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Ramadan 2027: thirty nights that fund the year.

A global report on Ramadan giving: what the world’s two billion Muslims give, where Zakat goes, how the biggest campaigns are built, the 2027 calendar city by city, and a plan for charities everywhere.

Andalus Media · Ramadan Digital Fundraising Report 2027 · Published 4 November 2026

2bn
Muslims worldwide: a quarter of humanity, and the fastest-growing faith group. Pew, 2025
$600bn
of Zakat could be given each year, at the top of the estimate. Official institutions collect $10–15bn. World Bank and IsDB
SAR 1.76bn
raised in Ramadan 2026 by Saudi Arabia’s national Ehsan campaign, in over 26.5 million transactions. Saudi Press Agency, 2026
AED 2.82bn
raised by the UAE’s Edge of Life campaign in Ramadan 2026, nearly three times its target. Gulf News, 2026
$1.8bn
of Zakat given by Muslim Americans in one year: $2,070 per household on average. Indiana University, 2022
£200m+
given by British Muslims in Ramadan alone, at the lowest estimate. Muslim Charities Forum, 2025
$69m+
given on LaunchGood in Ramadan 2024, a record for the global crowdfunding platform. LaunchGood
2.83%
of income is given in Nigeria, the most generous country in the world. Egypt is second. CAF World Giving Report, 2025

The first night of Ramadan 2027 is 96 days away.

Read the report

About this report

For Muslim charities and humanitarian appeals everywhere, Ramadan brings in more than any other month. Yet most plans are still built on last year’s habits.

This report puts the published numbers from around the world in one place: from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Indonesia to the United States and the UK. It works out the 2027 calendar night by night and city by city, and turns all of it into a dated plan, a budget split and a checklist. Every figure comes from the organisation named, with a numbered source; where a figure describes one charity or one country, we say so.

Part one

The world gives.

How much is given, where it goes, and what the biggest campaigns have in common.

Chapter 01

Two billion people, one month.

Muslims numbered 2.0 billion in 2020, 25.6% of the world’s population, up from 23.9% in 2010. They grew by 347 million in a decade, faster than any other group1. Almost all of them fast and give in the same month.

Muslims by region, 2020
  1. Asia-Pacific1.2bn
  2. Middle East and North Africa414m
  3. Sub-Saharan Africa369m

Europe and North America have far smaller Muslim populations, but they grew much faster than their non-Muslim populations from 2010 to 2020.

What it means. Ramadan is the world’s largest giving season by the number of people who take part at the same time. A charity anywhere can reach donors in dozens of countries in one month, if it plans for their time zones, currencies and habits.

Sources: Pew Research Center.

Chapter 02

Generosity is not a rich-country habit.

Measured by the share of income people give, the most generous countries in the world are Nigeria and Egypt, both with large Muslim populations. Europe gives the least, on average 0.64% of income, and the UK ranks 64th of 1012.

Share of income given to charity, 2024
  1. Nigeria2.83%
  2. Egypt2.45%
  3. Ghana2.19%
  4. China2.19%
  5. Africa, average1.54%
  6. World, average1.04%
  7. Europe, average0.64%

Share of income after tax, given to charity, to causes and to people directly. 101 countries and over 50,000 people.

What it means. The donors who give the largest share of what they have are often not the richest. Appeals that respect that, with small, regular and shared gifts, reach far more people than appeals built only for large gifts.

Sources: Charities Aid Foundation.

Chapter 03

The Zakat gap.

A World Bank and Islamic Development Bank study put the Zakat that could be given each year at $550bn to $600bn; official Zakat institutions collect $10bn to $15bn3. In Indonesia, collection reached about 13% of the potential4. The rest is given directly, through charities, or not at all.

Zakat worldwide, per year, in US dollars
  1. Could be given600bn
  2. Collected by official bodies15bn

Upper ends of the estimates: $550–600bn could be given, $10–15bn is collected. World Bank and the IsDB’s research institute.

