Short answer
No, not in the Hanafi school. Keeping the order of wudu (face, arms, head, feet) is a sunnah, so wudu done out of order is valid but misses that sunnah. The Shafi'i and Hanbali schools make the order fard, so for them it would not be valid.
Order (tartib) in wudu is sunnah mu'akkadah. Leaving it is makruh but the wudu is valid. Continuity (muwalat), washing each limb before the last one dries, is also sunnah.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Order is fard. Wudu done out of order is not valid, and you must redo the limbs from the point where the order broke.
- Maliki
- Order is sunnah, as in the Hanafi school, but continuity is fard.
- Hanbali
- Order and continuity are both fard.
Explanation
The order of wudu (ablution) taught in the sunnah is: wash the hands, rinse the mouth, rinse the nose, wash the face, wash the right arm then the left to the elbows, wipe the head and ears, then wash the right foot and the left. Uthman showed the Companions this order and said he saw the Prophet ﷺ do it.
The schools differ on whether this order is a condition. The Hanafi school notes that the ayah joins the limbs with "and", which in Arabic lists things without ranking them. Allah commanded washing these limbs, and someone who washed them all has done what was commanded. The Prophet's ﷺ regular practice makes the order a strong sunnah. The Shafi'i and Hanbali schools read the ayah as setting the sequence, since it places the wiped head between washed limbs, and they make order fard.
What this means for you:
- Always keep the order. It is the sunnah, and it makes your wudu valid in every school.
- If you got the order wrong once, for example you washed your feet before wiping your head, your wudu is valid for a Hanafi. Next time, keep the order.
- If you forgot a limb and remembered later, wash that limb. A Hanafi does not need to repeat the limbs after it: see a dry spot in wudu.
- In the shower, water may run over your feet early. That counts, but washing them again at the end keeps the sunnah.
If you follow the Shafi'i or Hanbali school, order is fard for you, so go back to the missed limb and redo the ones after it. For the steps, see how to make wudu.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Maaida 5:6
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِذَا قُمْتُمْ إِلَى ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ فَٱغْسِلُوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ وَأَيْدِيَكُمْ إِلَى ٱلْمَرَافِقِ وَٱمْسَحُوا۟ بِرُءُوسِكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُمْ إِلَى ٱلْكَعْبَيْنِ ۚ وَإِن كُنتُمْ جُنُبًۭا فَٱطَّهَّرُوا۟ ۚ وَإِن كُنتُم مَّرْضَىٰٓ أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ أَوْ جَآءَ أَحَدٌۭ مِّنكُم مِّنَ ٱلْغَآئِطِ أَوْ لَٰمَسْتُمُ ٱلنِّسَآءَ فَلَمْ تَجِدُوا۟ مَآءًۭ فَتَيَمَّمُوا۟ صَعِيدًۭا طَيِّبًۭا فَٱمْسَحُوا۟ بِوُجُوهِكُمْ وَأَيْدِيكُم مِّنْهُ ۚ مَا يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ لِيَجْعَلَ عَلَيْكُم مِّنْ حَرَجٍۢ وَلَٰكِن يُرِيدُ لِيُطَهِّرَكُمْ وَلِيُتِمَّ نِعْمَتَهُۥ عَلَيْكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ ﴿٦﴾
O you who have believed, when you rise to [perform] prayer, wash your faces and your forearms to the elbows and wipe over your heads and wash your feet to the ankles. And if you are in a state of janabah, then purify yourselves. But if you are ill or on a journey or one of you comes from the place of relieving himself or you have contacted women and do not find water, then seek clean earth and wipe over your faces and hands with it. Allah does not intend to make difficulty for you, but He intends to purify you and complete His favor upon you that you may be grateful.
The ayah lists the limbs; the schools differ on whether the list sets a required order.
Sahih al-Bukhari 159
Sahih... من توضا نحو وضوئي هذا ثم صلى ركعتين ...
"Whoever makes wudu like this wudu of mine, then prays two rak'ahs."
Uthman's demonstration of the Prophet's ﷺ wudu in order, the basis for the order being sunnah.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Taharat, sunnahs of wudu. Order is sunnah, because the ayah lists the limbs with a conjunction that does not require sequence.
- al-Majmu' (Nawawi), Kitab al-Taharah, chapter on the description of wudu. The Shafi'i view that order is obligatory.
- al-Mughni (Ibn Qudama), Kitab al-Taharah, chapter on order and continuity in wudu. The Hanbali view that order and continuity are obligatory.
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.