--- title: "Website design cost in the UAE: what drives the price" description: "What sets the price of a website in the UAE: pages, Arabic and English, online store rules, VAT and dollar quotes, and the costs that come back every year." url: https://kftechsolutions.dev/blog/website-design-cost-uae language: en published: 2026-11-06 modified: 2026-11-06 author: Kirollos Fayez site: "KF Tech Solutions — https://kftechsolutions.dev" --- # Website design cost in the UAE: what drives the price What sets the price of a website in the UAE: pages, Arabic and English, online store rules, VAT and dollar quotes, and the costs that come back every year. A website in the UAE costs what its scope costs: a few pages in one language sit at the bottom of any vendor's range, a bilingual Arabic and English company site with a control panel sits in the middle, and an online store sits at the top. If the site sells, the UAE adds its own items: a licence that covers e-commerce, TDRA approval and a clear digital invoice for every transaction. After launch, budget every year for domain, hosting, email and support, and check whether each quote includes 5% VAT. Last checked: 6 November 2026 ## Three kinds of website, and what each includes Most requests fall into one of three tiers. The tier matters more than the vendor, because it decides how much design, building and testing the project needs. | Tier | What it usually includes | What pushes it up | |---|---|---| | **Brochure site** | 5–8 pages, one language, contact form, WhatsApp button, map | Original design instead of a template, professional photos | | **Bilingual company site** | Arabic and English, right-to-left layout, control panel to edit pages, SEO basics, analytics | More pages and sections, a blog, booking or quote forms, links to a CRM | | **Online store** | Product catalogue, cart, checkout, payment gateway, delivery options, order management | Many product variants, several payment methods, links to stock or accounting systems | AED price tables on agency blogs mostly reflect what each agency sells; we found no independent survey behind them. A more reliable guide is to price your own scope with two or three vendors, using the comparison table further down. For the same tiers in another market, see [what a company website costs in Egypt](https://kftechsolutions.dev/blog/company-website-cost-egypt). ## What moves the price Within a tier, a few decisions explain most of the gap between two quotes: - **Design.** A template adjusted to your colours costs less than an original design drawn for your brand and tested on phones first. - **Pages and page types.** Ten pages built from two layouts cost less than ten pages that each need their own layout. - **Content.** Someone has to write the text, translate it and source the photos. If the vendor does it, it should be a priced line. - **Control panel.** Editing your own pages, projects and articles needs a content management system. Sites without one are cheaper to build and dearer to change. - **Forms and features.** Booking, quote requests, careers pages, member areas and live chat each add design, building and testing time. - **Integrations.** Sending leads to a CRM, orders to an accounting system or stock to a warehouse system is often the largest single line in a store quote. - **Speed and search.** Compressed images, clean structure, titles and a sitemap take time; cheap quotes often skip them. If you only need one page for an advertising campaign, that is a smaller project with its own rules; see [what a landing page fixes when ads get clicks but no sales](https://kftechsolutions.dev/blog/landing-page-for-ads-egypt). ## UAE items that belong in the quote ### Arabic and English from the start In the UAE, plan for both languages by default. Arabic is not a mirrored copy of the English site: it needs a right-to-left layout, Arabic fonts that stay readable on phones, and text written or checked by a person rather than a machine. Each language should have its own pages and addresses, so that search engines can show the Arabic page to Arabic searches. That matters because Google handled 95.42% of searches in the UAE in October 2026. ### If the site sells online The UAE government portal says that e-commerce is governed by Federal Decree-Law 14 of 2023, that sellers need a licence that includes e-commerce activity and approval from TDRA, and that every transaction needs a clear digital invoice. For the website, that means order confirmations and invoices the customer can download, generated by the store rather than typed by hand. Check your licence before the store is built, not after; our guide to the [e-commerce licence for an online store in the UAE](https://kftechsolutions.dev/blog/uae-ecommerce-licence-online-store) covers the steps. A platform