Free Zakat Calculator

What is Zakat and who must pay it?

Zakat is the third pillar of Islam: an annual transfer of 2.5% (one-fortieth) of qualifying wealth to eligible recipients. It becomes obligatory for a Muslim who owns wealth at or above the nisab threshold — classically defined as 80.18 grams of gold or 561 grams of silver — and has held it for one full lunar year (the hawl). Personal-use items such as your home, car, clothing and work tools are exempt; Zakat applies to productive wealth: cash and bank balances, gold and silver, trade inventory, shares, funds and cryptocurrency, and collectible receivables.

The calculation itself is simple: list your zakatable assets on your Zakat date, subtract due debts, and if the remainder is above nisab, pay 2.5% of it. The judgment calls are in the details — which nisab to use, how to treat jewellery, how to value a business — and those are exactly what our free guides below cover. Many Muslims choose Ramadan as their Zakat anniversary; any consistent lunar date is valid.

Who can receive Zakat?

The Qur'an (At-Tawbah 9:60) restricts Zakat to eight categories, including the poor, the needy, the indebted and stranded travellers. Because Zakat is a restricted religious duty rather than a general donation, it must demonstrably reach these categories. If you give through an organization, ask how it identifies recipients and how it keeps Zakat funds separate from operating money — a trustworthy institution will document both. Read the full breakdown in our guide to the eight recipients of Zakat.