Short answer: An IP-PBX phone system for a Dubai business starts from around AED 2,500 for a small setup with a cloud or on-site PBX and a few handsets, plus per-handset costs (roughly AED 250–800 each). Cloud PBX is usually a low setup fee plus a monthly per-user charge; on-premise is a higher one-off. SIP trunk lines then cut your monthly call spend versus traditional lines.
Key takeaways
- Small office (5–15 users): from AED 2,500 setup + handsets
- Handsets: AED 250–800 each (entry desk phone to executive / video)
- Cloud PBX: low setup + monthly per-user; nothing to maintain on site
- On-premise PBX: higher one-off (Yeastar, 3CX, Grandstream), you own it
- SIP trunks replace fixed lines and cut per-minute and line-rental costs
- Softphone apps put the office extension on staff mobiles and laptops
- Existing numbers can be ported in most cases
Cloud PBX vs on-premise
- Cloud / hosted PBX — the phone system runs in a data centre. You pay a setup fee and a monthly charge per user. No hardware to maintain, easy to scale, works across multiple sites and for remote staff out of the box. Best for smaller teams, multi-branch businesses and anyone who wants zero maintenance.
- On-premise PBX — a small appliance or server in your office (Yeastar, 3CX, Grandstream). A higher one-off cost, but no per-user monthly fee and full local control. Best for larger single sites, call centres, or businesses with specific integration or compliance needs.
We'll recommend based on your headcount, number of sites and how your team works.
What you get with a modern phone system
- Auto-attendant (IVR) — "press 1 for sales…" — routing calls without a receptionist
- Call queues and hunt groups — calls ring the right team in the right order
- Call recording — for training, disputes and compliance
- Voicemail to email, and missed-call alerts
- Reporting — call volumes, wait times, who answered what
- Softphone apps — the same extension on a mobile and a laptop, so staff can work anywhere
- CRM integration — pop the customer record when the phone rings
SIP trunks — where the saving is
A SIP trunk carries your calls over the internet instead of a physical phone line. You typically pay less line rental, lower per-minute rates, and you can add or remove channels as your call volume changes. For a business making a reasonable volume of calls, the monthly saving often covers the system cost within the first year.
Worked example: a 20-person office in Deira
- Cloud PBX with 20 extensions
- 18 desk handsets (entry to mid-range) + 2 executive phones
- Softphone app for 6 staff who also work from site
- Auto-attendant, 3 call queues (sales, support, accounts), call recording
- SIP trunk replacing the old fixed lines, existing main number ported
- Reporting dashboard for the office manager
Indicative setup: AED 7,000–11,000 for handsets and configuration, plus the monthly cloud-PBX and SIP charges — usually lower than the old line rental and call bills combined.
Common mistakes
- Keeping old copper lines "just in case." They're a fixed monthly cost doing nothing once SIP is in.
- Cheapest handset everywhere. Reception and heavy phone users need better phones; the rest can be entry-level.
- No call flow design. A system without a proper auto-attendant and queues just rings one desk and annoys callers.
- Ignoring the network. VoIP needs QoS on the switch and enough upload bandwidth — we check this first.
- No number porting plan. Your published number is an asset; plan the port so there's no downtime.
How to get a quote
- Free assessment — user count, sites, current lines and numbers, call volume and how your team works
- Fixed proposal — cloud or on-premise, the handset mix, the call flow design and the SIP plan
- Install, port numbers, train — with support after go-live
See our IP phone & PBX solutions and ICT & telecom solutions pages. Call or WhatsApp +971 55 408 2018 for a free phone-system assessment.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an office phone system cost in Dubai?
A small IP-PBX setup starts from around AED 2,500 plus handsets at AED 250–800 each. A 20-person office is typically AED 7,000–11,000 for hardware and configuration, plus monthly cloud-PBX and SIP-trunk charges that usually cost less than traditional line rental and call bills.
Is cloud PBX or on-premise better?
Cloud PBX suits smaller teams, multi-site businesses and remote workers — low setup, monthly per-user, nothing to maintain. On-premise suits larger single sites and call centres — higher one-off cost, no per-user fee, full local control.
Can I keep my existing phone number?
In most cases, yes. Numbers can be ported to the new system; we plan the port so there's no downtime on your published number.
Will VoIP work reliably on our internet?
Yes, with the network set up correctly — quality-of-service on the switch and enough upload bandwidth. We check this as part of the assessment before quoting.
Can staff use the office phone on their mobile?
Yes. A softphone app puts the office extension on a mobile or laptop, so staff can make and take calls on the business number from anywhere.
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