How much does a renovation cost in Dubai? (2026 guide)

It's the first question every homeowner asks, and the hardest to get a straight answer to: what should a renovation in Dubai actually cost? Ask three contractors and you'll get three very different numbers — not because the work differs, but because each is quoting a slightly different job. This guide gives you honest 2026 price bands, worked examples for real Dubai homes, and the context you need to turn a nervous guess into a decision you can trust.

The short answer: a full mid-range renovation in Dubai is usually around AED 1,950–2,950 per square metre for an apartment and AED 1,800–2,800 per square metre for a villa, excluding VAT, furniture and authority fees. The rest of this page explains what sits inside those numbers — and what quietly pushes them up.

Dubai renovation costs by property type (2026)

These are indicative turnkey ranges in AED per square metre, excluding VAT, furniture and authority fees. They mirror our free Cost Calculator exactly, so every page tells you the same thing. Apartments and villas are shown separately because they behave differently on site.

Prefer per square foot? Most Dubai listings and contractor quotes use it. Converted, our mid-range bands are roughly AED 180–275 / ft² for apartments and AED 170–260 / ft² for villas (1 m² ≈ 10.76 ft²).

One honest note: you'll often see contractor guides quote AED 300–600 per square foot for a "mid-range" renovation — noticeably higher than the independent planning bands above. That gap is the whole reason to fix your own budget before you speak to anyone selling the work. Our figures come from our own cost calculator, and we take no commission on any job.

Two add-ons sit on top of the base rate above:

• Extensions & structural works — add roughly AED 500–2,000 per affected m² on top of the base rate, subject to a site assessment. Most relevant to villas and townhouses.
• Landscape & pool — priced on an individual site assessment; these vary too widely to band meaningfully.

What each tier covers:

• Budget — a cosmetic refresh through to an essential renovation: paint, flooring, basic joinery and light updates.
• Mid-range — a full renovation: strip-out and replacement of kitchens, bathrooms, flooring and finishes to a good standard.
• High-end — premium through to luxury: bespoke joinery, natural stone, imported fittings and detailed finishing.

Worked examples: what real Dubai homes cost to renovate

Numbers land better than bands. The figures below are illustrative, calculated from the mid-range rates above — your real number depends on your exact scope and finish, but these show the shape of a budget.

Want the number for your specific home rather than an illustration? Our free cost calculator uses these exact bands — enter your area and finish level for an instant range.

Prefer to see the real thing? Read our anonymised, line-by-line breakdown of a real Dubai villa renovation — where the money actually went.

Where the money actually goes

On a typical full renovation, the rough split is:

• Bathrooms & kitchen — 30–40% of the budget. The most service-heavy, finish-heavy rooms in the home.
• MEP (electrical, plumbing, cooling) — 15–20%. Often invisible, always important.
• Flooring & finishes — 15–20%.
• Joinery & wardrobes — 10–15%.
• Preliminaries, management & contingency — 10–15%.

Bathrooms and kitchens: why they cost the most

If you only renovate one or two rooms, expect the per-square-metre rate to sit above the whole-home average. Bathrooms combine waterproofing, plumbing, tiling, sanitaryware and joinery in a small footprint, so they are the most cost-dense space in any home. Kitchens follow closely, driven by joinery, worktops, appliances and services. This is why a "small" two-bathroom refit can cost more than a homeowner expects — the rooms are cheap in area but expensive in content. The most reliable way to price a single room is to document exactly what's included and have it quoted; a per-room average can mislead in either direction.

What's included — and what isn't

The per-square-metre bands above are for the renovation works themselves. Budget separately for:

• VAT — 5% in the UAE, on top of the works.
• Furniture & appliances — loose furniture and white goods are usually excluded.
• Design fees — if you use an interior designer or architect.
• Community & authority permits — permit and approval fees vary by development.
• The quiet exclusions — making good, waterproofing, snagging and final clean-up are sometimes left out of a cheaper quote and billed back later.

How long does a renovation take in Dubai?

Time is part of the cost — every extra week is rent, disruption and management. As a rough guide: a cosmetic refresh can take a few weeks; a full apartment renovation typically runs around 6–12 weeks on site; and villa or structural work usually takes longer. The most common causes of delay are approvals, long-lead materials, and community working-hour restrictions — all of which are easier to manage when they're planned for before work starts, not discovered during it.

The three things that quietly inflate your cost

1. Vague scope. If nobody wrote down precisely what's included, every ambiguity becomes a paid extra later. This is the single biggest cause of overspend — and the entire reason a Renovation Blueprint™ exists.

2. Provisional sums. A quote full of "allowances" is a quote designed to grow. Each one is a number the contractor can revisit once you've signed.

3. Comparing totals, not scopes. The cheapest quote is often the one that left the most out. Without a common bill of quantities you're comparing guesses. Our guide to comparing renovation quotes like-for-like shows you how.

How to budget with confidence

Start from a realistic per-square-metre band for your finish level, add a 10–15% contingency, and — crucially — get every contractor pricing the same documented scope. That one step turns a nervous guess into a decision you can actually trust.

A quick way to sanity-check any quote: divide the total by the renovated area. If the resulting rate sits far outside the table above, ask why — in either direction.

How to reduce cost without cutting corners

• Prioritise the invisible. Never economise on MEP, waterproofing or structure — the cheapest place to save is finishes you can upgrade later, not the things behind the walls.
• Phase the work. A well-planned scope lets you stage non-essential rooms without paying twice.
• Fix the scope, then shop it. A documented scope quoted by several contractors creates genuine competition — and reveals who's leaving things out.
• Keep a contingency. A 10–15% buffer means the first surprise is an inconvenience, not a crisis.

Does location change the cost?

Yes — and it's worth planning for. The same scope of work tends to run higher in premium communities such as Palm Jumeirah, Downtown and Dubai Marina than in JVC, Discovery Gardens or the outer suburbs. It isn't the postcode itself: it's tighter access and delivery logistics, stricter community and working-hour rules, higher security and permit overheads, and the higher finish standard those homes are held to. If you're in a prime tower or a gated villa community, budget toward the upper end of your band and expect a stricter approval process.

Renovation and resale value in Dubai

If you might sell or let the property, treat part of the spend as an investment, not just a cost. Kitchens and bathrooms return the most, because they're what buyers and tenants judge a home on — and because a dated unit is discounted more heavily than the renovation would have cost. The trap is over-specifying for the building: a luxury fit-out in a mid-market tower rarely recovers its premium. The right level is the one that matches your building and whether you're staying or selling — exactly the kind of call an independent view helps you get right before you spend.

Dubai renovation cost — frequently asked questions