RERA Rental Index and Rent Calculator Explained (2026)

The RERA rental index is the Dubai Land Department tool that gives the average rent for a similar home, and therefore the most a landlord can raise your rent at renewal. You enter your contract expiry date, property type, area, number of rooms and current annual rent, and the result shows on screen straight away. For a quick check of the percentage, use our RERA rent increase calculator. This guide explains the bands, the official calculator step by step, worked examples and what to do if the number looks wrong.

What is the RERA rental index?

The Dubai Land Department describes the Rental Index as a service that lets a customer calculate the rental increase and the average rent in the market for a chosen area. RERA is the Real Estate Regulatory Agency, the arm of the DLD that publishes it. Property sites use several names for the same official tool, and each has its own search volume:

Name you will see	What it means
RERA rental index, RERA index	The official average rents the DLD publishes through its tool
RERA calculator, RERA rent calculator, rental index calculator	The calculator that applies the index to your rent
DLD rental index, Dubai rental index calculator	The same tool, named after the DLD website that hosts it
Smart Rental Index, Smart Residential Rent Index	The newer version, described as working from building level data
Rent increase calculator Dubai	The common name for the same check

It matters because a Dubai landlord cannot raise the rent by any figure they choose. The DLD FAQ says an owner may raise the rent only after seeking information from the Rental Increase Calculator, and that the allowed increase depends on factors such as building condition, services, location and building age. For the rules behind that, see our guide to how Dubai rent increases are calculated.

How does the RERA rent calculator work?

The calculator compares what you pay with the average rent for similar homes. The further your rent sits below that average, the larger the permitted increase. The bands come from Decree No. 43 of 2013, as cited by guides from Emirates247, PropSpace and Aigents.

Your rent compared with the index average	Most it can rise
Within 10% below the average, or above it	No increase
11% to 20% below	5%
21% to 30% below	10%
31% to 40% below	15%
More than 40% below	20%

These are ceilings, not entitlements. A landlord can ask for less, or nothing at all. The percentage applies to your current annual rent, not to the index figure, and 20% is the most any renewal can add.

Worked example: AED 80,000 rent that is 15% below the average

Follow these steps with your own numbers:

1. Your current rent is AED 80,000 a year.
2. The index average for a similar home is about AED 94,118. This is the figure that makes AED 80,000 exactly 15% below it, since 80,000 divided by 0.85 is 94,118.
3. Your gap is 15%, which sits in the 11% to 20% band.
4. That band allows an increase of up to 5%.
5. 5% of AED 80,000 is AED 4,000.
6. The most your new rent can be is AED 84,000.
7. That is still about 10.7% below the average, so the next renewal is checked afresh against the index at that time.

You can test your own figures in our rent increase calculator, which applies these bands to the amounts you enter.

The same average in all five bands

Take a home where the index average is AED 100,000 a year. The table shows the most the rent could rise for five different current rents. The figures are arithmetic from the bands above, not market data.

Current rent	Gap below average	Band	Highest rent after renewal
AED 95,000	5%	No increase	AED 95,000
AED 85,000	15%	5%	AED 89,250
AED 75,000	25%	10%	AED 82,500
AED 65,000	35%	15%	AED 74,750
AED 55,000	45%	20%	AED 66,000

How a low rent catches up over several renewals

A tenant far below the average does not jump to it in one step. Assume the average stays at AED 100,000 for three years, which in practice it will not. A tenant paying AED 50,000 is 50% below, so the first renewal can add 20% and reach AED 60,000. At AED 60,000 the gap is 40%, so the next renewal can add 15% and reach AED 69,000. At AED 69,000 the gap is 31%, so the third renewal can add 15% and reach AED 79,350. The cap spreads the catch up over several years.

How to use the official RERA rental index calculator, step by step

1. Open the DLD Rental Index service on dubailand.gov.ae, or use the Dubai REST app or DubaiNow app. The DLD lists all of these as channels.
2. Enter your tenancy contract expiry date.
3. Choose the property type, for example apartment, villa or hotel apartment.
4. Enter the area and the number of rooms. Guides also describe searching by the DEWA premises number or Ejari contract number, which can be more exact than the area.
5. Enter your current annual rent.
6. Read the result. The DLD lists the service time as immediate.

Print or screenshot the result. If the landlord disagrees, the date and figures are the evidence you will want. The Ejari contract number is handy here, and our guide to Ejari and tenancy contracts shows where to find it.

