Sadaqah and zakat: what is the difference, and can anyone give sadaqah?
Every tradition keeps a word for the gift that is not owed. In Arabic that word is sadaqah, and it shares its root, s-d-q, with sidq: truthfulness. A gift that nobody asked for is a small proof that what we say we believe is true. Zakat is the gift that is owed. This article sets the two side by side, and then answers the question people ask us most: can anyone give sadaqah?
Short answer: Zakat is a duty on a Muslim whose wealth stays above the nisab for a lunar year: a set share (usually 2.5% of savings), on a set date, for the eight groups named in Quran 9:60. Sadaqah is voluntary: any amount, at any time, in money or in kindness, for anyone in need. Muslims give both. Anyone, of any faith or none, can give sadaqah. A gift from someone who is not Muslim is sadaqah, and we never call it zakat.
If you are Muslim and want your zakat figure first, the free zakat calculator works it out on your device and sends nothing anywhere.
Zakat: the measured duty
Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam. It has conditions (ownership, the nisab, a lunar year), a rate (2.5% on money, gold, silver and trade goods; crops and livestock have their own rules) and a closed list of recipients. The Quran opens that list with innama, "only", and names eight groups. The verse is at the end of this article.
The classical schools treat being Muslim as one of the conditions of zakat (Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni). So zakat is not asked of anyone else, and no one else's gift can stand in for it.
Sadaqah: the open hand
Sadaqah has no nisab, no date and no fixed share. It can be a coin, a meal, a paid debt or an hour of help. The Prophet ﷺ taught that every good deed is sadaqah (Sahih al-Bukhari 6021). He also said, in a longer hadith, that each joint of the body owes a sadaqah every day the sun rises, and he counted among them judging fairly between two people, helping someone onto his mount or lifting his bags for him, a good word, every step taken to prayer and removing something harmful from the road (Sahih al-Bukhari 2989).
So sadaqah is not only money. It is the shape a kind life takes. In Indonesia, the national zakat agency's own regulation even defines it: wealth or non-wealth given outside zakat for the common good (BAZNAS Regulation No. 2 of 2016, as quoted by BAZNAS).
Side by side
| Question | Zakat | Sadaqah |
|---|---|---|
| Required? | Yes, for a Muslim who meets the conditions | No, it is voluntary |
| Who gives? | A Muslim above the nisab for a lunar year | Anyone |
| How much? | A set share: 2.5% on savings, gold, silver and trade goods | Any amount, or no money at all: a kind word counts |
| When? | Once a lunar year, on your zakat date | Any day, any hour |
| To whom? | Only the eight groups of Quran 9:60 | Anyone in need, and good causes such as a well or a school |
| Openly or quietly? | Either; many prefer to pay openly so the duty is seen to be done | Quiet giving is praised (Sahih al-Bukhari 1423) |
One verse holds both. Quran 2:177 lists giving money "though you love it" to relatives, orphans, the needy, travellers and those who ask, and then, separately, paying zakat. Al-Qurtubi (al-Jami' li-Ahkam al-Qur'an) preferred the reading that this first giving is not the obligatory zakat, since zakat is named on its own later in the verse, and took it as evidence that wealth carries rights beyond zakat; he also records the other reading, that the first giving means zakat itself. On his reading, the duty is the floor, not the ceiling.
Settle the duty, then give freely. The zakat calculator shows your zakat under both nisab views, side by side, and keeps your figures on your device. Whatever is given beyond it is sadaqah.
Can anyone give sadaqah?
Yes. Sadaqah belongs to no single people. If you are not Muslim and you want to stand with the poor, the needy, people crushed by debt or a traveller stranded far from home, you are welcome to give, in the same spirit. That gift is sadaqah: voluntary charity, open to everyone. We never call it zakat, because zakat is a duty with conditions for Muslims, and calling a gift by its true name is part of honouring it.
We make no promise of reward to any giver: that belongs to faith, and we leave it there. What we can say is what the sources say about the receiving side.
Can sadaqah go to anyone?
Voluntary charity (sadaqah) may be given to anyone in need who is not at war with Muslims; this is widely held in the schools (al-Nawawi, al-Majmu'; Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni), citing Quran 60:8 and 76:8. When Asma' bint Abi Bakr's mother, who was not Muslim, came to her hoping for her help, Asma' asked the Prophet ﷺ whether she should keep ties with her; he told her to keep ties with her mother (Sahih al-Bukhari 2620).
The circle is wider still. The Prophet ﷺ told of a man who climbed down a well to bring water in his shoe to a dog dying of thirst, and taught his companions that there is reward in kindness to every living creature (Sahih al-Bukhari 2363).
Zakat is narrower: most jurists hold that the obligatory zakat goes to Muslims in need, with views that differ on some groups. Our article on the eight categories sets them out school by school.
How to give well
- Start close. The Prophet ﷺ said that the upper hand is better than the lower, to begin with those you support, and that the best sadaqah is given from what is left over after your needs (Sahih al-Bukhari 1427).
- Give quietly when you can. Among the seven whom God shades on a day with no other shade is a person who gives so discreetly that the left hand does not know what the right has given (Sahih al-Bukhari 1423).
- Think long. When a person dies, his deeds come to an end except three: an ongoing charity (sadaqah jariyah), knowledge that others benefit from, and a righteous child who prays for him (Sahih Muslim 1631). A well, a school, a book: gifts that keep working.
- Give to people, through bodies you can check. Pay official bodies through their own websites, and keep a receipt that names what you gave.
