DIFC office guide · 2026
DIFC office rent averaged AED 392 per sq ft a year in Q1 2026, with prime Grade A space near AED 537. Fourteen buildings hold almost all the office space you can rent or buy. Below, each one is compared on size, floors, ownership and who it suits, by a brokerage that works these towers every week.
Updated 24 October 2026 · By James Davies, Founder, Davies Realty · RERA ORN 41044
Sorted by office space, largest first. Tap a name for the full profile.
| Building | Completed | Floors | Office space | Unit sizes | Buy or lease | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ICD Brookfield Place | 2020 | 54 | 900,000+ sq ft | Part and full floors | Lease only | Banks and law firms wanting the newest tower |
| Central Park Towers | 2015 | 46 | 892,026 sq ft | 1,013 to 28,277 sq ft | Lease only (single owner) | Growing firms; covered walk to the metro |
| Burj Daman | 2013 | 65 | ~680,000 sq ft | Fitted units to full floors | Buy or lease | Prestige address with a Waldorf Astoria |
| Emirates Financial Towers | 2011 | 27 to 29 | 658,030 sq ft | 355 to 3,929 sq ft | Buy or lease | Small and mid-size offices, investors |
| DIFC Square | 2026 | 12 to 17 | 600,000 sq ft | Pre-let | Lease only | Institutions (fully pre-let at opening) |
| The Index | 2010 | 80 | 538,200 sq ft | Up to 21,528 sq ft floors | Buy or lease | Full-floor owner-occupiers |
| The Gate | 2004 | 15 | ~463,000 sq ft | Mixed | Lease | The DIFC landmark address |
| Innovation One | 2023 | 15 | 200,000+ sq ft | Mixed | Lease | Fintech and tech teams |
| Liberty House | 2009 | 43 | 198,596 sq ft | 969 to 6,788 sq ft | Buy or lease | Entry-level freehold offices |
| Al Fattan Currency House | 2010 | 43 | Two towers | Floors ~11,000 to 20,000 sq ft | Buy or lease | Mid-size owner-occupiers |
| Park Towers | 2011 | 49 | ~133,500 sq ft per tower | Mixed | Buy or lease | Value on the DIFC edge |
| The Exchange | 2018 | 10 | 114,000 sq ft | Mixed | Lease | Market and exchange firms |
| Gate Village 1 to 10 | 2008 | 4 to 10 | Boutique | Small floors | Lease | Funds and family offices wanting low-rise |
| The Gate Precinct | 2005 | 7 | Six buildings | Mid-size floors | Lease | Mid-size firms near The Gate |
Buy-or-lease status reflects how units trade in practice; ask us for current availability in any tower.
The newest and tallest office tower in DIFC, designed by Foster + Partners for ICD and Brookfield. It holds more than 900,000 sq ft of Grade A offices and parking for 2,700 cars. Tenants include Julius Baer, Natixis and Latham & Watkins, with The Arts Club and Waitrose in the building.
Best for: banks, law firms and funds that want the top address and can sign a long lease. Offices are not sold here.
Two towers by Arady (Deyaar and Dubai Properties): an office tower and a residential tower. The office tower has a single owner, so offices here are leased, not sold, and tenants can move to a larger unit without changing landlord. It has 892,026 sq ft of net leasable office space, units from about 1,013 to 28,277 sq ft, more than 190 companies and over 2,000 parking spaces. Since March 2024 the Link Bridge gives an air-conditioned walk to Financial Centre Metro.
Best for: firms that want room to grow within one building and staff who use the metro.
A mixed-use tower by Daman with offices, residences and the Waldorf Astoria DIFC on floors 18 to 55. Office space is about 672,000 to 680,000 sq ft, it is LEED Gold, and there are 2,360 parking spaces.
Best for: firms that want a prestige address with five-star hospitality on site for clients.
Twin office towers by Enshaa, about 135 m tall and linked by a sky bridge on level 16. There is 658,030 sq ft of Grade A office plus 97,000 sq ft of retail, with units from 355 to 3,929 sq ft and three basement parking levels. Restaurants include Kiza, Mint Leaf, Hikāri and Crab Market.
Best for: the widest choice of small and mid-size offices in DIFC, for owner-occupiers and investors alike. It is the most actively traded office tower on the portals.
The newest DIFC Authority development: three buildings of 12, 14 and 17 floors with 600,000 sq ft of offices plus retail. It opened ahead of schedule in March 2026, 100% pre-let to firms including Bank of Singapore, Deutsche Bank, Moody's and TP ICAP.
Best for: institutions on DIFC's waiting list. Expect very little space to come back to market soon.
The tallest building in DIFC, by Union Properties. Offices sit on floors 5 to 29, with residences above. Office floors are 21,528 sq ft, totalling 538,200 sq ft, and the offices are held as strata. It won the CTBUH Best Tall Building award for the Middle East and Africa in 2011.
Best for: buyers who want a whole floor to own and occupy.
The arch that defines DIFC and its first completed building, clad in Italian granite. It has about 43,000 m² (around 463,000 sq ft) of business space and parking for up to 1,500 cars.
