Guides
Guides to renting a van in Dubai
The questions people ask us before they book — licences, sizes, cost and cold chain. Written from what we are asked at the yard, not from a brochure.
Before you book
Start here
Dubai truck timings, and what changed in 2026
The peak-hour ban most pages still publish was eased in March 2026 under a rolling permit. What applies now, what it replaced, and which vehicles it is actually about.
What licence do you need to drive a van or truck in Dubai?
The single question that stops most bookings. Where the line falls between a car licence and a truck licence, and what we check before we hand over keys.
When a hired van is damaged
The order of events after a knock on the road, a hit in a car park with nobody there, and the damage that is not a road accident at all.
High-roof van rental in Dubai
The phrase means nothing on its own. The measured interior height of every vehicle we run, from 1.6 m to 2.4 m, and the two heights that catch people out.
What a “3 ton pickup” means in Dubai
The ton is the load, not the truck. Why the phrase catches people out on licence, what the dimensions really are, and what we run instead.
Van and truck dimensions in Dubai
Load length, width, height and payload for every vehicle, in metres and feet, with the pallet counts and the weight limit that stops you filling the floor.
Which van size do you actually need?
Payload is rarely what runs out first — length is. How to measure your load in two minutes and match it to the right vehicle.
What renting a van in Dubai actually costs
Everything that appears on the invoice: fuel, Salik, VAT, deposit and mileage — and why the weekly rate beats the daily one after six days.
Renting a van in Dubai versus buying one
The arithmetic on a Toyota Hiace: AED 99,900 to buy, roughly AED 1,322 a month to own, AED 3,000 to rent — and the four questions that decide which side you are on.
Moving house in Dubai: van or truck?
Which size each home needs, plus the building permits, allowed hours and lift bookings people remember on the morning itself.
Cold chain
Moving food and pharmaceuticals
Chiller van, freezer van or reefer truck?
Four names, one piece of equipment, and the differences that actually matter when you are moving food.
Chiller truck sizes in Dubai
What 1, 3, 5 and 10 tonne refrigerated bodies measure inside, how many pallets each one really takes, and why the weight runs out before the floor does.
When a chiller van stops cooling
The early warning signs, the five things to do in the first thirty minutes, and how long chilled and frozen loads really have before stock becomes waste.
Moving medicines and vaccines
The 2 to 8 degree run: why medicines have a floor as well as a ceiling, how to set the unit without freezing stock, and who owns the temperature record.
Which van for a restaurant supply run?
How Dubai kitchens set up a daily round — which size fits, why they start before dawn, and why monthly beats daily hire.
Quick answers
If you only want the short answer
The six questions we are asked most often, answered in a line each. Every one links to the guide that explains it properly.
Can I drive a van on a normal UAE licence?
Yes, everything up to the Ford Transit. Anything built to carry more than two tonnes sits in a heavier category and needs the matching licence, or one of our drivers. Where the line falls.
What does it actually cost?
From AED 150 a day for a pickup and AED 180 for a Hiace. A week works out about 15% cheaper per day and a month about 44% cheaper, across the whole fleet. What appears on the invoice.
Which size do I need for a one-bed flat?
A Toyota Hiace or Nissan Urvan, around 3 m of load length, usually in one or two runs. How to measure your load.
What is the difference between a chiller van and a freezer van?
Nothing, mechanically. It is the same insulated body and the same unit, set to a different temperature. Chiller, freezer and reefer explained.
How cold will it hold?
Anywhere from −18 °C for frozen to +5 °C for chilled, at one setting for the whole run — the body cannot be split. We run the unit down before handover, so load it already cold.
Do you deliver the van?
Yes, free anywhere in Dubai. Sharjah, Ajman, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah are quoted by route. See the rate card.
Still not sure which van?
Tell us what you are moving, where and for how long. We will tell you the size, the licence you need and the price — usually within a few minutes.