How it works
Zakat al-Fitr (also known as Sadaqat al-Fitr or Fitrana) was enjoined by the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ as a purification for the fasting person from idle talk and minor shortcomings, and as food and provision for the poor on the day of Eid. Unlike annual Zakat al-Mal, Zakat al-Fitr is obligatory on every individual Muslim—male or female, young or old—who possesses food beyond their basic needs for the night and day of Eid. This calculator computes both the physical food weight in kilograms and the cash equivalent.
Weight of One Prophetic Saa in Kilograms by Staple Food
Because the Prophetic Saa is a volumetric dry measure equal to four Mudd (four double-handfuls of an average man), its exact weight in kilograms varies slightly depending on the bulk density of the grain or dried fruit:
| Staple Food Type | Weight of 1 Saa (Per Person) | Weight for 5 People | Scholarly Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rice (Most Common Staple) | 2.50 kg | 12.50 kg | Majority of Fiqh Councils & Dar Al-Ifta |
| Wheat / Whole Flour | 2.50 kg | 12.50 kg | Permanent Committee & Al-Azhar Standard |
| Dates / Raisins | 3.00 kg | 15.00 kg | Denser dry staples & precautionary measure |
| Official Precautionary Estimate | 3.00 kg | 15.00 kg | Council of Senior Scholars (Saudi Arabia) |
Timing Rules: When to Pay Zakat al-Fitr
- Time of Obligation: Begins at sunset on the last day of Ramadan (the night of Eid al-Fitr). Anyone alive at sunset is included; a baby born after sunset on the night of Eid is not obligated, though paying on their behalf is recommended.
- Permissible Early Payment: It may be given one or two days before Eid (from the 28th of Ramadan) as practiced by Ibn Umar and the Companions, or earlier in Ramadan when delegating registered charities to purchase and distribute food on time.
- Best Recommended Time: Between dawn (Fajr prayer) on the morning of Eid al-Fitr and just before the Eid prayer begins.
- Deadline: Delaying Zakat al-Fitr until after the Eid prayer without a valid excuse is sinful, and it remains a debt that must still be paid immediately to the poor.
A head of household is paying Zakat al-Fitr for 5 family members using premium rice priced at 10 per kilogram in local currency:
- Obligatory weight per person (1 Saa of rice): 2.50 kg.
- Total food weight for the family: 5 × 2.50 = 12.50 kg of rice (5 Prophetic Saa).
- Cash equivalent per person: 2.50 × 10 = 25.00.
- Total household Zakat al-Fitr in cash: 5 × 25 = 125.00.
Giving Food vs. Giving Cash Value
The majority of classical scholars (Maliki, Shafi’i, and Hanbali) hold that Zakat al-Fitr must be given as physical staple food in adherence to the wording of the Hadith of Abu Sa’id al-Khudri, whereas the Hanafi school—along with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, Al-Hasan al-Basri, and contemporary fatwa bodies such as Egypt’s Dar Al-Ifta—permits giving its monetary value in cash when cash better serves the needs of the poor on Eid day. Our calculator displays both side by side.
Count down to the holy month with the /en/ramadan-countdown, track the arrival of Eid morning via the /en/eid-al-fitr-countdown, and calculate your annual wealth and gold obligations using the /en/zakat-calculator and /en/gold-zakat-calculator.