Is it halal? All guides

Plain answers to “is it halal?” for 63 ingredients and E-numbers and 59 everyday questions, each showing where the four Sunni schools agree, where they differ, and why.

From the Halal or Not? rulebook, checked 28 September 2026 · How the four schools differ on food

Ingredients A to Z

• Alcohol (ethanol) Doubtful
• Beer and spirits Haram
• Beeswax Not flagged
• Blood Haram
• Bone phosphate and bone char Doubtful
• Carmine and cochineal Depends on school
• Cetyl, cetearyl and stearyl alcohol Halal
• Cheese Depends on school
• Chorizo, salami and pepperoni Haram
• Collagen Doubtful
• Crab, lobster and molluscs Depends on school
• Edible insects Depends on school
• Enzymes Doubtful
• Flavour enhancers from nucleotides (E627, E631, E635) Doubtful
• Flavourings Not flagged
• Gelatine Doubtful
• Glycerin (glycerol) Doubtful
• Heparin Haram
• Horse meat Depends on school
• Hypromellose (vegetarian capsules) Not flagged
• Keratin Doubtful
• L-cysteine Doubtful
• Lactose Not flagged
• Lanolin Not flagged
• Lard Haram
• Locusts Halal
• Meat and poultry Doubtful
• Meat and seafood flavourings Doubtful
• Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers (E470 to E477, E481 to E483, E491 to E495) Doubtful
• Pancreatin (Creon) Haram
• Pepsin Doubtful
• Placenta Doubtful
• Porcine insulin Haram
• Pork Haram
• Prawns and shrimp Depends on school
• Rennet Depends on school
• Rum flavouring Doubtful
• Shellac Halal
• Stearic acid and stearates Doubtful
• Tallow and suet Doubtful
• Vanilla extract Doubtful
• Vegetable carbon Not flagged
• Vitamin D3 Not flagged
• Whey Depends on school
• Wine Haram
• Wine vinegar Depends on school

E-numbers

• E120 Carmine and cochineal Depends on school
• E153 Vegetable carbon Not flagged
• E422 Glycerin (glycerol) Doubtful
• E441 Gelatine (former code) Doubtful
• E470 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E471 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E472 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E473 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E474 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E475 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E476 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E477 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E481 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E482 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E483 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E491 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E492 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E493 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E494 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E495 Mono- and diglycerides and related emulsifiers Doubtful
• E542 Bone phosphate and bone char Doubtful
• E570 Stearic acid and stearates Doubtful
• E627 Flavour enhancers from nucleotides Doubtful
• E631 Flavour enhancers from nucleotides Doubtful
• E635 Flavour enhancers from nucleotides Doubtful
• E901 Beeswax Not flagged
• E904 Shellac Halal
• E920 L-cysteine Doubtful

Money and investing

• Is interest on a savings account halal? Haram
• Is a current account at an ordinary bank halal? Halal
• Are credit cards halal? Scholars differ
• Is buy now pay later (Klarna, Clearpay) halal? Depends
• Is a conventional mortgage halal? Scholars differ
• Are Islamic home purchase plans halal? Halal
• Are UK student loans halal? Scholars differ
• Are Premium Bonds halal? Scholars differ
• Is conventional insurance halal? Scholars differ
• Is takaful halal? Halal
• Are pensions halal? Depends
• Are stocks and shares ISAs halal? Depends
• Are forex, CFDs and spread betting halal? Haram
• Are options and futures halal? Haram
• Is short selling halal? Haram
• Is day trading halal? Depends
• Is buying gold and silver halal? Depends
• Are gambling, betting and the lottery halal? Haram
• Are loot boxes halal? Doubtful

Crypto

• Is cryptocurrency halal? Scholars differ
• Is crypto staking halal? Scholars differ
• Is crypto lending halal? Haram
• Are crypto futures and margin trading halal? Haram
• Are stablecoins (USDT, USDC) halal? Scholars differ
• Are meme coins halal? Doubtful
• Are NFTs halal? Depends
• Are crypto airdrops halal? Halal

Medicine

• Can I take medicine with haram ingredients? Depends
• Are vaccines with porcine gelatine halal? Scholars differ
• Are insulin and heparin halal? Depends
• Is alcohol in medicine halal? Scholars differ

Food and drink

• Are alcohol-free beer and wine (0.0%) halal? Scholars differ
• Is kombucha halal? Halal
• Can I eat at a non-halal restaurant? Depends

Everyday life

• Is music halal? Scholars differ
• Can a Muslim keep a dog? Depends
• Can a Muslim keep a cat? Halal
• Are tattoos halal? Haram
• Is nail polish halal? Depends
• Can men wear gold and silk? Haram
• Is shaving the beard halal? Scholars differ
• Is smoking, vaping or shisha halal? Haram
• Is cannabis halal? Haram
• Is chess halal? Scholars differ
• Are video games halal? Depends
• Are photos of living things halal? Scholars differ
• Is celebrating birthdays halal? Scholars differ
• Can I greet others on Christmas or Diwali? Scholars differ
• Is working in a bank halal? Depends
• Is working with alcohol or pork halal? Haram
• Is dropshipping halal? Depends
• Is affiliate marketing halal? Halal
• Is organ and blood donation halal? Scholars differ
• Is IVF halal? Depends
• Is cremation halal? Haram
• Are horoscopes and tarot halal? Haram
• Is yoga halal? Depends
• Are hunting and fishing halal? Depends
• Is dating before marriage halal? Depends

Halal or Not? reads an ingredients list against a published rulebook of where the four Sunni schools and the main certifiers agree and differ. It is information, not a fatwa. When in doubt, ask a scholar you trust or look for a recognised halal mark.