Zakat applies to three types of growing wealth: money, gold and silver, and trade goods. Here's what counts, what doesn't, and how modern instruments fit in.

What Wealth Is Zakatable?

Zakat doesn't apply to everything you own. It applies to growing wealth — what the classical scholars called al-māl al-nāmī, wealth with the capacity for increase.

Think of it this way: trim hair, and it grows back. That's zakatable wealth. A hand? Cut it, and it doesn't grow back. That's not zakatable.

The broad principle: if it's liquid, tradeable, or held as savings, it's likely zakatable. If it's a personal-use item that doesn't generate income, it's not. And all of it reduces to three foundational categories.

Category 1: Your Money

Money is the most straightforward category. All four madhahib agree unanimously — if it's cash or acts like cash, it's zakatable. No exceptions, no debate.

This includes:

  • Cash on hand — physical bills in your wallet, at home, or in a safe, regardless of currency
  • Bank accounts — checking, savings, GICs, term deposits, high-interest savings accounts
  • Foreign currency — convert to Canadian dollars at today's exchange rate on your Zakat date
  • Prepaid cards and digital wallets — any stored balance you control
  • Cryptocurrency — Bitcoin, Ethereum, stablecoins, altcoins, tokens. Contemporary scholars treat crypto as a liquid, tradeable asset. Whether they classify it as currency (thaman), a tradeable commodity (ʿurūḍ al-tijārah), or a digital asset sui generis, the conclusion is the same: the full market value is zakatable at 2.5%

Example: You have $5,000 in checking, $20,000 in savings, and $2,000 in a GIC. Your total zakatable cash is $27,000. Zakat = 2.5% × $27,000 = $675.

Money you've lent to others

Here's one people miss: money you've lent someone is still your money. Whether it's a personal loan, a business receivable, or an outstanding mahr, it's part of your wealth. Whether you pay zakat on it now depends on the type of debt and your school of thought — the schools differ significantly, from including all debts immediately to deferring zakat entirely until you receive repayment.

See Zakat on Money Owed to You for the full breakdown.

Category 2: Your Gold and Silver

Gold and silver held for investment or savings are always zakatable. This includes:

  • Bars and coins — bullion, collectible coins held for value
  • Unset gemstone-mounted pieces held primarily for investment
  • Gold/silver stored in a vault or safety deposit box
  • Precious metal ETFs — gold ETFs, silver ETFs represent ownership of physical metals, so they follow the same rules: 100% zakatable. See Crypto, Cash, and Precious Metal ETFs for more detail.

If you have a coin collection that includes gold, silver, or base metal coins, the zakat treatment depends on both the metal content and your intent. See Zakat on Coin Collections for the full breakdown.

The calculator uses current market prices to convert weights to dollar values. Enter the weight in grams and select the purity, and the value is calculated automatically.

Note: Personal-use jewelry (gold or silver you wear) is a separate and more nuanced question. Scholars differ by school on whether it's zakatable. See Zakat on Gold, Silver & Jewelry for that discussion.

Category 3: Your Trade Goods

Anything you purchased with the intention to sell for profit is a trade good (ʿurūḍ al-tijārah). Its current market value on your zakat date is zakatable.

This includes:

  • Business inventory — products you're selling
  • Property purchased for resale — land, buildings, or units bought to flip
  • Wholesale stock — goods acquired for future sale

The key distinction is intent at the time of purchase. A car you drive is not zakatable. A car you bought to resell is trade stock. A house you live in is not zakatable. A house you bought to flip is.

If you own a business, the same principle applies: cash, inventory, and receivables are zakatable. Fixed assets used in operations (buildings, equipment, vehicles) are not. See Zakat on Business Assets.

Modern Instruments: They All Reduce to These Three

If you have investments — stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, RRSPs, TFSAs, FHSAs, RESPs — you might be wondering where they fit. They aren't a fourth category. They're containers holding different mixes of the first three.

A stock portfolio, for example, contains both money (cash holdings, receivables) and trade goods (inventory, assets held for appreciation). How much of that portfolio is zakatable depends on whether you're a short-term trader (100% market value) or a long-term investor (zakatable assets method, commonly estimated at ~30%).

Canadian registered accounts add another layer: access restrictions, tax implications, and government grants all affect the calculation. But the underlying principle is the same — you're always asking: how much of this is money, gold/silver, or trade goods?

See our dedicated articles:

What Is NOT Zakatable

If it's not money-like and you didn't buy it to sell it — it's not in the calculation.

The following types of wealth are not subject to Zakat:

  • Your primary residence — the home you live in is not zakatable, regardless of value
  • Personal vehicles — cars, trucks, motorcycles used for personal transportation
  • Household furniture and appliances — items you use daily
  • Personal clothing — except gold or silver thread/ornaments (which follow jewelry rules)
  • Tools of your trade — equipment, tools, and machinery you use to earn a living
  • Real estate held for personal use — a cottage or vacation home you use, not rent out
  • CPP — you don't own it. It's a government benefit, not an investment
  • LIRA and locked pensions — no access, no liquidity. Most scholars say no zakat until withdrawal
  • Land you plan to build on — if you didn't purchase it to sell, it's not trade goods

The general principle: items used for personal living are not zakatable. Only wealth that is liquid, productive, or held for trade/investment is subject to Zakat.

An important distinction: Real estate held as an investment is treated differently. If you purchased property with the intention of reselling for profit, it becomes a trade good and its market value is zakatable. Rental income that accumulates as cash in your account is also zakatable — because at that point it's money (Category 1). But the property you live in is always exempt.

The calculator covers all zakatable asset categories: cash, crypto, gold, silver, investments, loans, and business assets. It automatically handles the math for each category.

Open the Calculator

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