Zoya Review 2026: The Shariah Screener We Run Every Stock Through
Zoya rates the Shariah compliance of thousands of stocks and ETFs, shows the purification ratio on every holding, tracks your whole portfolio's compliance, and calculates zakat from your imported holdings. It's the screening engine behind every DIY recommendation on this site.
Updated September 2026 · 9-minute read · Reviewed by the Canadian Halal Investor team
Our verdict
Best for: DIY investors who want a compliance verdict on any stock or ETF in seconds — with the ratio breakdown to back it up, not just a green checkmark.
Skip if: you want done-for-you investing — see our Wealthsimple Halal review instead.
Zoya at a glance
| Product | Zoya halal investing app (iOS/Android) + web stock pages |
| Stock coverage | Shariah compliance ratings for thousands of stocks worldwide — free |
| ETF screening | ✓ Holdings-level filtering for ETFs and mutual funds |
| Screening standard | AAOIFI-style business-activity + financial-ratio screens |
| Purification | ✓ Per-holding purification ratio and amount shown |
| Portfolio tracking | ✓ Connect your brokerage; portfolio-level compliance status |
| Zakat | ✓ Automated zakat calculation from imported holdings + free stock zakat calculator |
| Compliance alerts | ✓ Email alerts when a holding's status changes |
| In-app trading | Trade via your existing broker; fractional shares from $1 |
| Cost | Core screening free; paid tiers unlock premium features |
| Affiliate program | ✗ None — we link to Zoya without commission |
How Zoya screens (methodology)
We tested Zoya the way a reader would use it: typing in tickers. Search a stock and you get a compliance verdict — compliant, questionable, or non-compliant — plus an in-depth report showing the ratio breakdown behind it. The detail matters more than the badge. A compliant rating with 4.8% impermissible revenue tells a different story than one with 0.2%, and Zoya shows you which one you're looking at.
Two features separate it from a simple halal-stock list. First, ETF look-through: Zoya filters the underlying holdings of thousands of ETFs and mutual funds by their compliance status, so you can see what percentage of an ETF is actually compliant before buying it in your brokerage — essential for funds like WSHR that we cover in our halal ETF comparison. Second, purification: every holding shows a purification ratio, the portion of dividends considered impermissible income that should be donated to charity. When a stock is non-compliant, Zoya is explicit — dividends are treated as impermissible income to be purified, not kept.
Connect your brokerage account and Zoya imports your holdings, tracks portfolio-level compliance, and flags status changes by email when a company's numbers drift across a threshold. The zakat side is equally practical: import your holdings and Zoya automates the zakat calculation on your stocks, and it publishes a free zakat calculator for stocks on the web for quick checks. Donations to zakat-eligible charities can be made through the app. For a deeper dive into the calculators, see our zakat calculators tested page.
One boundary to be clear about: Zoya provides screening data and methodology, not religious rulings. It doesn't issue fatwas — and neither do we. The app's verdicts are factual outputs of its published screening standards, which is exactly how we treat them in our reviews.
Pricing
Zoya's core screening — compliance ratings for thousands of stocks, ETF look-through, and the basic reports — is free. A premium plan (price shown only inside the app) unlocks deeper portfolio analytics, advanced alerts, and expanded zakat features. We describe the tiers qualitatively here because pricing isn't published on Zoya's site; check the app for current plans before subscribing.
The Zoya + brokerage workflow
This is the workflow every DIY recommendation on this site assumes, and it's the reason Zoya scores 9.0:
- Screen in Zoya. Type the ticker. Read the verdict and the ratio breakdown. For ETFs, check the holdings-level report — a fund-level badge isn't enough.
- Trade in your brokerage. Buy only compliant holdings in a Questrade or Wealthsimple Trade self-directed account — ideally inside a TFSA or RRSP. See our Questrade review for the DIY rail we recommend most.
- Track in Zoya. Connect the brokerage so Zoya monitors your holdings and emails you if a company's status changes.
- Purify and pay zakat annually. Use Zoya's purification ratios to cleanse dividends and its zakat calculator to compute what's due on your holdings.
Zoya also lets you trade through your existing broker without leaving the app and buy fractional shares from $1 — convenient, though we do our actual buying in the brokerage apps where the registered accounts live.
Pros & cons
Pros
- Compliance ratings for thousands of stocks, free — verdict in seconds
- ETF holdings-level look-through — see inside a fund before buying
- Per-holding purification ratios shown, not hidden
- Portfolio-level compliance tracking with brokerage connect
- Automated zakat calculation from imported holdings + free web calculator
- Email alerts on compliance status changes
- Compliant-alternative suggestions for non-compliant stocks
Cons
- Screening data, not a fatwa — you still own the final decision
- Premium features sit behind a paid tier
- Brokerage connect depends on supported integrations
- Doesn't execute the Shariah reasoning for edge cases — check with a scholar
Zoya vs the alternatives
| Zoya | Manual AAOIFI screening | Broker-native halal portfolio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speed | ✓ Verdict in seconds | ✗ Hours per stock | ✓ No screening needed |
| Cost | Free core / paid premium | Free but slow | ~0.75–1.0%/yr managed fee |
| ETF look-through | ✓ | ✗ impractical | n/a |
| Purification ratios | ✓ per holding | Manual math | Handled by manager |
| Portfolio tracking | ✓ with alerts | ✗ | ✓ |
| Zakat calculation | ✓ automated | Manual | ✗ |
| Control over holdings | ✓ full | ✓ full | ✗ managed |
Manual screening means pulling financial statements and running AAOIFI-style business-activity and financial-ratio screens yourself — free, but hours per stock and impractical for ETFs. A broker-native halal portfolio (see our Wealthsimple Halal review) removes the work entirely but costs ~0.75–1.0% per year and gives you no say in holdings. Zoya sits in the middle: DIY control with the grunt work automated. Background concepts are covered in our halal investing in Canada guide.
FAQ
Is Zoya free?
Zoya's core screening — Shariah compliance ratings for thousands of stocks, ETF look-through, and basic reports — is free. Paid subscription tiers unlock premium features like deeper portfolio analytics and the full automated zakat toolkit. Check Zoya's site or app store listing for current pricing.
How does Zoya decide if a stock is halal?
Zoya applies AAOIFI-style screening: business-activity screens filter out companies deriving more than the tolerance threshold (typically up to 5%) of revenue from impermissible activities like alcohol, gambling or pork, and financial-ratio screens filter out companies with excessive interest-based debt. Each stock gets a compliance rating with the ratio breakdown shown, plus a purification ratio for cleansing dividends.
Does Zoya issue fatwas?
No — and neither do we. Zoya provides screening data and methodology: factual outputs of its published screening standards. The compliance verdicts are information to help your decision, not religious rulings. For edge cases, consult a qualified scholar.
Can Zoya screen ETFs?
Yes — this is one of its strongest features. Zoya filters the underlying holdings of thousands of ETFs and mutual funds by their Shariah compliance status, so you can see the compliance breakdown inside a fund before buying it in your brokerage.
How does Zoya's zakat calculation work?
Connect your brokerage account and Zoya imports your holdings, then automates the zakat calculation on your stocks. It also publishes a free zakat calculator for stocks on the web for quick checks, and you can donate to zakat-eligible charities through the app. See our zakat calculators tested page for more.
Does Zoya have an affiliate program?
No. Zoya has no affiliate program, so this review carries no affiliate links and no commission is involved — we recommend it because it's the screener we actually use in our own testing workflow.