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What is the ruling on buying and selling cologne that intoxicates, and is it permissible to use it as perfume?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If cologne, with its alcohol content, intoxicates in large quantities, then it is an intoxicant (khamr), and it must be poured out and destroyed. This is based on the Almighty's saying: (O YOU WHO HAVE BELIEVED, INDEED INTOXICANTS, GAMBLING, STONE ALTARS [FOR SACRIFICES TO IDOLS], AND DIVINING ARROWS ARE BUT DEFILEMENT FROM THE WORK OF SATAN, SO AVOID IT THAT YOU MAY SUCCEED) and on the Prophet's (PBUH) saying: "That which intoxicates in large quantities, a small quantity of it is unlawful." It is forbidden to drink it, use it for perfume, or for purification. However, if it does not reach this degree (of intoxication), then it is permissible to buy and use it for perfuming and purification, because the default ruling is permissibility.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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