“How much will this cost?” is the first question almost every client asks, and the honest answer is that it depends on scope. That said, vague answers help nobody, so here are the real ranges you can expect for UI/UX and product design work in Lebanon and Dubai in 2026, and what makes a project land at the low or high end.
These are market ranges, not a price list. Every project is quoted on its own scope, timeline and level of involvement.
Hourly rates
Hourly pricing suits small tasks, reviews and ongoing support. Rates vary widely with experience, because a senior designer usually solves in a day what a junior takes a week to get wrong.
| Level | Lebanon | Dubai |
|---|---|---|
| Junior or template work | $15–30/hour | $25–50/hour |
| Mid-level designer | $30–60/hour | $50–100/hour |
| Senior designer or design lead | $60–200+/hour | $100–250+/hour |
| Design agency | 30–200%+ above freelance rates | 30–200%+ above freelance rates |
In both Lebanon and Dubai, agencies typically charge 30–200% more than an equally experienced freelancer for the same work, and sometimes more. You are paying for a team, account management and overhead. Working directly with a senior freelancer removes that layer, which is why many startups and even large companies hire one.
Weekly and monthly rates
For anything longer than a few days, weekly or monthly pricing is usually better for both sides. You get a predictable cost, and the designer can plan properly instead of counting hours.
| Arrangement | Lebanon | Dubai |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly (full-time on your project) | $1,000+/week | $2,000–3,000+/week |
| Monthly retainer (full-time design lead) | $4,000–5,000+/month | $8,000–12,000+/month |
| Monthly retainer (part-time, e.g. 2–3 days a week) | about half the full-time rate | about half the full-time rate |
Part-time retainers are priced in proportion to the days you book, so roughly half the hours means roughly half the cost. A monthly retainer makes sense when you have continuous design work: a product that keeps evolving, a team that needs design direction, or a roadmap with releases every few weeks.
Project prices
Fixed project pricing works best when the scope is clear. Here are typical ranges for common projects.
| Project | Lebanon | Dubai |
|---|---|---|
| UX audit of an existing app or website | $500–1,500 | $1,000–3,000 |
| Small website (landing page or 3–5 pages) | $800–3,000 | $2,000–6,000 |
| Medium website (10–20 pages, custom design) | $3,000–6,000 | $6,000–15,000 |
| Large or award-level website | $6,000–50,000+ | $15,000–100,000+ |
| Mobile app MVP design (10–20 screens) | $3,000–10,000+ | $6,000–20,000+ |
| Full app design, UI and UX with a design system | $6,000–20,000+ | $15,000–40,000+ |
Why the wide bands? Because “a website” can mean a five-page brochure site or a multi-language platform with a booking flow, a dashboard and a design system behind it. The work is what costs money, not the label.
Why Dubai costs roughly twice as much as Lebanon
The same designer delivering the same quality is usually priced higher for the Dubai market. That is not opportunism, it reflects the market: higher business budgets, far higher rent and living costs, higher costs of doing business generally, and client expectations around availability and speed. Delivery from Beirut typically lands 30–50% below comparable Dubai pricing for the same level of craft, which is why a lot of UAE companies work with senior designers in the region rather than local agencies.
What makes a quote go up or down
- Seniority and track record. An experienced design lead costs more per hour and usually less per project, because fewer things get built twice.
- Quality level you are buying. Template-level work, solid professional work and award-level craft are three different prices for what sounds like the same brief.
- Number of screens and flows. Twelve screens is a different project from sixty, even if the app sounds similar.
- Functionality. What the product actually does drives the price: a brochure site is simple, while bookings, payments, dashboards, accounts, permissions and integrations each add flows, states and edge cases to design.
- Research and testing. User interviews, usability testing and iteration add cost, and usually save more than they cost by preventing the wrong thing from being built.
- Design system. Reusable components cost more upfront and pay for themselves once your team ships the second and third feature.
- Arabic and bilingual support. Proper right-to-left design is more than mirroring a layout, and it adds real work.
- Responsive scope. Mobile, tablet, desktop and dark mode each multiply the number of screens.
- Timeline. A compressed deadline costs more, because it usually means working evenings and weekends.
- Involvement level. Handing over files is cheaper than staying with the project through development, review and launch.
How to get an accurate quote quickly
The fastest way to get a real number is to answer four questions: what the product is, who uses it, roughly how many screens or pages it needs, and when you need it. That is usually enough for a designer to give you a range within a day and a fixed quote after a short call.
Is the cheapest option ever the right one?
Only sometimes. A simple landing page for a small local business does not need a design lead with twenty years of experience. But if the design shapes your product, your conversion rate or your funding round, cheap design is expensive: you pay again in development time, redesigns and lost customers.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average cost of app design in Lebanon?
A mobile app MVP design typically runs $3,000–10,000+ in Lebanon, depending on the number of screens, how much research is involved, and whether a design system is included.
How much does a UI/UX designer charge per hour in Dubai?
Freelance designers in Dubai typically charge around AED 185–370 per hour at mid-level and AED 370–920+ per hour at senior or design-lead level. Agencies usually charge 30–200% more than that for equivalent work.
Is it cheaper to hire a freelancer or an agency?
A senior freelancer is almost always cheaper: agencies typically charge 30–200% more for the same level of work, because you are also paying for account managers and overhead. An agency makes more sense when you need several disciplines at once, such as design, development and marketing.
Should I pay hourly or a fixed price?
Fixed price works when the scope is clear. Hourly or weekly works better for ongoing work, research-heavy projects or anything where the scope will change as you learn.
Need a quote for your project?
Tell me what you’re building, roughly how big it is and when you need it, and I’ll come back with a clear quote. See UI/UX design in Lebanon or UI/UX design in Dubai.
Email: [email protected]
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