How to Calculate Islamic Inheritance, Step by Step

An estate is divided in five steps: list the heirs and drop those excluded, give the fixed shares, give what is left to the residuaries, apply 'awl or radd, then split it into whole parts.

Try any case in the inheritance calculator; it applies the steps below and shows why each heir gets their share.

Before dividing: the order of claims

Funeral costs come first, then the deceased's debts, then a bequest to a non-heir up to one-third, and the rest goes to the heirs (Article 198 of the Saudi Personal Status Law). The division below is of this net estate.

Step 1: list the heirs and drop those excluded

A son or son's son excludes all siblings, uncles and their sons.
The father excludes the grandfather and the siblings. The mother excludes the grandmothers.
An inheriting descendant, the father or the grandfather excludes the maternal siblings.
A full brother excludes a paternal half-brother. Two daughters exclude a son's daughter unless a son's son is with her.
The nearer residuary excludes the further one: a brother before a nephew, a nephew before an uncle.

Step 2: give the fixed shares

Share	Who gets it
One-half	Husband with no inheriting descendant; one daughter; one son's daughter; one full sister; one paternal half-sister
One-quarter	Husband with an inheriting descendant; wife or wives with none
One-eighth	Wife or wives with an inheriting descendant
Two-thirds	Two or more daughters, son's daughters, full sisters or paternal half-sisters
One-third	Mother with no descendant and fewer than two siblings; two or more maternal siblings
One-sixth	Father or grandfather with a descendant; mother with a descendant or two siblings; grandmother(s); son's daughter with one daughter; paternal half-sister with one full sister; one maternal sibling

Step 3: give what is left to the residuaries

A residuary takes what is left after the fixed shares, or the whole estate if there are none. The order is son, son's son, father, grandfather, siblings, their sons, then uncles. A daughter with a son, or a sister with her brother, inherits two to one. A full or paternal sister with daughters becomes a residuary taking what is left.

Step 4: 'awl or radd

'Awl: if the fixed shares add up to more than the estate, every share shrinks in proportion, dividing by the sum of the shares. Radd: if something is left and there is no residuary, it returns to the fixed-share heirs other than the spouses in proportion to their shares.

Step 5: split into whole parts

Put all the shares over one common denominator; that denominator is the number of parts and each heir gets a whole number of them. If a group's share does not divide evenly among its members, multiply the denominator until it does.

Worked examples

1) Wife, son and daughter, estate 240,000: the wife takes one-eighth because there is a descendant, and the remaining 7/8 goes to the son and daughter two to one. In 24 parts: wife 3 (30,000), son 14 (140,000), daughter 7 (70,000).

2) Husband, mother and father ('Umariyya): the husband takes one-half, the mother one-third of what is left (one-sixth), and the father the rest. In 6 parts: husband 3, mother 1, father 2.

3) Husband, two full sisters and mother ('awl): one-half, two-thirds and one-sixth add up to 8/6, so the case rises from 6 to 8 parts: husband 3, sisters 4 (2 each), mother 1.

4) Wife, mother and daughter (radd): one-eighth, one-sixth and one-half leave 5/24 with no residuary, returned to the mother and daughter one to three, not to the wife. In 32 parts: wife 4, mother 7, daughter 21.

5) Daughter, son's daughter and full brother: the daughter takes one-half, the son's daughter one-sixth to complete two-thirds, and the brother the rest. In 6 parts: daughter 3, son's daughter 1, brother 2.

6) Grandfather and full brother: under Saudi law the grandfather excludes the brother and takes everything (Art. 212). Under Zayd ibn Thabit's view, followed by the majority, he shares with him as a brother, half each.

What the short method does not cover

An unborn child, a missing person, an intersex heir, several people dying together, dividing among distant kin, and the obligatory bequest for the children of a son or daughter who died before their parent where the law provides one. A person who killed the deceased intentionally does not inherit, and there is no inheritance across religions. The final division is the competent court's, through the heirship deed.

Frequently asked questions

What are the fixed shares in Islamic inheritance?

Six: one-half, one-quarter, one-eighth, two-thirds, one-third and one-sixth. They go to the spouses, daughters, son's daughters, sisters, maternal siblings, father, grandfather, mother and grandmothers.

What is the difference between 'awl and radd?

'Awl applies when the fixed shares add up to more than the estate, so every share shrinks in proportion, as with a husband, two full sisters and a mother rising to 8 parts. Radd applies when something is left and there is no residuary, so it returns to the fixed-share heirs other than the spouses in proportion to their shares.

Do siblings inherit with the grandfather?

It depends on the law. Under the Saudi Personal Status Law (Art. 212) the grandfather inherits like the father and excludes the siblings. Under Zayd ibn Thabit's view, followed by the majority of schools, he shares with them as a brother or takes the better of one-third or one-sixth.

How much does a daughter inherit if there is a son?

She inherits as a residuary with her brother, a son taking twice a daughter's share, so she has no fixed share. Without a son, one daughter takes one-half and two or more take two-thirds.

What does splitting into whole parts mean?

Finding the smallest number of equal parts so that every heir gets a whole number of them, such as 24 parts for a wife, son and daughter: 3 for the wife, 14 for the son and 7 for the daughter.

Sources

Figures and formulas on this page were last reviewed on 2026-11-03.