The verdict in three sentences
A trilingual EN/FR/AR corporate website costs between USD 18,000 and 45,000 excl. VAT in Dubai in 2026, and the Arabic version weighs more than the French one because RTL support adds 15 to 25 % to the technical core. Budget it language by language: build, professional translation and quality control, never as an opaque "multilingual" lump sum. Without correct hreflang tags, the three versions compete with each other in Google and the project loses part of its value.
Budget language by language
Example for a 40-page site with about 12,000 words per language, built by an established agency.
| Language | Build and templates | Professional translation | Quality control | Total excl. VAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English (source) | USD 15,000 | Written in-house | Proofreading USD 600 | USD 15,600 |
| French | USD 2,500 | USD 1,320 (USD 0.11 per word) | USD 400 | USD 4,220 |
| Arabic (RTL) | USD 3,000 (20 % RTL premium) | USD 1,320 (USD 0.11 per word) | USD 1,000 | USD 5,320 |
| Total project | USD 20,500 | USD 2,640 | USD 2,000 | USD 25,140 |
Arabic quality control costs more: you have to check mirrored directional icons, table alignment, numerals (Arabic or Eastern Arabic) and typography rendering on mobile.
What the RTL premium really covers
| Technical item | Work required | Share of RTL premium |
|---|---|---|
| Stylesheets | CSS logical properties (margin-inline, padding-inline) | 30 % |
| Arabic typography | A readable web font, adjusted line height | 15 % |
| Interactive components | Mirrored carousels, menus, arrows and forms | 25 % |
| Mixed content | Latin brand names inside Arabic text, phone numbers | 10 % |
| Testing | Mobile browsers, screen readers, PDF printing | 20 % |
An agency quoting an RTL premium below 10 % usually just applies dir="rtl" without reworking components. It shows at the first board demo.
Hosting, timelines and hreflang SEO traps
| Item | 2026 range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting and CDN | USD 600 to 1,800 a year | UAE or EU region depending on the data processed |
| Monthly maintenance | USD 200 to 500 | Updates, backups, small changes |
| News translation | USD 0.09 to 0.14 per word | Plan for 4 to 8 articles a month |
| Delivery timeline | 12 to 16 weeks | Including 3 to 4 weeks of translation and review |
| Data protection | In-house or law firm | UAE PDPL applies if the site collects personal data |
The three most common hreflang errors: forgetting the reciprocal return tag between versions, declaring ar without a regional variant when the content targets the Gulf, and pointing every language to the home page instead of equivalent pages. Add an x-default value pointing to the English version and check everything in Search Console at launch.
Mini case study
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
Omar, CEO of an electrical equipment distribution group in Dubai, targets European suppliers and French-speaking African distributors. He picks the USD 25,140 budget, hosting at USD 1,200 a year and maintenance at USD 300 a month. Three-year total cost: 25,140 + 3,600 + 10,800 = USD 39,540. If the site generates 15 qualified B2B enquiries a month, or 540 over three years, the cost per qualified contact is USD 73, far below a trade-show stand estimated at USD 15,000 for about thirty contacts.
FAQ
Should the entire site be translated into Arabic?
Not necessarily. An Arabic version of 15 to 20 key pages covers 80 % of what Arabic-speaking partners need and halves translation, saving about USD 660 on 12,000 words.
Is machine translation enough?
For a corporate site, no: human review is still needed. Allow USD 0.04 to 0.06 per word for post-editing versus USD 0.09 to 0.14 for full translation.
How long does a trilingual site take?
12 to 16 weeks. Translation and the double Arabic review take 3 to 4 weeks and should start as soon as the source copy is approved.
Which CMS handles Arabic?
A headless CMS or WordPress with a multilingual plugin handles RTL. Check that the editing interface also displays Arabic correctly, otherwise your team loses 20 to 30 % of its time on every publication.
Must the site be hosted in the UAE?
Not always. Sector rules (finance, health, government) may require local hosting, and the UAE PDPL applies whenever personal data is collected.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your target languages, page count and calendar, and we will price each version separately with the hreflang plan included. Detailed quote within 48 h. 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.