store means a lower build cost plus a monthly subscription; a custom store means more control and a larger build. We compare them in [Shopify or a custom online store in the UAE](https://kftechsolutions.dev/blog/shopify-vs-custom-online-store-uae). ### Free zone or mainland Free-zone companies operate under a different legal framework from mainland companies. According to the government portal, a free-zone company that wants to sell on the mainland needs a licensed mainland distributor or a mainland branch or company. Settle this first: it decides whose name sits on the checkout, the invoices and the gateway account. ### Payments through a licensed gateway Card payments should go through a licensed payment gateway, such as Network International, Telr or PayTabs, with the card details entered on the gateway's side. UAE sector rules require payment service providers to store personal and payment data in the UAE, and a store that never holds card data stays out of that problem. Budget for the gateway's setup and per-transaction fees, and allow time for the gateway's own approval of your merchant account. ### Order invoices are not the new e-invoicing system The UAE's e-invoicing system covers business-to-business and business-to-government transactions, through accredited service providers, from 1 January 2027 for businesses with revenue of AED 50 million or more and from 1 July 2027 for everyone else. Sales to consumers are excluded until the Minister decides otherwise. A store selling to the public still issues its own digital invoice under the e-commerce rules. Invoices to other businesses fall under e-invoicing on your group's date, usually issued from your accounting or ERP system rather than the website. ### A privacy notice The UAE's Personal Data Protection Law, Federal Decree-Law 45 of 2021, has been in effect since January 2022 on the mainland. It does not cover DIFC or ADGM, and ADGM has its own Data Protection Regulations. The PDPL's implementing regulations had not been formally issued as of September 2026. A site that collects names, phone numbers or orders should say plainly what it collects and why, so put the privacy notice in the scope. ## Running costs every year The build is paid once. These lines come back every year, and a quote that leaves them out is not cheaper, only incomplete. | Item | What it covers | Who should own it | |---|---|---| | **Domain** | Your .ae or .com address, renewed yearly | Your company, in your name | | **Hosting** | The server or platform the site runs on, with backups | Your company's account, or written in the contract | | **SSL certificate** | The padlock in the browser; often free with good hosting | Renewed automatically | | **Business email** | Addresses on your domain | Your company | | **Support and updates** | Security updates, fixes and small edits | Agreed hours or a monthly plan | | **Payment gateway fees** | Per-transaction fees, for stores only | Your merchant account | | **Platform subscription** | Monthly fee and paid apps, if the store runs on a platform | Your company's account | Ask each vendor to list these with a yearly price, even when they are paid to someone else. ## VAT and dollar quotes This is general information, not tax advice; confirm the details with your accountant. - **VAT is 5%.** Check whether each quote is shown before or after VAT, so you compare like with like. - **Free zones.** The FTA's guide to designated zones says services supplied there are treated as supplied in the UAE and are liable to VAT at the standard rate. - **Suppliers outside the UAE.** Under the FTA's e-commerce VAT guide, a non-resident supplier does not charge VAT to a VAT-registered UAE business; the business accounts for it itself under the reverse charge. Keep the supplier's invoice. - **Dollar quotes.** The dirham has been pegged at 3.6725 to the US dollar since 1997, so a $1,000 quote is AED 3,672.50 and stays that way for as long as the peg holds. ## How to compare quotes line by line Ask each vendor the same questions. The cheapest total often hides the biggest gaps. | Question | A good answer | A warning sign | |---|---|---| | How many pages and page types? | A list, in Arabic and English | "A full website" | | Who writes and translates the content? | Named, with a price | Not mentioned | | Can we edit the site ourselves? | A control panel, with a short demo | "Send us changes by email" | | Are the UAE items included? | Arabic pages, digital invoices and privacy notice listed | Not mentioned | | What does it cost every year? | Domain, hosting, email and support priced | Only the build price | | Who owns the domain, hosting and code? | Your company | The vendor's account | | What happens after launch? | A stated support period and response time | "Contact us when needed" | A