Short answer
Yes. Taraweeh prayed at home is valid and rewarded, alone or with your family in congregation. In the Hanafi school, praying it in congregation at the masjid is sunnah kifayah: as long as the masjid holds it, you are not sinful for praying at home, though men miss the extra reward of the masjid congregation.
Taraweeh is sunnah mu'akkadah on each person, and its congregation in the masjid is sunnah kifayah on the people of the area. A man who prays it at home fulfils the sunnah of taraweeh but misses the virtue of the masjid congregation; praying at home in congregation is better than praying alone. For women, praying at home is better.
Other madhhabs
- Maliki
- Praying taraweeh alone at home is better for someone who will not become lazy, as long as the masjids are not left empty.
Explanation
When the Prophet ﷺ stopped leading the Ramadan night prayer in the masjid, he told the people to pray in their homes, saying that the best prayer of a person is in their home, except the obligatory prayers. So taraweeh at home has a firm basis in the sunnah.
The masjid congregation. Since Umar's time, Muslims have prayed taraweeh together in the masjid, and the Hanafi school counts this as a sunnah on the community as a whole. If the masjid in your area holds it, the sunnah of the community is met, and you are not sinful for praying at home. Men who can attend, though, gain the reward of the congregation and of hearing the Quran recited.
- Pray 20 rakat in sets of two after Isha, then witr.
- Recite any surahs you know. Completing the whole Quran in taraweeh is a separate sunnah, not a condition.
- Pray in congregation with your family if you can: one leads, the others follow.
- In the Hanafi school, reading from a mushaf or phone during the prayer breaks it, so recite from memory.
Women may attend the masjid where it is safe and suitable, but in the Hanafi school their prayer at home is better. For the full method, see how to pray taraweeh, and for the number of rakat, see how many rakat is taraweeh.
The evidence
Sahih al-Bukhari 731
Sahih... فصلوا أيها الناس في بيوتكم فإن أفضل الصلاة صلاة المرء في بيته ...
"So pray in your homes, people, for the best prayer of a person is in his home."
Said about the Ramadan night prayer, it shows that taraweeh at home is valid and virtuous.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Kitab al-Salah, chapter on witr and voluntary prayers, section on taraweeh. The congregation of taraweeh is sunnah kifayah; whoever prays at home has not done wrong but misses its virtue.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Salah, section on the night prayer of Ramadan. Congregation for taraweeh is sunnah, and if all the people of a masjid left it, they would be at fault.
- Mukhtasar Khalil with al-Sharh al-Kabir, Section on recommended prayers. The Maliki preference for taraweeh at home when the masjids are not left empty.
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.