The qibla is the direction of the Kaaba in Makkah, which Muslims face in prayer (Al-Baqarah 2:144). From London it is 118.9 degrees clockwise from true north, east-south-east, along the shortest path over the Earth. The finder above, a qibla locator for anywhere, works it out for wherever you are.
What is the qibla?
Qibla means direction: the direction of the Kaaba, in the Sacred Mosque in Makkah. It is also spelt qiblah, kibla or kiblat. The Quran tells believers:
وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُۥ
"wheresoever you may be, turn your faces (when you pray) toward it."
Al-Baqarah 2:144
Which way is the qibla from UK cities?
Every UK city faces east-south-east, between about 115 and 121 degrees from true north. Use the finder for your exact street.
| City | Qibla direction | Compass point | Distance to Makkah |
|---|---|---|---|
| London | 118.9° | east-south-east | 4,795 km |
| Birmingham | 117.8° | east-south-east | 4,953 km |
| Manchester | 118.3° | east-south-east | 5,026 km |
| Bradford | 119.1° | east-south-east | 5,014 km |
| Leeds | 119.4° | east-south-east | 5,003 km |
| Leicester | 118.8° | east-south-east | 4,916 km |
| Luton | 118.9° | east-south-east | 4,832 km |
| Sheffield | 119.1° | east-south-east | 4,975 km |
| Liverpool | 117.5° | east-south-east | 5,066 km |
| Bristol | 116.1° | east-south-east | 4,944 km |
| Blackburn | 118.3° | east-south-east | 5,054 km |
| Newcastle | 120.3° | east-south-east | 5,072 km |
| Glasgow | 118.2° | east-south-east | 5,266 km |
| Edinburgh | 119.4° | east-south-east | 5,213 km |
| Cardiff | 115.6° | east-south-east | 4,982 km |
| Belfast | 115.4° | east-south-east | 5,297 km |
How do you use the qibla finder?
Find your direction
Tap "Use my location" and allow it when your browser asks, or search for your town. The bearing appears at once.
Hold the phone flat
Lay it in your palm, screen up, away from metal, speakers and other phones. Tap "Turn on compass" if your phone has one.
Turn until it lines up
Turn your body until the arrow points straight up and the finder says you are facing the qibla.
Check it against the map
The map draws the line from where you stand. Match it to a road or building you can see if the compass seems unsure.
Why do qibla apps and compasses disagree?
- Sphere or true shape. The Earth is slightly flattened. On a perfect sphere London's qibla comes out at 119.0 degrees; on the Earth's true shape it is 118.9. Small, but enough for two apps to differ.
- Shortest path or straight line on a flat map. Keeping one compass heading all the way from London would mean facing 133.8 degrees, nearer south-east. The qibla is the first step of the shortest path, which is why it is east-south-east.
- Magnetic or true north. A compass points to magnetic north. In London the gap is about 1.2 degrees in 2026; in New York it is about 12. The finder corrects for it.
- Phone sensors. Metal, magnets and other devices pull a phone's compass off, and it may need recalibrating. The map is a check that needs no compass.
How is the qibla direction calculated?
The finder measures the shortest path over the Earth's surface from your location to the Kaaba, at latitude 21.4225 north and longitude 39.8262 east, and gives the direction you face at the start of it. It uses the method of the GeographicLib library on the WGS84 model of the Earth, the model GPS uses. For the live compass it adds the magnetic correction for your place and date from the World Magnetic Model 2025.
We test the results against an independent method for cities on every side of Makkah; they agree to within a thousandth of a degree.
Questions people ask
Is the qibla south-east from the UK?
From the UK the qibla is east-south-east, about 119 degrees from true north in London, along the shortest path over the Earth. A straight line drawn on a flat map points more to the south-east, about 134 degrees, because a flat map stretches the Earth.
How do I find the qibla direction online from my location?
Tap "Use my location" at the top of this page and allow it when your browser asks. The direction appears in degrees from true north, with a compass arrow and a map. On a phone, tap "Turn on compass" and turn until the arrow points straight up.
Does the qibla finder work without my location?
Yes. Search for your town or city, or enter your latitude and longitude, and the finder works out the bearing from there. The live compass works with either.
Is my location stored or sent anywhere?
No. The direction is worked out on your phone or computer. Your location is not sent to Ilmwell or saved, and it is gone when you close the page.
Why does the compass arrow move or jump?
Phone compasses read the Earth's magnetic field, so metal, magnets, cars, speakers and other phones nearby can pull them off. Hold the phone flat, step away from them, and move it in a figure of eight to recalibrate.
How do I find the qibla on a map?
After the finder has your location, the map shows the line from where you stand towards Makkah over the streets around you. Pick a road or building along that line and face it.
Sources
- Al-Baqarah 2:144: Arabic from the Tanzil Project (CC BY 3.0). English: adapted from Marmaduke Pickthall's translation (1930), modernised and checked against modern translations.
- The Kaaba's position: Wikidata, Kaaba (Q29466) and Wikipedia, Kaaba, which agree to within a few metres. Checked 21 October 2026.
- The calculation: C. F. F. Karney, "Algorithms for geodesics", Journal of Geodesy 87 (2013), as implemented in GeographicLib.
- Magnetic north: the World Magnetic Model 2025 (NOAA and the British Geological Survey).
- Places: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Map: OpenStreetMap contributors.