Guide
How to find the Qibla direction
The Qibla is the direction Muslims face in prayer: toward the Kaaba in Makkah. Wherever you are in the world, that direction can be worked out precisely from your location. Here is how it is calculated, and how to get an accurate reading on your phone.
What the Qibla actually is
The Qibla is not a fixed compass heading like “south-east” that applies everywhere. It is the direction of the shortest path along the Earth's surface from wherever you are standing to the Kaaba (latitude 21.4225°N, longitude 39.8262°E). Because the Earth is a sphere, that shortest path is a great-circle route, and the bearing it points to changes depending on where you are.
This is why two people in different cities face noticeably different compass directions for the same Kaaba — and why a printed “face east” rule of thumb is often wrong.
How the Qibla direction is calculated
Given your latitude and longitude, the Qibla bearing is the initial heading of the great-circle path from your position to the Kaaba, measured clockwise from true north. The calculation uses standard spherical trigonometry — the same great-circle formula navigators and aircraft use to find the shortest route between two points on the globe.
The important detail: the result is relative to true north, not the magnetic north your compass needle actually points to. The gap between the two is called magnetic declination, and it varies by location and drifts over time. An accurate Qibla reading has to correct for it.
Finding the Qibla with a phone compass
To get a reliable reading:
- Hold the phone flat and level, screen facing up, away from anything metal or magnetic — laptops, speakers, cases with magnets, and cars all throw a compass off.
- Let the app determine your location, so it can compute the true-north bearing to the Kaaba for exactly where you are.
- Turn slowly until the indicator aligns with the calculated Qibla bearing. That is the direction to face.
Why calibration matters
Phone magnetometers drift, especially after travel or near interference. If a compass feels stuck, jumps around, or disagrees with a known landmark, it needs calibrating — usually by moving the phone in a figure-eight motion a few times. A trustworthy Qibla tool prompts you to calibrate when the sensor reading looks unreliable, rather than silently showing a confident-but-wrong arrow.
An accurate Qibla, wherever you are
My Amaal calculates a true-north Qibla bearing from your location and shows it on a smooth, jitter-free compass, with a calibration prompt whenever the sensor needs it — because we treat accuracy as non-negotiable.
My Amaal is a personal worship companion, not a source of religious rulings. For questions about prayer in specific circumstances, consult qualified scholars you trust.