Dubai
Dubai
دبي Dubayy | |
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| Nickname(s): DXB, Dar Al-Hay, The Pearl of the Persian Gulf, The Venice of the Persian Gulf, The City of the World, The City of Gold | |
| Coordinates: 25°15′47″N 55°17′50″E / 25.26306°N 55.29722°E | |
| Country | United Arab Emirates |
| Emirate | Dubai |
| First settled | 1822 |
| Founded by | Obeid bin Said & Maktoum bin Butti Al Maktoum |
| Government | |
| • Type | Absolute monarchy |
| • Body | Dubai Executive Council |
| • Director General of Dubai Municipality | Abdulla Al Basti |
| • Ruler of Dubai | Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum |
| Area | |
| 544 km2 (210 sq mi) | |
| • Urban | 1,507 km2 (582 sq mi) |
| Population (2025) | |
| 3,944,751 | |
| • Density | 7,300/km2 (19,000/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 4,945,000 |
| • Urban density | 3,300/km2 (8,500/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 6,359,527 |
| Demonym | Dubaian |
| GDP | |
| • City | US$ 134.6 billion (2023) |
| • Metro | US$ 202.8 billion (2023) |
| Time zone | UTC+04:00 (UAE Standard Time) |
| Website | tec |
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Dubai (/duːˈbaɪ/ doo-BYE; Modern Standard Arabic: Arabic: دُبَيّ; Emirati Arabic: Arabic: دِبَيّ, romanized: /diˈbej/) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai. It is located on a creek on the south-eastern coast of the Persian Gulf. As of 2025, the city population stands at 4 million, 92% of whom are expatriates. The wider urban area includes Sharjah and has a population of 5 million people as of 2023, while the Dubai–Sharjah–Ajman metropolitan area counts 6 million inhabitants.
Founded in the early 18th century as a pearling and fishing settlement, Dubai became a regional trade hub in the 20th century after declaring itself a free port (1901) and extending the Creek (1961). Modest oil revenue helped accelerate Dubai's development from the 1960s to the 1990s when the city started to diversify its economy. In 2018, oil production contributed less than 1% to the emirate's GDP.
Rapid construction since the 1990s has produced one of the world's densest skylines, including the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. Extensive land-reclamation projects have added more than 300 kilometres (190 mi) of artificial coastline. The city has a large real estate market, especially in the luxury segment.
Dubai's economy centres on trade, tourism, aviation, financial services, and real estate. The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is one of the world's major financial centres. In 2024, Dubai was the seventh most-visited city globally. Dubai International Airport (DXB) is the world’s busiest airport for international passenger traffic, handling over 92 million passengers in 2024.