Islamic · Zakat al-An’am
Zakat on Livestock Calculator
Work out how many animals are due on your grazing herd, on the classical nisab bands for camels, cattle and goats.
Reference
Classical nisab bands
Goats & sheep
| Number owned | Zakat due |
|---|---|
| 1 – 39 | Nothing due |
| 40 – 120 | 1 goat or sheep |
| 121 – 200 | 2 goats or sheep |
| 201 – 399 | 3 goats or sheep |
| 400 and above | 4, plus 1 more for every additional 100 |
Cattle & buffalo
| Number owned | Zakat due |
|---|---|
| 1 – 29 | Nothing due |
| 30 – 39 | 1 tabi’ (one-year-old calf) |
| 40 – 59 | 1 musinnah (two-year-old) |
| 60 – 69 | 2 tabi’ |
| 70 – 79 | 1 musinnah + 1 tabi’ |
| 80 – 89 | 2 musinnah |
| 90 – 99 | 3 tabi’ |
| 100 – 109 | 1 musinnah + 2 tabi’ |
| 110 – 119 | 2 musinnah + 1 tabi’ |
| 120 and above | 1 musinnah per 40, 1 tabi’ per 30 |
Camels
| Number owned | Zakat due |
|---|---|
| 1 – 4 | Nothing due |
| 5 – 9 | 1 goat or sheep |
| 10 – 14 | 2 goats or sheep |
| 15 – 19 | 3 goats or sheep |
| 20 – 24 | 4 goats or sheep |
| 25 – 35 | 1 bint makhad (one-year-old she-camel) |
| 36 – 45 | 1 bint labun (two-year-old she-camel) |
| 46 – 60 | 1 hiqqah (three-year-old she-camel) |
| 61 – 75 | 1 jaz’ah (four-year-old she-camel) |
| 76 – 90 | 2 bint labun |
| 91 – 120 | 2 hiqqah |
| 121 and above | 1 bint labun per 40, 1 hiqqah per 50 |
Reading the result
Grazing animals, kept for a year
Livestock Zakat applies to animals that graze freely for most of the year and are kept for breeding or increase. Animals stall-fed on purchased fodder, and animals worked for ploughing or transport, are treated differently by most scholars.
That distinction does more work than the headcount. A herd of the same size can be inside or outside the charge depending on how it is kept.
Thresholds step, they do not scale
Unlike the 2.5% on wealth, livestock Zakat moves in bands: a herd below the threshold owes nothing, and above it the obligation rises in defined steps rather than smoothly. Two animals more can change the entitlement due, and two fewer can remove it entirely.
Trading stock is a different calculation
Animals bought to resell are trade goods, valued at market price and taken at 2.5% like any other stock. A dealer and a herder with identical animals are on different bases — intention at acquisition decides which.
For animals held as stock, the business inventory calculator is the right one.
Where this stops
The classical rules distinguish animals by age and sex when specifying what is actually due, and scholars differ on how mixed or modern commercial herds are treated. Where the herd is large or the position unclear, ask rather than infer.
FAQs
Zakat on livestock FAQs
Is zakat on livestock paid in animals or in cash?
Classically it is paid in animals of the specified age and type, not as a percentage of value. That is why this calculator returns a number of animals rather than a rupee figure. Many contemporary scholars permit paying the market value of the required animals instead, where that better serves the recipients — confirm with a scholar before doing so.
Which animals does it apply to?
Camels, cattle and buffalo, and goats and sheep, where they graze freely for most of the year (sa'imah) and have been owned for a full lunar year. Animals kept mainly on purchased fodder, and working animals used for ploughing, transport or irrigation, are exempt under the Hanafi position.
What if I keep livestock as trading stock?
Animals bought and held for resale are business stock-in-trade, not grazing livestock. They are valued at market price and zakated at 2.5% like any other inventory — see the Zakat on Business Inventory Calculator instead.
Why do the bands stop being listed at a certain point?
The classical texts tabulate specific bands and then state a general continuation rule — one animal per fixed increment above the last band. Beyond that point the schools differ on exactly how the remainder is combined, so the calculator applies the standard continuation rule and flags that the detail needs a scholar's confirmation.
Do young animals count towards the total?
The rules on counting newborns, and on the minimum age of the animal actually handed over, carry detail this calculator does not model. Count your mature grazing herd for the threshold, and confirm the specifics of which animal to give with a qualified scholar.
Related tools
Also farming the land?
Ushr is due on agricultural produce, separately from livestock zakat.
Open Ushr Calculator