Short answer
Many do, but a wedding ring is a custom, not part of an Islamic marriage, and the nikah is complete without one. A wife may wear a gold or silver ring. A husband may only wear a silver ring (under one mithqal in the Hanafi school), never gold. Many Hanafi scholars advise against the ring exchange ceremony itself.
Wearing a ring after marriage is permitted within the ordinary ring rules: gold or silver for women, silver only for men. The ring exchange is not sunnah, and many Deobandi muftis discourage it as a borrowed custom. Putting a ring on a fiancée's finger before the nikah is haram, since touching a non-mahram is not allowed.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- A man may wear a wedding band of a non-gold metal such as steel or titanium.
Explanation
Islam does not require any ring for marriage. The nikah is made by the offer and acceptance in front of witnesses, with the mahr (bridal gift) given to the bride. A ring can be part of the mahr: when a poor Companion had nothing to give, the Prophet ﷺ told him to look for something, even an iron ring. See the nikah guide and the mahr calculator.
The custom. The exchange of wedding and engagement rings, with the idea that the ring seals the bond, came into Muslim lands from other traditions. That is why many Hanafi scholars advise couples not to make it a ritual. Wearing a ring because you like it is one thing; believing the marriage is incomplete without it, or that it brings luck, is a superstition.
For the wife. She may wear a gold or silver ring, with diamonds or any gem. Hanafi texts dislike rings of iron, brass or copper for women as well as men.
For the husband. Gold, white gold and rose gold are haram for men. In the Hanafi school he may only wear one silver ring under about 4.37 grams, and the popular tungsten, titanium, steel and platinum bands are not allowed for him. Details are in can men wear a silver ring.
At the engagement. A man may not touch his fiancée's hand to put a ring on it, because they are not yet married. If a ring is given at the engagement, her mother or another woman can put it on.
The evidence
Quran, Surah An-Nisaa 4:4
وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلنِّسَآءَ صَدُقَٰتِهِنَّ نِحْلَةًۭ ۚ فَإِن طِبْنَ لَكُمْ عَن شَىْءٍۢ مِّنْهُ نَفْسًۭا فَكُلُوهُ هَنِيٓـًۭٔا مَّرِيٓـًۭٔا ﴿٤﴾
And give the women [upon marriage] their [bridal] gifts graciously. But if they give up willingly to you anything of it, then take it in satisfaction and ease.
The mahr is the gift Islam requires, not a ring ceremony.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5135
Sahih... التمس ولو خاتما من حديد ...
"Look for something, even if it is an iron ring."
A ring can serve as mahr, but the nikah is not built on a ring ceremony.
Sahih Muslim 2090
Sahih... يعمد أحدكم إلى جمرة من نار فيجعلها في يده ...
"One of you reaches for a burning coal from the Fire and puts it on his hand."
A man may not wear a gold ring, including a gold wedding band.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Durr al-Mukhtar with Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab al-Hazr wa al-Ibaha, section on clothing. Rings for men and women and the metals allowed.
- Fatawa Mahmudiyya, Chapter on clothing and adornment. On the engagement ring custom.
This answer is pending review by the scholars on our team. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.