Who Is Eligible for Zakat? The 8 Categories

By the Editorial Team · reviewed against our sources · updated September 2026 · guidance, not a fatwa

The Qur’anic basis for the eight categories

The recipients of zakat are not left to custom or preference. They are specified in the Qur’an, in chapter 9 (Surah al-Tawbah), verse 60, which lists eight distinct categories, known in Arabic as the asnaf. Because the list is divinely fixed, zakat must reach one or more of these categories to be valid; giving it outside them, however worthy the cause, does not discharge the obligation. If you are new to the topic, our overview of what zakat is explains how it fits among the pillars of Islam.

The 8 categories of zakat recipients (asnaf)

1. The poor (al-fuqara)

The fuqara are those living in poverty who have little or no wealth and cannot meet their basic needs. Their income and assets fall well below nisab. This is the most immediate and commonly served category, covering people who lack sufficient food, clothing, shelter or means.

2. The needy (al-masakin)

The masakin are also in hardship but may have some income or possessions that still fall short of their essential needs. Scholars discuss the fine distinction between fuqara and masakin, but for practical purposes both describe people whose means are below the nisab threshold and who therefore qualify to receive zakat.

3. Administrators of zakat (al-amilina alayha)

These are the people appointed to collect, record, safeguard and distribute zakat. They may be paid from zakat funds for their work even if they are not themselves poor, because their role serves the whole system. In modern terms this can cover the legitimate operating costs of a recognised zakat authority or charity acting as a collector.

4. Those whose hearts are to be reconciled (al-muallafat qulubuhum)

This category historically included new Muslims needing support to establish themselves, and others whose goodwill towards the community was being strengthened. Scholars differ on how widely it applies today, but it reflects zakat’s role in building and sustaining community bonds.

5. Freeing those in bondage (fi al-riqab)

Originally this meant helping to free slaves and captives, including funding contracts of manumission. In the contemporary context scholars have applied it to freeing people from unjust captivity or bonded labour, according to their interpretations.

6. Those in debt (al-gharimin)

The gharimin are people burdened by debt they cannot repay, provided the debt was not incurred through sinful or reckless spending. This includes those who took on debt to meet genuine needs or to reconcile disputes. Zakat can be used to relieve such debt.

7. In the cause of God (fi sabilillah)

This category refers to striving and works in the path of God. Scholars have understood it in a range of ways, from its classical military-defence meaning to broader applications such as supporting religious education and community welfare, depending on the school and the fatwa followed.

8. The stranded traveller (ibn al-sabil)

The ibn al-sabil is a traveller who has run out of means while away from home, even if they are wealthy in their own country. They may receive enough zakat to meet their needs and return home. This category also extends, in the view of some scholars, to refugees and the displaced.

Summary table of the eight categories

Who cannot receive zakat

Just as the Qur’an names who may receive zakat, the scholars identify those who may not. Understanding these limits is as important as knowing the categories.

• The wealthy. Someone whose own wealth meets or exceeds nisab is not eligible to receive obligatory zakat; they are expected to give it. See our nisab guide for the threshold.
• Those able to earn. Many scholars hold that a healthy person capable of earning a sufficient living should not be given zakat as if destitute, though views vary.
• Your immediate dependants. You cannot give obligatory zakat to your own spouse, children, grandchildren, parents or grandparents, because their maintenance is already your responsibility.
• Non-Muslims. Obligatory zakat is distributed among eligible Muslims; general charity to non-Muslims is given through voluntary sadaqah instead.
• Banu Hashim. In most views, direct descendants of the Prophet’s family are not given zakat as a mark of honour, and are supported through other means.

Eligible versus ineligible: a quick comparison

Giving zakat to your own family and relatives

You may give zakat to relatives, with one key limit that trips many people up. You may not give obligatory zakat to those you are already required to support: your spouse, your children and grandchildren, and your parents and grandparents. But you may give zakat to other relatives who qualify, such as a needy brother or sister, an aunt or uncle, a cousin, a nephew or niece, or a poor in-law. In fact, giving to eligible relatives is encouraged and carries a double reward, both as charity and as strengthening family ties, according to well-known teachings.

