Website Design Income in Dubai – Should You Relocate or Not?

These days, many people are looking to migrate, whether to the UAE or another country, with the dream of earning a dollar-based income through website design. Of course, this ambition is good! However, many seek to reach massive wealth suddenly and migrate without having any actual expertise. That is a separate discussion that could fill an entire video on its own.

On the other hand, since I moved to Dubai, many people have been messaging me saying, “Mr. Rad, I want to come to Dubai. As a web designer, can I have a good income if I move there? Can I earn in Dollars or Dirhams from the UAE or any other country?” Since I have been in Dubai for five years and have become more familiar with its market than before, I felt it was necessary to record a video and talk to you about this topic.

How Can I Earn a Dollar-Based Income from Web Design?

When currencies fluctuate daily and local values drop, it’s natural for minds to turn toward an income with stable or rising value. For instance, in Dubai, the exchange rate for the US Dollar has been virtually fixed for years at approximately 3.67 AED. This means if you price a web design project at $1,000, it costs an Emirati client about 3,670 AED—which is a standard cost for them. However, if you receive that same $1,000 elsewhere, its value might equal several months’ salary for an average employee.

Because local currencies often lose value against the dollar, people prefer their income to be in USD. That’s why many decide to either stay where they are and earn dollars remotely or migrate entirely for this purpose. Honestly, this isn’t just the decision of those intending to migrate. Even those staying put are looking for ways to claim a piece of this dollar-based income, and rightfully so!

Is It Really That Easy?

The attraction is obvious: land an international project, do the work from your home, but get paid in Dollars or Dirhams. It’s incredibly tempting, isn’t it? But the more important question is: is it really that simple?

At first glance, it might seem like you can just sit at home with your laptop, build a site for a client in Europe or the Middle East, and collect your USD. This idea is so seductive that even those without much experience say to themselves, “I can do it too!” But the story gets serious the moment you enter the arena.

The reality is that the international market is not just large; it is incredibly competitive. There are people who have been designing websites at a high level for years, have stronger English skills, possess professional portfolios, and take on projects at competitive prices. If you are only at the level of installing a ready-made theme or a few plugins, you will be pushed aside very quickly.

Here, it’s not just about “knowing how”; it’s about “value-added.” When an international client pays you, they expect something that might be better than or at least different from what they’d get from a professional team in India, the Philippines, or even Germany. You must provide something that is truly worth the dollars the client is paying.

For example, if you only know how to open Elementor and arrange a theme, an international employer can get that same result from someone else for $50. But if you understand UX, if you can increase the site’s sales structure, if you are familiar with user behavior and can even do a bit of business analysis that is when the client is willing to spend $500, $1,000, or more. Because you are solving a problem for them, not just building a website.

So yes, dollar income is absolutely possible, but not for someone looking for the easy way out or someone who thinks you can rake in money with two WordPress plugins. Especially when you enter the global market, you see how many professional designers are out there working at competitive rates. Only then do you realize that just “knowing” isn’t enough—being the best is the requirement. You must be either better than your competitors or more unique. Once you understand this, you enter the real game.

Is Migration Easy?

Anyone who has worked in web design for a while eventually thinks, “If I leave, will things get better?” For many, the first place that comes to mind is Dubai. It’s close, you hear the familiar language often, and the income is linked to the dollar. But let me say something important right now: Migration is not a vacation!

Many people think that when you go to Dubai or another country, everything is ready. The red carpet is rolled out, projects come to you automatically, and money flows easily into your account. But the reality is not like that at all. Not at all! After I moved to Dubai, I took on several projects that not only yielded no profit but actually resulted in a loss for me.

Here, like anywhere else, no one is waiting for us. No one says, “Since you are a good web designer, here is an office, here are projects, and here is your income.” On the contrary, for a while, you might spend more than you earn. Especially if expectations are high a nice house, a good car, luxury from the start. These all cost money. If you don’t know how to handle the environment in the beginning, you will suffer both mentally and financially.

From the first day you step foot there, you are faced with endless questions, paperwork, new laws, and even cultural differences. Now imagine trying to simultaneously land jobs, build an income, and learn the local way of life…

You might not believe it, but getting a driver’s license can take months of running around. For example, when I migrated, even though I brought good capital, bought a house, and bought a car, I spent several months just trying to get my license. Because without it, you simply cannot drive here.

