Maaser Center — Fulfill Your Obligation Completely

Foundation

What is Maaser?

Maaser (מעשר) means "a tenth." It is the Torah obligation to set aside one-tenth of one's produce — and by extension, income — for sacred purposes: supporting those who serve Torah, caring for the poor, and fulfilling mitzvot connected to the land.

In ancient Israel, maaser was not abstract. It flowed from actual fields — wheat, wine, oil, and fruit. The farmer separated terumot and maasrot at the source, in the place where the mitzvah lived.

How Maaser Works

1
Earn or grow
Maaser applies to agricultural produce and, according to many authorities, to monetary income.
2
Separate a tenth
Before spending, designate 10% as maaser — not leftovers, but a sacred portion first.
3
Allocate properly
Direct it to Torah, the poor, Jerusalem, and the land-related mitzvot it was meant for.
4
Track & fulfill
Maaser Center helps you give with intention, documentation, and full coverage.

The Gap Between Money and the Field

For generations, Jews have given maaser as money — because most of us no longer harvest our own fields. That is a beautiful and widely accepted practice.

Yet the original maaser was produce from the land. Many land-connected mitzvot — terumah, maaser rishon, maaser ani, challah from grain, orlah, shmittah, and more — cannot be fully fulfilled by writing a check alone.

Maaser Center offers something new: purchase percentages of actual fields so you can participate in the complete spectrum of land-based mitzvot, not only their monetary equivalent.

Explore Field Ownership →

Four Pathways

Ways to Give Your Maaser

Choose one path or combine them — every dollar is tracked and directed with clarity.

01

Shop for Mitzvot

Browse a curated marketplace of mitzvot you can fulfill through your maaser — mezuzot for families in need, tefillin for bar mitzvah boys, Shabbos candles, siddurim, and more.

Transparent pricing per mitzvah
See exactly who benefits
Receipt for your maaser records

Browse the shop →

02

Torah Institutes

Support yeshivot, kollelim, and Torah schools worldwide. Search our verified directory and allocate maaser directly to the institute of your choice.

Verified Torah institutions
Filter by city, type, and need
One-time or recurring gifts

View institutes →

03

Chesed

Direct your maaser to families in crisis, medical funds, wedding funds, and community chesed organizations. Real needs, verified cases, immediate impact.

Urgent and ongoing cases
Vetted by local rabbanim
Anonymous giving option

See chesed cases →

Maaser Gemach

04

Maaser Gemach Loans

Following the approach of the Chafetz Chaim — use part of your maaser for interest-free loans to Jewish families. Your maaser doesn't help just once; repayments return to your pool so you can lend again.

Allocate up to one-third of maaser to a loan pool
Jew-to-Jew, interest-free — no ribbis
Pick a case or join the general pool
Repayments recycle into your maaser balance

How the gemach works →

Mitzvah Marketplace

Shop for Mitzvot

✡️

Mezuzah for a Family

From $36

📿

Tefillin Set

From $480

🕯️

Shabbos Candles (1 year)

From $52

📖

Siddur for New Learner

From $24

Torah Institutes

Institute	Location	Type
Yeshivas Chevron	Jerusalem, Israel	Yeshiva Gedola	Donate
Mir Yerushalayim	Jerusalem, Israel	Yeshiva Gedola	Donate
Lakewood Kollel Network	Lakewood, NJ	Kollel	Donate
Beis Yaakov Teachers Seminary	Brooklyn, NY	Girls School	Donate
Ohr Somayach	Jerusalem, Israel	Kiruv Yeshiva	Donate

Institutes are verified before listing. Request to add your institute →

Community

Chesed Cases

Urgent

Medical Fund — Young Mother of 4

Treatment not covered by insurance. Goal: $18,000

$11,160 raised of $18,000

Wedding

Chasan & Kallah Fund

Orphan couple starting their home. Goal: $8,500

$3,485 raised of $8,500

Rent

Family Eviction Prevention

3 months back rent. Goal: $4,200

$3,276 raised of $4,200

Maaser Gemach

Interest-Free Maaser Loans

Maaser can be given as gifts — or lent interest-free to those in need. Following the Chafetz Chaim's guidance, up to one-third of your maaser may be used for loans that keep helping again and again.

67% Gifts

33% Loans

Example maaser split — customizable within halachic guidance

Why Lend Instead of Only Give?

