Signage in Dubai starts at AED 395 for a custom-cut indoor wall sign and reaches AED 2,950 for a backlit reception sign with LED illumination. In between sit acrylic, aluminium, stainless steel, wood and neon — each with a different price, a different lifespan in UAE heat, and a different approval path. Anything visible from the street needs a permit; anything inside your own walls usually does not. This guide gives you live 2026 prices, the material rules that actually matter at 48°C, and the permit sequence most businesses get wrong on the first attempt.
All prices below are current store prices in AED, inclusive of 5% VAT, for custom-made signage produced in Dubai and delivered across the UAE. Every sign is cut to your logo and your wall dimensions, so the figure you see is the starting point for a standard size — send your artwork and wall measurement for an exact quote.
Indoor vs outdoor: the split that decides your budget
Almost every signage conversation in Dubai divides into two jobs with very different economics.
Indoor signage — reception logos, office wall lettering, door plates, wayfinding, meeting-room names — is fabrication work. No permit, no structural engineering, no weather rating. You are paying for material, cutting precision and finishing. This is why an indoor wall sign lands at AED 395–550 while a comparable outdoor fascia sign costs several times more.
Outdoor and shopfront signage — fascia boards, building lettering, pylon signs, anything readable from the road — is a regulated installation. You are paying for weather-grade material, UV-stable finishes, fixings that survive summer expansion, professional installation at height, and the approval file that goes to the authority before a single letter is cut.
The practical consequence: budget the permit time before the production time. Fabrication takes days. Approval takes weeks.
Signage materials compared
Acrylic
The default choice for interiors and the best value in the range. Laser-cut acrylic gives clean edges, holds colour, and can be built flat-mounted or raised on standoffs for a shadow effect. Excellent indoors and under cover; direct, unshaded sun over years will eventually dull cheaper grades, so specify premium acrylic for anything facing a window or an open atrium.
Aluminium
The workhorse for exterior 3D lettering. Light enough to mount on most façades, dimensionally stable in heat, and powder-coatable to any brand colour. Aluminium is what you want when the sign has to look identical in year five.
Stainless steel
The premium finish — brushed or mirror-polished, with genuine weight and depth. It reads as expensive because it is: stainless is the top of the material ladder. Specify marine-grade for coastal locations in Dubai and Sharjah, where salt in the air attacks lower grades faster than most clients expect.
Wood
Warm, tactile, and increasingly common in cafés, clinics, salons and creative offices. Wood is an indoor material in the UAE. Outdoors, heat cycling and humidity will move and crack it within a season or two unless it is fully sealed and shaded.
Neon and backlit
Both add light, but differently. LED neon on clear acrylic gives you a continuous glowing line — ideal for a signature phrase behind a reception desk or on a feature wall. Backlit signage pushes light behind the letters for a halo effect, which is the more corporate look and stays legible day and night. Backlit needs a power supply run to the wall, so involve your fit-out contractor before the wall is closed up.
Real signage prices in Dubai (2026)
These are the live prices from our signage collection. All are custom-made to your logo and dimensions.
| Signage type | Best for | Price (AED, VAT incl.) |
|---|---|---|
| Indoor Wall Signage | Office walls, corridors, door zones | 395 |
| Office Wall Signage | Departmental and wayfinding lettering | 425 |
| Acrylic Wall Signage | Clean logo wall, coloured acrylic | 495 |
| Wall Mounted Signage | Standoff-mounted logo panels | 550 |
| Neon Signage (min. 90 × 25 cm, 8 mm clear acrylic + 8 mm neon) | Feature walls, cafés, retail, events | 550 |
| Acrylic Reception Signage | Reception logo, entry-level budget | 750 |
| Wedding & Event Signage | Welcome boards, stage names, one-off events | 920 |
| 3D Signage | Raised lettering, general purpose | 950 |
| 3D Wooden Signage | Cafés, clinics, salons, studios (indoor) | 1,050 |
| 3D Acrylic Signage | Depth and colour without metal cost | 1,150 |
| 3D Wall Signage | Statement logo walls | 1,250 |
| 3D Reception Signage | Head-office reception, premium build | 1,850 |
| 3D Aluminium Signage | Exterior lettering, long life | 2,450 |
| 3D Stainless Steel Signage | Premium corporate and hospitality | 2,650 |
| Backlit Reception Signage | Day-and-night visibility, halo lighting | 2,950 |
Two notes marketing managers ask about every time. First, these prices cover design, fabrication and delivery; installation in Dubai can be arranged and is quoted per site, because a 3-metre wall at ground level and a fascia at first-floor height are not the same job. Second, price scales with size and letter count more than with material — a ten-letter word in acrylic can cost more than a three-letter monogram in steel.
