What is the difference between a person who fasts in the day of Ramadan and a person who does not eat at night?

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions.

There is a big difference between a person who fasted a day during Ramadan and a person who did not eat during the night.

The fasting of the first person, if it is sincerely observed exclusively for Allah, the Exalted, would have deserved the reward that only Allah Knows.

The Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam) said: “Every good deed of the children of Adam is multiplied tenfold to 700 times.  Allah Said except fasting, it is observed, for My Sake, and I reward for it he who abstains from food and drink for My Sake.  The fasting person is happy when he breaks the fast and when he meets his Lord.  The smell of the mouth of the fasting person is better than the smell of Musk. Reported by Bukhari and Muslim from the Hadith of Abu Hurairah and others, and the wording is Muslim’s.

As for the person who did not eat at night, we do not know the reason why he/she abstained from eating to clarify whether there is a reward or a sin for his action, or neither he is sinful nor gets a reward.

But we are quite certain that he does not deserve or is not near the reward deserved by the fasting person, who fasted acting upon the Orders of Allah, the Most-High.

Allah knows best.