Short answer
On the seventh day after birth, when the baby is also named and its head is shaved. If that is not possible, scholars recommend the 14th or the 21st day, and after that any day. In the Hanafi school a late aqiqah is still valid and rewarded.
The seventh day is mustahabb. Doing it later is permissible at any time, and many Hanafi scholars prefer a later day that keeps the seven day pattern.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- The time begins at birth, so an aqiqah before the seventh day also counts; the parent's sunnah ends at the child's puberty, after which the person may do it for himself.
Explanation
The Prophet ﷺ said the aqiqah is slaughtered on the seventh day, the head is shaved and the child is named. Al-Tirmidhi records that scholars preferred the seventh day, and if it was not ready, the fourteenth, and if not, the twenty-first.
Counting the seventh day: count the day of birth as day one. A simple rule: the seventh day falls on the day before the weekday of birth. A baby born on a Friday has the aqiqah on the next Thursday. Since the Islamic day begins at sunset, many scholars count a baby born after maghrib as born on the following day.
Naming: the name can be given on the day of birth or on the seventh day. Both are sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ named his own son Ibrahim on the night he was born, and he named Abu Musa's son on the day he was brought to him.
If the seventh day passes: you have not lost the sunnah. Do it on the 14th or 21st day, or whenever you are able, even years later. See aqiqah done later. On the same day it is recommended to shave the baby's hair and give silver in charity. For the number of animals, see how many goats for aqiqah, or use the aqiqah calculator for dates.
The evidence
Sunan Abi Dawud 2838
Graded sahih... كل غلام رهينة بعقيقته تذبح عنه يوم سابعه ...
"Every child is held in pledge for its aqiqah, which is slaughtered on its seventh day; its head is shaved and it is named."
Sets the seventh day for aqiqah, shaving and naming.
Sahih Muslim 2315
Sahih... ولد لي الليلة غلام فسميته باسم أبي إبراهيم ...
"A boy was born to me tonight, and I named him after my father Ibrahim."
Shows naming on the night of birth is also sunnah.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Udhiyah, closing discussion on aqiqah. On the seventh day and later days.
- al-Majmu' (Nawawi), Chapter on aqiqah. The Shafi'i view on when the time begins and ends.
This answer is pending review by the scholars on our team. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.