Zakat on Crops and Fruits

Conditions, irrigation-based rates, and how to calculate what's due.

Published August 29, 2026 · Reviewed by the Ihsabha Editorial Team

Zakat on agricultural produce — known as zakat al-zuru' wal-thimar — works differently from zakat on cash or gold. It's due at harvest, not after a full year of ownership, and the rate depends on how the land was watered.

The nisab for crops

The nisab for agricultural zakat is 5 wasq, a traditional unit of measure equal to roughly 653 kilograms of the harvested crop. Produce below this amount is not subject to zakat, regardless of how it was irrigated.

How irrigation determines the rate

This is the detail most people miss:

10% is due if the crop was watered naturally — by rain, rivers, or springs — without the farmer bearing extra cost or effort.
5% is due if the crop required artificial irrigation — wells, pumps, or purchased water — since the farmer incurred additional cost to produce the harvest.
If a crop was irrigated by a mix of both methods during its growing season, many scholars apply an intermediate rate of 7.5%, roughly splitting the difference based on which method was used more.

What counts as zakatable produce

Traditionally, this zakat applies to grains and fruits that can be stored and measured — such as wheat, barley, dates, and raisins. Many contemporary scholars extend the same principle to other staple crops and orchard fruits that reach the nisab threshold, since the underlying reasoning (a productive, storable harvest) applies equally.

A worked example

Suppose a farmer harvests 1,000 kg of wheat, irrigated entirely by rain. Since 1,000 kg exceeds the 653 kg nisab, zakat is due. At the 10% rate for naturally-irrigated crops: 1,000 kg × 10% = 100 kg of wheat (or its equivalent cash value) owed as zakat.

Let the calculator do the conversion. Ihsabha's Crops & Fruits Zakat Calculator applies the correct nisab and irrigation-based rate automatically — just enter your harvest weight and irrigation method.

A note on accuracy

Agricultural zakat can involve additional considerations — such as harvest costs, mixed irrigation over a growing season, or local agricultural customs — that a general guide can't fully cover. For larger or commercial harvests, it's best to confirm your specific situation with a qualified local scholar.