- What is the Dubai gold price today?
- How the Dubai gold price is set
- Why gold has fallen since January
- What AED 10,000 buys this Diwali
- Dubai or India: where does gold cost less?
- VAT, the tourist refund and the Dubai gold price
- What the Dubai gold price means for jewellers
- The verdict on the Dubai gold price
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Sources
The Dubai gold price was AED 450.50 a gram for 22-carat on the morning of 28 October 2026, Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group rates show. That is 27 percent below January’s peak and 5 percent below Diwali 2025. On FOUAE (Founders of UAE) figures, AED 10,000 buys 22.2 grams before making charges and VAT, against 16.2 grams at the peak.
Data: Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group (DGJG) rates via Gulf News (October 2026) and Khaleej Times (January 2026), Kitco, Reuters, Angel One, the UAE Federal Tax Authority and Indian customs reporting, January to October 2026. FOUAE calculations are marked. This explains how prices work. It is not investment advice or a price forecast.
In short
- Gold in Dubai costs about a quarter less than at January’s peak, before making charges and VAT.
- The Dubai rate follows the world spot price, converted at the fixed dirham peg, plus a small premium.
- Before tax, the same 22-carat gram cost about 13 percent more in India than in Dubai on 29 October.
What is the Dubai gold price today?
On the morning of 28 October 2026, the Dubai gold price was AED 486.50 a gram for 24-carat and AED 450.50 for 22-carat. The Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group (DGJG) sets these rates, and Gulf News reported them that day.
However, the board changes three times a day. By the evening of 28 October, 22-carat stood at AED 451.75, the Gulf News gold rates page shows, citing DGJG.
Dhanteras falls on Friday 6 November and Diwali on Sunday 8 November this year, Gulf News reported.
How the Dubai gold price is set
Gold trades worldwide in US dollars per troy ounce. Under Central Bank of the UAE policy, the dirham holds a fixed peg of AED 3.6725 to the dollar, so the Dubai gold price moves almost exactly with the world price.
The FOUAE calculation
Spot gold stood at US$4,030.28 an ounce at 10:15am in Dubai on 28 October, Gulf News reported. Because a troy ounce is 31.1035 grams, that converts at the peg to AED 475.87 a gram for pure gold.
The DGJG 24-carat rate that morning was AED 486.50, about 2.2 percent above the pure-metal value. For 22-carat, which is 91.6 percent gold, the metal was worth about AED 435.90 a gram. The board rate of AED 450.50 sat about 3.4 percent above it. Board and spot readings came at slightly different times, so the premiums are approximate.
Why gold has fallen since January
Gold hit records in late January 2026, when spot reached about US$5,595 an ounce, Reuters reported. Dubai 24-carat peaked at AED 666 a gram on 29 January, Khaleej Times reported, citing Dubai Jewellery Group data.
Since then, a war-driven jump in oil prices has pushed up bond yields and expectations that US rates will stay high, Reuters reported. The US Federal Reserve raised rates by 25 basis points on 16 September. On 28 October it held them at 3.75 to 4 percent, with two officials voting for a hike, Kitco reported. Higher yields make gold, which pays no interest, less attractive to hold.
Before the Fed decision, Konstantinos Chrysikos, head of customer relationship management at Kudo, told Gulf News: “Any hawkish messaging, especially if oil keeps climbing, would likely extend bullion’s losses.” Naeem Aslam, chief investment officer at Zaye Capital Markets, told Khaleej Times that “geopolitical tensions are generating competing market forces.”
Because of the peg, the Central Bank of the UAE raised its base rate to 3.90 percent from 17 September, a day after the Fed, as our analysis of UAE bank lending notes.
What AED 10,000 buys this Diwali
FOUAE calculation: gold content only, before making charges and 5 percent VAT, at DGJG 22-carat morning rates.
| Date | 22K rate (AED per gram) | Grams for AED 10,000 |
|---|---|---|
| 29 January 2026 (peak) | 616.75 | 16.2 |
| 20 October 2025 (Diwali) | 474.25 | 21.1 |
| 28 October 2026 | 450.50 | 22.2 |
On FOUAE’s arithmetic, a fixed budget now buys about 37 percent more gold than at the January peak and 5 percent more than last Diwali. Making charges and VAT will lower the final gram count.
Dubai or India: where does gold cost less?
