Short answer
A woman wears her normal modest clothes in any colour, with her head covered, and may wear socks and shoes. She must not let cloth touch her face, must avoid perfume, and does not cut hair or nails until the end. She says the talbiyah quietly and does not jog in tawaf or sa'i.
A woman's ihram is in her face: she must not cover it with anything touching it. Stitched clothes, socks, shoes and a head covering are allowed. In the Hanafi school she may wear gloves. Everything else forbidden in ihram applies to her as to men.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali
- Gloves are forbidden for a woman in ihram, based on the words "nor should she wear gloves" in the hadith.
- Hanbali
- She may let a cloth hang down from above her head over her face in front of men, even if it touches her face.
Explanation
The Prophet ﷺ said the woman in ihram should not wear a niqab (face veil) or gloves. Hanafi jurists take the face part as binding and read the gloves part as a report of Ibn Umar's own view, so they allow gloves; the other schools forbid them. A careful woman can simply avoid gloves.
- Clothes: any normal, loose, modest clothes. White is not required. Avoid clothes perfumed or dyed with scented dye.
- Head: keep it covered, as always. A cap under the scarf is fine.
- Face: keep it uncovered. In front of non-mahram men she may hold something away from her face, such as a visor or a cap's peak with cloth hanging from it, so it does not touch. A face mask is covered in masks in ihram.
- Feet: socks and closed shoes are allowed.
- Talbiyah: say it so only you can hear.
- Tawaf and sa'i: no idtiba (baring the shoulder), no brisk walking in the first rounds and no jogging between the green lights.
- Hair: she does not shave; she trims a fingertip length (see how much hair to cut).
Make the intention like a man (see niyyah for umrah). If you are on your period, you may still enter ihram; see umrah on your period. The mahram rule is in Hajj without a mahram.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Baqara 2:197
ٱلْحَجُّ أَشْهُرٌۭ مَّعْلُومَٰتٌۭ ۚ فَمَن فَرَضَ فِيهِنَّ ٱلْحَجَّ فَلَا رَفَثَ وَلَا فُسُوقَ وَلَا جِدَالَ فِى ٱلْحَجِّ ۗ وَمَا تَفْعَلُوا۟ مِنْ خَيْرٍۢ يَعْلَمْهُ ٱللَّهُ ۗ وَتَزَوَّدُوا۟ فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ ٱلزَّادِ ٱلتَّقْوَىٰ ۚ وَٱتَّقُونِ يَٰٓأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَلْبَٰبِ ﴿١٩٧﴾
Hajj is [during] well-known months, so whoever has made Hajj obligatory upon himself therein [by entering the state of ihram], there is [to be for him] no sexual relations and no disobedience and no disputing during Hajj. And whatever good you do - Allah knows it. And take provisions, but indeed, the best provision is fear of Allah. And fear Me, O you of understanding.
The rules of ihram apply to women as to men.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1838
Sahih... ولا تنتقب المرأة المحرمة ولا تلبس القفازين ...
"The woman in ihram should not wear a face veil, nor should she wear gloves."
A woman in ihram leaves her face uncovered.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Hajj, chapter on ihram, on women. A woman is like a man in ihram except that she covers her head, wears stitched clothes, does not raise her voice in talbiyah and does not jog.
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Hajj, on women in ihram. Her ihram is in her face; she may hang a cover away from it.
- al-Mughni (Ibn Qudama), Kitab al-Hajj, on what the woman in ihram avoids. The Hanbali prohibition of gloves.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. 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.