Isha prayer: 4 rak‘ahs, step by step
The night prayer: what is recited, aloud then silently
Isha, the night prayer, has 4 obligatory rak‘ahs. The imam recites aloud in the first two, Al-Fatiha then a surah, and silently in the last two, Al-Fatiha alone. A first tashahhud follows the second rak‘ah, and the last one closes the prayer.
What the schools agree on
Isha has 4 rak‘ahs: two recited aloud by the imam, then two silent ones, with Al-Fatiha alone.
As at Dhuhr and Asr, you sit twice: after the second rak‘ah, then at the end.
Ibn ‘Umar memorised ten sunnah rak‘ahs from the Prophet ﷺ: two before Dhuhr and two after, two after Maghrib, two after Isha and two before Fajr.
Isha, rak‘ah by rak‘ah
The table details the 4 rak‘ahs of Isha, with the voice of each and what follows it. The movements and words of each position are on the positions page.
| Rak‘ah | Recitation | Imam’s voice | Then |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al-Fatiha, then a surah | aloud | stand up |
| 2 | Al-Fatiha, then a surah | aloud | first tashahhud, then stand up |
| 3 | Al-Fatiha alone | silent | stand up |
| 4 | Al-Fatiha alone | silent | last tashahhud, prayers upon the Prophet ﷺ, salam |
The four schools, all valid
Which surahs to recite at Isha?
For the evening prayer, the Prophet ﷺ advised surahs such as Al-A'la, Ash-Shams and Al-Layl, and he recited At-Tin at Isha while travelling.
Mu‘adh led the evening prayer and made it too long: the Prophet ﷺ advised him to recite surahs such as Al-A‘la, Ash-Shams and Al-Layl.
While travelling, the Prophet ﷺ recited Surah At-Tin in one of the rak‘ahs of Isha.
Abu Hurayra described a prayer very close to the Prophet’s ﷺ: the first two rak‘ahs of Dhuhr long, Asr lighter, short surahs at Maghrib, surahs like Ash-Shams at Isha and two long surahs at Fajr.
| Surah | Verses | Listening | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al-A'la | 19 | 1 min 54 s | Sahih al-Bukhari 705 |
| Ash-Shams | 15 | 1 min 28 s | Sahih al-Bukhari 705 |
| Al-Layl | 21 | 2 min 00 s | Sahih al-Bukhari 705 |
| At-Tin | 8 | 52 s | Sahih al-Bukhari 767 |
| An-Naba' | 40 | 5 min 06 s | Mufassal, medium |
| An-Nazi'at | 46 | 4 min 43 s | Mufassal, medium |
| 'Abasa | 42 | 3 min 42 s | Mufassal, medium |
| At-Takwir | 29 | 2 min 22 s | Mufassal, medium |
| Al-Infitar | 19 | 2 min 06 s | Mufassal, medium |
| Al-Mutaffifin | 36 | 4 min 47 s | Mufassal, medium |
Frequently asked questions
How many rak‘ahs does Isha have?
4 obligatory rak‘ahs, followed by 2 sunnah rak‘ahs.
Is Witr part of Isha?
No. Witr is a separate prayer, prayed after Isha; its rules vary between the schools.
Can the same surahs be recited as at Maghrib?
Yes, any surah is fine. Practice is simply to recite slightly longer surahs at Isha than at Maghrib.
How can I check my Fatiha and the surahs I recite in prayer?
Recite them out loud in the Tilawa app: it follows your recitation word by word and shows you the words and tajweed rules to work on. During prayer, it can also follow the verses you recite.
Tilawa editorial team · Updated 2026-10-24 · Report an error