Qibla direction in Abhā

How to face the Qibla in Abhā

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards north and move a further 37.7° towards west: the result is the bearing of 322.3°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “north” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Abhā.

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 Abhā, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. A nearby mosque is a handy reference, because its 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

On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Abhā to Mecca points to 321.8°, only 0.4° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 322.3° bearing remains the exact one.

How is the figure of 322.3° obtained? From the coordinates of Abhā (18.2164° N, 42.5053° 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 Abhā to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 453 km from Abhā as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 757 km away. The distance is short enough that many pilgrims from Abhā travel to the Hijaz by road.

Clocks in Abhā run the same time as Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Abhā rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Abhā

On 80 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Abhā while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in July (31 days); for example, on 15 May 2027 it happens at 12:08 local time.

On 285 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 10:08.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Abhā: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Abhā compared with other cities

Compared with Riyadh, 841 km away, the Qibla in Abhā is turned 78.1° further clockwise (322.3° against 244.2°), and Mecca is 340 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Khamis Mushait (26 km), prays towards 319.3°, a difference of 3.0°.

Across the 27 cities in Saudi Arabia on this site, the Qibla ranges from 96.4° in Jeddah to 330.8° in Jizan, a spread of 234.5°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Saudi Arabia.

Qibla in cities near Abhā

• Khamis Mushait319.3° · 26 km
• Şabyā328.7° · 119 km
• Jizan330.8° · 148 km
• Sabt Al Alaya313.0° · 162 km
• Najran314.8° · 190 km
• Bisha299.2° · 199 km