Prayer Times Washington (DC), DC Today

How Prayer Times in Washington Change Through the Year

Prayer times in Washington are set by the sun, so they move every single day. The biggest daily swing is at dawn. The earliest Fajr of 2026 in Washington falls on 11 Jun 2026 at 4:08 AM, while the latest Fajr arrives on 31 Oct 2026 at 6:20 AM. That is a difference of 2 hours 12 minutes across the year, which is why a timetable printed in January cannot be reused in June. The swing is wide because Washington sits at 38.9 degrees north, far enough from the equator for the seasons to move the sun's path a long way.

The evening moves even more than the morning. The earliest Maghrib of the year in Washington is 4:46 PM on 01 Dec 2026; the latest is 8:38 PM on 26 Jun 2026, a shift of 3 hours 52 minutes. On the longest day, 21 Jun 2026, sunset holds until 8:37 PM; on the shortest day, 21 Dec 2026, it comes at 4:50 PM.

Anyone who keeps the voluntary fasts, on Mondays and Thursdays or the white days of each month, feels the range most. The longest fast of 2026 in Washington runs 16 hours 29 minutes, on 20 Jun 2026, from a Fajr of 4:08 AM to a Maghrib of 8:37 PM; the shortest is just 10 hours 46 minutes on 18 Dec 2026. Measured against the other 218 cities and neighbourhoods we track, that longest fast ranks 84 of 218. Solar noon drifts as well: Dhuhr moves between 11:52 AM and 1:19 PM across the year, following the equation of time.

How Each Prayer Time Is Calculated in Washington

Why do the times on this page move a little every day? Because each of the five prayers begins at a set position of the sun. PrayerTimesUSA works out the Washington schedule with the ISNA method used across most of North America: Fajr and Isha at 15 degrees of sun depression, Asr by the standard shadow rule, with the Hanafi Asr in the method selector above. The Hijri date today in Washington is 23 Jumādá al-ūlá 1448 (03 Nov 2026).

Fajr (5:23 AM today)

Fajr is prayed at dawn, when light first appears across the horizon before sunrise. Today in Washington it begins at 5:23 AM and must be finished by sunrise (6:38 AM). Across the year, Washington's dawn moves from 4:08 AM at the earliest to 6:20 AM at the latest, so regular worshippers reset their Fajr alarm every few weeks.

Dhuhr (11:52 AM today)

Dhuhr starts once the sun has crossed its peak and begun to decline. Solar noon is not the same as 12:00 on the clock, because Washington sits within the America/New_York zone, away from its central meridian: today Dhuhr in Washington is 11:52 AM. On Fridays the Jummah congregation takes the place of Dhuhr.

Asr (2:43 PM today)

Under the standard rule used by the Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali schools, Asr opens when a shadow stretches to the object's own length beyond the noon shadow. That gives 2:43 PM in Washington today. Hanafi Asr, at twice the length, lands roughly 45 to 65 minutes later; flip the method selector at the top of the page to see it. The time to pray Asr runs out as the light yellows toward sunset.

Maghrib (5:05 PM today)

At 5:05 PM today in Washington, the sun sets and Maghrib begins. Its window is the shortest of the day, so it is prayed promptly. On fasting days this same moment is iftar: break the fast first, following the Sunnah, with dates or water.

Isha (6:20 PM today) and the Last Third of the Night

When the red twilight has gone from the west, Isha begins: 6:20 PM tonight in Washington. The night that follows is measured from Maghrib to Fajr; its last third, after Islamic midnight, is the Tahajjud time. Use the Tahajjud calculator to find tonight's last third in Washington.

Friday Jummah and Mosques in Washington, Washington D.C.

Jummah, the Friday congregational prayer, replaces Dhuhr every week and is the largest regular gathering of Muslims in Washington. 6 mosques and Islamic centers in Washington are listed below with their addresses, including Islamic Center of Washington at 2551 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008. Islamic Center of Washington publishes a Jummah time of 1:30 PM. Other mosques set their own khutbah times, so confirm before you travel.

Beyond Friday, expect daily congregational prayers, children's Quran classes and taraweeh in Ramadan at these centers. Mosque not listed? Send us the details and we will add it with its address and Jummah time.

Finding the Qibla Direction in Washington (56.56° North-East)

Prayer is valid only when faced toward the Kaaba in Mecca, and from Washington the shortest path over the Earth's surface, the great-circle route, points 56.56° north-east from true north. The bearing is calculated from Washington's coordinates (38.9° N, 77.0° W) to the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E). At about 6606 miles (10632 km), that puts Washington among the closer American places to Mecca. It surprises many people that the direction is north-east rather than south-east: from North America, the shortest line to Mecca crosses the North Atlantic, not the Pacific.

To face the qibla at home or at work in Washington, open the Qibla Compass on your phone, calibrate it with a slow figure-eight motion, and keep it away from metal furniture and electrical equipment that pull the needle. In a mosque, the mihrab already marks the direction.

Daylight Saving Time in Washington D.C.: The Two Jump Days

Twice a year in Washington, the clock moves and every prayer time jumps with it. When daylight saving time begins on 08 Mar 2026, Fajr moves from 5:19 AM to 6:17 AM in a single night, a shift of just under an hour, and Maghrib moves from 6:07 PM to 7:08 PM. When standard time returns on 01 Nov 2026, Fajr moves from 6:20 AM back to 5:21 AM, and sunset prayers come an hour earlier in the evening. Every time on this page already follows the America/New_York clock in force on that date, so no manual adjustment is ever needed.

Daily Adhkar and Duas for Washington

Complete the prayers with the authentic supplications: the dua after adhan, dua after wudu, the 33-times tasbih after each prayer, and duas for hardship and gratitude. Read them in our dua library with Arabic text, transliteration and translation.