Last updated: 14 October 2026 | Written for Eid ul Adha 2027
Qurbani Easy Editorial Team • Advised by our panel of Islamic scholars
Quick Answer: The sources we opened agree on the direction: do not sell the meat or skin of your Qurbani and do not give them to the butcher as payment; give them as charity or use them yourself. The schools differ on what follows if the skin is sold, and on exchanging it for a lasting item. Details and sources are below, so you can take the question to your own scholar.
Skin and meat are the two parts of the animal people ask about most. The hadith reports below are clear about the butcher’s wages; the fatwa sources add detail. We show each school’s answer as it is written and do not choose between them.
What the hadith says
Ali reported: Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) put me in charge of his sacrificial animals, that I should give their flesh, skins and saddle cloths as sadaqa, but not to give anything to the butcher, saying: We would pay him ourselves.
Sahih Muslim 1317a
Sahih al-Bukhari 1717 reports the same instruction from Ali: to distribute the meat, skins and covering sheets in charity and not to give the butcher anything of them as wages. These reports are about the Hadi animals of the Prophet (ﷺ); the fatwa sources below apply the same principle to the Udhiyah.
What the fatwa sources say, school by school
| Question | Hanafi (Daruliftaa.com, via islamqa.org) | Shafi’i, with Maliki and Hanbali texts quoted (Darul Iftaa Jordan) |
|---|---|---|
| Selling the meat or skin | No part may be sold. If it was sold, the sale is considered complete but disliked (makruh). | Not permissible to sell the skin or any other part; the answer quotes Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali books for this. |
| If it was sold | The price must be given in charity to poor people eligible for Zakat; it cannot go to a mosque or madrasa. | The money must be given in charity. |
| Paying the butcher with a part | Not allowed; it is in effect a sale. | Not allowed as a price for slaughtering and skinning. |
| Exchanging the skin | May be exchanged for a lasting, non-consumable item; not for food or money. | The answer notes that Hanafi scholars allow this; it gives the Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali position as no selling. |
| Using it yourself | Allowed (prayer mat, water bag). | Allowed (water container, sandals), or give in charity. |
A second Hanafi answer (Muftionline.co.za, via islamqa.org) says that the proceeds of Qurbani skins cannot be used for renovating a masjid and must be given in charity to the poor. These are fatwa answers to specific questions; your own scholar may apply them to your case differently.
What this means in practice
- Keep the meat and skin out of the transaction: pay any wages in money, separately.
- Give the skin or meat in charity, or use it at home.
- If a skin has already been sold, speak to your scholar about the price before you spend it.
- When you book through a service, ask how the Qurbani is performed, and ask your scholar if you are unsure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sell the skin and give the money to charity?
The Hanafi answer we opened (Daruliftaa.com, UK) says that if the skin or meat is sold, the sale is considered complete but disliked, and the price must be given in charity to poor people who are eligible for Zakat, not to a mosque. The Shafi’i answer (Darul Iftaa Jordan) says it is not permissible to sell any part of the Udhiyah and that, if it was sold, the money must be given in charity. Ask your scholar before you act.
Can the butcher keep the skin?
Both answers say that giving a part to the butcher as his wage or as part of the price is not allowed. Both also allow a voluntary gift, as long as it is not the payment and does not change what you pay him. See paying the butcher.
Can I use the skin myself?
Yes, according to both answers: the Hanafi answer quotes the Hidaya that one may make a prayer mat or water bag from it, and the Shafi’i answer says to give it in charity or benefit from it, for example as a container for water or sandals.
Does the same rule apply to an Aqeeqah?
The Darul Iftaa Jordan (Shafi’i) answer says that no part of an Aqeeqah may be sold or given to the butcher as a wage, in the same way as the Udhiyah.
What happens to the meat when I book with Qurbani Easy?
The meat is 100% distributed to people in need; there is no home delivery. See where Qurbani meat goes.
Related guides: paying the butcher; dividing Qurbani meat.
When you are ready, you can book Qurbani online on our website.
Citation Sources
• Sahih Muslim 1317a (Ali) — meat, skins and saddle cloths as sadaqa, nothing to the butcher as wages; checked on sunnah.com.
• Sahih al-Bukhari 1717 (Ali) — the same instruction; checked on sunnah.com.
• Daruliftaa.com (Hanafi; Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari) — islamqa.org — no part may be sold or given as wages; the price must be given in charity if sold.
• Muftionline.co.za (Hanafi) — islamqa.org — proceeds of skins cannot go to a masjid renovation.
• Darul Iftaa Jordan (Shafi’i) — islamqa.org — not permissible to sell any part; Maliki and Hanbali texts quoted.
• Darul Iftaa Jordan (Shafi’i) — islamqa.org — the same rule for the Aqeeqah.
Madhab note: Hanafi and Shafi’i answers are shown side by side; the Maliki and Hanbali positions are only those quoted inside the Darul Iftaa Jordan answer. The hadith wording is the English shown on sunnah.com.