Gold is cheaper in Dubai. Before tax, 22-carat cost about 13 percent more in India on 29 October, on Angel One’s comparison at AED 1 = Rs 25.89. Its Dubai figure, Rs 1,16,958 per 10 grams, uses the DGJG evening rate of 28 October, against an India average of Rs 1,32,138 at 9:15am on 29 October.
India raised its import duty on gold to 15 percent from 6 percent, Reuters reported on 13 May 2026. On FOUAE’s reading, that duty is the main structural reason for the gap.
FOUAE calculation: with 5 percent UAE VAT and 3 percent Indian GST added, 10 grams of 22-carat cost about Rs 1,22,806 in Dubai and Rs 1,36,102 in India. On that basis, India is about 10.8 percent higher, before making charges on either side.
How much gold can you carry to India?
India’s Baggage Rules 2026 removed the value caps on duty-free jewellery from 2 February, Gulf News reported, citing Cochin Customs. The allowance is now set by weight: 40 grams for women and 20 grams for men.
It covers Indian residents and people of Indian origin who have lived abroad for more than a year, Business Standard reported. However, duty applies above it. At the 28 October rate, 40 grams of 22-carat is worth about AED 18,020, or about Rs 4.67 lakh at Angel One’s rate. That is far above the old Rs 1 lakh cap for women.
VAT, the tourist refund and the Dubai gold price
Jewellery from a VAT-registered shop carries 5 percent VAT, which generally applies to the selling price including making charges, Gulf News reported on 1 October. By contrast, investment-grade gold of at least 99 percent purity is usually zero-rated, Gulf News reported in June 2025.
Visitors aged 18 or over who are not UAE residents can reclaim VAT through the tourist refund scheme, the Federal Tax Authority states. A 13 percent deduction from the refunded VAT applies, plus AED 3.60 per tax-free transaction. UAE residents, however, cannot use it. Our guide to UAE VAT rules covers the business side.
What the Dubai gold price means for jewellers
FOUAE’s reading, not a forecast: a lower Dubai gold price lets customers afford more grams, while jewellers take fewer dirhams on each gram. As a result, shops compete more on making charges and design than on the metal price.
The figure worth comparing is therefore the total price per gram, including making charges and VAT. Gulf News also notes that retailer terms can exclude the original making charges and VAT when gold is exchanged later.
The verdict on the Dubai gold price
The Dubai gold price before Diwali 2026 is about a quarter below January’s peak and slightly below last year’s festival. Almost all of it is the world price converted at the dirham peg, so it moves with US rates. Buyers can compare what sits on top: making charges, VAT and, for trips home, India’s weight allowance.
Frequently Asked Questions
On the morning of 28 October 2026, the Dubai gold price was AED 450.50 a gram for 22-carat and AED 486.50 for 24-carat, Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group rates show. Rates change three times a day.
Yes. Before tax, 22-carat gold cost about 13 percent more in India on 29 October 2026, on Angel One’s comparison. After 5 percent UAE VAT and 3 percent Indian GST, the gap is about 10.8 percent on FOUAE’s calculation.
India’s Baggage Rules 2026 allow 40 grams of duty-free jewellery for women and 20 grams for men who have lived abroad for over a year, Business Standard reported. Duty applies above that.
Sources
Sources: Gulf News, Dubai 22-karat gold drops to Dh450, 28 October 2026; Gulf News UAE gold rates page (DGJG), 28 October 2026; Gulf News, Gold is cheaper this Diwali, 28 October 2026; Gulf News, Buying gold in the UAE, 1 October 2026; Gulf News, India eases customs rule for gold jewellery, 2 February 2026; Gulf News, UAE gold VAT rules, June 2025; Khaleej Times, Gold prices in Dubai set new record highs, 29 January 2026; Khaleej Times, Dubai gold prices rebound, 26 October 2026; Kitco, 16 September and 28 October 2026; Reuters, Strong dollar, high yields drag on gold outlook, 27 October 2026, and India raises gold import tariffs, 13 May 2026; Angel One, 20 October 2025 and 29 October 2026; Business Standard, 3 April 2026; UAE Federal Tax Authority, tourist VAT refunds. The pure-gold value, premiums, grams per AED 10,000 and the tax-inclusive gap are FOUAE calculations. This is general information, not investment advice.
Founders of UAE (FOUAE) is an independent, digital-first business publication covering the founders, companies and economy of the United Arab Emirates. Follow FOUAE on Instagram and LinkedIn.
