Calculator

Abu Dhabi or UK buy-to-let?

Put the same kind of investment side by side, after UK tax, and see which leaves you with more. Start from our worked example, then change any number to match your own.

Or analyse a home we're selling

The worked example in our UK Investor Guide: an Al Reef 1-bed against Liverpool's highest-yielding 1-bed listing, with 5% a year price and rent growth in Abu Dhabi, and 2.5% price and 3.5% rent growth in Liverpool.

Your UK income tax bandUK tax ratesThe rates in force today.Where are you tax resident?UK residents pay UK tax on Abu Dhabi rent and gains too.How long you hold

Growth a year

Abu Dhabi

Property prices5%-2%10%Rents5%-2%10%

Property prices2.5%-2%10%Rents3.5%-2%10%

On these assumptions, Abu Dhabi makes £100,314 profit over 10 years (9.7% a year), against £31,487 (4.4% a year) for the UK property, after all taxes.

Abu Dhabi is assumed to grow faster: 5% a year on price and 5% on rent, against 2.5% and 3.5% in the UK. Part of the difference comes from that assumption.

Profit over 10 years, after all taxes

Abu Dhabi

£100,314

£31,487

Annual return (IRR)

Abu Dhabi

9.7%

4.4%

Cashflow in the first full year let, after tax

Abu Dhabi

£298

−£608

Your own cash put in

Abu Dhabi

£69,568

£59,450

Your own cash put in, including any instalmentsCash back: rent after costs plus the sale, after all taxes

Abu Dhabi£69,568 in → £169,882 back

UK£59,450 in → £90,937 back

AngelBrics modelling, in pounds at AED 4.98 to £1. Illustrative only, not a forecast for any property. Capital at risk. Not tax or financial advice.

The two properties

Change anything. The results above update as you type.

Abu Dhabi

AED

Purchase price

AED

Rent a year

AED

Loan to value

0% for a cash purchaseMortgage rate

Mortgage typeMortgage term

years

Running costs, fees and selling costs+

Vacancy allowance

3.85% is about two weeks a yearManagement fee

% + VAT

8% + VAT for clients who buy through usService charge, insurance, upkeep

AED

A year, rising with costsCost growth a year

Selling costs

Pay a 2% + VAT agent feeOn a resale. When you buy off-plan direct from the developer through us, the developer pays our fee.

Also included: 2% registration fee, NOC, conveyancing and title fees (AED 10,500), and mortgage valuation, arrangement (0.5%) and registration (0.1%) fees.

UK buy-to-let

Purchase price

Rent a year

Loan to value

0% for a cash purchaseMortgage rate

Mortgage typeMortgage term

years

Running costs, fees and selling costs+

Vacancy allowance

Letting agent

Including VATMaintenance

% of rent

Insurance, ground rent, service charge, safety checks

A year, rising with costsNew-tenancy fee

Including VATNew tenancy every

years

Cost growth a year

Selling costs

Legal fees

Mortgage arrangement and valuation

Stamp duty is worked out for you, including the 5% surcharge on additional homes (England).

Not sure of your real numbers? Check your property on LEXIT, our sister platform for UK landlords.

How the calculator works

Each year, rent is collected after a vacancy allowance, then running costs and mortgage payments are paid. If you're UK tax resident, UK income tax is charged on the rental profit from both properties, with mortgage interest relieved as a tax credit. At the end, each property is sold at its grown price, less selling costs, the mortgage still owed and UK capital gains tax.

Profit is everything you get back, less the cash you put in on day one. The annual return is the internal rate of return (IRR) on those same cashflows, so a larger deposit and a smaller one can be compared fairly.

UK property income tax at today's rates (20%, 40%, 45%, with mortgage interest relieved at 20%), as in our guide, or at the rates expected from April 2027 (24%, 44%, 49%) after the 28 October 2026 Budget. For 2027 the calculator assumes mortgage interest relief rises to 24% with the basic rate; that relief rate is not yet confirmed (Claims Register T12). CGT at 18% or 24% with the £3,000 annual exemption. The calculator assumes you stay in one tax band throughout.

It leaves out some real-world factors: currency moves between pounds and dirhams, changes to the rules in either country, the costs of a Renters' Rights Act dispute, and void periods longer than the allowance you set. If Abu Dhabi prices don't grow, the UK can come out ahead, which is why the "Flat prices" example is there.

Sources

UK property income tax rates: GOV.UK, 2026/27 rates; from April 2027: HM Treasury, Budget 2025 and Budget 2026 (28 October 2026), expected until Finance Bill 2026-27
Capital gains tax on residential property: GOV.UK: 18% and 24%, £3,000 annual exempt amount
Stamp duty and the 5% surcharge: GOV.UK: SDLT residential rates from 1 April 2025; surcharge raised to 5% from 31 October 2024
Abu Dhabi purchase costs: AngelBrics Investor Guide (UK), October 2026: 2% registration, NOC, conveyancing and title fees
Exchange rate: AED 4.98 to £1, as used in the AngelBrics Investor Guide

Rates checked 8 November 2026. This calculator is an illustration based on the assumptions you enter. It is not a forecast for any property, and not tax, legal or financial advice. Property values can fall as well as rise, and leverage increases losses as well as gains. Take independent tax advice on your own position. AngelBrics is a trading name of PRSIM Property Management L.L.C, a licensed real estate brokerage in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

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