The short answer
Zakat (also spelt zakah) is the alms due on qualifying wealth, one of the five things Islam is built on in Sahih al-Bukhari 8, graded sahih. Its meaning in the language is growth. For gold and silver, the four school works set it at one-fortieth (2.5%) once the nisab has been held for a year. At-Tawbah 9:60 sets eligibility.
What this page does not do
Here is how zakat works in principle. It cannot tell you what you owe, and nobody here is asking you for anything. Your savings, debts, jewellery, business and circumstances are your own. A scholar you trust can tell you how your school treats them, and an accountant can help you work out the figures. If money is tight right now, a scholar can also tell you how that affects zakat for you, and you are welcome to ask.
What does zakat mean?
Al-Ghazzi (Shafi'i), in Fath al-Qarib, gives growth as the word's meaning in the language, and defines zakat in law as specified wealth, taken from specified wealth in a specified way, for a specified group 9. Al-Buhuti (Hanbali), in Kashshaf al-Qina', derives it from a root meaning to grow or to be purified, and says the name goes back to At-Tawbah 9:103 10.
خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَٰلِهِمْ صَدَقَةً تُطَهِّرُهُمْ وَتُزَكِّيهِم بِهَا وَصَلِّ عَلَيْهِمْ ۖ إِنَّ صَلَوٰتَكَ سَكَنٌ لَّهُمْ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ
In Arabic the word is written as Al-Baqarah 2:43 prints it:
Al-Baqarah 2:43
ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ
az-zakāh
The site's English for 2:43 renders it as the poor-due.
Is zakat a pillar of Islam?
Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, reported the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, saying that Islam is built on five: the testimony of faith, the prayer, giving zakat, Hajj and the fast of Ramadan (Sahih al-Bukhari 8, graded sahih). The Arabic says "built on five"; the word "pillars" is the usual English summary. See the five pillars of Islam.
1AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 8
وَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱرْكَعُوا۟ مَعَ ٱلرَّٰكِعِينَ
Al-Marghinani (Hanafi) cites this verse for the obligation, and calls zakat wajib on a free, sane, adult Muslim who fully owns a nisab and has held it for a year 7. The other schools' conditions are in the table below.
How much is zakat?
On gold and silver, a quarter of a tenth. Our arithmetic: 1/4 × 1/10 = 1/40, which is 2.5%. Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, reported the letter Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, wrote when he sent him to Bahrain, setting out the sadaqah (here, the obligatory zakat) the Prophet laid down. It includes "on silver, a quarter of a tenth" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1454, graded sahih).
4AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 1454
The rate is not the same for everything. In Abu Shuja's text, trade goods are valued at the end of the year and pay a quarter of a tenth, while crops watered by rain or running water pay a tenth and crops watered by a water-wheel or by drawing water half a tenth 9.
An illustration of the rate only
Suppose an amount of 10,000 units of a currency had already been confirmed as zakatable. One-fortieth of it is 10,000 ÷ 40 = 250 units (the same as 2.5% × 10,000). This shows the rate and nothing else: it is not a calculation of what anyone owes, and it assumes the nisab, the year and the school's conditions are already settled.
What is nisab?
Nisab is the threshold below which no zakat is due. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, reported the Prophet saying there is no sadaqah on less than five awaq, less than five camels, or less than five awsuq (Sahih al-Bukhari 1405, graded sahih). Al-Marghinani counts an uqiyyah (the singular of awaq) as forty dirhams 7, so five awaq are 200 dirhams (our sum: 5 × 40).
3AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 1405
All four works read here give 20 mithqals for gold and 200 dirhams for silver 7 8 9 10. Those are historical weights. The works do not give grams, pounds or tola.
How much is nisab in pounds?
This page gives no pound figure. A sterling nisab needs three things stated together: which metal is the benchmark, the accepted conversion of the old weight into grams, and that metal's price on a stated date. The sources here supply none of the three, and a figure without them cannot be checked. Check a current figure with a scholar or your mosque, or work one out in the zakat calculator, which states its gram figures and their source and takes the price you enter.
