Short answer: the core values of Islam begin with tawhid, worshipping Allah alone with a sincere heart, and show in character: justice, mercy, honesty, trustworthiness, kindness to parents and family, modesty, patience, gratitude, humility, generosity, keeping promises and equal human dignity. The Prophet ﷺ summed up his mission as perfecting good character, and the Quran praises him for it (68:4).
Character is the point, not an extra
Many people think of Islam as rules: pray, fast, eat halal. The rules matter, but the Quran and the Sunnah tie them to the kind of person they produce. The Prophet ﷺ said: "I was sent only to perfect good character" (al-Adab al-Mufrad 273 and Musnad Ahmad, graded sahih by al-Albani). Allah praised him with a single line:
وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍۢ ﴿٤﴾
Wa innaka la'alaa khuluqin 'azeem
And indeed, you are of a great moral character.
Quran 68:4 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Qalam
He also said: "Nothing is heavier on the believer's scale on the Day of Judgement than good character" (Jami at-Tirmidhi 2002, graded hasan sahih), and "The best of you are those with the best character" (Sahih al-Bukhari 3559).
The Quran gathers many of these values in one verse that many imams recite at the end of the Friday khutbah:
۞ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَأْمُرُ بِٱلْعَدْلِ وَٱلْإِحْسَٰنِ وَإِيتَآئِ ذِى ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ وَيَنْهَىٰ عَنِ ٱلْفَحْشَآءِ وَٱلْمُنكَرِ وَٱلْبَغْىِ ۚ يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ ﴿٩٠﴾
Innal laaha yaamaru bil 'adli wal ihsaani wa eetaaa'i zil qurbaa wa yanhaa 'anil fahshaaa'i wal munkari walbagh-i' ya'izukum la'allakum tazakkkaroon
Indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded.
Quran 16:90 · Sahih International · Read Surah An-Nahl
The foundation: tawhid and a sincere heart
Every value in Islam rests on one belief: there is no god but Allah. A Muslim is honest because Allah sees, generous because wealth belongs to Allah, and patient because Allah decides. That is why intention comes first. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Actions are only by intentions" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1; Sahih Muslim 1907), and "Allah does not look at your forms or your wealth, but He looks at your hearts and your deeds" (Sahih Muslim 2564).
Read more about this foundation on our tawheed page.
Twelve core values, with their sources
1. Justice (ʿadl)
Justice is owed to everyone, including people you dislike and people you love. "Be persistently standing firm in justice, witnesses for Allah, even if it be against yourselves or parents and relatives" (4:135). "Do not let the hatred of a people prevent you from being just" (5:8).
2. Mercy (raḥmah)
Allah describes Himself as al-Rahman and al-Rahim at the start of almost every surah, and calls the Prophet ﷺ "a mercy to the worlds" (21:107). He ﷺ said: "Those who are merciful, the Most Merciful will have mercy on them. Be merciful to those on earth, and the One above the heavens will be merciful to you" (Jami at-Tirmidhi 1924, graded hasan sahih).
3. Honesty (ṣidq)
"Truthfulness leads to righteousness, and righteousness leads to Paradise" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6094; Sahih Muslim 2607). Before his prophethood the people of Makkah already called him al-Amin, the trustworthy.
4. Trustworthiness (amānah)
"Allah commands you to render trusts to whom they are due" (4:58). Among the signs of a hypocrite are lying when he speaks, breaking his promise, and betraying a trust (Sahih al-Bukhari 33; Sahih Muslim 59).
5. Kindness to parents and family
The Quran puts kindness to parents straight after worshipping Allah alone, and forbids even saying "uff" to them (17:23). "The best of you is the best to his family, and I am the best of you to my family" (Jami at-Tirmidhi 3895, graded sahih).
6. Modesty (ḥayāʾ)
"Haya is a branch of faith" (Sahih al-Bukhari 9), and "haya brings nothing but good" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6117). See our full post on haya in Islam.
7. Patience (ṣabr)
Patience with hardship, patience in obeying Allah, and patience in keeping away from sin. "Indeed, Allah is with the patient" (2:153).
8. Gratitude (shukr)
"If you are grateful, I will surely increase you" (14:7). The Prophet ﷺ said the affair of the believer is all good: if good comes he is grateful, and if harm comes he is patient (Sahih Muslim 2999).
9. Humility (tawāḍuʿ)
"The servants of the Most Merciful are those who walk upon the earth easily" (25:63). "No one humbles himself for Allah except that Allah raises him" (Sahih Muslim 2588).
10. Generosity and charity
Zakat is a pillar of Islam, and charity beyond it is praised throughout the Quran (2:261). The Prophet ﷺ was the most generous of people, and most of all in Ramadan (Sahih al-Bukhari 6).
11. Keeping promises and contracts
"Fulfil [every] commitment. Indeed, the commitment is ever [that about which one will be] questioned" (17:34). "O you who have believed, fulfil [all] contracts" (5:1).
