How Many Rakats in Each Prayer? Complete Chart & Guide
How many rakats in each prayer? Here is the complete Hanafi breakdown: Fajr 4, Dhuhr 12, Asr 8, Maghrib 7, Isha 17 — 48 rakats in total across the five daily prayers, of which 17 are fard (obligatory). In this guide to how many rakats in each prayer, we give you the full chart with sunnah, fard, nafl and witr, and explain exactly which rakats are obligatory.
The five daily prayers are built from different types of rakats: fard (obligatory), sunnah muakkadah (emphasized sunnah), sunnah ghair muakkadah (non-emphasized sunnah), nafl (voluntary) and witr (the odd-numbered prayer attached to Isha). The chart below follows the Hanafi school, the most widely followed school in Qatar and South Asia. If you follow another school, the fard counts are the same — only the sunnah and nafl numbers differ slightly.
Rakats Chart: How Many Rakats in Each Prayer
| Prayer | Sunnah before | Fard | Sunnah after | Nafl / Witr | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fajr | 2 | 2 | – | – | 4 |
| Dhuhr | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 nafl | 12 |
| Asr | 4 (ghair muakkadah) | 4 | – | – | 8 |
| Maghrib | – | 3 | 2 | 2 nafl | 7 |
| Isha | 4 (ghair muakkadah) | 4 | 2 | 2 nafl + 3 witr | 17 |
Add them up and the answer to how many rakats in each prayer is 48 total per day: 4 + 12 + 8 + 7 + 17. The heaviest prayer is Isha at 17, and the lightest is Fajr at 4. For the timings of each of these prayers in Qatar, see our Isha prayer time in Qatar guide and the other prayer-time articles on this site.
It helps to memorize the fard numbers first — 2, 4, 4, 3, 4 — since these never change. Then add the sunnah layers around them. A useful habit is to pray the sunnah muakkadah rakats right before and after the fard, so the whole prayer feels like one complete act of worship rather than separate pieces.
Which Rakats Are Obligatory?
Only the fard rakats are obligatory: 2 (Fajr) + 4 (Dhuhr) + 4 (Asr) + 3 (Maghrib) + 4 (Isha) = 17 fard rakats per day. If you pray only these 17, your obligation is fulfilled. The sunnah and nafl rakats are not obligatory, but they carry immense reward and compensate for any deficiencies in the fard — so they should not be abandoned casually.
New Muslims and children should focus on the 17 fard first and add the sunnah gradually — Islam encourages gradual, consistent worship over overwhelming beginnings. Once the fard feels natural, add the two sunnah before Fajr, then the sunnahs around Dhuhr, and build up from there.
Witr — the 3 rakats prayed after Isha — is wajib (necessary) in the Hanafi school, a level just below fard, so it should never be skipped without excuse. The sunnah muakkadah rakats (2 before Fajr, 4 before and 2 after Dhuhr, 2 after Maghrib, 2 after Isha) were hardly ever left by the Prophet ﷺ. For detailed evidence on the rakats of each prayer, see IslamQA.
Frequently Asked Questions About How Many Rakats in Each Prayer
How many rakats are there in the 5 daily prayers?
There are 48 rakats in total in the Hanafi breakdown: Fajr 4, Dhuhr 12, Asr 8, Maghrib 7 and Isha 17. Of these 48, exactly 17 are fard (obligatory) — and knowing how many rakats in each prayer are fard is what matters most for the validity of your worship.
How many rakats is Fajr?
Fajr is 4 rakats in total: 2 sunnah muakkadah prayed before the fard, then 2 fard. The 2 sunnah before Fajr are among the most emphasized voluntary prayers — the Prophet ﷺ said they are better than the world and everything in it.
How many rakats is Isha including Witr?
Isha is 17 rakats in total: 4 sunnah (ghair muakkadah), 4 fard, 2 sunnah muakkadah, 2 nafl and 3 witr. The witr is wajib in the Hanafi school, so the minimum a person should pray at night is the 4 fard plus the 3 witr.
Can I pray only the fard rakats?
Yes — the obligation is fulfilled with the 17 fard rakats alone. But the sunnah and nafl rakats bring extra reward, build consistency and compensate for shortcomings in the fard. So while the short answer to how many rakats in each prayer are obligatory is 17 per day, the fuller Sunnah practice is 48, and every extra rakat is a treasure.