When is zakat due?
The four works read here make zakat on gold, silver and trade goods due once a year has passed over a full nisab 7 8 9 10. Egypt's Dar al-Ifta, in fatwa 8124, was asked by a business owner whose accounts run on the Gregorian year. It answered that the year that counts is the lunar Hijri year, at 2.5%, and that where lunar accounting is difficult the solar year may be used at 2.577% (2.5 × 365 ÷ 354) 11. That answer was for a business with that difficulty; it is not a general switch to the calendar year. Al-Marghinani also reports two views on whether zakat must be paid at once when due, or may be delayed 7.
What do the four schools say about zakat?
Each column follows one named work of one school. A cell reports that work, not every scholar of the school.
| Hanafial-Hidayah | Malikial-Kafi | Shafi'iAbu Shuja', Fath al-Qarib | HanbaliKashshaf al-Qina' | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Due on whom | A free, sane, adult Muslim who fully owns a nisab for a year; not on a child or an insane person 7 | A free Muslim who owns the threshold for a full year; young or old, sane or not, alike in Malik's view 8 | For gold and silver: Islam, freedom, full ownership, the nisab and the year 9 | Islam, freedom, a nisab, full ownership and a year passed; due on a child's and an insane person's wealth 10 |
| Nisab and rate (gold and silver) | 20 mithqals of gold, 200 dirhams of silver; a quarter of a tenth. Abu Hanifah takes nothing on extra silver until 40 dirhams, or extra gold until 4 mithqals (his two companions, meaning his two leading students, take the excess by proportion) 7 | 20 mithqals of gold, 200 dirhams of silver; a quarter of a tenth when the year is complete 8 | 20 mithqals of gold, 200 dirhams of silver; a quarter of a tenth, and the excess by proportion 9 | 20 mithqals of gold, 200 dirhams of silver; a quarter of a tenth, coined or not 10 |
| Jewellery worn | Zakat is due on gold and silver jewellery 7 | None on jewellery for women's adornment, not for trade or hire; jewellery for hire is disputed 8 | None on permitted jewellery; al-Ghazzi adds that prohibited pieces, such as a man's bracelet, carry it 9 | None on permitted jewellery kept for use or lending, even before it is worn or lent 10 |
| Parents, children, spouse | Not to parents and grandparents, children and grandchildren, or one's wife 7 | Not to anyone whose maintenance the payer owes 8 | Not, as poor or needy, to those the payer must maintain 9 | Not to parents and grandparents, children and grandchildren (with named exceptions), or one's wife 10 |
| A non-Muslim recipient | Not to a dhimmi (a non-Muslim under Muslim protection); other charity may be given 7 | Not to a poor non-Muslim 8 | Not to a non-Muslim 9 | Not, unless one whose heart is to be reconciled 10 |
The Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali works list gold and silver, livestock, crops and fruits, and trade goods as zakatable; al-Marghinani and al-Buhuti exclude a house lived in, clothes and furniture, and al-Buhuti also excludes property let out, unless held for trade 7 10. Pensions and shares are not discussed in the passages read.
Is zakat due on gold jewellery?
It depends on the school and on what the jewellery is for. Al-Marghinani (Hanafi) says zakat is due on raw gold and silver, their jewellery and their vessels, and records that al-Shafi'i disagreed about women's jewellery 7. Abu Shuja' (Shafi'i) says no zakat is due on permitted jewellery 9; Ibn 'Abd al-Barr (Maliki) exempts adornment not made for trade or hire 8; al-Buhuti (Hanbali) exempts permitted jewellery kept for use or lending 10. Ibn 'Abd al-Barr (Maliki) says trade jewellery and ingots carry zakat, and al-Buhuti (Hanbali) gives the rate on gold and silver coined or not 8 10. Whether your own pieces count is a question for a scholar you trust.
How much zakat is due on 10 tola of gold?
