How much does it cost to furnish a three-bed apartment in Dubai?
We did it in 72 hours. Here's the MTV Cribs-style tour with everything we bought, where we bought it, and what we paid.
Where We Shopped
| Store | What We Got | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Home Center | Bed, sofa, dining table, chairs, rug, cushions | Our go-to store – amazing service |
| IKEA | Kids' beds, gaming desks, chairs, shoe rack, sit-stand desk | Great for kids' rooms |
| OC Home | TV unit, bedside tables, drawers, floor cushions | Quality pieces |
| Amazon | 65" TV | Next day delivery |
| Dragon Mart | Balcony furniture | Garden furniture specialist |
| Ace | Air purifier | For the balcony |
Room by Room Breakdown
Master Bedroom
The big decision: A hydraulic lift bed from Home Center.
Why? Suitcase storage. Sara asked "where are we going to put the suitcases?" every 3 days before we moved. Answer: under the bed.
- Bed: King size, hydraulic lift – Home Center
- Bedside tables: OC Home
- Wardrobes: Built-in (saved us money)
Reggie's Room (Maid's Room)
The maid's room doesn't have a built-in wardrobe. Solution: IKEA high bed with wardrobe underneath.
- Bed with wardrobe: IKEA (configurable – different ladder positions, desk option)
- Drawers: Built into the wardrobe unit
- Gaming desk: IKEA
- Gaming chair: IKEA
Note: Maid's room doesn't have soft-close toilet seat. First world problem, but we noticed.
Riley's Room
- Day bed: IKEA – pulls out to double bed, three drawers underneath
- Gaming desk: IKEA with clip-on light and drinks holder
- Gaming chair: IKEA
- Wardrobes: Built-in
Living Room
- TV unit: OC Home (matches the drawers – happy accident)
- TV: 65" from Amazon – next day delivery
- Sofa: Modular, Home Center – choose your sections and colour
- Coffee tables: Pair from OC Home
- Rug: Home Center (super soft)
- Cushions: Home Center
- Floor cushions: OC Home (for the boys/guests)
Dining Area
- Table: Marble top, black legs – Home Center
- Chairs: 4x grey (not cream – kids!) – Home Center
- Coasters and mats: Home Center
Home Office
- Sit-stand desk: IKEA
- Office chair: IKEA
Balcony
- Outdoor sofa set: Dragon Mart (garden furniture shop)
- Side table: Dragon Mart
Top tip: The balcony gets very dusty. Keep dedicated shoes by the door. We're getting "knocks" (knockoff Crocs).
The Unexpected Cost: Curtains
When we arrived, the concierge asked: "You guys new? Curtain?"
We hadn't even thought about curtains. For two nights we wore panda and pussycat eye masks.
| Item | Cost (AED) | Cost (GBP) |
|---|---|---|
| Curtains (whole apartment) | ~6,000-6,500 | ~£1,300-1,400 |
The concierge recommended a guy. Family business. Came Saturday to measure, brought fabric samples, installed Monday. About 3 hours total. Excellent service.
"If you said to me: wear eye masks for the rest of your life and have £1,400 in your pocket – all day. But privacy matters."
Delivery & Assembly: The Key Info
Home Center
- Free delivery: Over 1,000 AED
- Assembly: Included with delivery
- Loyalty program: "Shukrans" – points add up when you're spending this much
IKEA
- Express delivery + assembly: ~300 AED (~£80)
- Speed: Rapid. They're done in hours.
- Packaging: They take it all away
"Best money we spent. These guys are rapid. They take all the packaging away. Really effective."
Communication Style
Different to the UK:
- Every shop takes your phone number
- Delivery updates via WhatsApp
- Share your location
- Get accurate arrival times ("20 minutes away")
Important: You need a local phone number for this to work. Get your Emirates ID and phone contract sorted first.
The Home Center Experience
Our first experience shopping in Dubai – and it set the bar high.
"We asked the guy a question. He didn't follow us around trying to push a sale. He was helpful. Showed us different options. Talked us through the hydraulic bed. We might not have known that was an option otherwise. He helped us a tremendous amount."
Like having a personal shopper – without the pressure.
Bed Size Warning
King size beds in Dubai aren't always called "King size." Sometimes it's just centimetres. Then you need to work out:
- Mattress size
- Bed frame size
- Sheet size
We made mistakes with the boys' beds. Double-check everything.
Thermostat Tip
If your Honeywell thermostat isn't responding:
Hold minus and plus together for 7 seconds – that's the child lock toggle.
It doesn't say it's locked. It just... is. We figured this out when the IKEA guy was sweating through assembly.
The Rush
We did this in 72 hours:
- 3 nights in a hotel
- Home Center first thing in the morning
- Home Center again until 11pm closing
- Washing and drying sheets before we could sleep in the bed
Would We Recommend This Pace?
Sara: "Give yourself more time. More nights in a hotel would have been less stressful."
Adam: "Gas fills a room. If we had more time, we'd have been lackadaisical. Everything has an impact – more hotel nights, more time away from kids."
We made it work. But it was intense.
Our Approach to Spending
"You can shop cheaper and you can definitely shop more expensive. The upside in terms of how much you can spend feels infinite."
Our philosophy:
- Not cheap and cheerful that we'd replace in a year
- Not super expensive
- Quality that will last
- Happy with everything we got
What We Forgot
- Curtains (£1,400 surprise)
- Full-length mirror (still don't have one)
- Various small bits that add up
Key Takeaways
- Home Center is excellent – Service, quality, delivery included
- IKEA for kids' rooms – Versatile, good assembly service
- Budget for curtains – Not included in most apartments
- Get assembly – Worth every dirham
- Need local phone number – WhatsApp delivery communication
- Check bed sizes carefully – Different naming conventions
- Built-in wardrobes save money – Factor this into apartment choice
Planning Your Move?
- Full rental cost breakdown
- Take the neighbourhood quiz
- Work with Sara – Learn from our experience
Questions about furnishing in Dubai? Drop them in the comments!