Best for: firms that want the address everyone recognises.
A DIFC Authority office building of more than 200,000 sq ft, opened in early 2024, with Sexy Fish and Duck & Waffle on site. It anchors DIFC's fintech and innovation cluster.
Best for: fintech, tech and venture teams that want a newer building.
A mixed-use tower by ETA Star with eight freehold office floors under 32 residential floors. Office space totals about 198,596 sq ft, with units from 969 to 6,788 sq ft and a level 9 events terrace.
Best for: buyers looking for one of the lower entry prices to own a DIFC office.
Two towers by Al Fattan, designed by Gensler: an office tower and a residential tower of up to 43 floors. Floors are about 20,000 sq ft in Tower 1 and 11,000 sq ft in Tower 2, held as strata, with four basement parking levels.
Best for: mid-size firms that want to own a large floor.
Two DAMAC towers of about 191 m mixing apartments, offices and retail, on the Sheikh Zayed Road side of DIFC. Each has roughly 133,500 sq ft of office space.
Best for: tenants and buyers who want a DIFC licence address at a lower price point.
A DIFC Authority building with 114,000 sq ft of offices and 33,000 sq ft of retail. Nasdaq Dubai was its first occupant, and it was 84% pre-let at completion.
Best for: exchange, brokerage and market-infrastructure firms.
Ten low-rise stone buildings by Hopkins Architects around a five-level podium car park, with galleries and DIFC's best-known restaurants at ground level. The Four Seasons DIFC hotel sits within the village.
Best for: family offices, boutique funds and advisory firms that want a quiet, low-rise address.
Six seven-floor office buildings surrounding The Gate, including Legatum Plaza, with shops and cafés at ground level and three basement parking levels.
Best for: mid-size firms wanting full floors close to The Gate.
New supply is limited and mostly pre-let, which keeps vacancy low and rents firm.
DIFC Authority. About 630,000 sq ft of offices and a members' club on floors 26 to 28. Due 2027.
H&H, designed by David Chipperfield. About 236,000 sq ft of Grade A offices, targeting LEED Platinum.
40 floors by Herzog & de Meuron, bought by Aldar in a US$626m deal. Due 2028.
About 184,000 sq ft of offices and co-working beneath sold-out residences.
DIFC is freehold for every nationality. You can buy strata offices in Emirates Financial Towers, The Index, Burj Daman, Liberty House, Al Fattan Currency House and Park Towers. Shell-and-core units cost less but need a fit-out; fitted units let faster. Check the service charge and whether the unit is tenanted before you offer. See DIFC office rental yields for what buyers actually earn.
Most DIFC offices are leased to DIFC-licensed companies. Rents are quoted per sq ft a year, with service charges and DIFC fees on top. Single-owner buildings (ICD Brookfield, DIFC Square, Central Park Towers and the DIFC Authority buildings) are lease only; older strata towers have the most choice.
The DIFC average was AED 392 per sq ft a year in Q1 2026 (REIDIN). Prime Grade A space in the newest towers was close to AED 537 per sq ft at the end of 2025 (Savills). A 1,000 sq ft fitted office therefore runs roughly AED 390,000 to 540,000 a year before service charges and DIFC fees.
Yes. DIFC is a freehold zone open to all nationalities. Strata offices can be bought in towers such as Emirates Financial Towers, The Index, Burj Daman, Liberty House, Park Towers and Al Fattan Currency House. Some buildings, such as ICD Brookfield Place, Central Park Towers and DIFC Square, are lease only.
On 23 October 2026 the average asking price for a DIFC office on Property Finder was about AED 7.17 million for around 1,400 sq ft. Listings ran from about AED 4 million to over AED 65 million on Bayut.
Emirates Financial Towers has the widest choice of small units, from 355 sq ft. Liberty House starts at 969 sq ft, and Central Park Towers leases fitted units from about 1,013 sq ft. For a single desk or team of two, a DIFC business centre or flexi desk is cheaper.
The Index has 21,528 sq ft floor plates and strata ownership. Burj Daman, Central Park Towers and ICD Brookfield Place also take full-floor occupiers; ICD Brookfield Place and DIFC Square are lease only and largely pre-let.
Yes. DIFC Square (600,000 sq ft) opened in March 2026 fully pre-let. Immersive Tower (about 630,000 sq ft) is due in 2027, The Offices at Water Gardens adds about 236,000 sq ft, and the Janu Dubai office tower is due in 2028.
Talk to a DIFC specialist
Davies Realty helps clients buy, lease and reposition Grade A offices in DIFC, from single units in Emirates Financial Towers to full floors. Tell us the size and budget and we'll send what's actually available, including off-market units.
WhatsApp JamesBook a call+971 58 519 0121Rents: REIDIN DIFC area report, April 2026; Savills via Gulf Business, Feb 2026. Sale prices and listing counts: Property Finder and Bayut, 23 Oct 2026. Buildings: Propsearch, CTBUH Skyscraper Center, Dubai Media Office (DIFC Square), Hopkins Architects (Gate Village), CBNME (Immersive Tower), Cushman & Wakefield tower guides.