Everything Looks Beautiful on the Surface

I remember once I went to Shiraz(in Iran) and got into a taxi. The driver realized I had come from Dubai and said, “Lucky you, you have a dollar income and you’re having the time of your life.” I told him, “Look, forget about me, but do you know how much hardship you would face if you wanted to go to the UAE and reach an income yourself?”

He was exactly one of those people who thought that just by migrating, the red carpet is rolled out that even if you work as a taxi driver there, you’ll become wealthy. But it’s not like that. The first thing you must pay attention to in migration is getting to know the environment and the culture. You have to be involved for two or three years just to learn how to live and how to interact with the people.

Migration is truly difficult. So, if you are planning to migrate solely with the hope that “I’ll have a dollar income there,” definitely think again. Because before reaching that income, you have to pass through several difficult turns where many people give up at the very first one.

Dollar Income Strategies After Migration

Now, let’s assume you’ve decided to migrate. Perhaps, like many, you are looking for that dollar income in Dubai or elsewhere that isn’t comparable to local-currency earnings. The question is: how can you get the best dollar income? Whether you are in Dubai or any other country, there are two main ways to earn from web design.

Competing with Low Prices (Which I absolutely do not recommend)

The first way is to work for a low income and enter into competition with the massive number of providers from regions like India and Pakistan who dominate this market. These individuals often live in tough conditions, many in small shared rooms, and take on projects at the lowest possible price. If you want to compete with them, you have to go for “cheap-selling.” This means lowering your prices and taking projects at a very low rate just to attract clients.

But this path leads to a dead end very quickly. When you work at a low price, you might even lose your standing with real, valuable clients in the local market. Cheap work cannot be sustained because when you receive little money, you are forced to increase the number of projects. Consequently, not only does the quality of your work decrease, but you also lose your actual value. For this reason, I do not recommend this path at all. (I even made a video titled “Don’t Be Cheap!” which explains this exact issue.)

Professional Work with High Prices

When you provide professional work, no one can compete with you. This means you must operate at a level where clients looking for high quality are willing to pay more for premium projects. On this path, you choose which projects to take. You set a high price and aren’t worried at all, because clients who truly value their business will never entrust their site to “cheap-sellers.”

This path, though it seems difficult at first, is unstoppable if you are truly professional and have high expertise. For example, when you have professional experience and a portfolio, an employer from Dubai, Germany, or the US might be willing to pay you several times more than the competitors. You just have to constantly learn new skills, work with up-to-date tools, and always try to appear at the highest possible level.

So, you either want to take projects at a low price and compete as a “cheap designer” in which case you will quickly lose quality or you work with high quality and professionalism. In the latter case, high-quality clients come to you, and you decide where to take projects and how much to charge.

Which Employers Should We Avoid?

One of the biggest challenges in web design is choosing the right employer. Always remember one very important tip: never work with an employer who doesn’t pay well. At first glance, you might think, “Well, maybe this project is cheap now, but they’ll make up for it later!” But the reality is that when an employer wants their project done at a low price from the very start, it is very unlikely that this trend will change.

This employer wants to pay you less in the future as well. For example, when they tell you, “Do this project at a low price, and I’ll make it up to you in the next projects,” you should know that this is just a trick to reduce their costs in the short term. You will never be able to work for this employer at a high rate because you agreed to work cheaply at the start, so they have no reason to think about paying more later.

It has often been seen that when you accept a low price, the employer never thinks about giving you more money. Instead, they continue in the same manner, and in the end, you are left feeling pressured and unable to receive the real value of your work.

What is the Solution?

The very first project must have a good price. This means you must know the value of your work and charge a fair price for what you build. It’s not the case that for every project you take, the client will come back and say, “I’ll make it up to you next time!” These promises usually never become real. So, it’s better from the beginning to act in a way that the client understands your work is worth more than that.

Whenever you encounter such an employer inviting you to compete on low prices, know for certain that the same story will continue after this project as well. To succeed in the web design business, you must always emphasize quality and fair pricing, rather than throwing yourself into a vicious cycle of low pricing. Remember, a project where your value isn’t seen is not a project you should accept.

Final Words

Earning a dollar income is possible anywhere in the world, but it is not easy. Many Instagram pages and YouTube channels say, “Come and earn dollars with web design,” but they don’t mention the hardships because they want to sell you services. Stay happy and successful! 🙂

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