Glass and window branding: the cheapest square metre you will buy
Before you quote a full signage package, check whether frosted film solves part of the brief. Meeting-room privacy, reception glazing, mall-facing shopfront glass and staircase balustrades are usually handled far more cheaply with film than with fabricated signage.
| Frosted film type | Supply only (AED/m²) | Supply + installation (AED/m²) |
|---|---|---|
| Blank frosted — plain privacy film | 30 | 55 |
| Gradient frosted — fade effect | 40 | 65 |
| Standard cut — logo cut into the frost | 55 | 80 |
| Reverse cut — clear logo in frosted glass | 68 | 95 |
| Printed frosted — full-colour logo on frost | 78 | 105 |
A typical 12 m² meeting-room glass wall with a reverse-cut logo comes to roughly AED 1,140 supplied and installed — less than a single premium reception sign. Full details and options are in the frosted sticker collection, and we cover the material differences in depth in our frosted glass stickers guide.
Permits and approvals: what Dubai actually requires
This is where projects slip. The short version:
- Inside your own premises, not visible from outside: no advertising permit. Fabricate and install.
- Visible from outside — fascia signs, building lettering, window graphics facing the street, pylon and directional signs: an advertising permit is required before installation. On mainland Dubai this runs through Dubai Municipality's advertising section; in a free zone (DMCC, DIFC, Dubai South, JAFZA and others) the free-zone authority runs its own approval, and the rules differ between them.
- Your sign must match your trade licence. The trading name on the signboard has to match the name on the licence exactly — not a shortened version, not a brand nickname, unless that brand name is itself registered on the licence.
- Arabic is expected on shopfront signage. Dubai's signage rules require Arabic text on external business signage, normally alongside English. Get your Arabic wording and its treatment agreed at design stage, not after fabrication — reprinting a fascia because the Arabic was an afterthought is an expensive lesson.
- Landlord or mall NOC is nearly always part of the file, plus tenancy contract and Ejari, licence copy, and a dimensioned mock-up showing the sign on the actual elevation.
Permits are typically issued for a period and renewed, and fees vary by sign type, size and location. Regulations and fee schedules are updated periodically, so confirm the current requirement with Dubai Municipality or your free-zone authority before committing to a design. Practical planning rule: allow two to four weeks for external approvals on top of production, and start the paperwork the day the design is signed off.
How to order signage: the four-step version
- Send dimensions and artwork. Wall width and height, mounting surface (gypsum, glass, concrete, cladding), indoor or outdoor, and your logo in vector format — AI, EPS or PDF with outlined fonts. If you only have a JPG, our design team can redraw it.
- Approve the mock-up. You receive a scaled visual of the sign on your wall with material, finish and letter heights marked. This is the drawing that also goes into the permit file for external signage.
- Confirm production. Indoor signage is generally produced within a few working days of approval. Backlit and large metal builds take longer. Outdoor jobs wait on the permit.
- Install. Delivery is UAE-wide; installation in Dubai is arranged with a site visit so the fixings, power and access are sorted before the crew arrives.
Pairing signage with an event or exhibition build? Look at backdrops and exhibition displays too — freestanding units often replace the need for temporary wall signage entirely, and we break the options down in our backdrop and standee guide.
Frequently asked questions
How much does office signage cost in Dubai?
A custom-cut indoor wall sign starts at AED 395. A reception logo in acrylic starts at AED 750, a 3D reception build at AED 1,850, and a backlit reception sign at AED 2,950. The variables that move the number are total sign size, number of letters, material and depth.
Which signage material lasts longest outdoors in the UAE?
Aluminium and stainless steel. Both handle the heat cycling and UV load without warping or fading, and both take a powder-coated or brushed finish that stays presentable for years. Wood is indoor-only here, and acrylic should be premium grade if it faces direct sun.
Do I need a permit for signage inside my office?
Generally no. Signage inside your own premises that is not visible from outside does not require an advertising permit. The moment the sign can be read from the street, the mall concourse or a shared corridor, permission is required — from Dubai Municipality on the mainland, or from your free-zone authority.
Does my Dubai signboard have to include Arabic?
External business signage in Dubai is required to carry Arabic, normally shown alongside English. Plan the Arabic wording at design stage and confirm the exact layout expectations with the relevant authority, because getting it wrong means refabricating the sign, not just re-submitting the file.
How long does signage take from approval to installation?
Indoor signage is usually a matter of days from artwork approval. Backlit and fabricated metal signs take longer because of the build. For external signage, add two to four weeks for the permit — that step, not production, is what sets your live date.
Do you install, or is it supply only?
Both. Signage can be supplied for your own contractor to fit, or supplied and installed in Dubai. Frosted film is priced both ways on the product page, so you can see exactly what installation adds — from AED 25 per square metre.
Get a signage quote today
Send your logo, your wall dimensions and a photo of the location, and you will have a costed mock-up back the same day. Browse the full signage range, or message us directly on WhatsApp at +971 52 210 0909 — or call 052 210 0909. Design support is included, delivery is UAE-wide, and installation across Dubai can be arranged with your order.
