Is it haram to shave your legs, chest, or body hair?
Question 1160
Question
Is it permissible for Muslim men and women to shave, wax, or laser the hair on their legs, chest, arms, back, or other parts of the body?
Summary of answer
Removing body hair is halal for women and men, by shaving, waxing, threading, laser, or any safe method. The Prophet ﷺ counted removing pubic and underarm hair among the practices of the fitra. The hair of the legs, chest, arms, and back is never mentioned in the texts, and the Sunnah calls what Allah left unmentioned a space of His pardon. Grooming it or leaving it is each person's choice.
Answer
الحمد لله Praise be to Allah.
Razors, wax strips, threading, and laser clinics are part of ordinary life, and many Muslims, women and men, ask whether removing body hair is allowed. It is halal to shave, wax, or laser the legs, chest, arms, back, and any other body hair. The Sunnah asks for some grooming, and on the rest of the body’s hair it is silent, which leaves the choice to you.
What does the Sunnah say about body hair?
The Prophet ﷺ listed grooming among the practices of the fitra, the natural disposition Allah gave human beings:
«الْفِطْرَةُ خَمْسٌ ـ أَوْ خَمْسٌ مِنَ الْفِطْرَةِ ـ الْخِتَانُ، وَالاِسْتِحْدَادُ، وَنَتْفُ الإِبْطِ، وَتَقْلِيمُ الأَظْفَارِ، وَقَصُّ الشَّارِبِ»
“Five things belong to the fitra: circumcision, shaving the pubic hair, plucking the underarm hair, clipping the nails, and trimming the moustache.”
Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Companions were given a limit for these practices: they were not to leave them for more than forty nights (Sahih Muslim 258). Pubic and underarm hair, then, is hair the Sunnah asks us to remove, for women and men alike. The aim is cleanliness, and any method that achieves it fulfils the sunna: shaving, waxing, sugaring, creams, or laser.
The Sunnah also treats grooming as part of the tenderness of marriage. When the Prophet ﷺ returned to Medina from an expedition, he told the men to wait and enter their homes in the evening, “so that the woman whose husband has been away may groom herself, and the one with unkempt hair may comb it” (Sahih al-Bukhari 5247).
Is it haram to shave your legs, arms, or chest?
No verse and no hadith mentions the hair of the legs, arms, chest, back, or stomach. In Islamic law, silence of this kind is a gift. When the Prophet ﷺ was asked about ordinary things of daily life, he answered:
«الْحَلاَلُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ فِي كِتَابِهِ وَالْحَرَامُ مَا حَرَّمَ اللَّهُ فِي كِتَابِهِ وَمَا سَكَتَ عَنْهُ فَهُوَ مِمَّا عَفَا عَنْهُ»
“The lawful is what Allah made lawful in His Book, the unlawful is what Allah made unlawful in His Book, and what He left unmentioned is among the things He has pardoned.”
Jamiʿ al-Tirmidhi 1726, graded hasan by al-Albani
The jurists built a whole principle on this: the default ruling for things is permissibility (al-aṣl fī al-ashyāʾ al-ibāḥa, الأصل في الأشياء الإباحة). Removing or keeping the hair of the legs, arms, chest, and back is therefore mubāḥ, permitted, and each person may decide by comfort, climate, sport, health, or taste. The Quran rebukes anyone who would forbid what Allah allowed:
قُلۡ مَنۡ حَرَّمَ زِينَةَ ٱللَّهِ ٱلَّتِيٓ أَخۡرَجَ لِعِبَادِهِۦ وَٱلطَّيِّبَٰتِ مِنَ ٱلرِّزۡقِ
“Say: Who has forbidden the adornment of Allah, which He brought forth for His servants, and the good things of provision?”
Can Muslim men remove body hair?
Yes. Men may shave or laser the chest, back, legs, and arms. Swimmers, cyclists, and other athletes do it for sport, many men in hot climates do it for comfort, and others prefer the look. Some ask whether this imitates women. The jurists explained that what counts as men’s or women’s grooming follows the custom (ʿurf, عرف) of each place, and in much of the world men groom their body hair as a matter of hygiene and sport, as they do their eyebrows (Is plucking eyebrows haram?).
Which hair has its own rulings?
A few kinds of hair have their own discussions, each answered on this site. The Prophet ﷺ told his community to grow the beard to look different from the Magians, and the stronger view holds it a recommended sunna that a man may shave (Is it haram to shave your beard?). The eyebrows have the hadith of al-nāmiṣa, which the scholars tied to its causes. The hair of the head is free to grow or cut for men and women (Can Muslim men have long hair or braids?, Can Muslim women cut their hair short?).
Two seasons call for a pause. A pilgrim in iḥrām for Hajj or ʿUmra leaves the hair until the rites are complete (Quran 2:196). And a person who plans to offer a sacrifice for Eid al-Adha is asked by a hadith to leave hair and nails from the start of Dhul Hijjah until the sacrifice (Sahih Muslim 1977c). Al-Nawawī (d. 1277) recorded that the scholars differed on this: Imam Ahmad held it binding, al-Shafiʿi a recommendation, and Abu Hanifa did not consider removing hair in those days disliked.
Does hair removal affect wudu or ghusl?
Removing hair has no effect on wudu, and no ghusl is needed afterward. Wax residue or cream should be washed off so that water reaches the skin, as described in How do you perform ghusl?
A closing word
Grooming the body is a small act of gratitude for it. The Quran says:
إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلتَّوَّـٰبِينَ وَيُحِبُّ ٱلۡمُتَطَهِّرِينَ
“Allah loves those who turn to Him, and He loves those who keep themselves pure.”
Shave, wax, laser, or leave your hair as Allah grew it. Whatever you choose, care for your body as a trust, and let the purity of your heart keep pace with the cleanliness of your skin.
And Allah knows best. والله أعلم
Frequently asked questions
Is laser hair removal haram?
No. Laser removal is one more method of reaching the same result as shaving or waxing, and the method is left to each person. Choose a qualified practitioner, and for the private areas one with whom you are comfortable.
Is it haram for men to shave their legs or chest?
No. The texts say nothing about the hair of the legs, chest, or back, so its removal is permitted. Swimmers, cyclists, and many men in hot climates shave it as a matter of course, and what counts as men's grooming follows the custom of each place.
Can I remove body hair during the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah?
A person planning to offer a sacrifice is asked by a hadith in Sahih Muslim to leave their hair and nails until the sacrifice. Imam Ahmad held this binding, al-Shafiʿi held it a recommendation, and Abu Hanifa did not consider removal disliked, so everyone else may groom as usual.
How often should pubic and underarm hair be removed?
The Companions were given an upper limit of forty nights, so it should not be left longer than that. Within that limit, the frequency is a matter of personal comfort and cleanliness.
Related questions
Sources
Image: Ottoman tile makers, Iznik tile panel, second half of the 16th century. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.. Image credits
