Dubai Rental Yields by Area 2026: What's Left After the Service Charge
Data as of 11 November 2026, 12:50 Dubai time (UTC+4). Figures update daily on Dubai ROI Radar.
Most "Dubai rental yield by area" tables show a gross number: rent divided by price, before any cost. Owners don't receive gross. The building service charge comes out every year, whether the unit is let or empty.
This table does it the other way round. Each community's figure is built from signed tenancy contracts in the same building as the listing, not asking rents and not a community average. A modelled service charge is subtracted before the yield is calculated. On the day we pulled the data, Dubai ROI Radar tracked 29 communities, 2,602 for-sale listings and 29,144 signed contracts. 25 of those communities had enough qualifying listings to show a yield.
The ranking: median yield after service charge
Sorted by the median yield after service charge across tracked for-sale listings. The median is the more reliable number for comparing areas. The "best listing" column shows the single highest listing today, which can move from one day to the next. Each community is scanned against its own price ceiling and property type, shown in the last column.
| # | Community | Median after SC | Best listing after SC | Best building | Signed contracts | Tracked listings | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arjan | 5.7% | 7.4% | Lincoln Park B | 1,430 | 174 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 2 | JVT | 5.7% | 7.6% | FH Residency | 926 | 71 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 3 | Al Furjan | 5.6% | 7.1% | AZIZI Roy Mediterranean | 1,455 | 268 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 4 | JVC | 5.5% | 7.8% | Diamond Views 4 | 1,511 | 131 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 5 | Dubai Sports City | 5.4% | 7.7% | The Bridge | 1,517 | 255 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 6 | Dubailand Residence Complex | 5.4% | 6.9% | Skycourts Tower C | 1,295 | 161 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 7 | Wasl Gate | 5.2% | 6.6% | The Nook 2 | 336 | 33 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 8 | Business Bay | 5.1% | 6.7% | Safeer Tower 1 | 1,572 | 164 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 9 | Dubai South | 5.0% | 6.9% | Kappa Acca 6 | 1,159 | 92 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 10 | International City | 4.9% | 6.6% | Building Y08 | 1,682 | 47 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 11 | Jumeirah Lake Towers | 4.9% | 11.1%* | Laguna Tower | 1,951 | 203 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 12 | Dubai Marina | 4.8% | 6.3% | DEC Tower 2 | 1,744 | 155 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 13 | Dubai Hills Estate | 4.8% | 6.5% | Park Lane 2A | 1,379 | 129 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 14 | Barsha Heights (Tecom) | 4.7% | 6.9% | Al Fahad Tower 2 | 990 | 18 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 15 | Majan | 4.7% | 6.6% | Madison Columbus | 832 | 42 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 16 | Bluewaters Island | 4.4% | 5.2% | Bluewaters Residences Building 3 | 200 | 14 | Apartments ≤ AED 5.625M |
| 17 | Downtown Dubai | 4.4% | 5.9% | Burj Al Nujoom | 1,612 | 94 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 18 | The Views | 4.4% | 5.8% | The Fairways West | 979 | 32 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.875M |
| 19 | Al Wasl | 4.4% | 5.8% | Canal Front Residence 8 | 412 | 16 | Apartments ≤ AED 5M |
| 20 | Dubai Creek Harbour | 4.2% | 5.1% | Creek Palace | 1,190 | 111 | Apartments ≤ AED 2.5M |
| 21 | The Greens | 4.2% | 5.8% | Al Dhafra 4 | 1,126 | 75 | Apartments ≤ AED 1.88M |
| 22 | Palm Jumeirah | 3.7% | 4.4% | Royal Bay by Azizi | 1,211 | 36 | Apartments ≤ AED 3.125M |
| 23 | La Mer | 3.6% | 4.8% | La Rive Building 4 | 400 | 43 | Apartments ≤ AED 3.125M |
| 24 | Emaar Beachfront | 3.6% | 4.6% | Sunrise Bay Tower 1 | 812 | 99 | Apartments ≤ AED 3.125M |
| 25 | The Springs | 3.2% | 5.1% | Springs 12 | 606 | 139 | Townhouses ≤ AED 5M |
*See the outlier note below.
