Calculate your Zakat obligation for free. Supports USD & CAD, gold, silver, investments, RRSP/401k. Updated nisab values for 2026.
Why use this in the Sable app? Fields marked Auto-filled by Sable are pulled from your linked bank and investment accounts automatically — no typing, no guessing.
Nisab (silver standard): $1,104 as of July 2026
We calculate zakat on the accessible portion (balance minus estimated taxes). Consult your scholar — opinions vary on retirement accounts.
Most scholars allow deducting debts due within the year. Long-term debts (mortgage) are debated — some allow deducting one year's payments.
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Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is a mandatory act of worship — not charity in the voluntary sense, but a right that the poor hold over the wealth of those who have been given more. The word itself comes from the Arabic root meaning "to purify" and "to grow," and that captures the idea well: by giving a portion of your wealth each year, you purify what remains and invite blessing into it.
The obligation is straightforward in principle. Once a Muslim's net zakatable assets exceed a minimum threshold called the nisab, and those assets have been held for one full lunar year (the haul), 2.5% of the total zakatable wealth is owed to those in need. The Quran specifies eight categories of recipients in Surah At-Tawbah (9:60), including the poor, the indebted, and travellers in difficulty.
Zakat is not a tax imposed by a government, though historically Islamic states did collect it. Today, in most countries, Muslims calculate and distribute their zakat individually. That's exactly why a calculator like this one exists — to help you arrive at an accurate figure so you can fulfil this pillar with confidence.
The nisab is the minimum amount of wealth you must possess before zakat becomes obligatory. Think of it as the threshold: if your net zakatable assets are below it, you owe nothing. If they are at or above it for a full lunar year, you owe 2.5% on the entire amount (not just the portion above the nisab).
The Prophet (peace be upon him) set the nisab at two values:
Most contemporary scholars — including major fiqh councils and organizations like the Fiqh Council of North America — recommend using the silver nisab. The reasoning is that the silver standard is lower, which means more people meet the threshold and more zakat flows to those who need it. This follows the principle of acting in the interest of the poor, which is the very purpose of zakat.
Some scholars permit using the gold nisab, especially when the gap between the two is very large (as it is today — gold nisab is roughly 10x the silver nisab). Their argument is that someone with only $1,200 in savings may genuinely need that money themselves. This is a valid scholarly opinion, but it is the minority position.
Our calculator defaults to the silver nisab. You can switch to the gold standard if your scholar advises it.
The nisab is defined in grams of metal, not in dollars. Since gold and silver prices fluctuate with the market, the dollar value of the nisab changes accordingly. That's why you see "nisab for 2026" — it's the same 87.48g / 612.36g it has always been, just expressed in today's currency. We update the spot prices in this calculator regularly so your calculation stays current.
Not everything you own is subject to zakat. The general rule: zakat applies to wealth that is productive or surplus — money and assets that are growing or sitting idle beyond your personal needs. Items you use daily for living are exempt.
A simple way to think about it: if it is wealth you could liquidate and give away without losing your ability to live and work, it is likely zakatable. If it is something you need for your daily life, it is likely exempt.
This is the single most common question people have when calculating zakat in North America, and for good reason — retirement accounts are often a person's largest asset after their home, but they come with restrictions, penalties, and tax implications that make them unlike simple cash savings.
There is no single unanimous ruling on retirement accounts because they did not exist in classical fiqh. Contemporary scholars have offered several positions:
Sable's calculator uses Position B by default — the current account value minus an estimated tax/penalty rate that you can configure. We default to 30% for Canadian RRSPs and 35% for US 401(k) accounts (accounting for federal + state/provincial tax + early withdrawal penalty), but you can adjust this to match your own marginal tax rate and situation.
Tax-free accounts like the Canadian TFSA or the US Roth IRA are slightly different. Contributions were made with after-tax money, and withdrawals are tax-free. Many scholars therefore hold that the full value of a TFSA or Roth IRA is zakatable since there is no penalty or tax on withdrawal. Our calculator treats these at full value by default.
Important disclaimer: This is not a fatwa — consult your local scholar for your specific situation. The positions above reflect common scholarly opinions, but your individual circumstances (employer vesting schedules, loan provisions against the account, hardship withdrawal rules) may affect the ruling that applies to you. When in doubt, ask your imam or a qualified mufti.
Cryptocurrency did not exist in classical Islamic jurisprudence, so scholars have reasoned by analogy. The majority position among contemporary scholars and fatwa bodies is that crypto assets are treated as trade goods (uruud al-tijarah) — zakatable at their current market value on your zakat date.
The reasoning: most people hold crypto as an investment with the intention of selling at a profit. That makes it functionally equivalent to business inventory or speculative trade goods, which all four Sunni schools agree are zakatable at market price.
The separate question of whether cryptocurrency itself is halal to own is outside the scope of a zakat calculator. If you hold it, the scholarly consensus is that zakat is due on it regardless of the permissibility debate.
