Land for sale in Dubai
7,044 plot sales were registered with the Dubai Land Department in the first half of 2026 — 8.3% of every property deal in the city, worth AED 105.3B. The median plot went for AED 7.21M and measured 546 m². Below: what land actually costs by area, how residential and commercial plots differ, and what a foreign buyer needs to know.
What commercial property costs in Dubai
Transaction data 2025 — H1 2026. 1 USD ≈ AED 3.67. Sources: DLD, Gulf News, CRC, Bayut.
What land actually sold for
Median registered price and median plot size for the eight busiest land zones. These are prices recorded by the Dubai Land Department — what buyers paid, not what sellers asked.
| Zone | Median price | Median plot | Deals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al Yelayiss 5 | AED 7.84M | 460 m² | 893 |
| Me'Aisem Second | AED 15.83M | 817 m² | 582 |
| Madinat Hind 4 | AED 1.72M | 174 m² | 537 |
| Al Hebiah Fifth | AED 2.95M | 144 m² | 469 |
| Jabal Ali First | AED 641k | 50 m² | 323 |
| Me'Aisem First | AED 12.22M | 570 m² | 312 |
| Al Yelayiss 1 | AED 3.04M | 144 m² | 221 |
| Hadaeq Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid | AED 22.94M | 750 m² | 202 |
Across all 7,044 registrations the median works out to 1,494 AED per sq ft of land, and 90% of plots were freehold. Note how far the zones diverge: a plot in Jabal Ali First has a median under AED 700k because the plots there are small, while Palm Jabal Ali clears AED 30M. Compare price per square foot, not headline price.
Why investors are switching from apartments to offices
Commercial out-earns residential across the board: Business Bay offices gross 7–9%, DIFC Grade A 6.5–7.5%, JLT offices and Al Quoz warehouses up to 10% — against 3.5–5% on villas held for long lets. The driver is a genuine Grade A shortage: DIFC vacancy is near zero, fitted offices up to 2,000 sq.ft trade 15–20% above shell-and-core, and LEED-certified towers charge ~12% more rent.
Supply is coming — around 24.2M sq.ft of new offices are announced through 2030 across Business Bay, Meydan, DIFC and JLT — but with a catch for buyers: Business Bay builds to sell, while DIFC largely builds to rent, keeping investable Grade A stock scarce. Compare with residential returns in our rental yield guide.
Can foreigners buy? Freehold zones and structures
Yes — foreigners own commercial property 100% freehold in 60+ designated zones, including Business Bay, JLT, Dubai Marina, Downtown and Dubai Silicon Oasis. DIFC runs its own legal system and property registrar. You can buy personally or through a company — a free-zone entity (e.g. DMCC), an offshore vehicle (JAFZA Offshore, RAK ICC) or a mainland company.
One-off costs: the 4% DLD transfer fee plus admin and trustee fees and ~2% agency commission. There are no annual taxes on ownership or rental income for individuals — the real difference from residential is VAT, below.
How the 5% VAT works when you buy commercial property
Unlike residential (exempt; first supply of a new build zero-rated for 3 years), commercial property is subject to 5% VAT — on both sales and rents. The mechanics on a resale purchase trip up unprepared buyers: the buyer pays the 5% VAT directly to the Federal Tax Authority through the EmaraTax portal and receives a Payment Transaction Number (PTN). Without that number the DLD trustee office will not transfer the title — so the VAT payment has to be sequenced into the deal before registration, not after.
The good news: if you buy through a VAT-registered company, the 5% is recoverable as input tax in your next return — for most corporate buyers it is a cash-flow item, not a cost. We structure this step into every commercial deal we run.
Renting to a business: Ejari and the RERA index
Every commercial lease must be registered in Ejari — an unregistered contract is not recognised, and a valid Ejari is a condition for issuing and renewing the tenant’s trade license with DET. Registration needs the contract, the title deed, both parties’ trade licenses and Emirates ID / passports.
Rent rises are capped by the RERA Rental Index, which covers commercial units too (select “commercial” in the DLD calculator): 0/5/10/15/20% bands, a maximum of 20% when the current rent sits more than 40% below market, and 90 days’ written notice. Disputes go to the Rental Dispute Centre. Tenant-side overview — in our renting in Dubai guide.
Two markets inside one number
The 7,044 plot registrations split almost two to one: 4,662 residential (median AED 6.83M, typical plot 558 m², 1,533 AED/sqft) and 2,382 commercial (median AED 8.10M, 532 m², 1,467 AED/sqft). Commercial land carries the higher median but the lower price per square foot — you are buying more ground, further out, with a build obligation attached to a business case rather than a home.
Budgets that clear — all plots
Residential plots only
Land is not an entry-level purchase. Only 14% of registrations cleared under AED 2M, while 65% sat above AED 5M — the median plot deal is roughly five times the median apartment. The largest single land registration of the half-year was AED 3.1B.
Figures come from individual sales registered with the Dubai Land Department, January–June 2026, aggregated by us. Only plots are counted here (PROP_TYPE «Land»); apartments and villas are excluded, because plot prices and home prices are not comparable — mixing them is the single most common error in Dubai market reporting.
Estimate your yield
Gross estimate from typical 2026 yields; service charges and 5% VAT on rent are on top.
Common questions
Can a foreigner buy a land plot in Dubai?
Yes, but only inside designated freehold zones — the same 60+ areas that allow foreign ownership of homes. Ownership is registered in your own name with a DLD title deed, with no requirement to be a resident, have a sponsor or hold a local bank account. Outside those zones land is leasehold or reserved for UAE and GCC nationals. In our H1 2026 data 90% of registered plots were freehold.
How much does land cost in Dubai?
The median registered plot sale in H1 2026 was AED 7.21M for a 546 m² plot, which works out to about 1,494 AED per square foot of land. The spread is wide: 14% of deals closed under AED 2M and 25% above AED 15M, so the zone matters far more than the headline median.
What is the difference between a residential and a commercial plot?
Usage is fixed at registration and determines what you may build. Residential plots (4,662 registrations, median AED 6.83M) are for villas and low-rise housing. Commercial plots (2,382, median AED 8.10M) carry a higher median but a lower price per square foot, because they tend to be larger and further from the centre. You cannot simply build a home on a commercial plot — changing usage requires approval and is not guaranteed.
What does buying a plot cost on top of the price?
The Dubai Land Department transfer fee is 4% of the purchase price, plus a trustee office fee of about AED 4,000–4,200 and roughly AED 580 in administrative charges. Budget 6–8% in total once agency commission is included. Development costs — design, permits, connections and construction — come afterwards and are the larger number by far.
What can I actually build on the plot?
That is set by the affection plan issued for the specific parcel, which fixes the permitted use, the buildable footprint and the height. Ask for it before you commit — two neighbouring plots of the same size can carry very different build rights. Construction then needs approval from Dubai Municipality and, in master-planned communities, from the master developer as well.
Is buying land a better investment than buying an apartment?
It is a different one. Land produces no rent while it sits empty, so there is no yield to offset holding costs, and your return depends on either the zone appreciating or on you completing a build. An apartment starts paying from handover. Land makes sense when you intend to develop, or when you have a specific view on a zone; it rarely makes sense as a passive parking place for money.
Every way to buy in Dubai
Find commercial property in Dubai for your budget
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