Guides
What a UAE company actually costs in 2026.
Year 2 is usually 35–60% above the Year-1 sticker, not a rounding error. Competitor-published ranges (StartDXB June 2026, freezonecompare, Zetup) advertise Year-1 licences from AED 5,750–12,900; a real one-visa setup often lands around AED 14,000–49,000. Year-2 IFZA is often AED 18,500–27,000, DMCC/JAFZA AED 32,000–42,000, mainland first-year AED 25,000–52,000. Market ranges only — not private invoices from Grassroots, Posterly, GetAlex or LaunchDubai.
Year one versus year two
Formation ads sell year one. Founders live in year two. Competitor-published Year-1 licences from StartDXB (June 2026), freezonecompare and Zetup still sit at AED 5,750–12,900. That is usually a licence-led starter, not a usable one-visa company. Establishment cards, medicals, Emirates ID, visa files and a desk you can actually use push a real year-one bill toward AED 14,000–49,000. Mainland first years often sit at AED 25,000–52,000 because the office lease arrives immediately.
Year 2 is usually 35–60% above the Year-1 sticker, not a rounding error. That is the planning number to take to an adviser, not the first Google ad.
Mainland, IFZA, DMCC and Meydan
The table uses competitor-published 2026 market ranges, not private invoices. IFZA year-two one-visa packages often land around AED 18,500–27,000. DMCC and JAFZA often land around AED 32,000–42,000. Meydan is usually cheaper than those two; confirm the current package before you treat any cell as a quote. For the structure decision itself — including Resolution 11 of 2025 — start with mainland versus free zone and the IFZA profile.
| Competitor-published 2026 range | Mainland | IFZA | DMCC | Meydan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 advertised package | Rarely sold as one sticker price; DET, office and approvals are quoted separately | AED 5,750–12,900 typical advertised starter band | Above the cheap starter band; flexi-desk packages often start in the low-to-mid tens of thousands | Among the cheaper Dubai packages, often advertised from about AED 7,500 |
| Year 1 real 1-visa all-in | AED 25,000–52,000 | Often the lower half of AED 14,000–49,000 once one visa is live | Often the upper half of AED 14,000–49,000 | Typically the lower-to-mid part of AED 14,000–49,000 |
| Year 2 typical | Often 35–60% above the Year-1 sticker once office and visas renew | AED 18,500–27,000 | AED 32,000–42,000, in a similar band to JAFZA | Confirm with the authority; usually closer to IFZA than to DMCC |
| Office | Physical office with Ejari is the usual requirement | Flexi-desk, dedicated desk or private office | Flexi-desk or physical office in JLT | Virtual or flexi-desk packages are common |
| Best when | You need UAE customers, retail, or government work | You want a predictable first company for consulting, e-commerce or services | You want a JLT address, commodities or a larger free-zone brand | You want a first Dubai licence without a large office |
Sources for the AED bands: StartDXB (June 2026), freezonecompare and Zetup. Confirm the live package with the authority before you pay.
What the advertised number leaves out
The cheap Year-1 band is real advertising, not a complete company. Visa files, medicals, Emirates ID, establishment cards, immigration typing and a usable office are how AED 5,750 becomes AED 14,000 or more. Planning tools on the tools page help you frame VAT, tax and visa placeholders before you speak to an authority. They are not quotations.
Public founder notes, not private invoices
Alex Thorp has run Grassroots, Posterly, GetAlex and LaunchDubai from the UAE and has helped 40+ founders incorporate. The mistakes already published on the book page are the ones that still cost people money: $5,000 wasted on the wrong free zone, a three-month visa delay for key hires, and frozen funds after picking the wrong bank. This page does not publish private AED invoices from those companies.
Questions
How much does a UAE company cost in 2026?
Year 2 is usually 35–60% above the Year-1 sticker, not a rounding error. Competitor-published Year-1 ads still sit at AED 5,750–12,900; a real one-visa setup often lands around AED 14,000–49,000, and mainland first-year all-in is usually AED 25,000–52,000.
Why is year two more expensive than year one?
Year 2 is usually 35–60% above the Year-1 sticker because the discounted first-year package expires and visas, medicals, Emirates ID and office renewals arrive together. Competitor-published IFZA year-two one-visa costs often sit around AED 18,500–27,000; DMCC and JAFZA often sit around AED 32,000–42,000.
Is IFZA cheaper than DMCC?
On typical year-two one-visa packages in the competitor-published ranges, yes — IFZA often sits around AED 18,500–27,000 against about AED 32,000–42,000 at DMCC or JAFZA. Cheap is not the same as correct: activity, banking and who you sell to still decide the jurisdiction.
Are these Alex Thorp’s own invoices?
No. The AED bands are competitor-published market ranges from StartDXB (June 2026), freezonecompare and Zetup, not private invoices from Grassroots, Posterly, GetAlex or LaunchDubai. The public founder notes on this page are the same anecdotes already on the book page: $5,000 wasted on the wrong free zone, a visa delay, and frozen funds from the wrong bank.
Keep exploring
Read the decisions, not a setup pitch
The book is $19.99 and written founder-to-founder, not by a formation company.
Use this page to sanity-check the year-two number. Use the book when you want the judgement calls behind jurisdiction, visas and banking — the same public mistakes above, in one place.
Read the book · $19.99