Zakat in Indonesia
  1. PotentialRp327tn
  2. CollectedRp42tn

About 13% of the potential, by the government’s own figures

Where Muslim Americans’ Zakat went, 2021
  1. International nonprofits25.3%
  2. Governments21.7%
  3. Domestic nonprofits18.3%

The three largest destinations reported; the rest went elsewhere

UNHCR’s Islamic philanthropy, 2025
  1. Zakat$23m
  2. Sadaqah$16m

$39m in all, reaching over a million people in 25 countries

Muslim Hands, Ramadan 2025
  1. Zakat£6.5m
  2. Everything else£3.9m

Out of nearly £10.4m raised

The gold nisab (85g of gold)
  1. Ramadan 2025$8,000
  2. Ramadan 2026$15,000

Approximate, at each year’s gold price. Zakat is due on wealth above it.

What it means. Zakat is the largest gift of the month, and most of it never passes through a formal body. Zakat is 2.5% of wealth held above the nisab, which is set by the price of gold, and the price nearly doubled in a year15. The charities that make Zakat easy, separate and accountable will receive more of it.

Sources: Anadolu Agency; Antara; Muslim Philanthropy Initiative, Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy; UNHCR; Hyphen; Al Jazeera.

Chapter 04

The national campaigns that set the bar.

In Ramadan 2026, Saudi Arabia’s national Ehsan campaign raised SAR 1.757bn, about $468m, in over 26.5 million transactions, and the Ehsan endowment fund passed SAR 2bn7. In the UAE, the Edge of Life campaign raised AED 2.822bn from 44,208 contributors against a target of AED 1bn8.

The UAE’s Ramadan campaigns, raised in billions of dirhams (AED)
  1. 2023 · 1 Billion Meals Endowment1.08bn
  2. 2024 · Mothers’ Endowment1.4bn+
  3. 2025 · Fathers’ Endowment3.7bn+
  4. 2026 · Edge of Life2.82bn

Earlier campaigns counted meals: 15.3 million in 2020, 220 million in 2021 and a billion in 2022.

What it means. The biggest Ramadan campaigns share four things: one cause with one clear target, a public running total, leaders who give first, and an endowment option for gifts that keep giving. Each of these works at the scale of a single charity too.

Sources: Arab News, citing the Saudi Press Agency; Gulf News.

Chapter 05

Giving online, across borders.

LaunchGood, a global crowdfunding platform for Muslim causes, reports more than $69m given in Ramadan 2024, $688m raised in all and 2.1 million donors in over 5,000 cities9. UNHCR raised $39m in Zakat and Sadaqah in 2025, through an app built for Zakat among other channels6.

What it means. Donors now give across borders as easily as at home. A campaign page has to work for a donor in Toronto, Jeddah or Jakarta: in their currency, on their phone, at their iftar.

Sources: LaunchGood. About us; UNHCR.

Part two

The 2027 calendar.

Projected dates: the moon may move them by a day. 1 Ramadan is expected on Monday 8 February 2027, and Eid on Tuesday 9 or Wednesday 10 March.

Chapter 06

Ramadan 2027 around the world.

Because Ramadan falls in February and March, fasts are longest in the southern hemisphere. On the first day, Sydney fasts for 15 h 05 and Oslo for 10 h 54. On the 27th night, iftar reaches Sydney first and Toronto last, 14 h 41 later.

