The verdict in three sentences
For a group of 3 private clinics in Dubai, the contact centre has become the main friction point: hold times, lost bookings and imaging results requested by phone. A custom patient portal costs between 250,000 and 600,000 AED in 2026 for a 4 to 6 month project, with online booking, results, telemedicine and integration with the hospital information system. Targeting 30 % fewer calls in year one is realistic if the mobile journey is simple and DHA and NABIDH requirements are handled from discovery.
What patients expect from a portal in 2026
In Dubai, smartphone penetration is close to 100 % and patients are used to booking everything on mobile, often through WhatsApp or UAE Pass. The portal must be mobile first, in English and Arabic, with simple authentication (UAE Pass or phone number with OTP, Emirates ID for identification at reception).
The modules that cut call volume:
- Online booking by specialty, doctor and site, with SMS or WhatsApp reminders the day before.
- Imaging and lab results viewable and downloadable, with the report and a link to images.
- Telemedicine for post-operative follow-ups and prescription renewals, within the DHA telehealth framework.
- Administrative file: insurance eligibility and pre-approval, estimates, invoices.
- Online pre-admission to reduce waiting on the day of a procedure.
Detailed patient portal budget
| Work package | Estimated effort | Indicative budget |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery, patient journeys, EN/AR wireframes | 15 to 25 days | 30,000 to 60,000 AED |
| Patient accounts, UAE Pass or OTP, consents | 10 to 18 days | 20,000 to 45,000 AED |
| Multi-site booking and reminders | 15 to 30 days | 45,000 to 105,000 AED |
| Imaging and lab results | 12 to 25 days | 35,000 to 90,000 AED |
| Telemedicine (video, e-prescription, payment) | 12 to 25 days | 35,000 to 90,000 AED |
| HIS integration (scheduling, records, PACS, NABIDH) | 20 to 40 days | 60,000 to 160,000 AED |
| Security, compliance, testing, launch | 10 to 18 days | 25,000 to 50,000 AED |
| Total | 94 to 181 days | 250,000 to 600,000 AED |
These are 2026 order-of-magnitude figures for the UAE market, excluding 5 % VAT, HIS licences and SMS fees (around 0.10 to 0.25 AED per message). HIS integration is the most uncertain item: ask your vendor for API or HL7 and FHIR documentation before signing.
Custom build, HIS vendor module or booking platform
| Criterion | Consumer booking platform | HIS vendor patient module | Custom portal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | 0 to 20,000 AED | 80,000 to 200,000 AED | 250,000 to 600,000 AED |
| Recurring cost | 300 to 900 AED per doctor per month | Maintenance 15 to 20 % a year | 6,000 to 18,000 AED per month |
| Imaging results | No | Often yes | Yes, with your PACS |
| Group branding | Platform's brand | Generic interface | Fully branded |
| Patient data | With the platform | With the vendor | Hosted to your requirements |
| Arabic and insurance flows | Variable | Variable | Included |
| Timeline | 2 to 4 weeks | 2 to 4 months | 4 to 6 months |
With 60 listed doctors at 600 AED a month, a consumer platform costs about 432,000 AED a year, without online results and with the risk of your patients being marketed to by competitors.
Compliance and hosting
Federal Law No. 2 of 2019 on the use of ICT in health fields requires health data to be stored and processed inside the UAE, save for specific exceptions. In Dubai, licensed facilities must connect to NABIDH, the DHA health information exchange, and follow DHA data security standards. Plan encryption at rest and in transit, access logging, two-factor authentication for staff and a documented retention policy, with hosting in a UAE region.
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Omar, CIO of a group of 3 clinics in Dubai, counts 1,400 calls a day at the contact centre, 45 % of them for bookings or results. His 9 agents cost about 9,000 AED each per month fully loaded, or 972,000 AED a year.
With a portal at 420,000 AED and 12,000 AED a month of maintenance, a 30 % drop in calls frees 3 agents for reception and pre-admission, worth 324,000 AED a year. If automated reminders cut no-shows from 12 % to 7 % on 2,000 monthly consultations at 350 AED, the group recovers about 420,000 AED a year. In this scenario the project pays back in roughly 8 to 9 months, to be recalculated with your own data.
FAQ
How much does a patient portal for a Dubai clinic group cost?
Between 250,000 and 600,000 AED in 2026 depending on modules and HIS integration complexity. Maintenance then runs 6,000 to 18,000 AED per month.
How long until launch?
Four to six months. A first release with booking and reminders can go live in 10 to 12 weeks, with results and telemedicine following.
Does the portal need to connect to NABIDH?
The clinic's HIS is usually the system that exchanges with NABIDH. The portal must stay consistent with it, and integration testing typically takes 2 to 4 weeks.
Can patients view radiology images in the portal?
Yes, through a secure link to your PACS or an embedded web viewer. This package costs 35,000 to 90,000 AED.
Can the portal take payment for consultations?
Yes, by card through a UAE-licensed payment provider, with fees of around 2 to 2.9 % per transaction.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your sites, your HIS and your call volumes: we will price a patient portal in work packages, with a first booking release in 10 to 12 weeks and a budget in AED. Detailed quote within 48 h via our form. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