The works give gold in mithqals, not tola, and give no conversion between them. An answer needs the item's measured weight, its purity, what it is kept for, the school followed and a dated price. Take those to a scholar you trust; this page does not convert tola. The zakat calculator converts tola to grams with a figure from a named fatwa, and shows its working.
How does zakat apply to money?
The International Islamic Fiqh Academy, in Resolution 21 (1986), holds that paper currencies are money and take the rulings set for gold and silver, including zakat 12. The resolution does not say whether gold or silver sets the nisab for money.
What about debts?
Al-Marghinani (Hanafi) says a person whose debt to others takes up all his wealth owes no zakat, and one whose wealth exceeds his debt pays on the surplus if it reaches a nisab. He reports al-Shafi'i as saying zakat is still due 7. We did not read the Maliki or Hanbali works on debt, and none of these passages discusses a mortgage, a credit card or a student loan. Ask a scholar you trust how your debts are treated, and an accountant to check the figures.
Who is eligible for zakat?
۞ إِنَّمَا ٱلصَّدَقَـٰتُ لِلْفُقَرَآءِ وَٱلْمَسَـٰكِينِ وَٱلْعَـٰمِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَٱلْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِى ٱلرِّقَابِ وَٱلْغَـٰرِمِينَ وَفِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱبْنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةً مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
The verse names eight groups. All four works read here take it as the list of those zakat may be paid to 7 8 9 10; al-Marghinani and Ibn 'Abd al-Barr say the share of those whose hearts are to be reconciled has lapsed, though Ibn 'Abd al-Barr allows it if the ruler is forced to reconcile an unbeliever 7 8.
Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that when the Prophet sent Mu'adh, may Allah be pleased with him, to Yemen, he told him to teach them that Allah had made obligatory on them a sadaqah from their wealth, taken from their rich and returned to their poor (Sahih al-Bukhari 1395, graded sahih).
2AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 1395
Who is not eligible for zakat?
The rows on family and non-Muslims in the table above give each work's exclusions. Abu Shuja' also names the rich, Banu Hashim and Banu al-Muttalib (the Prophet's own clan and a related clan) 9, and al-Marghinani and al-Buhuti say zakat may not be spent on building a mosque or shrouding the dead 7 10. Brothers, sisters and other relatives are a separate question that depends on the school and the family's circumstances: ask a scholar you trust.
What is zakat al-fitr?
Zakat al-fitr (also written zakat ul fitr, or zakat fitrah) is the charity linked to the end of Ramadan. Ibn 'Umar reported that the Messenger of Allah made it obligatory, a sa' (a measure of volume) of dates or a sa' of barley, on the slave and the free, male and female, young and old of the Muslims, and ordered it paid before people go out to the prayer (Sahih al-Bukhari 1503, graded sahih).
5AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 1503
Abu Shuja' (Shafi'i) says it becomes due at sunset on the last day of Ramadan, on a Muslim with more than his own and his dependants' food for that day, who pays a sa' of the local staple for himself and those he must maintain 9. Al-Marghinani (Hanafi) makes it due on a Muslim who owns a nisab beyond his basic needs, at half a sa' of wheat or a sa' of dates or barley, and records al-Shafi'i's different view on both points 7. This page gives no sterling amount for it; ask your mosque or a scholar you trust.
What is the difference between zakat and sadaqah?
Sadaqah is the wider word for charity. Abu Dharr, may Allah be pleased with him, reported the Prophet telling Companions who felt the wealthy had taken the rewards that every tasbih (saying Subhanallah), takbir (Allahu akbar), tahmid (Alhamdulillah) and tahlil (la ilaha illallah) is a sadaqah, and so is enjoining good and forbidding wrong (Sahih Muslim 1006, graded sahih).
6AuthenticSahih Muslim 1006
In the works read here, zakat is the obligatory part: a set rate on set wealth, for the groups in At-Tawbah 9:60. Ibn 'Abd al-Barr calls those the obligatory sadaqat, "which is zakat" 8, and al-Marghinani allows voluntary charity to a non-Muslim where he does not allow zakat 7. For ongoing charity, see sadaqah jariyah.
