Offices
Dubai office rents rose 4% in Q3 2026. What that means for buyers of new office launches
Cushman & Wakefield puts Dubai's average office rent at AED 213 per sq ft after a 4% quarterly rise. Here is the simple yield maths on AED 4,000+ launches, and the 8.3M sq ft pipeline to keep in mind.
Two numbers from Cushman & Wakefield Core's third-quarter reports sat side by side this autumn. Residential rents in Dubai slipped 4.5% on the quarter. Office rents went the other way, up 4% to an average of about AED 213 per sq ft a year, with occupancy steady at around 92.4%.
Why office rents are still rising
The short answer is supply. Only about 50,000 sq ft of office space was delivered in the third quarter, and much of the roughly 770,000 sq ft due in the fourth quarter was already pre-let, according to the same report. When very little new Grade A space arrives, the space that exists gets more expensive.
The yield maths on a new launch
The new Grade A towers on Sheikh Zayed Road and in Business Bay are being quoted by brokers at roughly AED 4,000 to 4,600 per sq ft. These are broker quotes, not published price lists. Put them against the city-wide average rent:
| Purchase price per sq ft | Rent per sq ft (C&W Q3 average) | Gross yield |
|---|---|---|
| AED 4,000 | AED 213 | about 5.3% |
| AED 4,300 | AED 213 | about 5.0% |
| AED 4,600 | AED 213 | about 4.6% |
That is a gross figure. Service charges on the new towers are being estimated by developers at around AED 18 to 24 per sq ft, and that comes off the top. Prime Grade A space usually rents above the city average, so the real yield on a well-located floor can be better. It can also be worse if the building has to compete for tenants when it completes.
The number to underwrite is the 2030 rent, not the 2026 rent
The same Cushman & Wakefield report counts more than 8.3 million sq ft of office pipeline along Sheikh Zayed Road (Trade Centre to Interchange 1) and in Business Bay through 2031, driven by strata launches. It expects single-owned Grade A buildings and strata towers to perform differently as that space arrives.
So the honest question for any off-plan office purchase is not today's yield. It is what rent you can achieve in the year you get the keys, against everything else completing that year.
Ready offices are a different price point
CRC Property's third-quarter figures, reported by Khaleej Times, put the average secondary office transaction at about AED 1,930 per sq ft across 1,123 deals. That average is pulled down by where the volume was: nearly 30% of deals were in Downtown Jebel Ali. Compare like-for-like buildings, not the city average, before you decide between ready and off-plan.
What I would do before buying
- Ask for the full price list for the specific floor, not a guide average.
- Work out the gross yield on today's average rent, then again on a rent 10% lower.
- Check the payment plan against your cash flow, especially any large instalment in year one.
- Confirm the completion date registered with the Dubai Land Department before you underwrite it.
If you want that worked through for a specific tower, send me the unit on WhatsApp and I will do the sums with you.
Questions
What is the average office rent in Dubai in Q3 2026?
Cushman & Wakefield Core reports an average of about AED 213 per sq ft a year for Q3 2026, up 4% on the previous quarter.
What gross yield does an AED 4,000 per sq ft office give?
Dividing the AED 213 city average rent by AED 4,000 gives about 5.3% gross. At AED 4,600 per sq ft it is about 4.6%. Service charges, vacancy and fees come off that, and prime Grade A space can rent above the average.
How much office space is coming to Sheikh Zayed Road and Business Bay?
Cushman & Wakefield counts more than 8.3 million sq ft of office pipeline along Sheikh Zayed Road (Trade Centre to Interchange 1) and in Business Bay through 2031, much of it strata.
- Cushman & Wakefield Core, Dubai Office MarketBeat Q3 2026
- CRC Property Q3 2026 office figures, reported by Khaleej Times
Launch prices are guide or broker figures unless stated. General information, not financial advice.