Kitchen Renovation Cost in Dubai 2026: AED Breakdown by Scope & Finish Level

What Does a Kitchen Renovation Cost in Dubai in 2026?

The range is wide because "kitchen renovation" covers everything from repainting cabinet doors to ripping out the entire kitchen and rebuilding it with Italian joinery and natural stone. The table below maps the main scope levels to their 2026 cost bands.

The single most important variable: cabinet quality. Upgrading from locally manufactured joinery to imported Italian cabinets can double the cost of an otherwise identical kitchen. Get cabinet quotes before locking your total budget.

Kitchen Renovation Cost by Component

Cabinetry

Cabinets typically consume 45–60% of the total kitchen renovation budget, and the price variation across quality tiers is enormous. Flat-pack imported units start around AED 800 per linear metre. Custom-built local joinery with soft-close hardware and handleless profiles runs AED 1,800–3,500 per linear metre. Premium German or Italian cabinets (Poggenpohl, Bulthaup, Snaidero) or high-end custom workshops in Dubai reach AED 3,500–6,500+ per linear metre installed.

A standard apartment kitchen with 6–8 linear metres of cabinetry will cost AED 11,000–28,000 for mid-range local joinery. A larger villa kitchen with 12–16 linear metres and premium imported cabinets can reach AED 60,000–100,000 for cabinetry alone.

Countertops and Worktops

Countertop material is the second biggest budget lever:

• Engineered quartz (Silestone, Compac, Caesarstone): AED 400–900 per linear metre installed. The most practical choice — non-porous, scratch-resistant, no sealing required.
• Granite: AED 500–1,200 per linear metre. Durable and popular in the UAE, but requires sealing every 12–18 months.
• Marble (Carrara, Calacatta, Statuario): AED 700–2,000+ per linear metre. Visually stunning but porous and prone to staining in a working kitchen without diligent maintenance.
• Sintered stone (Dekton, Neolith): AED 900–2,200 per linear metre. Ultra-hard, heat-proof, UV-stable — increasingly popular in Dubai's cooking-heavy households.

Appliances

A practical mid-range appliance set — oven, hob, extractor hood, integrated fridge, and dishwasher from Bosch or Siemens — costs AED 8,000–20,000. Stepping up to Miele or Liebherr for a villa kitchen runs AED 25,000–55,000. Full premium suites with Gaggenau, Sub-Zero, La Cornue, or Wolf appliances easily exceed AED 80,000–150,000 for a fully specified kitchen.

In Dubai, many kitchen projects source appliances separately from the contractor to maintain control over brand and warranty. V Square coordinates procurement from authorised UAE dealers as part of the project management scope, ensuring manufacturer warranty is preserved and avoiding contractor mark-up.

Flooring and Splashback

Kitchen floor tiling runs AED 60–180 per sqft supplied and installed, depending on tile quality — local ceramic versus imported porcelain versus large-format Italian slab. Splashback tiling costs AED 45–120 per sqft; a full-height porcelain slab splashback (increasingly popular in Dubai villa kitchens) runs AED 120–300 per sqft.

Plumbing and Electrical

If your renovation is cosmetic — no pipes moved, no new circuits — plumbing and electrical costs are minimal (AED 2,000–5,000 for a few connection adjustments). The moment you reconfigure the layout, move the sink, add an island, or upgrade the electrical load for new appliances, costs rise to AED 8,000–25,000 for a typical apartment and AED 15,000–45,000 for a villa kitchen with more extensive MEP coordination. These works also trigger the permit requirement.

What Drives the Cost Up — or Down?

Beyond material selection, these factors most commonly move a Dubai kitchen renovation budget:

• Layout change: Moving the sink or hob to a new wall adds immediate MEP rerouting costs (AED 5,000–15,000) plus authority permits and possible structural investigation if a load-bearing wall is involved.
• Island addition: A freestanding non-plumbed island costs AED 8,000–20,000. A plumbed island with a sink and integrated hob requires MEP runs under the slab — budget AED 20,000–45,000 extra including all works and building management coordination.
• Appliance quality: Moving from a standard set to a prestige appliance suite is the fastest way to double a kitchen renovation budget. Lock the appliance spec early — it drives cabinet dimensions, electrical load calculations, and extractor duct sizing.
• Smart and lighting features: Under-cabinet LED systems (AED 2,000–6,000), sensor-controlled drawers, and integrated smart lighting add a modest premium but dramatically improve the finished result and long-term livability.
• Building management rules: Some Dubai master developers (Emaar, Nakheel, DAMAC) have strict fit-out guidelines on material weights, tile types, or contractor accreditation. Using non-approved contractors or materials triggers rejection at handover inspection. Always check the community fit-out guide before selecting subcontractors.

Permits and Approvals You Will Need

No permit required (but building NOC always needed): Painting, replacing cabinet doors or hardware, applying a tile overlay with no height change, replacing appliances in the same location, or upgrading lighting fittings. You still need a No Objection Certificate from your building management or master developer before starting any works.

Dubai Municipality (DM) or DDA permit required: Any work involving moving or adding water supply or drain points, changing electrical distribution or load, removing or adding internal partitions, altering MEP duct routing, or any structural modifications. Your appointed consultant — who must hold a valid DM classification — submits drawings through the Dubai Building Permit System (DBPS).

Civil Defense approval: Required when modifying fire suppression systems or kitchen extraction hoods in high-rise residential towers or commercial kitchens.

DEWA approval: Required when increasing the electrical load — for example, adding a dedicated 32A induction hob circuit or a second oven line not in the original building drawings.

Working without the required permits carries real consequences in Dubai: stop-work orders, fines, and demolition of unauthorised works at the owner's expense. A licensed project manager handles all permit coordination and carries the DM classification needed to submit on your behalf, removing this burden from you entirely.

How Long Does a Kitchen Renovation Take in Dubai?

Timelines in Dubai kitchen renovations are most often driven by material lead times, not the build itself:

• Cosmetic refresh (no joinery replacement): 1–2 weeks on-site.
• Mid-range remodel with local cabinets: Cabinets take 3–5 weeks to manufacture. Total timeline from design sign-off: 6–9 weeks, including permit, installation, countertop templating, and tiling.
• Full remodel with imported European joinery: European cabinets take 10–14 weeks to ship from factory. Total timeline: 14–20 weeks from design freeze.
• Premium bespoke project: If materials include book-matched marble slabs or custom metalwork, add 2–4 weeks for fabrication. Full timeline: 16–24 weeks.

The most common delay in Dubai kitchen renovations is late client decision-making on finishes. Cabinet and countertop orders cannot be placed — and lead times cannot start — until exact dimensions and material selections are confirmed. Locking these decisions in week one saves weeks at the end. A structured project management approach ensures every milestone is hit and decisions are escalated before they become delays.

Frequently Asked Questions