11 h 25
of fasting on the first day, Monday 8 February dawn 05:35 · iftar 17:00
13 h 10
on the 29th day, Monday 8 March dawn 04:42 · iftar 17:51
17:46
local time of iftar as the 27th night begins, Friday 5 March 17:46 GMT
Hours of fasting on the first day, 8 February 2027, dawn to sunset
  1. Sydney15 h 05
  2. Johannesburg14 h 32
  3. Jakarta13 h 33
  4. Nairobi13 h 21
  5. Kuala Lumpur13 h 11
  6. Lagos13 h 04
  7. Dhaka12 h 29
  8. Riyadh12 h 28
  9. Karachi12 h 27
  10. Dubai12 h 27
  11. Doha12 h 26
  12. Cairo12 h 17
  13. New York11 h 54
  14. Istanbul11 h 53
  15. Toronto11 h 47
  16. Paris11 h 33
  17. London11 h 25
  18. Berlin11 h 22
  19. Oslo10 h 54

Dawn taken as the sun 18° below the horizon. Local timetables can differ by up to half an hour.

Iftar as the 27th night begins, Friday 5 March 2027, in GMT
  1. Sydney08:28
  2. Jakarta11:11
  3. Kuala Lumpur11:27
  4. Dhaka12:03
  5. Karachi13:36
  6. Dubai14:23
  7. Doha14:38
  8. Riyadh14:57
  9. Nairobi15:49
  10. Cairo15:56
  11. Istanbul15:58
  12. Johannesburg16:36
  13. Berlin16:51
  14. Oslo16:52
  15. Paris17:39
  16. London17:46
  17. Lagos17:59
  18. New York22:51
  19. Toronto23:10

Each dot is sunset in that city, shown on one clock: GMT.

See the data as a table
Ramadan 2027 in 19 cities
CityFirst dayDay 29Iftar, 27th night (local)In GMT
London, United Kingdom11 h 2513 h 1017:4617:46 GMT
Paris, France11 h 3313 h 0818:3917:39 GMT
Berlin, Germany11 h 2213 h 1117:5116:51 GMT
Oslo, Norway10 h 5413 h 2117:5216:52 GMT
Istanbul, Türkiye11 h 5313 h 0418:5815:58 GMT
Cairo, Egypt12 h 1713 h 0317:5615:56 GMT
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia12 h 2813 h 0417:5714:57 GMT
Doha, Qatar12 h 2613 h 0417:3814:38 GMT
Dubai, United Arab Emirates12 h 2713 h 0418:2314:23 GMT
Karachi, Pakistan12 h 2713 h 0418:3613:36 GMT
Dhaka, Bangladesh12 h 2913 h 0418:0312:03 GMT
Jakarta, Indonesia13 h 3313 h 2118:1111:11 GMT
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia13 h 1113 h 1319:2711:27 GMT
Lagos, Nigeria13 h 0413 h 1118:5917:59 GMT
Nairobi, Kenya13 h 2113 h 1718:4915:49 GMT
Johannesburg, South Africa14 h 3213 h 4618:3616:36 GMT
New York, United States11 h 5413 h 0417:5122:51 GMT
Toronto, Canada11 h 4713 h 0518:1023:10 GMT
Sydney, Australia15 h 0514 h 0119:2808:28 GMT

What it means. A global appeal does not have one peak; it has one per time zone. Schedule ads, emails and live moments to local iftar, and the 27th night becomes a wave you can follow around the world.

Chapter 07

Every night of Ramadan 2027.

Tap a night to see what falls on it. The notes are written for the UK; the city tool above gives local times anywhere.

Nights 1 to 10

Nights 11 to 20

The last ten nights

Night 27 · Friday 5 March

The 27th night falls on a Friday evening, the start of the weekend in Europe and the Americas. In 2025 one UK live appeal on this night raised £1.5m. Iftar in London about 17:46.

