Gregorian to Hijri Date Converter: How to Convert Dates the Saudi Way

If you are working in Saudi Arabia — on a contract, a payroll cycle, a school term, or a religious-event schedule — you will eventually need to convert a Gregorian date (the calendar the world uses) to a Hijri date (the Islamic lunar calendar that Saudi Arabia officially uses). The official system is Umm al-Qura, and a small number of dates each year differ between Umm al-Qura and the more common astronomical Hijri calendar. This guide shows you how to convert correctly, what to watch out for, and when to use a tool instead of doing it by hand.

The Gregorian calendar is solar: 365.25 days per year, with leap years every four. The Hijri calendar is lunar: 354 or 355 days per year, based on the moon. That means 1 Hijri year is about 11 days shorter than 1 Gregorian year. The Hijri calendar started in 622 CE (the year of the Hijra, the Prophet Muhammad migration from Makkah to Madinah), so 1 Muharram 1 AH equals 16 July 622 CE in the Gregorian calendar.

Saudi Arabia does not use the pure astronomical Hijri calendar. Since 2019 the official Saudi government calendar is Umm al-Qura (أم القرى), produced by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). Umm al-Qura uses a rule-based table: each month is 29 or 30 days, with adjustments at the end of each year to keep the calendar predictable for civil and business use. Astronomical Hijri calendars (based on the new moon sighting) can be up to 2 days different from Umm al-Qura for the same Gregorian date.

Practical example: the Gregorian date 1 March 2026 corresponds to 12 Sha'ban 1447 AH in Umm al-Qura. An astronomical Hijri calendar might show 11 or 13 Sha'ban for the same date. For Saudi government, business, and school purposes, always use Umm al-Qura. For religious observance (Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, Hajj), follow the Saudi Supreme Court announcement, which is based on Umm al-Qura plus moon sighting.

You do not need to memorize the conversion formula. Modern tools handle it in milliseconds. The free Hijri-Gregorian Date Converter on this site uses the Intl islamic-umalqura calendar — the same system built into JavaScript that your browser already supports. Enter the day, month, and year in either calendar, and the converted date appears instantly. The result is bookmarkable and shareable, so you can save a specific conversion for your records.

When to use which system. Use Umm al-Qura for: Saudi government forms, school and university calendars, contract dates in Saudi Arabia, business invoices with Hijri dates, public-sector HR documents, and any official paperwork. Use astronomical Hijri for: academic research in astronomy, international comparative studies, and applications that explicitly follow global Islamic calendar conventions. The two systems differ by 0–2 days, so for a single day they almost always agree — the disagreement shows up in edge cases around month boundaries.

Common conversion mistakes to avoid. Mistake 1: using the astronomical Hijri when the Saudi government uses Umm al-Qura — your dates will be off by up to 2 days. Mistake 2: assuming the Hijri year is exactly 354 days — it can be 354 or 355, depending on the year. Mistake 3: confusing Hijri years AH (After Hijra) with BCE/CE — 1447 AH is in 2026 CE, not 1447 CE. Mistake 4: forgetting that Hijri months do not align with seasons — Ramadan moves 10–11 days earlier each Gregorian year.

Why the date matters for your business in Saudi Arabia. School year start dates, contract periods, end-of-service calculations, and Islamic holiday observances (Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, Hajj) are all set in the Hijri calendar. A payroll run on the wrong day, a school registration that misses the cutoff, or a contract signed on a public holiday are common mistakes that a reliable converter prevents. The Hijri Date Converter on this site is built specifically for Saudi users, using Umm al-Qura, and works in both directions (Gregorian to Hijri and Hijri to Gregorian).

A practical walk-through. Step 1: open the Hijri Date Converter. Step 2: pick the direction — "Gregorian → Hijri" or "Hijri → Gregorian". Step 3: enter the source date (day, month, year). Step 4: read the converted date in the target calendar. For example, to convert 15 June 2026 to Hijri: the result is 28 Dhu al-Hijjah 1447 AH (one day before the start of 1 Muharram 1448). To convert the other way, enter 1 Muharram 1447 to get 7 July 2025. The tool is designed to be the only date converter you need for Saudi work.

Historical context: the Umm al-Qura calendar was adopted as Saudi Arabia's official civil calendar in 2019, replacing the earlier practice of relying on the Supreme Court's moon sighting for each month. Today, government websites, school portals, banks, and payroll systems all use Umm al-Qura. If you are converting dates for any Saudi purpose, Umm al-Qura is the correct system. The converter on this site uses it by default.

The Hijri month names, in order, are: 1 Muharram, 2 Safar, 3 Rabi al-Awwal, 4 Rabi al-Thani, 5 Jumada al-Awwal, 6 Jumada al-Thani, 7 Rajab, 8 Sha'ban, 9 Ramadan, 10 Shawwal, 11 Dhu al-Qi'dah, 12 Dhu al-Hijjah. The most religiously significant months are Rajab (the month of Isra and Mi'raj), Ramadan (the month of fasting), and Dhu al-Hijjah (the month of Hajj and Eid al-Adha).

For the years 2026 through 2030, here are the Gregorian dates of the first day of each Hijri year: 1 Muharram 1447 = 7 July 2025; 1 Muharram 1448 = 26 June 2026; 1 Muharram 1449 = 15 June 2027; 1 Muharram 1450 = 4 June 2028; 1 Muharram 1451 = 24 May 2029. Bookmark this list — these are the most common dates you will need for Saudi business.

Frequently asked: yes, you can use the converter for past and future dates — it works for any Gregorian or Hijri year. Yes, the tool works in Arabic and English. Yes, you can convert important contract or payroll dates ahead of time. The Hijri Date Converter on this site is free, requires no signup, and is built for everyday Saudi use.