Do Shia Muslims pray three times a day?

11 November 2026

No. Shia Muslims pray the same five daily prayers as every Muslim: Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha. What you may have seen is the prayers joined in pairs, so the five fit into three sittings.

Five prayers, three times of day

Ayatollah al-Sistani's rulings set the times:

• Dhuhr and Asr share a time, from midday, when the sun starts to decline, until sunset. Dhuhr comes first; praying Asr before it on purpose makes Asr invalid (ruling 717).
• Maghrib and Isha share a time, from Maghrib until Shari'i midnight. Maghrib comes first (rulings 723 and 726).
• Fajr stands alone, from true dawn until sunrise (ruling 728).

Inside a shared time you can pray the two one after the other. Each prayer keeps its own number of rak'ahs, so nothing is dropped: five prayers, seventeen rak'ahs, in three sittings.

Where it comes from

The Qur'an gives the prayer times as three periods: "Establish the prayer from the decline of the sun until the darkness of the night, and the recitation at dawn" (17:78). Shia scholars read that as midday to night, night, and dawn.

Sunni collections record it too. In Sahih Muslim, Ibn Abbas reports that the Prophet prayed Dhuhr with Asr and Maghrib with Isha in Medina, when there was no fear and he was not travelling. Asked why, Ibn Abbas said it was so that his community would not be put to hardship (Sahih Muslim 705).

Joining is allowed, not required

You can pray all five apart, each at its own time, or join them in pairs. Many Shia join them on work and school days and pray them apart when they can. Both are correct.

How the app shows it

Shia Namaz lists all five prayers with their own times, and Midnight, marked as the end of Isha. Joining or praying apart is up to you.

See today's prayer times for your city →

Next guide: what is Salat al-Ayat? →