1Night
Find the night
The Islamic night runs from Maghrib, at sunset, to Fajr, at true dawn. Its length changes every day.
Islamic midnight, tonight and this week
The halfway point between Maghrib and Fajr, where you are. It marks the end of the preferred time for Isha. Pick a city or use your location, or type in your masjid's times.
Islamic midnight tonightFind your time
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| Night of | Maghrib | Midnight | Fajr |
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Your location stays in your browser. It is used to work out the times and is never sent anywhere.
How it works
Three steps, one time
2Half
Halve it
Take the time from Maghrib to the next Fajr and divide it by two.
3Add
Add it to Maghrib
Maghrib plus half the night is Islamic midnight. Most nights it falls between 11 pm and 1 am.
Guide
What Islamic midnight is, and why it matters
Islamic midnight is the halfway point of the night, between Maghrib and Fajr. It is not 12 am. Because sunset and dawn move through the year, it moves too: in winter in New York it can be before 11:30 pm, and in summer in London well after 1 am. Its main use is for Isha: the Prophet ﷺ gave the time of Isha as lasting until the middle of the night.
وَوَقْتُ الْعِشَاءِ إِلَى نِصْفِ اللَّيْلِ
Wa waqtul-ʿishāʾi ilā niṣfil-layl
"And the time of Isha is until the middle of the night."
Sahih Muslim 612, from Abdullah ibn Amr, part of a longer hadith on the times of the five prayers. Sahih.
Isha and midnight, Hanafi position first
Hanafi position
Isha begins when the twilight has gone and remains valid until Fajr. Delaying it to the end of the first third of the night is mustahabb (preferred). Praying it between the first third and midnight is allowed. Delaying it past Islamic midnight without a reason is makruh (disliked), though the prayer is still on time until Fajr. After Fajr begins it must be made up.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Isha is valid until Fajr. Its chosen time ends at a third of the night (half in another view), and after that it is a time of permission, best avoided without a need.
- Maliki
- The chosen time of Isha ends at the first third of the night. After that it is a time of necessity: the prayer is valid until Fajr, but delaying it into that time without an excuse is a sin.
- Hanbali
- The chosen time ends at a third of the night (half in another narration). After half the night it is a time of necessity, and delaying it until then without an excuse is a sin, though it is still prayed on time until Fajr.
The Prophet ﷺ liked to delay Isha, but spared his ummah the hardship:
لَوْلاَ أَنْ أَشُقَّ عَلَى أُمَّتِي لأَمَرْتُهُمْ أَنْ يُؤَخِّرُوا الْعِشَاءَ إِلَى ثُلُثِ اللَّيْلِ أَوْ نِصْفِهِ
Lawlā an ashuqqa ʿalā ummatī la-amartuhum an yuʾakhkhirul-ʿishāʾa ilā thuluthil-layli aw niṣfih
"Were it not that it would be hard on my ummah, I would have ordered them to delay Isha until a third of the night, or half of it."
Jami at-Tirmidhi 167, from Abu Hurairah. Tirmidhi graded it hasan sahih.
Two ways to count the night
We count the night from Maghrib to Fajr, which is how the Hanafi school and most scholars define the night for prayer. Some timetables count from sunset to sunrise instead. That makes the night longer and puts midnight about 30 to 45 minutes later. The tool shows both, so you can match your timetable. If you are unsure, follow the earlier time: Isha prayed before it is before midnight on both counts.
A worked example
Maghrib is at 6:10 pm and Fajr the next morning is at 5:40 am. The night is 11 hours 30 minutes. Half of that is 5 hours 45 minutes, so Islamic midnight is 6:10 pm + 5:45 = 11:55 pm. A third of the night is 3 hours 50 minutes, so the first third, the best time for Isha, ends at 10:00 pm. Type these two times into the boxes on the right to check.
Why the Fajr method changes the answer
Fajr times are worked out from how far the sun is below the horizon: 18° for the Muslim World League, 15° for ISNA, and other angles elsewhere. An earlier Fajr makes the night shorter, so midnight comes earlier. The tool starts with the method used in your city, and you can change it to match your masjid. In summer at high latitudes, where the twilight may not fully go, it uses the same high-latitude rule as our prayer times.
Midnight, witr and the night prayer
Witr can be prayed any time after Isha until Fajr. Tahajjud is best in the last third of the night, which begins two thirds of the way from Maghrib to Fajr: see tahajjud time tonight. For when Isha starts, with both Hanafi views on the twilight, see when Isha starts and ends.
- Sahih Muslim 612, from Abdullah ibn Amr.
- Jami at-Tirmidhi 167, from Abu Hurairah, graded hasan sahih by Tirmidhi.
- Al-Marghinani, al-Hidayah, Bab al-Mawaqit; Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab al-Salah, on delaying Isha. The other madhhabs' positions are summarised from their standard manuals: al-Nawawi, al-Majmu; al-Dardir, al-Sharh al-Kabir; Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni.
- Times are calculated in your browser with adhan.js, the same library as our prayer times.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Questions
Good to know
Is Islamic midnight 12 am?
No. It is the halfway point between Maghrib and Fajr, which changes every night. It is often between 11 pm and 1 am, and can be earlier in winter and later in summer.
How do I calculate Islamic midnight?
Find the time from Maghrib to the next Fajr, halve it, and add that to Maghrib. For Maghrib at 6:10 pm and Fajr at 5:40 am, the night is 11 h 30 min, half is 5 h 45 min, and midnight is 11:55 pm.
Can I pray Isha after Islamic midnight?
Yes, the prayer is valid until Fajr begins. In the Hanafi school, delaying it past midnight without a reason is disliked (makruh). The Maliki and Hanbali schools hold it is a sin to delay it that long without an excuse.
Is midnight counted to Fajr or to sunrise?
Most scholars, including the Hanafi school, count the night from Maghrib to Fajr. Some timetables count to sunrise, which gives a later midnight. The tool shows both.
What is the best time to pray Isha?
In the Hanafi school, delaying it to around the end of the first third of the night is preferred, as long as it is not hard on the people praying. The tool shows when the first third ends.