This paper investigates the impact of Islamic microfinance on rural households' welfare in
Indonesia. Using a survey questionnaire, this study explores two group of financing in Islamic
microfinance, equity and debt-based financing. A two-year panel dataset and a double differencein-
difference approach are used to examine the impact of the two Islamic microfinance groups on
rural household in Indonesia. The study also evaluates shari'a compliance based on the national
shari'a board of Indonesia. The study results indicate that both financing groups exhibit a positive
and significant impact on rural households' income, but equity financing performed better than
debt-based financing. Moreover, the shari'a compliance evaluation indicates that clients received
financing that is comparable with the national shari'a board of Indonesia.