Quick answer: Zakat al-fitr is a fixed charity of food, roughly one sa’ (about 2 to 3.25 kilograms of a staple food, depending on the school’s conversion) owed by every Muslim, paid on behalf of themselves and their dependents, and due around the end of Ramadan, before the Eid prayer. The four schools agree on the basic duty but differ on the exact weight, whether cash is accepted, and the precise moment it becomes owed.
What zakat al-fitr is, and how it differs from zakat on wealth
Zakat al-fitr (also called sadaqat al-fitr, the charity of breaking the fast) is not the same obligation as zakat on savings, gold or business stock. It does not depend on owning a nisab of wealth held for a lunar year. It is a fixed amount of staple food, owed per head, timed to the end of Ramadan.
The Prophet ﷺ tied the obligation to a measure called a sa’, paid in dates or barley. This is recorded in a hadith from the Companion Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him).
حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ السَّكَنِ، حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ جَهْضَمٍ، حَدَّثَنَا إِسْمَاعِيلُ بْنُ جَعْفَرٍ، عَنْ عُمَرَ بْنِ نَافِعٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ فَرَضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم زَكَاةَ الْفِطْرِ صَاعًا مِنْ تَمْرٍ، أَوْ صَاعًا مِنْ شَعِيرٍ عَلَى الْعَبْدِ وَالْحُرِّ، وَالذَّكَرِ وَالأُنْثَى، وَالصَّغِيرِ وَالْكَبِيرِ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ، وَأَمَرَ بِهَا أَنْ تُؤَدَّى قَبْلَ خُرُوجِ النَّاسِ إِلَى الصَّلاَةِ.
Narrated Ibn `Umar:Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) enjoined the payment of one Sa' of dates or one Sa' of barley as Zakat-ul-Fitr on every Muslim slave or free, male or female, young or old, and he ordered that it be paid before the people went out to offer the `Id prayer. (One Sa' = 3 Kilograms approx)
That one narration is the foundation almost every school builds on. The differences that follow come from how each school converts the old volume measure into kilograms, and whether the value of the food can be given instead of the food itself.
Who has to pay, and for whom
Most schools agree that zakat al-fitr is due from every Muslim who has food left over, beyond what they and their household need for the day and night of Eid. Zakat al Fitr is incumbent on every free Muslim who possesses one Sa of dates or barley which is not needed as basic food for himself or his family for the duration of one day and night. Every free Muslim must pay Zakat al Fitr for himself, his wife, children, and servants, according to Imam Malik, Al-Shafii, and Ahmad.
The Hanafi school sets a different bar. Imam Abu Hanifah said it is only obligatory for one who possesses a nisab, a minimum amount of property, after covering the costs of his house, servant, horse and weapon. In practice, a household head typically pays on behalf of a spouse without independent wealth and any children, a pattern confirmed across guidance from several schools.
How much: the sa’ and its weight in kilograms
A sa’ is a measure of volume from the Prophet’s time, roughly four double handfuls of grain. Because it is a volume, not a weight, its kilogram equivalent shifts slightly depending on which staple is weighed and which school’s manuals did the converting.
One reference point comes from a Hanafi calculation: a dirham of 3.125 grams gives a mann of 812.5 grams, and a sa’ of four mudd works out to 3.25 kilograms. The Hanafi school also recognises a half-sa’ measure of half a sa’ for wheat, wheat flour, raisins or a mixture of wheat and barley flour, with a full sa’ still required for dates or barley.
Shafi’i and Hanbali manuals generally work from a lighter conversion. The Sharia-prescribed sa’, equivalent to four moderate handfuls, weighs about 2.175 kilograms according to Hanbali and Shafi’i calculations. Many general guides, and some national fatwa councils, settle on a middle figure. The Saudi Council of Scholars, after deliberation, estimated the sa’ at approximately three kilograms.
The bars above are approximate conversions used in different fiqh manuals, not four separate rulings on quantity. All four schools agree the obligation is one sa’ of the local staple (the Hanafi half-sa’ concession aside); they simply arrived at different kilogram figures when translating an old volume measure into the metric system. For this reason, local mosques and fatwa councils often publish their own rounded kilogram figure each year, usually somewhere between 2 and 3.25 kilograms per person, based on the staple food of that country.
