Sadaqah jariyah, charity that keeps giving.

Sadaqah jariyah means "ongoing charity": a good deed whose benefit continues after the giver has died, so its reward keeps reaching them. A well that people drink from, a tree that gives shade, a Quran that people read and knowledge that people use are all examples. The Prophet ﷺ named it as one of three things that keep benefiting a person after death.

What counts as sadaqah jariyah?

Anything whose benefit lasts. Another hadith lists: knowledge that was taught and spread, a righteous child, a copy of the Quran left behind, a masjid built, a house built for travellers, a stream dug, or charity given from one's wealth while healthy.¹ The Prophet ﷺ also said that whenever a Muslim plants a tree and a person, an animal or a bird eats from it, it is charity for him.²

Ideas at any budget

• Little or no money: teach someone Al-Fatiha or how to pray, share a beneficial book or video, plant a seed, put a water bowl out for birds, teach your children a dua.
• A small amount: give copies of the Quran to a masjid, sponsor a share in a water pump or well, buy books for a madrasah, contribute to a masjid's upkeep.
• A larger amount: fund a well, a classroom, a solar panel for a masjid, or a waqf (endowment) whose income keeps funding good work.
• In your will: you may leave up to one third of your estate to charity, which can be a lasting sadaqah. See the Islamic will tool.

Choose a charity you have checked yourself: that it is registered where you live, reports what it spends, and does the work it says. Ask your local masjid which projects it trusts.

Sadaqah on behalf of someone who has died

Sad ibn Ubadah asked the Prophet ﷺ what charity was best for his mother, who had died, and was told: water. He dug a well and said it was for his mother.³ A man also asked whether he could give charity for his mother who had died suddenly, and the Prophet ﷺ said yes.⁴

Zakat, sadaqah and sadaqah jariyah

Zakat is the obligatory 2.5% on wealth above the nisab, given to set groups of people. Sadaqah is any voluntary charity, at any time. Sadaqah jariyah is sadaqah whose benefit lasts. Zakat can be used for some lasting projects, such as a well for the poor, as long as the poor are given ownership of it according to the Hanafi rules. Ask a scholar before using zakat for a building or a waqf.

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Charity does not decrease wealth."⁶

1. Sunan Ibn Majah, from Abu Hurayrah; graded hasan by several scholars.
2. Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, from Anas ibn Malik.
3. Sunan Abi Dawud and Sunan an-Nasai, from Sad ibn Ubadah.
4. Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, from Aishah.
5. Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, Bab al-Hajj an al-Ghayr; al-Marghinani, al-Hidayah. The other madhhabs' positions are summarised from their standard manuals.
6. Sahih Muslim 2588, from Abu Hurayrah.

The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.