As the government of the UAE supports startup culture with extraordinary enthusiasm, every year, the UAE gets millions of startups registered. When new startups come to life, website design and development become their primary need to establish digital footprints.
However, the UAE government provides financial support to startups, foreign and domestic alike, still website design cost is often a matter of confusion for the Emirati entrepreneurs.
If you are planning to launch your startup in the UAE soon and need website design and development services, then let’s have a look at the cost first.
This blog will enable you to not only calculate but also optimise the cost. Additionally, you will also learn, towards the end of the blog, that you can also resell your website at a good price in the case of a shutdown! So, let’s scroll down and dig deeper.
Table of Contents
Website Design Vs Website Development: Understand The Concept First
Before jumping straight to the cost, you first need to understand that website design and website development are two different, however interlinked processes.
👨🏼🎨Website Design: The website design process is concerned with the website’s look and feel. That is, the User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX). A website design team is made of-
- Graphic Designers: Who will prepare the ‘sketch’ of the final website using tools like Figma, Photoshop, Adobe XD, etc.
- Front-End Developers: Front-end developers take care of the coding part. However, they will only code the part that will execute a design after the website’s backend development.
👨🏻💻Website Developer: A website has two aspects- Front End (visible to the website visitors) and backend (the structure of the website). Both front-end as well as backend development require coding skills, and web developers take care of the same. However, the role of a backend developer is primary after finalising the design.
So, the website development process in a nutshell has the following sequence-
Graphic Designer Creates UI UX Design → Backend Developer Writes the Structural Code → Front-End Developer Modifies the Backend to Execute the UI UX.
Cost of a Website From Scratch = Design + Development
Therefore, if you are a new business going for website design for the first time, you will need UI UX design + Backend Development + Front End Development. That is, the development team will work on your website from scratch.
In this case, custom website design and development cost can range between AED 7,000 and AED 30,000, depending on the complexity of the web design.
Cost of Only Website Design = Re-Engineering or Just A Figma
However, if you already have a website backend and just need a little bit of re-engineering to modify the design or to add some new website features and functions, then the cost might range between AED 650 and AED 2200, depending upon your requirements.
Website Design and Development Cost in Dubai Vs Abu Dhabi: What’s The Difference and Why?
Also, remember that website design and development costs in Dubai will be slightly higher than the cost in Abu Dhabi. The underlying cause of the cost difference is the difference between the economy and the living standard of both the Emirates.
- While Dubai is a more trade and foreign investment-driven Emirate.
- Abu Dhabi, on the contrary, is a more government-driven Emirate with high dependency over the oil and gas industry.
- Dubai contributes only 28% to the UAE’s GDP, with foreign investments and tourism.
- But Abu Dhabi contributes 60% to the UAE’s GDP.
Resultantly, the cost of making a website in Dubai might be AED 500 to AED 2000 higher than in Abu Dhabi. But the number of website development companies in Abu Dhabi will remain quite limited!
Custom Website Design Cost Calculator: Here’s A Feature, Function, Design, and Location-wise Estimates for You
Apart from the location, the complexity of the web development process also determines the cost. Features and functionality of the website or web app define its complexity level.
So, now let us have a detailed Custom website design cost breakdown for Dubai and Abu Dhabi locations, considering features, functions, and UI UX design of the website.