When you give maaser as a donation, it helps once. When you lend maaser interest-free, the same money can help a family with rent, then another with medical bills, then another starting a business — over and over.

This is not an investment. You earn no profit. Repayments return to your maaser loan pool, ready to help the next person.

How It Works

1

Deposit Maaser Allocation

Mark funds as your maaser loan pool — charity capital, not personal investment. Set your split between gifts and loans.

2

Verified Jewish Borrowers

Rent, medical, wedding, business startup — every case is reviewed by admins and rabbanim before listing.

3

Choose or Auto-Match

Browse open cases and lend to someone specific, or join the general pool and let the platform match you.

4

Interest-Free Repayment

Principal only — no ribbis. Structured schedule, overseen by Maaser Center trustees. Repayments return to your maaser pool.

Your maaser keeps working — the same pool can help dozens of families over time.

All lending programs operate under rabbinic supervision. Consult your rav for personal maaser allocation guidance.

Revolutionary

Own a Percentage of a Field

Since biblical maaser came from actual agricultural produce, giving money alone — while valuable and widely practiced — does not fulfill every land-connected mitzvah.

Maaser Center partners with farms in Israel to let you purchase a percentage of a real field. When the harvest comes in, terumot, maasrot, challah, and related mitzvot are performed on your share of the produce.

✓ Fulfill maaser rishon, maaser ani, and terumah on real produce
✓ Participate in challah, orlah, and shmittah obligations
✓ Own from 1% to 100% of a designated field plot
✓ Supervised by rabbinic authorities at every harvest
✓ Receive documentation for your maaser records

1% from $180/yr

Popular 5% from $850/yr

10% from $1,600/yr

Reserve Your Field Share

Community Discussion

Maaser Forum

Ask questions, share sources, and discuss how maaser works in practice. Thoughtful debate welcome — always consult your rav for personal halacha.

Halacha & Philosophy Pinned

Is maaser its own mitzvah, or is it tzedakah?

Started by MaaserCenter · 3 replies · 47 views

MaaserCenter Opening question

Here is a question we hear often: Is maaser its own mitzvah, or is it just a form of tzedakah?

If maaser is really tzedakah, then everyone who gives 10% of their income may have only fulfilled tzedakah — and never actually done maaser at all.

But if maaser is its own separate mitzvah, then the opposite problem appears: when people give that same 10% thinking it is maaser, are they giving tzedakah at all? Or have they only ever done maaser and never fulfilled the mitzvah of tzedakah separately?

How do you understand this? Is there a way both mitzvot can coexist in one person's giving, or must we distinguish them clearly?

Yitzchak K. 2 days ago

I think the key is that maaser has specific rules — who it goes to, how much, when it applies — that go beyond general tzedakah. Giving 10% is a minhag many follow, but true maaser from produce had a defined halachic structure. Money maaser is a separate discussion that poskim treat differently.

Sara L. 1 day ago

Maybe both can be true depending on intention. If I set aside 10% specifically as maaser with the right recipients in mind, that is maaser. Anything I give beyond that — or gifts I give without calling it maaser — would be tzedakah. The problem is when people mix the terms without thinking.

Rabbi M. 5 hours ago

This is exactly why Maaser Center exists — to help people give with clarity. Maaser from the field is one thing; monetary maaser is another; general tzedakah is a third. They overlap but are not identical. Ask your rav which applies to your situation, and track your giving so you know what you fulfilled.

Ready to Give With Purpose?

Join Maaser Center and fulfill your obligation completely — money, mitzvot, and the land.

Give Maaser the Way It Was Meant to Be

What is Maaser?

How Maaser Works

The Gap Between Money and the Field

Ways to Give Your Maaser

Shop for Mitzvot

Torah Institutes

Chesed

Maaser Gemach Loans

Shop for Mitzvot

Mezuzah for a Family

Tefillin Set

Shabbos Candles (1 year)

Siddur for New Learner

Torah Institutes

Chesed Cases

Medical Fund — Young Mother of 4

Chasan & Kallah Fund

Family Eviction Prevention

Interest-Free Maaser Loans

Why Lend Instead of Only Give?

How It Works

Deposit Maaser Allocation

Verified Jewish Borrowers

Choose or Auto-Match

Interest-Free Repayment

Own a Percentage of a Field

Maaser Forum

Is maaser its own mitzvah, or is it tzedakah?

Join the discussion

Ready to Give With Purpose?