Working out zakat for the first time, the arithmetic was the easy part. The harder questions were which date to count from and what actually counts as zakatable wealth, and those are worth asking someone about.
Try it: the rate and the threshold
Pick an answer; each one explains itself.
1At one-fortieth, what is 10,000 ÷ 40?
Answer: 250. One-fortieth is a quarter of a tenth: 1/4 × 1/10 = 1/40, or 2.5%. 10,000 ÷ 40 = 250. That is arithmetic, not a finding that 250 is owed. Source 4
2In Sahih al-Bukhari 1405, below how many awaq of silver is there no sadaqah?
Answer: Five. Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, reported the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, saying there is no sadaqah on less than five awaq. Source 3
3Do the four school works on this page treat worn jewellery the same way?
Answer: No. The Hanafi work includes jewellery; the Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali works read here exclude permitted jewellery, each with its own conditions.
Questions people ask
How much is zakat on 1,000 units of a currency?
At the one-fortieth (2.5%) rate the arithmetic is 1,000 ÷ 40 = 25 units. Whether anything is due depends on the nisab, the passing of a year and the conditions of the school followed. That sum is an illustration of the rate, not an assessment of what anyone owes. For your own wealth, ask a scholar you trust and an accountant.
Is zakat paid on a house you live in?
The Hanafi work al-Hidayah and the Hanbali work Kashshaf al-Qina' say no zakat is due on a house lived in. Kashshaf al-Qina' also excludes property let out, unless it is held for trade. For your own property, ask a scholar you trust.
Is zakah the same as zakat?
Yes. Zakah and zakat are two English spellings of the same Arabic word, which Al-Baqarah 2:43 pairs with the prayer. You may also see zakaat or zakaah.
Sources
Every claim on this page comes from one of these. Gradings are reported with the scholar's name; we do not grade hadith ourselves.
- 1
Ibn 'Umar reported the Prophet saying that Islam is built on five: testifying that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, establishing the prayer, giving zakat, Hajj and fasting in Ramadan.
Sahih al-Bukhari 8 Book 2, Hadith 1
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 2
Ibn Abbas reports that the Prophet sent Mu'adh to Yemen and told him to teach them, once they accepted the testimony and the prayer, that Allah had made obligatory on them a sadaqah from their wealth, taken from their rich and returned to their poor
Sahih al-Bukhari 1395 Book 24, Hadith 1
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 3
Abu Sa'id reports the Prophet saying there is no sadaqah on less than five awaq, less than five camels, or less than five awsuq
Sahih al-Bukhari 1405 Book 24, Hadith 10
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 4
Anas reports the letter Abu Bakr wrote for him when he sent him to Bahrain, setting out the obligatory sadaqah the Prophet laid down; it includes: on silver (al-riqqah), a quarter of a tenth, and nothing if there are only one hundred and ninety
Sahih al-Bukhari 1454 Book 24, Hadith 57
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 5
Ibn 'Umar reports that the Messenger of Allah made zakat al-fitr obligatory, a sa' of dates or a sa' of barley, on the slave and the free, male and female, young and old of the Muslims, and ordered it to be paid before people go out to the prayer
Sahih al-Bukhari 1503 Book 24, Hadith 103
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 6
Abu Dharr reports that some Companions said the wealthy had taken the rewards, and the Prophet said every tasbih, takbir, tahmid and tahlil is a sadaqah, and enjoining good and forbidding wrong are sadaqah
Sahih Muslim 1006 Book 12, Hadith 66
Authentic: in Sahih Muslim
- 7
Al-Marghinani, in al-Hidayah (Hanafi), makes zakat due on a free, sane, adult Muslim who fully owns a nisab for a year, exempts debt that takes up the wealth and personal-use property, gives the silver and gold nisab, includes jewellery, lists recipients and those excluded, and sets out sadaqat al-fitr.
al-Marghinani, al-Hidayah 1/95 to 1/96, 1/102 to 1/103 and 1/110 to 1/114 Read on shamela.ws on 25 October 2026. Record: scholarly-zakat-hanafi-hidayah.
