of the mosques of Quetta 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 Quetta to Mecca points to 250.3° (west), 6.4° away from the correct 256.7°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 5 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 256.7° obtained? From the coordinates of Quetta (30.1841° N, 67.0014° E) 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 Quetta to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 2,881 km from Quetta as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 2,772 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 3 h 53 min, although most pilgrims from Quetta connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Quetta run 2 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Quetta rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Quetta
On 236 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Quetta 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 17:51 local time.
On 115 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 1 May 2027 at 06:27.
| 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 | 17:51 | — |
| 15 March 2027 | 17:13 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 16:27 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 15:49 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 15:09 | 06:27 |
| 15 May 2027 | 14:39 | 06:55 |
| 1 June 2027 | 14:13 | 07:25 |
| 15 June 2027 | 14:03 | 07:40 |
| 1 July 2027 | 14:09 | 07:41 |
| 15 July 2027 | 14:26 | 07:29 |
| 1 August 2027 | 14:56 | 07:00 |
| 15 August 2027 | 15:24 | 06:28 |
| 1 September 2027 | 15:59 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | 16:28 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | 17:01 | — |
| 15 October 2027 | 17:31 | — |
| 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 Quetta: at 14:18 and 14:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Quetta compared with other cities
Compared with Islamabad, 692 km away, the Qibla in Quetta is turned 0.8° further clockwise (256.7° against 255.8°), and Mecca is 648 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Chaman (97 km), prays towards 254.7°, a difference of 2.0°.
Across the 125 cities in Pakistan on this site, the Qibla ranges from 253.6° in Mingora to 269.0° in Badin, a spread of 15.5°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Pakistan.
Qibla in cities near Quetta
- Chaman254.7° · 97 km
- Dera Murad Jamali261.0° · 217 km
- Jacobabad261.6° · 253 km
- Garhi Khairo261.7° · 255 km
- Khuzdar261.2° · 266 km
- Shahdad Kot262.1° · 274 km
Qibla in Quetta: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Quetta?
It is 256.7° from true north, which is west: 13.3° south of west.
How far is Quetta from Mecca?
2,881 km in a straight line over the globe, and 2,772 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Quetta?
On 236 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 Quetta not the direction shown on a map?
Flat maps distort directions. The line on a map points to 250.3°, but the shortest route on the globe leaves Quetta at 256.7°, and that is the Qibla.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 256.7° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.