Is Crab Meat Halal in Islam?

Eating crab is halal and permissible in Islam. Majority of seafood is halal as long as it is not poisonous or harmful.

To come to a final answer to this question, we did some research and found that consuming crab is generally considered, among Islamic scholars, to be halal. Here’s why.

What Is Mentioned in The Quran About Eating Crab & other Seafood & Why is it Halal?

According to Dar al-Ifta al Misriyyah (source), considered among the pioneering foundations for fatwa [En. Religious verdicts] in the Islamic world, this was their response when asked “Is it permissible to eat crabs as they are not only sea creatures but also survive on land?”

They responded by saying:

There is no doubt as to the permissibility of eating the meat of such creatures.

God says in the Quran: “Say: ‘In all that has been revealed to me, I do not find anything forbidden to eat, if one wishes to eat thereof, unless it be carrion, or blood poured forth, or the flesh of swine – for all that is unclean – or a sinful offering over which any name other than God’s has been invoked” [6: 145].

Referring to the sea, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Its water is pure and purifying and its dead creatures are permissible to eat.” Guided by these and other texts, we maintain that crabs and similar creatures, like fish and sea mammals, are all permissible to eat even if they die of natural causes or merely by being taken out of the water.

Dar al-Ifta al Misriyyah

The first paragraph of this response clarifies that God does not forbid us from eating anything other than “carrion, or blood poured forth, or flesh of swine”. There was no mention of any fish being forbidden.

In the second paragraph it clarifies that the water of the sea is seen as pure and its animals are permissible to be eaten. Since Crabs are under the seafood umbrella, we can safely assume that crabs are considered pure and therefore permissible to be eaten.

Quran Versus Confirming That Crab (Seafood) Is Halal

In sūrat l-māidah, it clearly states the permissibility of seafood (including crab). Here’s a few different translations to the verse above (source):

Pickthall: To hunt and to eat the fish of the sea is made lawful for you, a provision for you and for seafarers; but to hunt on land is forbidden you so long as ye are on the pilgrimage. Be mindful of your duty to Allah, unto Whom ye will be gathered.

Shakir: Lawful to you is the game of the sea and its food, a provision for you and for the travellers, and the game of the land is forbidden to you so long as you are on pilgrimage, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah, to Whom you shall be gathered.

We also came across this short clip by a shaikh on Huda TV confirming that eating crab is halal and permissible.

Hanifi’s School of Islam Considers Eating Crab As Makrooh

According to Muslim Univeristy (source), they state that eating crab is halal except for people following the Hanafi school of Islam as they consider it makrooh (which is still not categorized as haram).

However we’re not sure what the basis of crab being haram since we were not able to find mention of it being prohibited.

Speaking of sea food, curious about shrimp? Learn more about whether eating shirmp is halal or not.