When does each prayer time end?
Each prayer's time ends when the next one begins, with two exceptions: Fajr ends at sunrise, and Isha is best prayed before the middle of the night. Asr should ideally be prayed before the sun turns yellow. Your prayer app's start times already show you most of the end times.
The basic rule
The Prophet ﷺ explained the time windows: Dhuhr runs from when the sun passes its highest point until Asr comes; Asr lasts as long as the sun has not turned yellow; Maghrib lasts until the red twilight disappears; Isha lasts until the middle of the night; and Fajr lasts from dawn until the sun begins to rise (Sahih Muslim 612).
Prayer by prayer
- Fajr: ends at sunrise. Check the "sunrise" (shuruq) line in your app; that is your deadline.
- Dhuhr: ends when Asr begins. The majority use the time when an object's shadow equals its height ("Asr 1" or "standard"); the Hanafi school uses twice its height ("Asr 2" or "Hanafi"), so Dhuhr lasts longer for them.
- Asr: the preferred time ends when the sun turns pale yellow, roughly 30 to 45 minutes before sunset. If you're late, still pray before sunset: whoever catches one rakah of Asr before the sun sets has caught it (Sahih al-Bukhari 579). Deliberately delaying it until then is disliked.
- Maghrib: the shortest window. It ends when the twilight fades and Isha begins, often 75 to 90 minutes after sunset in the UK and the USA, longer in summer.
- Isha: the preferred time ends at the middle of the night (halfway between sunset and Fajr). Most scholars say it can still be prayed, though not ideally, until Fajr begins.
How to work out "the middle of the night"
Take the time between Maghrib and Fajr and halve it. If sunset is 18:00 and Fajr is 06:00, the middle of the night is midnight. Many apps show this as "midnight" or "Isha ends".
What if I miss the time?
If a prayer's time ends because you overslept or forgot, pray it as soon as you remember; that is its time. Deliberately leaving it past its time is a serious matter, so repent and make it up straight away. For long days at work or college, you may be able to combine in some situations. See Can I combine prayers because of my class schedule?
And if your app's times look off, especially in summer in the north, compare it with your local mosque's timetable. See Can I trust prayer time apps?
- Dhuhr, Asr and Maghrib end when the next prayer begins.
- Fajr ends at sunrise, not at Dhuhr.
- Pray Asr before the sun turns yellow and Isha before midnight if you can.
- A missed prayer is made up as soon as you remember.
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