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The off-plan premium in Dubai is not one number. Across 2026's Dubai property transactions, a new apartment cost 24.0% more per square foot than a resale one, but that average hides a range from 2.8% in Umm Suqeim to more than 100% in Palm Jumeirah and Dubai Marina.
Which end of that range a district sits on says more about its existing homes than about its new ones. This is the full district table for January to September 2026, what drives the spread, and why the Dubai-wide figure narrowed this year while most districts did not.
Key takeaways
- Dubai off-plan apartments sold at a median AED 1,769 per sq ft against AED 1,427 for resales, a 24.0% premium.
- Across 35 districts the median premium was 34.5%. Eleven districts ran at 50% or more and five under 15%.
- The premium is lowest where resale is newest and dearest: 2.8% in Umm Suqeim, 7.4% in Al Merkadh, 8.0% in Dubai Hills Estate.
- Studios carry the biggest premium, 35.0%, against 18.3% for two-bedroom homes.
- The Dubai-wide premium narrowed from 34.4% to 24.0% on 2025 because buying moved toward value districts. Like for like, off-plan prices rose 5.7% and resale 4.4%.
The Dubai off-plan premium in 2026, district by district
The premium is the median off-plan price per square foot over the median resale price per square foot, in the same district, over the same nine months. A district is listed when it had at least 50 off-plan sales and 50 resales of apartments, which gives 35 districts covering 77.1% of all off-plan apartment sales in Dubai.
| District | Off-plan price per sq ft | Resale price per sq ft | Premium | Same-bedroom premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jumeirah 1 | AED 7,553 | AED 2,996 | 152.1% | 110.8% |
| Nad Al Sheba | AED 3,532 | AED 1,575 | 124.3% | 132.8% |
| Palm Jumeirah | AED 5,734 | AED 2,654 | 116.1% | 121.8% |
| Dubai Marina | AED 4,212 | AED 2,071 | 103.4% | 110.8% |
| Motor City | AED 1,829 | AED 1,025 | 78.4% | 83.3% |
| Dubai Land Residence Complex | AED 1,477 | AED 851 | 73.6% | 73.6% |
| International City Phase 1 | AED 1,118 | AED 661 | 69.1% | 70.5% |
| Jumeirah Lakes Towers | AED 2,444 | AED 1,448 | 68.9% | 68.8% |
| Liwan | AED 1,504 | AED 958 | 56.9% | 61.5% |
| Dubai South | AED 1,689 | AED 1,084 | 55.8% | 48.4% |
| Tecom | AED 3,424 | AED 2,206 | 55.2% | 53.8% |
| Downtown Dubai | AED 3,424 | AED 2,386 | 43.5% | 40.8% |
| Business Bay | AED 2,706 | AED 1,888 | 43.3% | 45.6% |
| Dubai Sports City | AED 1,393 | AED 980 | 42.1% | 53.0% |
| International City Phases 2 and 3 | AED 1,241 | AED 888 | 39.8% | 37.9% |
| Majan | AED 1,500 | AED 1,085 | 38.2% | 49.9% |
| Dubai Production City | AED 1,405 | AED 1,024 | 37.2% | 43.0% |
| Al Furjan | AED 1,661 | AED 1,235 | 34.5% | 34.6% |
| Al Satwa | AED 2,295 | AED 1,725 | 33.0% | 14.1% |
| Dubai Silicon Oasis | AED 1,580 | AED 1,200 | 31.7% | 33.3% |
| Dubai Science Park | AED 1,770 | AED 1,364 | 29.8% | 31.2% |
| Downtown Jebel Ali | AED 1,717 | AED 1,331 | 29.0% | 38.5% |
| Jumeirah Village Triangle | AED 1,699 | AED 1,335 | 27.3% | 31.0% |
| Town Square | AED 1,706 | AED 1,351 | 26.2% | 27.6% |
| Arjan | AED 1,703 | AED 1,368 | 24.5% | 22.4% |
| Al Wasl | AED 3,330 | AED 2,710 | 22.9% | 22.7% |
| Jumeirah Village Circle | AED 1,556 | AED 1,272 | 22.3% | 20.6% |
| Zabeel | AED 3,195 | AED 2,678 | 19.3% | 18.3% |
| Al Jaddaf | AED 2,105 | AED 1,784 | 18.0% | 15.4% |
| Al Kifaf | AED 2,244 | AED 1,949 | 15.2% | 8.6% |
| Dubai Creek Harbour | AED 2,620 | AED 2,316 | 13.1% | 13.2% |
| Dubai Studio City | AED 1,558 | AED 1,391 | 12.0% | 13.6% |
| Dubai Hills Estate | AED 2,417 | AED 2,238 | 8.0% | 5.2% |
| Al Merkadh | AED 2,127 | AED 1,980 | 7.4% | 8.9% |
| Umm Suqeim | AED 2,784 | AED 2,708 | 2.8% | 4.2% |
The last column is the check on the first. It compares off-plan and resale one bedroom count at a time, so a district that happens to launch mostly studios is not credited with a studio's higher price per foot. In 31 of the 35 districts the two measures sit within ten points of each other; where they do not, as in Al Satwa or Majan, the like-for-like figure is the one to use.
Where the premium is highest, and why
The highest premiums come in two kinds. The first is prime waterfront and central districts where new launches aim well above the existing stock: Palm Jumeirah at 116.1%, Dubai Marina at 103.4% and Nad Al Sheba at 124.3%. Off-plan in Palm Jumeirah sold at a median AED 5,734 per sq ft against AED 2,654 for resales. That is less a premium than a different product sharing an address.