Four tracked communities had no qualifying for-sale listings that day, so no yield is shown: Meydan (132 contracts on record), Al Barari (206), Al Sufouh (434) and Jumeirah Bay Island (45).
What the table says
The top of the list is the mid-market apartment belt: Arjan, JVT, Al Furjan, JVC and Dubai Sports City all show a median between 5.4% and 5.7% after service charge. Prime waterfront addresses sit at the bottom: Palm Jumeirah, La Mer and Emaar Beachfront are between 3.6% and 3.7%. Downtown Dubai and Dubai Marina fall in between, at 4.4% and 4.8%.
The gap between the median and the best listing matters as much as the ranking. In JVC the median is 5.5%, but one listing in Diamond Views 4 reaches 7.8%. Which building you buy in can move your yield by more than the choice of area.
Why these numbers are lower than the yields you usually see
Gross yield leaves out the service charge, and for an apartment that is the biggest recurring cost. Three listings from the site show the gap:
| Listing | Price | Est. rent / yr | Gross | After SC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JVC, Diamond Views 4, 1 bed, 664 sqft | AED 610,000 | AED 58,347 | 9.5% | 7.8% |
| Dubai Marina, DEC Tower 2, 1 bed, 823 sqft | AED 990,000 | AED 76,320 | 7.7% | 6.3% |
| JLT, Laguna Tower, studio, 448 sqft | AED 400,000 | AED 52,013 | 13.0% | 11.1% |
In these examples the service charge takes about 14–18% of the annual rent, which knocks about 1.3 to 1.8 percentage points off the headline figure. Even "after service charge" is not what you take home. The figures above still exclude vacancy, maintenance, agency fees, financing, and purchase costs of roughly 7% or more. Your real return will be lower again.
Outlier notes
- JLT, 11.1% best listing. This is one studio in Laguna Tower, a building the site flags as having low resale supply (one such building in JLT). One cheap listing in a thin market can produce a striking number. JLT's median of 4.9% is a better guide to the area.
- La Mer, past price change. The La Mer page flags its past price-change figure (+74.1% on the home page) as "looks unusual — treat with caution". We have left it out of this ranking. La Mer's yield figures are shown as published.
- Small samples. Bluewaters Island (14 listings), Al Wasl (16) and Barsha Heights (18) have few tracked listings, so their medians can shift quickly.
How the figures are built
In short (full detail on the method page):
- Rent is modelled from registered tenancy contracts in the same building and for the same bedroom type. A cohort needs at least three contracts. Recent contracts and new lettings weigh more than old ones and renewals.
- Service charge is an assumed community-average rate per sqft unless a specific rate is recorded for the building. It is a placeholder, not a verified building figure, so confirm the real charge with the management company.
- Exclusions: off-plan, hotel-operated and fractional units, and price anomalies, are removed before scoring.
- Not deducted: vacancy, unit maintenance, agency fees, financing and purchase costs. The figures assume a cash purchase and a self-managed unit.
- Past price change is shown separately as context and is never added to the yield.
FAQ
Which Dubai area has the highest rental yield after service charge? On 11 November 2026, Arjan had the highest median yield after service charge among tracked communities at 5.7%, with JVT also at 5.7%. Al Furjan follows at 5.6%. The single highest listing was in JLT, but that comes from one low-supply building.
Is a 5–6% yield after service charge the same as net yield? Not quite. Only a modelled service charge has been deducted. Vacancy, maintenance, agency fees, financing and purchase costs (~7%+) are not, so a fully net figure will be lower.
Why do other sites show higher yields for the same areas? Most published tables use gross yield, which is rent divided by price before costs. The service charge alone took about 14–18% of the rent in the examples above.
How often is this data updated? Dubai ROI Radar refreshes community data continuously. Each community page shows when it was last refreshed. The figures in this article are a snapshot from 11 November 2026.
See every building, not just the median
The table shows each area's median and its single best listing. Dubai ROI Radar shows every tracked listing building by building, with the signed-contract rent behind it.
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Estimates only, not investment advice. Yields deduct a modelled service charge only and exclude purchase costs (~7%+), vacancy, maintenance, agency fees and financing. Verify every figure with the developer, the owners' association and your own due diligence before you buy.