Note: The cost breakdown includes Front End + Backend Design & development-
| Feature/Function | Complexity Level | Cost in Dubai | Cost in Abu Dhabi |
| Domain Purchase* | Low | 50-250 (Annually) | 50-250 (Annually) |
| Hosting & Maintenance* | Low | 650-750 (Annually) | 650-700 (Annually) |
| SSL Certification* | Low | 150 | 150 |
| Custom UI UX Design | Medium | 5,000-12,000 | 4,500-10,000 |
| Web Page Creation (10-12) | Medium | 15,000 | 12,000-14,000 |
| Interactive UI UX Elements (Forms, CTAs, etc.) | Medium | 4,000-5,000 | 3,000-4,000 |
| CMS Integration* | Medium | 1,500-2,500 | 1,000-2,000 |
| Data Analytics* | Medium | 3,000-5,000 | 2,500-3,500 |
| Base SEO* | Medium | 1,000-2,000 | 1,000-1,500 |
| Website Content (Text & Images) | Medium | 1,200-2,500 | 1,000-2,000 |
| Multi-lingual Support* | Medium | 3,000 | 2,000 |
| Dark & Light Mode Toggle* | Low | 2,000 | 1,600 |
| Web App Development for Ecommerce & Other Genres | |||
| User Log In | Low | 5,000-6,000 | 4,000-5,000 |
| Multi-Factor Authentication* | Medium | 3,000-5,000 | 1,800-2,800 |
| User Profiling* | Medium | 6,000-8,000 | 5,000-7,000 |
| Searching & Browsing Product* | Medium | 6,000-7,000 | 5,500-6,500 |
| Add-to-Cart | Medium | 10,000-15,000 | 8,000-12,000 |
| Sort & Filter | Medium | 3,000-4,000 | 2,000-3,000 |
| Payment Gateway Integration | Complex | 2,500-4,000 | 1,800-3,500 |
| Order Tracking (Requires Maps API Integration) | Complex | 2,000-3,000 | 1,800-2,500 |
| Order Management* | Complex | 3,000-4,000 | 2,500-3,000 |
| Delivery Partner Side Version (overall) | Complex | 6,000-7,000 | 4,500-5,000 |
| Admin Panel (Owner Side Dashboard) | Complex | 7,000-8,000 | 6,000-6,000 |
| AI Chat-Bot Support | Medium | 1,500-2,000 | 1,200-1,800 |
| SMS & Email API Integration | Complex | 4,000 | 3,000 |
| Legal Aspects | |||
| Trademark Registration Cost* | N/A | 8,000-10,000 | 7,000-9,000 |
| Website Copyright* | N/A | 2,500-3,000 | 2,000-2,800 |
| Sourcecode Purchase (IP Transfer)* | N/A | 2,200-4,000 | 2,000-3,500 |
Explanation of the Starred Features-
For new startups, here is an explanation of the lesser known features and costs-
- Domain Purchase*: To run a website, you will need a domain address like https://www.abcd.ae or https://www.xyz.com.
- Hosting & Maintenance*: Website hosting is the act of storing your website data on a server. Basically, this is how your website will remain ‘live’ on the internet always.
- SSL Certification*: Secure Sockets Layer certificate is a digital certification that makes sure your your website is fully private and cyber-secure.
- CMS Integration*: Content Management System Integration (CMS integration) helps you make edits and updates to your website content. Eg. WordPress and Webflow.
- Data Analytics*: Data Analytics feature collects data about user engagement and activities like clicks, reads, time spent, page/product visits, helpful for marketing.
- Base SEO*: A website needs to be keyword-optimised to rank on the Google Search Engine Result Pages (SERP). Base SEO will optimise the website content and backend.
- Multi-Factor Authentication*: In case of functional web apps in ecommerce, healthcare, banking & finance industries, password login with OTP verification that is multi-factor authentication (MFA) ensures high data security.
- User Profiling*: Collecting and storing user’s personal information like name, sex, address, activities etc. is called user profiling. It is helpful in personalised marketing.
- Searching & Browsing Product*: Search by typing is not enough today. Rather, search by voice commands and images can also be ‘search’ method on functional web apps.
- Order Management*: Different from order tracking, order management requires inventory management mechanism. This feature will keep the product status updated like ‘in-stock’, ‘out-of-stock’, ‘deliverable’, and ‘non-deliverable’. Additionally, it will notify the admin and delivery partners of the order placed.
- Multi-lingual Support*: While operating in the UAE, having Arabic-friendly website has avarious benefits. Therefore, multi-lingual website is also an important feature to add.
