Qadha: how to make up missed prayers

Qadha is praying an obligatory prayer after its time has ended, to make up for one you missed. If you slept through a prayer or forgot it, you pray it as soon as you remember. Most scholars say any missed obligatory prayer should be made up, and the practical way to catch up on many is a steady plan: one or two extra prayers alongside each daily one.

مَنْ نَسِيَ صَلَاةً أَوْ نَامَ عَنْهَا فَكَفَّارَتُهَا أَنْ يُصَلِّيَهَا إِذَا ذَكَرَهَا

Whoever forgets a prayer or sleeps through it, its expiation is to pray it when he remembers it.

What does qadha mean?

A prayer prayed within its time is called ada' (performed). The same prayer prayed after its time has passed is qadha (made up). The prayer itself is identical: the same number of units, recited the same way. Only the timing and the intention change.

Do missed prayers have to be made up?

For a prayer missed through sleep or forgetfulness, the hadith above is direct: pray it when you remember. For prayers missed for other reasons, most scholars, including the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali schools, hold that they remain owed and must be made up, along with sincere repentance for the ones missed deliberately.

A minority of scholars took a different view of prayers abandoned on purpose: that they can't be made up and that the way back is repentance and plenty of voluntary prayer. Because this touches your own situation, it's worth asking a scholar you trust.

How do I work out how many I owe?

Start from when prayer became obligatory for you (puberty) and think through the periods when you weren't praying regularly. Count in days, then multiply by five for each prayer. When you can't be sure, scholars generally advise a careful estimate on the higher side, so that you finish knowing you've covered it.

How do I make up a prayer?

Pray it as you would in its time: two units for Fajr, four for Dhuhr, four for Asr, three for Maghrib and four for Isha. Make the intention that it is the qadha of that specific prayer, such as "the Asr I missed". Many scholars recommend praying a small number of missed prayers in their original order. When the list is long, you can work through it steadily.

Schools differ on the few short periods of the day when praying is disliked, such as during sunrise. Follow your own madhab on those.

A plan that works

Large numbers feel impossible, and that feeling is what stops most people. Small and regular works better:

• Pair them. Pray one missed prayer after each daily prayer: a missed Fajr after Fajr, a missed Dhuhr after Dhuhr. That clears a full day of qadha every day.
• Keep a count. Write down the total you're aiming for and tick off as you go. Seeing the number fall is motivating.
• Keep the daily five first. The prayers in front of you come before the ones behind you. Don't let catching up push today's prayers out of their time.

وَأَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ لِذِكْرِي

And establish prayer for My remembrance.

How Istiqama helps with qadha

Istiqama's Qadha page lists the prayers from your history that weren't logged, so you can see what's outstanding without keeping a separate tally. When you make one up, mark it as qadha: you can log a missed prayer as qadha for today or yesterday once its time has passed. Nothing is counted against you, and your heatmap keeps the honest record of your year.

Questions

Do I have to make up prayers I missed on purpose?

Most scholars, including the four Sunni schools, say yes, together with sincere repentance. A minority hold that a deliberately abandoned prayer can't be made up and that repentance and extra voluntary prayer are what's required. Ask a scholar you trust about your own case.

How do I make up a prayer?

Pray it exactly as you would have in its time, with the same number of units, and make the intention that it is the qadha of that prayer, for example "the Dhuhr I missed".

I don't know how many prayers I owe. What should I do?

Make your most careful estimate, leaning towards more rather than fewer, and work through that number. Scholars generally say this is what's asked of you when the exact count is unknown.