Dua for Breaking Fast: The Authentic Iftar Dua From the Sunnah

The sun sets, the adhan for Maghrib begins, and you lift a date to your mouth. What did the Prophet ﷺ say at that moment? The authentic dua for breaking fast is short: “Dhahaba az-zama’u wabtallatil-‘uruqu wa thabatal-ajru in sha’ Allah.” Here it is in Arabic with its meaning and grade, when to say it, what the Sunnah says about breaking the fast, the dua for someone who feeds you, and why the most-shared iftar dua is weak.

The dua for breaking fast

‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that when the Prophet ﷺ broke his fast, he would say:

IslamQA also cites Ibn Hajar, who reported that ad-Daraqutni called its chain sound (IslamQA 26879). It is the iftar dua that is established from the Prophet ﷺ himself.

What the iftar dua means

The dua has three parts, and each one describes the moment of iftar:

• Thirst has gone (dhahaba az-zama’u): the dryness of the day is over.
• The veins are moist (wabtallatil-‘uruqu): water reaches the body again.
• The reward is sure, if Allah wills (wa thabatal-ajru in sha’ Allah): the tiredness passes, and the reward of the fast remains, with Allah.

Reflection: the dua turns a physical relief into a reminder. The thirst lasted a few hours and is already gone; the reward, by Allah’s will, stays. That is the trade of every fasting day.

When to say it: after you break your fast

The words are in the past tense (“thirst has gone”), so this dua is said after the first sip or bite, not before. IslamQA explains that this dhikr can only be said after breaking the fast (IslamQA 293455).

The minutes before iftar are also a time for your own duas. ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated:

In the same report, one of the narrators says he heard ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr himself say at iftar: “O Allah, I ask You by Your mercy, which encompasses all things, to forgive me.” That is a Companion’s own dua, a good one to say, but it is not a dua the Prophet ﷺ taught for iftar. A similar promise is in Jami‘ at-Tirmidhi 3598 (Hasan, Darussalam), which counts the fasting person among three whose dua is not rejected.

What the Prophet ﷺ broke his fast with

Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) described the Prophet’s ﷺ iftar:

He also encouraged breaking the fast on time, without delay:

The time itself is sunset: when night comes from the east, the day leaves from the west and the sun has set, the fasting person breaks the fast (Sahih al-Bukhari 1954).

The iftar dua for your host

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet ﷺ visited Sa‘d ibn ‘Ubadah, who brought bread and olive oil. He ate, and then said:

The hadith does not say the Prophet ﷺ was fasting that day, but its words fit anyone who hosts an iftar, which is why many Muslims say it to the family or masjid that feeds them in Ramadan.

What about “Allahumma laka sumtu”?

“Allahumma laka sumtu wa ‘ala rizqika aftartu” (O Allah, for You I have fasted, and with Your provision I have broken my fast) is the iftar dua many of us learned as children. Al-Albani graded it Da‘if (Sunan Abi Dawud 2358), so it should not be taught as the Prophet’s ﷺ dua. The meaning is fine, but the dua with a sound chain is “Dhahaba az-zama’u…”. We cover this and other popular weak narrations in Ramadan hadith: what is authentic and what is weak.

How to practise it

• Learn the three short phrases before Ramadan, so they come naturally at Maghrib.
• In the last minutes before sunset, put the phone down and make your own duas.
• Break the fast as soon as the sun sets, with a date or water if you can.
• After the first sip or date, say: “Dhahaba az-zama’u wabtallatil-‘uruqu wa thabatal-ajru in sha’ Allah.”
• When someone gives you iftar, make the host’s dua for them.

Questions people ask

Key lessons

• The authentic dua for breaking fast is “Dhahaba az-zama’u wabtallatil-‘uruqu wa thabatal-ajru in sha’ Allah” (Abu Dawud 2357).
• It is said after breaking the fast, because it describes thirst that has gone.
• The fasting person’s dua at iftar is not turned back, so use the minutes before Maghrib.
• The Sunnah is to hasten iftar, with fresh dates, dry dates or water.
• “Allahumma laka sumtu” is graded weak; the host’s dua in Abu Dawud 3854 is sahih.

Part of our Dua series: see all our dua articles in one place.

May Allah let us reach Ramadan, accept our fasts, and make our iftar a time of thanks and answered duas.

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