A worked example (using invented, round numbers)
Example only. Suppose a household follows a guide that sets one sa’ of rice at 3 kilograms per person, and the household has 2 adults and 3 children, so 5 people in total.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Sa’ used in this example | 3 kg of rice per person |
| People in the household | 5 (2 adults, 3 children) |
| Total rice owed | 5 × 3 kg = 15 kg |
If the household instead follows a Hanafi guide using the half-sa’ concession for wheat flour at roughly 1.6 kilograms per person, the same 5-person household would owe about 8 kilograms of flour, or its cash value where the Hanafi school permits payment in money. Readers who want to run their own household numbers, including the zakat owed on savings and gold rather than this fixed Ramadan charity, can use the zakat calculator.
Where a reader wants to pay cash instead of food, the amount should reflect the current local price of the staple food actually used, which changes from year to year and place to place; a local mosque, Islamic centre or recognised charity usually publishes an updated figure shortly before Eid.
Food or cash: what the four schools say
This is the main practical disagreement among the schools, and it has been debated for centuries. The Hanafi school permits paying zakat al-fitr in the form of cash, equivalent to the food amount, while this is not permitted by the Maliki, Shafi’i and Hanbali schools. Using cash as a form of payment has become the adopted position of many official fatwa councils around the world.
| School | Amount per person | Must it be food? | Cash accepted? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hanafi | One sa’ (half-sa’ for wheat, flour or raisins) | No, food or its value both work | Yes |
| Maliki | One sa’ of the local staple | Yes | No |
| Shafi’i | One sa’ of the local staple food | Yes | No |
| Hanbali | One sa’ from five named staples (dates, raisins, wheat, barley, dried cottage cheese) or the local staple | Yes | No |
The Hanbali view lists five kinds of food that can be given: dates, raisins, wheat, barley, and dry cottage cheese, though Imam Ahmad is also reported to have allowed any staple grain or dates. The Malikis and Shafi’is hold that any staple food of the region, or the main food of the person, may be given.
Scholars who permit cash point to the underlying purpose of the charity. Abu Hanifa argued that the goal was to help the poor rather than to restrict the form of assistance, and food was mentioned because it was the most useful option at the time, not because it was the only valid one. Those who require food in kind reply that the Prophet’s instruction specified particular staples, and departing from that text needs strong justification. Readers who want to follow a particular position should ask their local imam or a qualified scholar which view their community applies, since local charities often standardise on one method for consistency.
When it must be paid
Scholars agree the charity is tied to the end of Ramadan and should reach the poor before the Eid prayer, but they differ on the exact moment it becomes owed. Hanafi scholars hold that zakat al-fitr becomes obligatory at the dawn of Eid day, while Shafi’i and Hanbali scholars hold that it becomes obligatory at sunset on the last day of Ramadan. Maliki scholars are reported with both positions, depending on the narration followed.
This timing has practical consequences. If a baby is born, or a person dies, right around that boundary, the schools that tie the duty to sunset and the schools that tie it to dawn can reach different answers about whether the charity is owed for that person.
On early payment, the schools are more flexible than the strict obligation date might suggest. Maliki and Hanbali scholars permitted its payment one or two days before Eid, based on the report that the Companions used to give zakat al-fitr a day or two early. Al-Shafi’i held that it can be paid any time during Ramadan, while Abu Hanifah ruled it can even be paid at the start of the year, in the same way as zakat on wealth.
What all four schools share is a clear preference for paying before the Eid prayer begins, so the money or food reaches the needy in time for the celebration itself, and a shared view that delaying it without a valid excuse past Eid day is blameworthy. For the expected date of Eid al-Fitr each year, see the Eid al-Fitr dates page.
Where the charity goes
Zakat al-fitr is distributed in the same general direction as other zakat: toward the poor and needy, so that they can take part in the Eid celebration without want. The detailed categories of who may receive zakat are covered in a separate article on the eight categories named in the Quran; the same broad recipients apply to zakat al-fitr, with its own specific purpose of feeding the needy on the day of the festival.
Sources
- Sunnah.com: Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Zakat, hadith 1503-1504
- Wikipedia: Zakat al-Fitr
- Dar al-Ifta (Egypt): Paying zakat-ul-fitr in cash instead of grains
- IslamOnline: Zakat al-Fitr
- Zakat Foundation: What is Zakat al-Fitr?
- Smartly Calculators: Zakat al-Fitr Calculator
- Masarat Initiative: Zakat al-Fitr, the four schools of thought and scholars’ views
- Islamonweb: Zakat al-Fitr in the four schools of Islamic law
This article explains what the four Sunni schools say and links its sources. It is education, not a fatwa and not financial advice. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar.