Qibla · Bay
Qibla direction in Baidoa
To face the Kaaba in Baidoa, turn to 348.8° measured clockwise from true north, which is north (11.2° west of north). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 2,077 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Baidoa should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 348.8°, the Qibla of Baidoa. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 349° 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 Baidoa
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards north and move a further 11.2° towards west: the result is the bearing of 348.8°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at north would leave you about 11° 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 Baidoa, 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 Baidoa to Mecca points to 348.5°, only 0.3° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 348.8° bearing remains the exact one.
How is the figure of 348.8° obtained? From the coordinates of Baidoa (3.1138° N, 43.6498° 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 Baidoa to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 2,077 km from Baidoa as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 2,414 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 2 h 57 min, although most pilgrims from Baidoa connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Baidoa 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 Baidoa rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Baidoa
On 170 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Baidoa 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 12:10 local time.
On 195 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 11:47.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | 11:47 |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 11:55 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 12:03 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 12:07 |
| 1 March 2027 | — | 12:09 |
| 15 March 2027 | — | 12:10 |
| 1 April 2027 | 12:10 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 12:11 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 12:12 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 12:15 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 12:19 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | 12:23 | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 12:26 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 12:27 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 12:24 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 12:19 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 12:10 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 12:01 |
| 1 October 2027 | — | 11:50 |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 11:42 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 11:35 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 11:32 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 11:34 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | 11:38 |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Baidoa: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Baidoa compared with other cities
Compared with Mogadishu, 223 km away, the Qibla in Baidoa is turned 3.9° further clockwise (348.8° against 344.9°), and Mecca is 159 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Merca (199 km), prays towards 346.6°, a difference of 2.2°.
Across the 10 cities in Somalia on this site, the Qibla ranges from 313.0° in El Dibir to 353.2° in Kismayo, a spread of 40.2°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Somalia.
Qibla in cities near Baidoa
Qibla in Baidoa: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Baidoa?
It is 348.8° from true north, which is north: 11.2° west of north.
How far is Baidoa from Mecca?
2,077 km in a straight line over the globe, and 2,414 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Baidoa?
On 170 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 Somalia?
No. It ranges from 313.0° to 353.2° across the country, so each city has its own bearing.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 348.8° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.