To calculate your Hijri age by hand, take today’s Hijri date and subtract your Hijri date of birth: days from days, months from months, years from years, borrowing when a result goes negative. It is simple, with one detail most people get wrong: a Hijri month is not always 30 days. Here are two fully worked examples.
Step 0: find your Hijri date of birth
If your birth date is already in Hijri (on an older Saudi document, for example), use it directly. If it is Gregorian, convert it first with the Gregorian to Hijri converter. Example: 12 April 1995 is 12 Dhu al-Qa'dah 1415 AH.
You also need today’s Hijri date, shown at the top of every page on this site and on today’s Hijri date.
How to calculate Hijri age in three steps
- Days: subtract the birth day from today’s day. If negative, borrow a month: add the length of the previous Hijri month (29 or 30) and reduce the month by one.
- Months: subtract the birth month from today’s month. If negative, borrow a year: add 12 and reduce the year by one.
- Years: subtract the birth year from the current year.
Worked example without borrowing
Born 3 Muharram 1420 AH, today 11 Jumada al-Ula 1448 AH:
| Year | Month | Day | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 1448 | 5 | 11 |
| Birth | 1420 | 1 | 3 |
| Difference | 28 | 4 | 8 |
Hijri age: 28 years, 4 months and 8 days.
Worked example with borrowing
Born 12 Dhu al-Qa'dah 1415 AH, today 11 Jumada al-Ula 1448 AH:
- Days: 11 − 12 is negative, so borrow a month. The month before Jumada al-Ula is Rabi' al-Thani 1448, which has 30 days in Umm al-Qura: 11 + 30 − 12 = 29 days, and the month becomes 4.
- Months: 4 − 11 is negative, so borrow a year: 4 + 12 − 11 = 5 months, and the year becomes 1447.
- Years: 1447 − 1415 = 32 years.
Hijri age: 32 years, 5 months and 29 days. On the same day the Gregorian age was 31 years, 6 months and 10 days, as expected, since Hijri age is always higher.
Check both examples in the Hijri age calculator by opening “Calculate age on another date”.
Common mistakes
- Assuming 30-day months: some Umm al-Qura months have 29 days, which shifts the result by a day.
- Subtracting the year only: someone born in Dhu al-Qa'dah 1415 is not 33 in Jumada 1448, because their Hijri birthday has not come yet.
- Mixing calendars: never subtract a Gregorian year from a Hijri year. Convert both dates to the same calendar first.
- Using a different Islamic calendar: some apps use an approximate calendar that can be a day or two off Umm al-Qura.
Age by Hijri birth year in 1448 AH
| Born in | Roughly | Birthday passed | Not yet |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1400 AH | Nov 1979 to Nov 1980 | 48 | 47 |
| 1405 AH | Sep 1984 to Sep 1985 | 43 | 42 |
| 1410 AH | Aug 1989 to Jul 1990 | 38 | 37 |
| 1415 AH | Jun 1994 to May 1995 | 33 | 32 |
| 1417 AH | May 1996 to May 1997 | 31 | 30 |
| 1420 AH | Apr 1999 to Apr 2000 | 28 | 27 |
| 1425 AH | Feb 2004 to Feb 2005 | 23 | 22 |
| 1430 AH | Dec 2008 to Dec 2009 | 18 | 17 |
| 1435 AH | Nov 2013 to Oct 2014 | 13 | 12 |
| 1440 AH | Sep 2018 to Aug 2019 | 8 | 7 |
For the exact age in months and days and your next Hijri birthday, enter your full date in the Hijri age calculator. To compare with someone else, use the age difference calculator.
Sources
Dates and rules on this page are checked against:
- Official Umm al-Qura Calendar · Kingdom of Saudi ArabiaThe official table of Hijri month starts
- The Umm al-Qura Calendar of Saudi Arabia · R. H. van Gent, Utrecht UniversityDetailed study of the calendar rules over time
- Islamic calendar · WikipediaHijri months and the length of the lunar year
Frequently asked questions
How do I find my Hijri date of birth?
If your birth date is in Gregorian, convert it with an Umm al-Qura date converter. You get the Hijri day, month and year along with the weekday.
How old is someone born in 1417 AH?
In 1448 AH they are 31 in Hijri years if their Hijri birthday has passed this year, otherwise 30.
Can I just subtract the years?
Subtracting years gives an estimate that may be one year too high. For the exact age you also need to compare the month and day and borrow when needed.
How many days do I borrow in the Hijri calendar?
Borrow the length of the Hijri month before today’s month, which is 29 or 30 days in the Umm al-Qura calendar, not always 30.