What is the Smart Rental Index and what changed in 2026?

Published guides describe a newer calculator that assesses each property individually. The Week, in a report of 30 August 2026, says it considers actual rental values in the building, average rents in the area and the building's classification, and that the check asks for property type, Ejari number, contract end date and current rent. It adds that the permitted increase ranges from zero to a maximum of 20 per cent, and that the index covers residential areas across Dubai but excludes the DIFC.

Sources differ on when it started. PropSpace puts it at 2 January 2025, while other guides say 2024, and the DLD page does not give a date. For you, the practical points are these:

• The five bands above are described as unchanged. Only the market average you are measured against changes.
• Two tenants in the same area can get different averages if their buildings differ.
• Guides disagree on how often it updates, from annually to quarterly. The figure on the DLD tool on the day you check is the one that counts, not an older screenshot or a number someone quotes you.

Treat any detail about how the index weighs buildings as unconfirmed unless the DLD states it.

When can a landlord raise the rent?

Only at renewal, and only after proper notice. Any change to rent or terms must be notified in writing at least 90 days before the contract ends. The DLD FAQ confirms that either party can ask for a reduction in the same way, by notifying the other at least 90 days before the contract ends. Without notice, the tenancy renews on the same terms. Guides add that notice should be served in a way that can be proved, such as registered mail or a notary, and that a verbal agreement is hard to enforce. Any agreed increase should appear in the renewed contract.

When	What to do
About four months before expiry	Run the index and note the maximum increase
90 days before expiry	The latest date for the landlord's written notice of any change
After notice arrives	Reply in writing, quoting the index result
At renewal	Sign the new contract and register it on Ejari

Our guide to renewing your tenancy walks through the same timeline from the tenant's side.

What if the increase is higher than the index allows?

Do not stop paying. Follow this order:

1. Run the index and save the result.
2. Reply in writing before the renewal date, quoting the figure. Some guides say a tenant who does not reply within 30 days may be treated as accepting, so do not leave it.
3. Try to agree a figure inside the cap.
4. If you cannot agree, take the matter to the Rental Dispute Centre. Our guide explains how the RDC works, including the filing fee of 3.5 percent of the annual rent.

What law sits behind the rental index?

Guides from PropSpace and Aigents trace the framework to Law No. 26 of 2007 on landlord and tenant relations, as amended by Law No. 33 of 2008, together with Decree No. 43 of 2013, which sets the increase bands. Treat the article numbers they quote as secondary and check the DLD for the exact text. What matters for a tenant is practical: the increase must follow the index, the notice must be in time, and the dispute route is the Rental Dispute Centre.

Can a landlord evict you instead of raising the rent?

Not as a shortcut. Eviction is a separate process with its own rules. The DLD FAQ says an owner cannot ask a tenant to leave by phone call, and must use a notarised notice or registered post. For eviction because the owner wants the home for personal use, the DLD says a 12 month notice is required. A landlord cannot use an eviction threat to force an increase through, and our guide on what happens when your landlord sells covers a related case.

Does the rental index apply to new tenants or commercial leases?

The cap applies to an existing tenant at renewal. A landlord setting the rent for a new tenant is not bound by it, which is why asking rents on new listings can sit above what a sitting tenant pays. Commercial leases are often negotiated outside the bands, and guides differ on which property types the tool covers, so check your contract and the tool before relying on the table.

Common mistakes when using the RERA index

• Comparing with listing prices. Asking rents on portals are not the index average. Use the DLD tool, because that is the figure a judge would use.
• Choosing the wrong property type or room count. A one bedroom measured against a two bedroom average gives a wrong answer.
• Using an old result. Check again close to renewal, since the DLD tool is the live reference.
• Forgetting the notice. A correct percentage does not help a landlord who missed the 90 day deadline.
• Applying the percentage to the index. The increase is a share of your current rent, not of the average.
• Applying the cap to a new contract. The cap protects a sitting tenant at renewal.

Tips for tenants and landlords

For tenants

• Ask for fewer cheques at renewal, not only at the start.
• Register the renewed contract again.
• Keep the notice, your reply and the index result together.

For landlords

• Run the index before you send any notice. An increase above the cap often ends at the Rental Dispute Centre.
• If rent has drifted well below market, a documented increase inside the rules is the safer route. Our property management service handles renewals for owners.

This page explains the tool, but the official figure is the one the DLD tool gives for your home on the day you check.