How many rakats is the prayer after wudu (tahiyyat al-wudu)?

Explanation

Uthman made wudu the way the Prophet ﷺ did, then reported his words: whoever makes wudu like this and then prays two rak'ahs without letting his mind wander, his past sins are forgiven. In another hadith, Paradise becomes due for the one who prays two rak'ahs after a good wudu with heart and face turned to Allah. The Prophet ﷺ also asked Bilal which deed he hoped most from, since he had heard his footsteps in Paradise. Bilal said he prayed after every wudu, by night or day.

How to pray it:

• Two rak'ahs, like any two-rak'ah nafl prayer. You may pray more.
• Intend the prayer after wudu in your heart.
• Pray soon after wudu. Hanafi scholars say before the limbs dry is best.
• Recite any surahs. Focus is the key condition in the hadith.

When not to pray it, for a Hanafi:

• at sunrise, at the sun's zenith, and at sunset
• after praying the fard of Fajr until the sun has risen
• after praying the fard of Asr until Maghrib

If you make wudu and go straight into a sunnah or fard prayer, or into tahiyyat al-masjid, you can intend tahiyyat al-wudu with it and receive its reward too. For the duas said after wudu, see dua after wudu, and for the virtue of keeping wudu, see staying in wudu.

The evidence

Where the ruling is recorded

• al-Durr al-Mukhtar with Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab al-Salah, chapter on witr and nafl prayers. Two rak'ahs after wudu are recommended, before the limbs dry, outside the disliked times.
• Nur al-Idah with Maraqi al-Falah, Kitab al-Salah, chapter on nafl prayers. Tahiyyat al-wudu among recommended prayers.

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.