quote far below the others usually leaves out content, Arabic, the control panel or the yearly costs. Ask for those lines before comparing totals. ## How KF Tech Solutions builds websites We design and build company websites, online stores and web apps in Arabic and English, with right-to-left layouts planned from day one, a control panel to edit your own content, SEO basics, speed work and analytics. At launch we set up the domain, hosting, SSL and Google Search Console in your company's name. A company site usually takes three to six weeks, depending on the number of pages and how ready the content is. We work with businesses in Egypt and the Gulf, remotely from Cairo, which is two hours behind Dubai in winter and one hour behind in summer. Projects start from $200 (about SAR 750 / AED 735); the final price depends on scope, with a fixed written quote after a free call. Read more about our [website design and development](https://kftechsolutions.dev/services/web-development) and about [working with clients in the UAE](https://kftechsolutions.dev/uae). ## Common questions ### How much does a simple website cost in the UAE? A few pages in one language on a template sit at the bottom of any vendor's range. A second language, original design, a control panel, booking or a store each move it up. Ask for a quote that lists pages, languages and yearly costs. ### Do I need my website in both Arabic and English? It depends on who your customers are. In the UAE they may search in either language, and each language needs its own pages to appear in search. If your budget is tight, design the site for both languages from the start and launch the second one later; that is cheaper than rebuilding the layout. ### Do I need a licence to sell on my website? According to the UAE government portal, online sellers need a licence that includes e-commerce activity and TDRA approval, and every transaction needs a clear digital invoice. A company site that only shows services and collects enquiries is a different case. Check your own licence with the authority that issued it. ### Can a company outside the UAE build my website? Yes, through calls, a preview link and written feedback. A VAT-registered business accounts for the VAT itself under the reverse charge. Make sure the contract puts the domain, hosting and code in your company's name. ### How long does a website take? A company site usually takes three to six weeks. An online store takes longer, mainly because of products, payments, delivery and the licence checks, and its timeline should be agreed in writing with the scope. Tell us what your site needs to do, and we will reply with a fixed written quote. [Contact us](https://kftechsolutions.dev/contact) or [book a free call](https://kftechsolutions.dev/book). ## Sources - [UAE government portal: e-commerce](https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/business/Managing-and-growing-your-business/ecommerce) - [UAE government portal: running a business in a free zone](https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/business/Doing-business/doing-business-in-free-zones/running-a-business-in-a-free-zone-) - [PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: UAE other taxes](https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/united-arab-emirates/corporate/other-taxes) - [FTA: E-Commerce VAT Guide](https://tax.gov.ae/DataFolder/Files/Pdf/E-Commerce%20-%20VAT%20Guide%20-%20EN%20-%2009%2008%202020.pdf) - [FTA: Designated Zones VAT Guide](https://www.tax.gov.ae/-/media/Files/FTA/links/vat-designated-zone/Designated-Zones-VAT-Guide.pdf) - [Ministry of Finance: eInvoicing](https://mof.gov.ae/en/about-ministry/mof-initiatives/einvoicing/) - [Ministerial Decision No. 244 of 2025](https://mof.gov.ae/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Ministerial-Decision-No.-244-of-2025-on-the-Implementation-of-the-Electronic-Invoicing-System.pdf) - [Legal 500: UAE data and AI governance](https://www.legal500.com/intelligence/united-arab-emirates/strategy/the-uae-artificial-intelligence-and-data-authority-what-it-means-for-ai-data-and-digital-governance) - [DLA Piper: data protection in the UAE](https://www.dlapiperdataprotection.com/countries/uae-general/law.html) - [ADGM: Office of Data Protection](https://www.adgm.com/operating-in-adgm/office-of-data-protection/guidance) - [StatCounter: search engine market share in the UAE](https://gs.statcounter.com/search-engine-market-share/all/united-arab-emirates) - [The National: the dirham's dollar peg](https://www.thenationalnews.com/lifestyle/2024/11/22/uae-dirham-dollar-peg) --- KF Tech Solutions is a software studio in Cairo, Egypt, founded by Kirollos Fayez in 2020; its only website is kftechsolutions.dev. It is not affiliated with KFTECH Software Solutions (kftechsols.com).