Short answer: Muslims do not drink alcohol because the Quran forbids intoxicants (5:90-91). It calls them "defilement from the work of Satan" and says they stir up hatred and turn people away from remembering Allah and from prayer. The Prophet ﷺ made clear that this covers every intoxicant, not only wine, and every amount: "Whatever intoxicates in a large amount, a small amount of it is haram."
The ban came in stages. Many of the first Muslims had grown up drinking, so the Quran first said its harm is greater than its benefit (2:219), then told believers not to come to prayer drunk (4:43), and finally forbade it outright. When that last verse was announced in Madinah, people poured out their wine until it ran in the streets (Sahih al-Bukhari 2464; Sahih Muslim 1980).
What the Quran says
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا ٱلْخَمْرُ وَٱلْمَيْسِرُ وَٱلْأَنصَابُ وَٱلْأَزْلَٰمُ رِجْسٌۭ مِّنْ عَمَلِ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنِ فَٱجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ ﴿٩٠﴾ إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ أَن يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ ٱلْعَدَٰوَةَ وَٱلْبَغْضَآءَ فِى ٱلْخَمْرِ وَٱلْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَن ذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ وَعَنِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ ۖ فَهَلْ أَنتُم مُّنتَهُونَ ﴿٩١﴾
Yaaa aiyuhal lazeena aamanooo innamal khamru walmaisiru wal ansaabu wal azlaamu rijsum min 'amalish shaitaani fajtaniboohu la'al lakum tuflihoon Innamaa yureedush Shaitaanu ai yooqi'a bainakumul 'adaawata wal baghdaaa'a fil khamri wal maisiri wa yasuddakum 'an zikril laahi wa 'anis Salaati fahal antum muntahoon
(90) O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone altars [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful. (91) Satan only wants to cause between you animosity and hatred through intoxicants and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist?
Quran 5:90-91 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Maidah
Earlier, the Quran had said of wine and gambling: "In them is great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people. But their sin is greater than their benefit" (2:219). It is honest that alcohol has some benefit, and still weighs the harm as greater.
What the Prophet ﷺ taught
كُلُّ مُسْكِرٍ خَمْرٌ وَكُلُّ مُسْكِرٍ حَرَامٌ
Every intoxicant is khamr, and every intoxicant is haram.
Sahih Muslim 2003 · narrated by Ibn Umar · sahih
مَا أَسْكَرَ كَثِيرُهُ فَقَلِيلُهُ حَرَامٌ
Whatever intoxicates in a large amount, a small amount of it is haram.
Sunan Abi Dawud 3681; Jami at-Tirmidhi 1865 · narrated by Jabir ibn Abdullah · graded hasan sahih by al-Albani
He also forbade trading in it: "Allah and His Messenger have forbidden the sale of wine" (Sahih al-Bukhari 2236).
The wisdom scholars mention
The Quran itself names the harms in 5:91: hatred between people, and being turned away from Allah and prayer. On top of that, scholars point out:
- Protecting the mind. Scholars such as al-Ghazali and al-Shatibi listed the mind (aql) among the five things Islamic law protects, with faith, life, family and wealth.
- No safe first step. Forbidding even a little closes the door before a habit can start.
- Families and society. Many harms, from drunk driving to violence at home, begin with drinking.
Wisdom, not the reason. These are benefits scholars have reflected on. Muslims follow this because Allah and His Messenger ﷺ commanded it, and would follow it even if none of these benefits were known.
The ruling, Hanafi first
Drinking khamr, wine from grapes, is haram in any amount. Abu Hanifah and Abu Yusuf held that drinks made from other things, such as dates or grain, were forbidden only in the amount that intoxicates, but the fatwa in the school follows Imam Muhammad: every intoxicant is haram, a little or a lot. Selling or serving alcohol is not allowed. Many contemporary Hanafi scholars allow alcohol that is not from grapes or dates, such as synthetic alcohol, in perfumes, medicines and cleaning products when it is not drunk; others advise avoiding it.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i, Maliki, Hanbali
- Every intoxicant is haram in any amount, whatever it is made from, and alcoholic drinks are impure.
Halal and haram, explained
What is lawful by default, what the Quran forbids, and how Muslims deal with doubtful foods and ingredients.
Read halal and haramMore "why do Muslims" questions
- Why do Muslims not eat pork?
- Why do Muslims wear the hijab?
- Why do Muslims wash their feet?
- Why do Muslims pray five times a day?
- Why do Muslims go to Makkah?
- Why do Muslims have beards?
- Why do Muslims eat halal?
- Why do Muslims say peace be upon him?
- Why do Muslims shave a baby's head?
- Why do Muslims face Makkah when praying?
- Why do Muslims get circumcised?
- Why do Muslims fast in Ramadan?
FAQ
Is a small amount of alcohol allowed?
No. The Prophet ﷺ said that whatever intoxicates in a large amount is haram even in a small amount (Abu Dawud 3681). The fatwa in all four schools follows this for drinks.
Can Muslims drink non-alcoholic beer?
Scholars differ. Many allow a drink that truly cannot intoxicate, such as 0.0% beer, while others advise avoiding it because it imitates drinking. Ask a scholar you trust.
Is cooking with wine allowed?
No. Cooking does not always remove all the alcohol, and wine is haram as an ingredient. Muslims avoid dishes made with wine, beer or spirits.
Can Muslims work in a bar or serve alcohol?
Serving or selling alcohol is not allowed, following the hadith on its sale. Many scholars allow other jobs in places that also sell it, such as a supermarket, if you do not handle the alcohol yourself.
What about alcohol in medicine or perfume?
Medicine needed for health is allowed when there is no alternative. On perfumes, many contemporary Hanafi scholars allow synthetic alcohol that is not drunk; others avoid it.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Sources
- Quran 2:219, 4:43 and 5:90-91, translation by Sahih International ("altars" corrected from "alters" in 5:90).
- Sahih Muslim 2003, from Ibn Umar.
- Sunan Abi Dawud 3681 and Jami at-Tirmidhi 1865, from Jabir ibn Abdullah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 2464 and Sahih Muslim 1980, from Anas: the wine poured out in Madinah.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 2236, from Jabir.
- Al-Marghinani, al-Hidayah, Kitab al-Ashribah, and Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, for the Hanafi positions of Abu Hanifah, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad.
- Al-Shatibi, al-Muwafaqat, on the five aims of the law.
Quran: Arabic from the Tanzil Uthmani text, English translation by Sahih International. Hadith gradings are those of the hadith scholars named. AmalKit cites the scholars; it does not issue fatwas.