How much does social media management cost in Dubai?

Social media management in Dubai is usually sold as a monthly retainer, and two retainers at the same price can include very different amounts of work. One might cover twelve designed posts. Another might include filming days, Reels editing, Arabic captions and someone answering your messages every day. This guide explains what you should expect at each level, what is never included and how to compare proposals side by side.

Our range: AED 4,500 to 12,000 per month

At Aren, social media management costs between AED 4,500 and AED 12,000 per month. That is an estimate. The final price depends on your platforms, languages and how much video you need, and we confirm it after a short call. When you compare offers, check whether each one shows the 5 per cent UAE VAT separately.

The fee pays for strategy, content and running the accounts. It does not include money paid to the platforms for ads, which we cover below.

What is usually included at each level

These are typical scopes, not fixed packages. We adjust the mix to your goals, for example fewer static posts and more Reels.

At every level you should get a content calendar to approve before anything goes live, designed posts with captions, two revision rounds per deliverable and a monthly report. Your accounts stay in your name throughout.

What is not included

A management fee covers planning, content and day-to-day account work. These costs sit outside it:

• Ad spend. Budget for boosted posts and campaigns is paid to Meta, TikTok or Google, usually through your own ad account. If you want us to run the campaigns, that is a separate paid ads management fee of AED 3,500 to 10,000 per month, plus the spend itself.
• Influencer and creator fees. Creators set their own rates per campaign. We quote our agency fee for influencer marketing separately, with creator fees on top.
• Large productions. Multi-location shoots, actors, studio hire or a full brand film are quoted as video production projects, typically AED 2,000 to 20,000 per project.
• Third-party costs. Giveaway prizes, props, venue hire, paid stock footage or extra software seats your team wants.

Why Arabic content and Reels move the price

Two things change the workload more than anything else.

Arabic and bilingual content. Writing for Arabic-speaking audiences in the Gulf is a different job from translating English captions. Tone, humour and references change, and so does the layout of any design that contains text. Bilingual community management also needs native speakers who can reply to comments and messages in both languages, including evenings and weekends if that is when your customers write. That is why bilingual scopes sit higher in the range.

Reels and short video. A static post can be designed in an hour or two. A good Reel needs an idea, a script or shot list, filming, editing, subtitles and often a separate version for each language. More Reels means more shoot time and more editing time, which is why the number of Reels and shoot days is the biggest single price driver in most proposals.

For a sense of what a steady content routine can achieve, see Journal Dubai, the Dubai lifestyle media page our team runs: 115K+ Instagram followers and 30M+ organic views in 90 days.

Why we ask for a 3-month minimum

Our monthly services have a 3-month minimum term. It is not about locking clients in. It reflects how the work runs:

• Month 1 is setup: research, content pillars, templates, the first shoot and an approval routine that suits your team.
• Month 2 brings real data: which posts people watch to the end, save, share and message you about.
• Month 3 is when you can judge the work fairly, because the content has been adjusted to what your audience responds to.

One month is usually too short to tell good management from bad. If an agency offers a single month, ask what they expect to have learned by the end of it.

How to compare quotes

Put each proposal into the same table and check:

• How many feed posts, Reels and stories per month, and who films them.
• How many shoot days, and whether travel, props or talent cost extra.
• Which languages, and whether Arabic is written natively or translated.
• Who replies to comments and DMs, on which days and how quickly.
• How many revision rounds each deliverable includes.
• What the report shows: reach, profile visits, link clicks, messages and leads, not only followers and likes.
• Whether the accounts, content and raw files stay in your name.
• The minimum term and the notice period.

A cheaper quote usually means fewer Reels, no shoot days or English only. That can be the right choice for a small budget, as long as you know it before you sign. We cover the wider selection process in how to choose a social media agency in Dubai.

Getting a proposal

With us, social media management in Dubai costs AED 4,500 to 12,000 per month, before ad spend, creator fees and large productions. The biggest price drivers are the number of Reels, the shoot days and whether you need full Arabic content and community management. Decide those three first and quotes become much easier to compare.

See how we work on our social media management page, or ask for a proposal and tell us your platforms, languages and goals.