Short answer
Wudu has four fard acts: washing the face, washing the arms to the elbows, wiping a quarter of the head, and washing the feet. Everything else the Prophet ﷺ did, such as bismillah, rinsing the mouth and nose, and washing three times, is sunnah in the Hanafi school. The other schools make some of these, like intention and order, obligatory.
The sunnahs of wudu are sunnah mu'akkadah: wudu is valid without them, but leaving them as a habit is blameworthy. They include washing the hands first, bismillah, siwak, rinsing the mouth and nose three times each, running wet fingers through a thick beard and between the fingers and toes, washing each limb three times, wiping the whole head and the ears once, rubbing, intention, keeping the order and not pausing between limbs.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Intention and keeping the order are fard. Wiping any part of the head is enough, and wiping it three times is sunnah.
- Maliki
- Intention, rubbing (dalk) and washing without long pauses are fard, and the whole head must be wiped.
- Hanbali
- Intention, order and continuity are fard, rinsing the mouth and nose is part of washing the face and so fard, bismillah is wajib for one who remembers, and the whole head must be wiped.
Explanation
In the Hanafi school, the fard (obligatory) parts of wudu (ablution) are the four named in Quran 5:6: washing the face, washing both arms including the elbows, wiping at least a quarter of the head, and washing both feet including the ankles. Leave one out and the wudu is not valid. The sunnahs are what the Prophet ﷺ added when he made wudu, as Uthman showed when he demonstrated it step by step.
The sunnahs of wudu in the Hanafi school:
- Making the intention (niyyah) in your heart
- Saying bismillah at the start
- Washing the hands up to the wrists three times
- Using a siwak, or a toothbrush or finger if you have none
- Rinsing the mouth three times and sniffing water into the nose three times, with fresh water each time, and doing both thoroughly unless you are fasting
- Running wet fingers through a thick beard, and between the fingers and toes
- Washing each limb three times
- Wiping the whole head once, and the ears with the same wetness
- Rubbing each limb as you wash it
- Keeping the order of the ayah, and washing each limb before the last one dries
Starting with the right side and wiping the back of the neck with the backs of the fingers are listed as recommended (mustahabb) in Hanafi books. The neck wipe is not part of wudu in the other schools, and some of their scholars discourage it.
If you miss a sunnah, such as forgetting to rinse your nose, your wudu and prayer are still valid. Make a habit of the full sunnah, because the reward promised in the hadith is tied to wudu done well. For the full method see how to make wudu, and for the words to say at the end, the dua after 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.
Names the four fard acts of wudu; the rest of the method comes from the sunnah.
Sahih al-Bukhari 159
Sahih... من توضأ نحو وضوئي هذا ثم صلى ركعتين لا يحدث فيهما نفسه ...
"Whoever makes wudu like this wudu of mine, then prays two rak'ahs without letting his mind wander, his past sins are forgiven."
Uthman's demonstration, which included washing the hands, rinsing the mouth and nose and washing three times, is a main source for the sunnahs of wudu.
Sunan Abi Dawud 142
Graded sahih... أسبغ الوضوء وخلل بين الأصابع وبالغ في الاستنشاق إلا أن تكون صائما ...
"Complete the wudu, run water between the fingers, and draw water well into the nose unless you are fasting."
Source for running water between the fingers and for doing the nose thoroughly outside of fasting.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Nur al-Idah with Maraqi al-Falah, Kitab al-Taharah, section on the sunnahs of wudu. Lists the sunnahs of wudu and the recommended acts such as wiping the neck.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Taharat, opening chapter on wudu. The four fard acts, and the reasoning that intention and order are sunnah.
- al-Mughni (Ibn Qudama), Kitab al-Taharah, chapter on wudu. The Hanbali view that intention, 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.