Sadaqah planner

Weights, not percentages

Splitting a budget on paper usually stalls at the same place: making the numbers add up to a hundred. So this tool does not ask you to. Put 3 against one cause and 1 against another and it gives them three quarters and a quarter, and shows you the percentages it worked out, so nothing is hidden.

It means you can think in whatever terms come naturally. Twice as much here as there. An even split between four. Most of it to one place and a little to the rest.

The headings are a convenience, not advice

They are common categories in no particular order, there to save you typing your own. Being on the list is not a recommendation and the order means nothing. Set anything you do not want to zero and it drops out entirely.

Near and far

Money usually goes further abroad, and that is a real consideration. It is also worth knowing that giving to those closest to you who are struggling, family, neighbours, is frequently mentioned in its own right rather than as a lesser alternative.

The tool has headings for both and takes no view between them. That balance is yours.

Monthly or yearly

Set it up whichever way you actually give. A monthly plan also shows the yearly equivalent for each cause, which is usually the figure worth knowing when you are deciding whether the split feels right, a small monthly amount can look like very little until you see what it comes to over a year.

Where this sits

The sadaqah goal calculator answers how much; this answers where. Most people arrive at a figure with the first and divide it with the second.

Zakat is a different exercise again. It has rules about who may receive it that sadaqah does not, so it should not be split this way, work out what is owed with the zakat calculator and take the question of eligibility to someone qualified.

Nothing is saved

The split lives on the page while you are using it. Nothing is stored and nothing is sent anywhere, so if you want to keep a plan, write the figures down or print the page.