See the data as a table
Ramadan 2027: the dates to plan for
NightEveningWhat falls on it
Night 1Sun 7 FebThe first night: tarawih begins. 1 Ramadan is projected for Monday 8 February; in some countries it may begin a day later, with the moon.
Night 20Fri 26 FebPayday for most monthly salaries in the UK, the last working day of February. Ask supporters to set up their giving for the last ten nights tonight.
Night 21Sat 27 FebThe last ten nights begin, on a Saturday evening, the day after UK payday. The first odd night.
Night 23Mon 1 MarAn odd night of the last ten.
Night 25Wed 3 MarAn odd night of the last ten.
Night 27Fri 5 MarThe 27th night falls on a Friday evening, the start of the weekend in Europe and the Americas. In 2025 one UK live appeal on this night raised £1.5m.
Night 29Sun 7 MarAn odd night, and Mothering Sunday in the UK: a natural night for appeals led by women, and for women.
Night 30Mon 8 MarThe night of doubt. If the moon is seen, Eid is Tuesday 9 March and tonight is Eid night; if not, Ramadan runs 30 days and Eid is Wednesday 10 March. Zakat al-Fitr must reach the charity before the Eid prayer.

Part three

The UK, close up.

One country in detail, as an example of what to look for in yours.

Chapter 08

The UK in numbers.

Muslims are 6.5% of the population of England and Wales13, and give an estimated £1.48bn to £2.22bn a year12, at least £200m of it in Ramadan11. The average Muslim donor gives £708 a year, more than four times a non-religious donor12. In 2025, one live appeal on the 27th night raised £1.5m, a record for Islam Channel14.

Will give more in the coming year
  1. British Muslims27%
  2. UK public12%

Scale 0 to 30%

Will give less
  1. British Muslims19%
  2. UK public24%

Scale 0 to 30%

What it means. British Muslims expect to give more, not less, while the wider public is cutting back. In the UK, Gift Aid adds 25p to every £1 from taxpayers, and is still missing from many Ramadan donation flows.

Sources: Office for National Statistics; Blue State; Muslim Charities Forum; Hyphen; GOV.UK. Tax relief when you donate to a charity: Gift Aid..

Chapter 09

Phones bring the visits, not yet the money.

More than half of the visits to charity websites come from phones, but desktop brings 70% of online revenue, and the average gift on a phone is about half the size10. In Ramadan, people give after iftar, mostly on their phones.

Share of visits
  1. Mobile53%
  2. Desktop47%
Share of revenue
  1. Mobile30%
  2. Desktop70%

Mobile is the remainder of the 70% reported for desktop

Average online gift
  1. Mobile$76
  2. Desktop$145

What it means. Before spending on media, make giving on a phone as easy as on a laptop: wallets first, fewer fields, a Zakat calculator built for a small screen, and giving for the last ten nights set up in one step.

Sources: M+R Benchmarks 2025. Website performance..

These are US figures; the direction holds elsewhere, though the size may differ.

Part four

The plan.

Dated for Ramadan 2027. Planning starts now.

Chapter 10

The plan, from December to Eid.

  1. Agree the goal, the idea and the budget. Book the media for the last ten nights early: the 27th night is the most contested evening of the year.

  2. Build and test the pages: a Zakat calculator with a live nisab, Zakat al-Fitr with its deadline, giving for the last ten nights in one step, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and Gift Aid in the UK. Film the short videos now.

  3. Everything tested on real phones, iPhone and Android, on a mobile connection. Receipts and thank-you emails written. Zakat kept apart from other gifts, with its own fund code.

  4. Launch on the first night. Put the Zakat calculator first: the nisab has moved with gold, and donors need to work out what they owe.

  5. Keep a steady rhythm, with a running total people can watch grow. On payday, ask everyone to set up their giving for the last ten nights.

  6. The heaviest spend. Weight it to the odd nights and the weekend of the 27th night (Friday 5 March), and follow iftar from city to city if your donors are spread across the world.

  7. A clear last call before the Eid prayer, then an Eid greeting that thanks, not asks.

  8. Report back on what the month paid for, then invite this year’s donors to give monthly, so next Ramadan starts from more than zero.

Split your budget

Most of the money comes in the last ten nights, so most of the budget belongs there. Type your budget to see the split.

