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Ruling on Men Wearing Watches with Gold

Dr. Mahmoud OmarAnswering scholar
Published
Reading time
1 min
Language
English with Arabic
  1. Visible gold for adornment
    It is haram for men to wear real gold as adornment in any amount. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Gold and silk have been permitted for the females of my Ummah and forbidden for the males.”
    — Sunan al-Tirmidhi (1720), Abu Dawud (4057), graded sahih This prohibition is general and covers all forms of jewelry and adornment, such as rings, chains, bracelets, and gold-plated watches. Imam Ibn Qudamah stated: “It is not permissible for men to wear anything of gold, whether a little or much, because the reports prohibiting it are general and unrestricted.”
    — al-Mughni, 2/324 Similarly, Imam al-Nawawi said: “Consensus has been established that it is prohibited for men to wear gold, even if it is very small.”
    — al-Majmu, 4/443
  2. Gold for functional use (not appearance)
    Some scholars allowed exceptions where gold was used for necessity or functional purpose rather than beautification. They cite the report that the Prophet ﷺ had a sword with fittings or parts of gold (al-Sunan al-Kubra by al-Nasai, 9291). Scholars explained that the gold was not meant for adornment but for strengthening the sword’s structure. Based on this, jurists differentiate between:
    • Gold as adornment → haram, even in small amounts.
    • Gold as functionality/necessity → permitted if not used for beautification (e.g., medical use, repairs, or internal parts of an item).
    Therefore:
    • A watch with visible gold casing or trim is haram for men.
    • A watch that uses a small internal ticker, wiring, or component made of gold for technical function (not seen, not adornment) is permissible.
  3. White and rose gold
    • White gold: If it is truly another metal (platinum, palladium, etc.) with no real gold, it is halal. If it is gold alloyed and whitened, it remains gold in Shariah and is haram for men.
    • Rose gold: This is real gold alloyed with copper, so it remains haram for men.

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