- 8
Ibn 'Abd al-Barr, in al-Kafi (Maliki), makes zakat due on a free Muslim who owns the threshold for a full year, young or old, sane or not; lists gold and silver, livestock, crops and trade goods; gives the gold and silver nisab at a quarter of a tenth; exempts women's adornment not for trade or hire; and lists the recipients of At-Tawbah 9:60 and those excluded.
Ibn 'Abd al-Barr, al-Kafi fi Fiqh Ahl al-Madinah 1/284 to 1/286 and 1/325 to 1/327 Read on shamela.ws on 25 October 2026. Record: scholarly-zakat-maliki-kafi.
- 9
Abu Shuja's matn al-Ghayah wa al-Taqrib, with al-Ghazzi's commentary Fath al-Qarib (Shafi'i), defines zakat, lists five kinds of zakatable wealth and five conditions for gold and silver including the year, gives the gold and silver nisab at a quarter of a tenth, excludes permitted jewellery, names the eight recipients of At-Tawbah 9:60 and those who may not receive it, and sets out zakat al-fitr.
Abu Shuja', al-Ghayah wa al-Taqrib, with al-Ghazzi, Fath al-Qarib, pp. 119 to 135 Read on shamela.ws on 25 October 2026. Record: scholarly-zakat-shafii-fath-al-qarib.
- 10
Al-Buhuti, in Kashshaf al-Qina' (Hanbali), gives the meaning of zakat, its legal definition, the wealth it is due on and five conditions including the year, includes a child's and an insane person's wealth, gives the gold and silver nisab at a quarter of a tenth, excludes permitted jewellery kept for use or lending, and lists the eight recipients and those excluded.
al-Buhuti, Kashshaf al-Qina' 4/301, 4/304 to 4/312, 4/327, 5/5 to 5/7, 5/17, 5/114 and 5/165 to 5/167 (Wizarat al-'Adl edition) Read on shamela.ws on 25 October 2026. Record: scholarly-zakat-hanbali-kashshaf.
- 11
Egypt's Dar al-Ifta, fatwa 8124 (15 November 2023, Shawqi Ibrahim Allam), asked by a business owner whose accounts follow the Gregorian year, answers that the year for zakat on wealth is the lunar Hijri year at a quarter of a tenth (2.5%), and that where lunar accounting is difficult the solar year may be used at 2.577%.
Egypt's Dar al-Ifta, fatwa 8124, 15 November 2023 Read in Arabic on the institution's own site on 25 October 2026. Record: scholarly-dar-alifta-8124-lunar-year.
- 12
The International Islamic Fiqh Academy, Resolution 21 (3/9), adopted at its third session in Amman, 11 to 16 October 1986, holds that paper currencies are money with full monetary character and take the rulings set for gold and silver, including zakat.
International Islamic Fiqh Academy, Resolution 21 (3/9), third session, Amman, 11 to 16 October 1986 Read in Arabic on the institution's own site on 25 October 2026. Record: scholarly-iifa-resolution-21-paper-money.
- Q
Quran Arabic and English for Al-Baqarah 2:43 and At-Tawbah 9:60 and 9:103, and the word az-zakāh from 2:43.
Tanzil Project Uthmani text, CC BY 3.0. English: adapted from Marmaduke Pickthall's translation (1930), modernised and checked against modern translations.
Next
- The five pillars of IslamLesson
- Sadaqah jariyah: meaning and examplesLesson
- AqiqahLesson
- Zakat calculatorTool
- Start at AlifThe hub
For your own situation, ask a scholar you trust.
Join the email list
New guides by email, now and then. No spam, and you can leave at any time.
Ilmwell is free and kept going by readers. See how to support it.