A starting split by phase (our recommendation, not data)
  1. Run-uplate January to 6 February£5005%
  2. Nights 1 to 107 to 16 February£2,00020%
  3. Nights 11 to 2017 to 26 February£1,50015%
  4. The last ten nights27 February to 8 March£5,00050%
  5. Zakat al-Fitr and Eid8 to 10 March£1,00010%

Chapter 11

Twelve things to check before 1 February.

Tick them off on this page, or print it for the team.

Plan it

Ramadan campaign plannerA dated plan from ten weeks before to after Eid.The last ten nights: how to plan the biggest week of Ramadan givingSeasonal fundraising · 6 min readDonation page checkTwelve questions, and what to fix first.Ramadan campaignsRamadan 2027 begins around 8 February. The best appeals are planned eight to ten weeks before the first night.

Method

Every figure is as published by the organisation named; we have not adjusted any of them. Where a figure comes from one charity, one platform or one country, the text says so. Currencies are given as published. Three figures are worked out from published ones: the split between Zakat and other giving at Muslim Hands (£10.4m less £6.5m), mobile revenue (the remainder of the 70% M+R reports for desktop), and Indonesia’s share of its Zakat potential (Rp42tn of Rp327tn).

Ramadan and Eid dates follow the Umm al-Qura projection of 1 Ramadan on Monday 8 February 2027, and may move by a day with the moon. Dawn and sunset are calculated for each city with the NOAA solar equations, taking dawn as the sun 18° below the horizon, as the Muslim World League does; local timetables can differ by up to half an hour. No clocks change in these cities between 8 February and 10 March 2027. Payday is the last working day of February in the UK. Mothering Sunday is three Sundays before Easter Sunday, 28 March 2027.

Sources

  1. Pew Research Center (10 June 2025). Islam was the world’s fastest-growing religion from 2010 to 2020. pewresearch.org
  2. Charities Aid Foundation (21 July 2025). World Giving Report 2025, as reported by Civil Society. civilsociety.co.uk
  3. Anadolu Agency (9 November 2019). World Zakat Forum: optimizing funds to reduce poverty, citing a World Bank and IsDB–IRTI study. aa.com.tr
  4. Antara (28 August 2025). Indonesia eyes Rp327t zakat potential to fight poverty, citing the Ministry of Religious Affairs. en.antaranews.com
  5. Muslim Philanthropy Initiative, Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy (2022), as reported by The NonProfit Times. thenonprofittimes.com
  6. UNHCR (27 February 2026). Islamic Philanthropy Annual Report: Impact 2025. zakat.unhcr.org
  7. Arab News, citing the Saudi Press Agency (21 March 2026). Ehsan’s national charity campaign surpasses SR1.75 billion in Ramadan donations. arabnews.pk
  8. Gulf News (16 March 2026). UAE’s Edge of Life campaign raises Dh2.8 billion to combat child hunger. gulfnews.com
  9. LaunchGood. About us (read November 2026). launchgood.com
  10. M+R Benchmarks 2025. Website performance. 2025.mrbenchmarks.com
  11. Muslim Charities Forum (2025). As Ramadan ends, British Muslims continue to be a leading force in UK charitable giving. muslimcharitiesforum.org.uk
  12. Blue State (2024). UK Giving Behaviours Tracker, as reported by the Muslim Charities Forum. muslimcharitiesforum.org.uk
  13. Office for National Statistics (2022). Religion, England and Wales: Census 2021. ons.gov.uk
  14. Hyphen (1 May 2025). It’s giving: where British Muslims donated during Ramadan in 2025. hyphenonline.com
  15. Al Jazeera (26 February 2026). How higher gold prices are affecting zakat calculations this Ramadan. aljazeera.com
  16. The National (2 September 2026). Expected Ramadan 2027 start date and Eid Al Fitr holiday dates. thenationalnews.com
  17. GOV.UK. Tax relief when you donate to a charity: Gift Aid. gov.uk

Cite this report

Andalus Media (2026). Ramadan Digital Fundraising Report 2027. andalusmedia.co.uk/reports/ramadan-digital-fundraising-2027/

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