A bridge between cultures
Every culture brings to the table the best of what it has. One family keeps a measured share of its savings for the poor; another gives a tenth; another feeds the neighbour first; another quietly pays a stranger's debt and never says a word. Arabic sadaqah and Hebrew tzedakah grow from the same Semitic root, tied to truthfulness and righteousness. When each people offers its best, giving stops being a wall between "us" and "them" and becomes a bridge, and on a bridge people meet.
The Muslim colleague who pays her zakat in Ramadan and the neighbour of another faith who gives sadaqah in the same week may never compare notes. But the same family eats, the same rent is paid, the same child goes back to school. That is the understanding the word mustahaqat points to: dues and rights that run in every direction.
Does Mustahaqat collect zakat or sadaqah?
No. Mustahaqat does not collect, hold or pass on zakat or sadaqah. We explain and calculate only. For official bodies by country, see where to pay zakat.
Read next
- Zakat vs sadaqa: the clear difference (a one-table summary)
- Sadaqah for non-Muslims: giving to zakat causes
- What mustahaqat means: dues in every direction
Work it out
Settle the measured part first: the zakat calculator shows both nisab views and keeps your figures on your device. Everything after that is the open hand.
Please note
This article explains zakat and sadaqah for general learning. It is not a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a scholar you trust or your country's zakat authority. Mustahaqat does not collect or pass on zakat or sadaqah.
هذا المقال للتعريف العام بالزكاة والصدقة، وليس فتوى. لحالتك الخاصة اسأل عالِماً تثق به أو جهة الزكاة الرسمية في بلدك. موقع مستحقات لا يجمع الزكاة ولا الصدقات ولا يوصلها.
Compiled from cited sources; ask a scholar you trust for your own case. This is not a fatwa. Drafted with AI help and checked against the sources listed. Sami Adham is a professional name, not a scholar or mufti.
Hadith cited
- Sahih al-Bukhari 6021 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by al-Bukhari (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 2989 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by al-Bukhari (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 1423 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by al-Bukhari (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 1427 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by al-Bukhari (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 2620 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by al-Bukhari (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 2363 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by al-Bukhari (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
- Sahih Muslim 1631 (numbering sunnah.com), graded sahih by Muslim (by including it in his Sahih). sunnah.com
Quran cited
﴿۞ إِنَّمَا ٱلصَّدَقَـٰتُ لِلْفُقَرَآءِ وَٱلْمَسَـٰكِينِ وَٱلْعَـٰمِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَٱلْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِى ٱلرِّقَابِ وَٱلْغَـٰرِمِينَ وَفِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱبْنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةً مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ﴾ [9:60]Meaning (our own wording): The sadaqat (here: the obligatory zakat) are only for the poor, the needy, those who work on collecting and handing it out, those whose hearts are to be drawn together, freeing people from bondage, people in debt, the way of God, and the traveller cut off from home. It is a duty set by God, and God is All-Knowing, All-Wise.
﴿۞ لَّيْسَ ٱلْبِرَّ أَن تُوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ قِبَلَ ٱلْمَشْرِقِ وَٱلْمَغْرِبِ وَلَـٰكِنَّ ٱلْبِرَّ مَنْ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ وَٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ وَٱلْكِتَـٰبِ وَٱلنَّبِيِّـۧنَ وَءَاتَى ٱلْمَالَ عَلَىٰ حُبِّهِۦ ذَوِى ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ وَٱلْيَتَـٰمَىٰ وَٱلْمَسَـٰكِينَ وَٱبْنَ ٱلسَّبِيلِ وَٱلسَّآئِلِينَ وَفِى ٱلرِّقَابِ وَأَقَامَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتَى ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱلْمُوفُونَ بِعَهْدِهِمْ إِذَا عَـٰهَدُوا۟ ۖ وَٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ فِى ٱلْبَأْسَآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ وَحِينَ ٱلْبَأْسِ ۗ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا۟ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُتَّقُونَ﴾ [2:177]Meaning (our own wording): Goodness is not turning your face to the east or the west. Goodness is to believe in God, the Last Day, the angels, the Book and the prophets; to give money, though you love it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveller and those who ask, and to free people from bondage; to pray and pay zakat; to keep a promise once made; and to stay patient in poverty, illness and danger. These are the truthful, and these are the ones who fear God.
﴿لَّا يَنْهَىٰكُمُ ٱللَّهُ عَنِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَمْ يُقَـٰتِلُوكُمْ فِى ٱلدِّينِ وَلَمْ يُخْرِجُوكُم مِّن دِيَـٰرِكُمْ أَن تَبَرُّوهُمْ وَتُقْسِطُوٓا۟ إِلَيْهِمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُقْسِطِينَ﴾ [60:8]Meaning (our own wording): God does not stop you from being kind and fair to those who have not fought you over your faith or driven you from your homes. God loves those who are fair.
Sources
- Sahih al-Bukhari 6021 on sunnah.com (every good deed is sadaqah)
- Sahih Muslim 1631 on sunnah.com (ongoing charity, sadaqah jariyah)
- BAZNAS (Indonesia): sedekah, definition in BAZNAS Regulation No. 2 of 2016 (Indonesian)
- Quran 2:177 on quran.com (Arabic text and translations)
- Quran 9:60 on quran.com (Arabic text and translations)
- Quran 60:8 on quran.com (Arabic text and translations)
- Tanzil Project: Quran text (Uthmani) and licence
Corrections
- : First published. Fiqh wording follows our source review (Z39-Z42, V5, V6, P5); hadith from Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim only, paraphrased.
- : Review 29 Oct: the al-Qurtubi line on 2:177 now gives his preferred reading and the other reading he records; Sahih Muslim 1631 added to the hadith box with its grader.