The second kind is districts where the existing homes are older and cheap per foot, so anything new prices far above them: Motor City at 78.4%, Dubai Land Residence Complex at 73.6% and International City Phase 1 at 69.1%, where resales averaged AED 661 per sq ft. Here the premium mostly measures the age of the resale stock.
The cheaper the resale market, the bigger the premium tends to be. The ten districts with the lowest resale prices, a median AED 1,002 per sq ft, carried a median premium of 48.9%. The ten with the highest, AED 2,520, carried 33.2%.
Where off-plan costs barely more than resale
At the other end, five districts ran premiums under 15%: Umm Suqeim at 2.8%, Al Merkadh at 7.4%, Dubai Hills Estate at 8.0%, Dubai Studio City at 12.0% and Dubai Creek Harbour at 13.1%. Most of them share a trait: much of the resale stock is recent and already priced high, so a launch has little room above it.
Low premiums are also where off-plan most often undercuts resale outright. Our analysis of which Dubai off-plan projects are cheaper than resale found 35.0% of off-plan sales in Dubai Hills Estate priced below the resale median for the same bedrooms, the highest share of any district.
Popular mid-market districts sit close to the Dubai average. Jumeirah Village Circle ran at 22.3%, Arjan at 24.5% and Town Square at 26.2%. In these districts the premium is roughly what a new building with a payment plan costs over a recent one.
Smaller homes carry the biggest premium
Studios carry the steepest premium in Dubai: off-plan studios sold 35.0% above resale studios per square foot, one-bedroom homes 24.2%, two-bedroom homes 18.3% and three-bedroom homes 21.9%.
Part of the studio premium is size. The median off-plan studio was 385 sq ft against 444 sq ft for a resale studio, 13% smaller, and within the same bedroom count a smaller home usually costs more per foot. The gap narrows with size: off-plan two-bedroom homes were 1,236 sq ft against 1,286, about 4% smaller. A buyer comparing studios should compare the whole price, not only the rate per foot.
Why the Dubai-wide premium narrowed in 2026
The Dubai-wide premium fell from 34.4% in the first nine months of 2025 to 24.0% in the same months of 2026. Read quickly, that looks like off-plan getting cheaper. It is mostly buyers going elsewhere.
The off-plan median eased 3.9% and the resale median rose 4.2%. But district by district, holding each district's 2025 weight fixed, off-plan prices rose 5.7% and resale 4.4%. The difference is where off-plan buying happened: districts priced below the Dubai off-plan median took 63.4% of off-plan apartment sales in 2026, up from 51.7%, and Dubai South alone went from 5.9% to 16.6%.
So the premium inside most districts held or widened. Of the 31 districts with enough sales in both years, it widened in 19 and narrowed in 12. The average narrowed because more of the buying moved to districts where both new and resale homes cost less.
Does a low premium make it the best area to buy property in Dubai?
Not on its own. The best area to buy property in Dubai depends on what the premium is buying. Three readings of the table:
1. A premium under 15% usually means the resale stock is recent and dear. You pay little extra for new, but you also enter at a high price per foot: AED 2,238 for resales in Dubai Hills Estate.
2. A premium above 60% in a cheap district measures the age of the existing homes. International City Phase 1 resales sold at AED 661 per sq ft. The off-plan buyer pays for being new, and the next buyer will compare that home against cheaper resales nearby.
3. A premium above 100% in a prime district is a different product. Comparing a branded launch on Palm Jumeirah with a fifteen-year-old resale tells you little about either.
The same district can also look different by bedroom count, which is why the table shows the like-for-like column. Before you commit, set the off-plan price you are quoted against the district's resale median for the same bedrooms. The Prop971 comparison dashboard does that side by side, and our guide to off-plan projects in Dubai by district shows where the launches are. Every purchase also pays the 4% transfer fee to the Dubai Land Department, and the UAE government's housing guide covers who may buy where.
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FAQ
What is the off-plan premium in Dubai?
Dubai off-plan apartments sold at a median AED 1,769 per sq ft from January to September 2026, 24.0% above the AED 1,427 for resales. Across 35 districts the median premium was 34.5%.
Which Dubai district has the highest off-plan premium?
Among districts with enough sales, Jumeirah 1 at 152.1%, Nad Al Sheba at 124.3%, Palm Jumeirah at 116.1% and Dubai Marina at 103.4%, where new launches price far above the existing stock.
Where is the off-plan premium lowest in Dubai?
Umm Suqeim at 2.8%, Al Merkadh at 7.4%, Dubai Hills Estate at 8.0%, Dubai Studio City at 12.0% and Dubai Creek Harbour at 13.1%, districts where the resale stock is relatively recent and already priced high.
Is the off-plan premium in Dubai getting smaller?
Dubai-wide it narrowed from 34.4% to 24.0% between the first nine months of 2025 and 2026, mostly because more buying moved to lower-priced districts. District by district it widened in 19 of 31 districts, and off-plan prices rose 5.7% like for like.
Why do off-plan studios carry a bigger premium?
Off-plan studios sold 35.0% above resale studios per square foot, against 18.3% for two-bedroom homes. Part of it is size: the median off-plan studio was 385 sq ft against 444 sq ft for a resale one, and smaller studios usually cost more per foot.
What is the best area to buy property in Dubai for a low off-plan premium?
Dubai Hills Estate, Dubai Creek Harbour and Dubai Studio City combined premiums under 15% with at least 250 resales each in 2026. A low premium there reflects recent, high-priced resale stock, so check the price per foot as well as the premium.
References
Figures in this article are computed from official UAE property transaction records (DLD, ADREC) via Prop971 market analytics, including transactions up to 30 September 2026.