After helping thousands of Muslims calculate their zakat, we see the same errors repeatedly. Avoiding these will make your calculation more accurate and your obligation clearer.
Zakat becomes obligatory once two conditions are met: (1) your net zakatable wealth meets or exceeds the nisab, and (2) one full lunar year — the haul — has passed since it first reached that threshold.
Your haul begins the first time your wealth reaches nisab. In practice, many people don't remember the exact date this first happened, so they pick a fixed annual date and stick with it. Common choices:
Yes. All four schools agree you may pay zakat before your haul completes, as long as you have already reached nisab. If it turns out you overpaid (your wealth decreased by your actual haul date), the excess counts as voluntary charity (sadaqah). If you underpaid, you owe the difference.
Once your haul date arrives and your wealth meets nisab, zakat is immediately due. Scholars generally hold that you should pay without undue delay. However, short delays to find appropriate recipients or to gather funds are acceptable. Deliberately delaying for months without reason is considered sinful by most scholars.
The haul is technically one lunar year (approximately 354 days), which is about 11 days shorter than a solar year. If you use a Gregorian calendar date, you are effectively giving yourself a slightly longer haul — most scholars consider this acceptable as a practical simplification, though using the Hijri calendar is more precise. Over a lifetime, this small difference means paying slightly less frequently, so some scholars recommend paying a little extra to compensate.
Calculating zakat once a year is manageable with a spreadsheet. Doing it accurately — with real account balances, up-to-date gold prices, properly valued investments, and correctly deducted debts — is where most people struggle or give up and just guess.
Sable connects to your US and Canadian bank accounts through Plaid and pulls your real balances automatically. When your haul date approaches, it knows your cash, your investments, and your debts. It applies the current nisab, lets you configure how to treat your retirement accounts, and gives you a final zakat figure you can trust — broken down line by line so you can see exactly where the number comes from.
The calculator on this page is free and always will be. If you want the ongoing tracking, reminders, and automation, that's part of Sable's paid plans starting at $5/month.
Disclaimer: Sable is a financial tracking tool, not a religious authority. The figures produced by our calculator and our app are based on mainstream scholarly positions, but they do not constitute a fatwa. Always consult a qualified scholar for rulings specific to your situation.
Scholars differ on this. The Hanafi school holds that zakat is due on all gold and silver you own, including jewelry you wear regularly. The Shafi'i, Maliki, and Hanbali schools generally exempt jewelry that is worn regularly and is within a customary amount for your community. If you follow the Hanafi position (or want to err on the side of caution), include your worn jewelry at its gold-weight value. Otherwise, you may exclude it. Consult your local scholar for guidance specific to your situation.
You do not pay zakat on the mortgage itself — it is a debt you owe, not an asset you hold. In fact, most scholars allow you to deduct your short-term debt obligations from your zakatable assets. The common approach is to subtract the next 12 months of mortgage payments (principal portion only, not interest for those with conventional mortgages, or the equivalent for Islamic financing) from your total assets when calculating whether you meet nisab and how much you owe.
If your net zakatable assets are below the nisab threshold, you do not owe zakat — full stop. You may even be eligible to receive it. Zakat is only obligatory on those whose surplus wealth exceeds the nisab for a full lunar year. If you are above nisab but paying zakat would cause genuine hardship (e.g., you have wealth on paper in illiquid assets but no cash), consult a scholar — there are provisions for delayed payment in cases of genuine difficulty.
No. Zakat is 2.5% of your net zakatable assets — not everything you own. Your home, car, personal furniture, clothing, and tools of your trade are all exempt. You also deduct debts you owe. The 2.5% applies only to surplus wealth: cash, gold, silver, investments, business inventory, and money owed to you, minus your liabilities.
There are multiple scholarly opinions. Some hold that zakat is not due until you withdraw. Others say it is due on the current value minus estimated taxes and early-withdrawal penalties. A third opinion suggests a reduced rate. Our calculator uses the second approach by default — the current value minus an estimated tax/penalty rate that you can adjust. This is the position adopted by many North American scholars. Consult your local imam for the ruling you should follow.
As of July 2026, the nisab is approximately $11,305 USD using the gold standard (87.48 grams at ~$129.23/gram) or approximately $1,104 USD using the silver standard (612.36 grams at ~$1.803/gram). Most scholars recommend using the silver nisab, which is the lower threshold. In Canadian dollars (at ~1.37 CAD/USD), that is approximately $15,488 CAD (gold) or $1,512 CAD (silver).
Yes, most scholars permit paying zakat in advance throughout the year, as long as you have already reached nisab. For example, you can pay monthly installments so that by your haul date, you have paid the full amount owed. This is often easier to budget. Just ensure the total paid by your zakat date equals or exceeds your actual obligation — if you underpay, you owe the remainder; if you overpay, the excess counts as voluntary charity (sadaqah).
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