12. Equal human dignity
"We have certainly honoured the children of Adam" (17:70). No race or tribe is better than another, only piety counts:
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَٰكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍۢ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَٰكُمْ شُعُوبًۭا وَقَبَآئِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ أَتْقَىٰكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌۭ ﴿١٣﴾
Yaaa ayyuhan naasu innaa khalaqnaakum min zakarinw wa unsaa wa ja'alnaakum shu'oobanw wa qabaaa'ila lita'aarafoo inna akramakum 'indal laahi atqaakum innal laaha 'Aleemun khabeer
O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.
Quran 49:13 · Sahih International · Read Surah Al-Hujurat
Values in daily life: neighbours, speech and the tongue
Several short hadith turn these values into daily habits:
- "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or keep silent, let him honour his neighbour, and let him honour his guest" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6018; Sahih Muslim 47).
- "None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself" (Sahih al-Bukhari 13; Sahih Muslim 45).
- "Jibril kept urging me to treat the neighbour well until I thought he would make him an heir" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6014).
- "The Muslim is the one from whose tongue and hand the Muslims are safe" (Sahih al-Bukhari 10).
- "Smiling in the face of your brother is charity" (Jami at-Tirmidhi 1956, graded hasan).
For the small sunnahs of the day, see sunnahs of daily life.
The higher aims of the Sharia
Scholars such as al-Ghazali (d. 1111) and al-Shatibi (d. 1388) noticed that the rulings of Islam protect five things, known as the maqāṣid al-sharīʿah, the aims of the law. Many values above serve them.
| Protected | Some rulings that serve it |
|---|---|
| Religion (din) | Freedom to worship, the obligation of prayer, the ban on forcing faith (2:256) |
| Life (nafs) | The ban on murder (17:33), saving a life (5:32), food and health |
| Mind (ʿaql) | The ban on alcohol and drugs (5:90), the command to seek knowledge |
| Lineage and family (nasl) | Marriage, the ban on zina (17:32), rights of children and parents |
| Wealth (mal) | The ban on theft, fraud and riba, contracts written down (2:282) |
How to grow in good character
- Ask Allah for it. In his opening dua at night prayer the Prophet ﷺ asked: "Guide me to the best of character, none guides to the best of it except You" (Sahih Muslim 771).
- Pick one value at a time. Work on your speech for a month, or your patience with family, rather than everything at once.
- Keep good company. "A person is upon the religion of his close friend, so let each of you look at whom he befriends" (Sunan Abi Dawud 4833, graded hasan).
- Pray with presence. "Prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing" (29:45). Learn the meaning of what you recite; our how to pray guide has every word.
- Make amends quickly. "Follow a bad deed with a good one and it will wipe it out, and treat people with good character" (Jami at-Tirmidhi 1987, graded hasan).
Questions
What are the 5 core values of Islam?
There is no fixed list of five. People often mean the five pillars (Shahadah, prayer, zakat, fasting, Hajj), which are acts of worship, or the five aims of the Sharia (religion, life, mind, family and wealth). The values most stressed in the texts are justice, mercy, honesty, trustworthiness and good character.
What is the Islamic moral code based on?
On the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. The Quran sets the values, and the Prophet ﷺ lived them, which is why Aishah described his character as "the Quran" (Sahih Muslim 746).
What is akhlaq in Islam?
Akhlaq is the Arabic word for character or morals: the settled habits of a person. Adab is the related word for manners and etiquette.
Are Islamic values the same as values in other religions?
Many overlap, such as honesty, care for parents and charity. What is distinct is the root: in Islam every value is tied to tawhid and to accountability before Allah.
Which value is most important in Islam?
Tawhid comes first, since every deed depends on it. Among character traits, the hadith single out good character in general, truthfulness, and mercy.
Sources
- Quran 2:153, 2:256, 2:261, 4:58, 4:135, 5:1, 5:8, 5:32, 5:90, 14:7, 16:90, 17:23, 17:33-34, 17:70, 21:107, 25:63, 29:45, 49:13, 68:4. Translation by Sahih International.
- Al-Bukhari, al-Adab al-Mufrad 273, and Musnad Ahmad (I was sent to perfect good character), graded sahih by al-Albani.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 1, 6, 9, 10, 13, 33, 3559, 6014, 6018, 6094, 6117. Sahih Muslim 45, 47, 59, 746, 771, 1907, 2564, 2588, 2607, 2999.
- Jami at-Tirmidhi 1924, 1956, 1987, 2002, 3895; Sunan Abi Dawud 4833. Gradings as given by al-Tirmidhi or al-Albani.
- Al-Ghazali, al-Mustasfa; al-Shatibi, al-Muwafaqat, on the aims of the Sharia.
This page is pending review by the scholars on our team.