- Dark & Light Mode Toggle*: Dark mode switchability makes a website more user-friendly. It puts less strain during the night time and low-light settings.
Legal Costs (Apart from the Design & Development)
- Trademark Registration Cost*: However, not a part of ‘website development’ as such. But you will need to first register your logo and business name before using it on the website.
- Website Copyright*: A custom-built website is the intellectual property (IP) of a business due to the uniqueness of design, functionalities, business model, content, etc. Therefore, buying copyrights is a recommended practice.
- Sourcecode Purchase (IP Transfer)*: Next comes the source code, which is of course the coding and programming used for making your website. However, you just gave an idea to the development team, and development team being the ‘developers’ can own the sourcecode. However, if you buy it from them, the developers will have no rights on it.
Now, let’s sum up the website design and development cost briefly in categories-
Small Business Website Design Cost
A small business website from scratch with normal customisations with 8-10 web pages and interactive forms and CTAs can cost between AED 5,000 and AED 15,000.
Professional Website Design Cost
Highly professional website with 15-20 interactive web pages and mobile responsive design can cost between AED 20,000 and AED 25,000. It can also include basic web app features like online booking and appointments for a business.
Ecommerce Website Design Cost
To set-up an ecommerce store with custom web development technologies can cost between AED 22,000 and AED 82,000 depending upon features and functions.
Dynamic & Functional Web App Development Cost
Highly dynamic and functional web apps with intensive searches, filtering, calculations, big data handling etc. with latest technologies like Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Machine Learning (ML) can cost anywhere between AED 42,000 and AED 160,000.
However, you may also use the table above and estimate the cost on your own feature-wise and get an estimate.
Did You Know Website Design & Development Are Not An Expense But An Investment?
Furthermore, if the website design costs given above are bothering you too much, remember that website is not an expenditure but an investment. Cherry on the cake, your website is an intellectual property that can you actually resell in case you need to!
Can A Website Be Resold If I Shut My Business Down?
Yes, definitely. You can resell your website and encash it in case you are shutting down the operations for unforeseen event. The cost of resell will depend upon your website’s SEO, Domain Authority, and Page Authority scores. You will just need to-
— Own the sourcecode of the website to resell it.
— Transfer or write off completely the copyrights of the website.
— Write off the registered trademark on your website.
— Be very careful of the user data that your website has stored. Handle it ethically.
The legal aspects above should be removed so that the new website buyer can reuse the website without any interruptions.
How Can I Resell My Website?
You can list your domain address on various website reselling platforms like Flippa, Motion Invest, and Microns. Alternatively, you may also try on the relevant LinkedIn groups or consult the website development company that developed your website.
Can I Optimise The Website Design Cost and Keep It Under Control?
Yes, you can! If you are a startup, certainly funding might be an issue for you. Amidst tight funding, investing heavily in website creation might be an impossibility. So, here are some tips that you can follow to optimise the website design cost-
— Don’t feel tempted to getting highly animated design. Just start with the simple one.
— Remember, your logo and website design are unique already, so no need to animate too much.
— Start with Minimum Viable Product (MVP) development technique.
— That is, go for only necessary features and avoid features you may go without in the beginning.
— Always try to choose a web development company that provides bundled services like design + hosting + maintenance + base SEO. Packages help you save more.
Let’s Wrap Up: How Much Does it Cost to Design A Website?
All in one, creating a new website for a unique startup from scratch can cost you anywhere between AED 5,000 and AED 55,000 depending upon features and functionalities.
Moreover, the location of the website developer also has a little bit of influence over the cost.
Although, expensive, but one should remember that your website is an intellectual property and asset. Even in case of shut down, you can resell and encash it.
So, do not worry too much about the website development cost. Just go for the investment. We will pray that you never face a shut down and your business website attracts terrific customers towards your business.
If you have more doubts on this topic and you need web design consulting, feel free to contact us. We will guide you one-on-one.
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