Zakat for a student in need

A student who is genuinely poor, whose own resources and family support fall below their basic needs, can receive zakat under the poor or needy categories. If the student’s family is well able to support them, or the student has sufficient means, they would not qualify on the basis of poverty alone. Support for a student’s fees may also be considered by some scholars under education-related applications of the categories.

Zakat and funding a mosque

Whether zakat can go to a mosque is a point of genuine scholarly difference. Because zakat must reach an eligible person from the eight categories, many scholars hold that it cannot simply be given for the construction or maintenance of a mosque building, since a building is not one of the named recipients. Others permit it under a broad reading of “in the cause of God” (fi sabilillah). Given the disagreement, a common cautious practice is to fund mosque buildings through voluntary sadaqah and reserve zakat for the named categories. Compare the two forms of giving in our guide to zakat versus sadaqah.

Giving zakat abroad

Most scholars permit sending zakat to eligible recipients in another country, particularly where the need overseas is far greater than at home or where you have no eligible recipients locally. At the same time, many encourage prioritising the poor in your own community first, so that local need is not neglected. A balanced approach is to consider both local and international need and to give where it will do the most good among eligible people. The same eight categories broadly guide the recipients of zakat al-fitr, the separate charity given at the end of Ramadan, which is directed above all to the poor and needy so they can share in the celebration of Eid.

Do you have to spread zakat across all eight categories?

You do not have to divide your zakat among all eight categories. The majority view is that it is valid to give your entire zakat to a single eligible category, or even to one deserving individual, as long as they truly qualify. The eight categories describe who may receive zakat, not a compulsory distribution formula. In practice, most people give to the poor and needy, who are the most numerous and pressing recipients. That said, giving thoughtfully across several genuine needs where you can is also praiseworthy. The key requirement is that every recipient falls within one of the named categories.

How much can one recipient be given?

There is no fixed cap in the primary sources on how much a single eligible person may receive. A widely followed guideline is that a poor or needy recipient may be given enough to lift them out of immediate hardship, and some scholars favour giving enough to meet needs for a reasonable period rather than a token amount. You may give one person your whole zakat, or split it among many; both are valid. What matters is that the amount reaches someone who genuinely qualifies and is transferred into their ownership so it becomes truly theirs to use.

Ownership and how zakat must be transferred

A core condition in the schools of fiqh is tamlik, meaning the zakat must be given into the full ownership of an eligible recipient. This is why paying a third party for a service on the poor person’s behalf, or spending zakat on general projects that no eligible individual comes to own, is questioned by many scholars. The cleanest way to fulfil the obligation is to place the money or its equivalent directly into the hands of a qualifying recipient, or to a trustworthy agent who does so on your behalf. Understanding this principle also helps explain the caution around giving zakat to buildings or institutions rather than to people.

Can you give zakat to an orphan or a widow?

Neither being an orphan nor being a widow is by itself a category of eligibility; what matters is financial need. A widow or an orphan who is poor or needy, with means below their essential requirements, qualifies under the fuqara or masakin categories. A widow who is wealthy in her own right, or an orphan who has inherited sufficient wealth, would not qualify on the basis of status alone. As always, eligibility turns on actual circumstances measured against the nisab and basic needs, not on labels.

How eligibility connects to your calculation

Knowing who can receive zakat is only half the picture; you also need to know how much to give. Once you have identified eligible recipients, use our free zakat calculator to work out your obligation, and read the wider explanation of zakat to understand the duty. Ensuring your zakat reaches a valid recipient is what makes the act complete and accepted.

Verifying that a recipient qualifies

You are not required to conduct an intrusive investigation. If you reasonably believe, based on what you know, that a person falls within one of the eight categories, your zakat is valid even if it later turns out they were not eligible, according to the view of many scholars. Acting in good faith and making a sincere effort to give to the right people is what is asked of you. Reputable zakat organisations carry out eligibility checks on your behalf, which is why many people choose to give through an established and trustworthy charity rather than distributing it entirely on their own.

This page is guidance only, not a fatwa; rulings vary by madhhab; consult a qualified scholar for your specific circumstances.

Frequently asked questions