Short answer
Only as a temporary aid while you learn the Arabic script. Transliteration cannot show several Arabic letters correctly, so reading only in Roman letters leads to mistakes that can change the meaning. Hanafi scholars do not allow printing the Quran in another script in place of the Arabic, but a learner can use it under a teacher for a short time.
Writing the Quran in a non-Arabic script as a replacement for the mushaf is not permitted, because the Uthmani script must be preserved and transliteration distorts the letters. Using transliteration as a temporary learning aid, while striving to learn Arabic letters, is tolerated by many muftis, with the reward of effort.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Arabic has sounds English does not: two kinds of h, two kinds of s, d, t and z, the ayn and the hamza, and long and short vowels. Roman letters merge them. For example, in Surah al-Ikhlas, the difference between qul (say) and kul (eat) is a sound that many people reading Roman letters do not make. Small slips like these are among the clear mistakes the scholars warn against: see is tajweed compulsory.
The ruling. The Companions wrote the Quran in a set script, and the scholars agreed the mushaf must keep it. Darul Uloom Deoband and other Hanafi institutions have ruled that publishing the Quran in Roman, Devanagari or other scripts in place of the Arabic is not permitted. A transliteration printed beside the Arabic, or used in class, is a different matter: it is a tool, not a mushaf.
If you cannot read Arabic yet:
- Use transliteration for the few surahs you need for salah, and listen to audio at the same time.
- Start learning the letters now. Most adults can read slowly within weeks with the Noorani Qaida.
- Ask someone who reads well to check you.
A new Muslim is rewarded for the effort, and the Prophet ﷺ promised a double reward to the one who struggles with the Quran. Allah sent it as an Arabic Quran (12:2), so the goal is to reach the Arabic. See how to learn to read the Quran and the new Muslim guide.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Yusuf 12:2
إِنَّآ أَنزَلْنَٰهُ قُرْءَٰنًا عَرَبِيًّۭا لَّعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ ﴿٢﴾
Indeed, We have sent it down as an Arabic Qur'an that you might understand.
The Quran was revealed in Arabic, which is why its script and sounds are preserved.
Sahih Muslim 798
Sahih... الماهر بالقرآن مع السفرة الكرام البررة ...
"The one skilled in the Quran is with the noble and righteous scribes, and the one who stumbles over it with difficulty has two rewards."
The learner who struggles is rewarded for his effort.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Fatawa Mahmudiyya, Chapter on the Quran, writing the Quran in other scripts. Deobandi ruling against printing the Quran in non-Arabic script.
- al-Itqan (al-Suyuti), Chapter on the script of the mushaf. The scholars' agreement on preserving the Uthmani script.
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.