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IFZA and the northern-emirate free zones compete hard for the same founders, and all four sell their packages online or through quotes. Ajman Free Zone Authority (AFZA) lists over 3,500 business activities, RAKEZ advertises its Biz Starter package at AED 6,000, and SHAMS advertises a licence in under 60 minutes. Banking checks and corporate tax registration add steps of their own, so the “cheapest licence” isn’t automatically the cheapest outcome.
Founders launching on a tight setup budget get burned most often here. Pick the wrong zone and you’ll either pay for a Dubai address you don’t need, or save on the licence and then find that your facility doesn’t carry the visas you need. Let’s make sure you pick once.
Here’s what you’re actually comparing, as each zone publishes it on its own website (checked October 2026). AFZA’s visa and activity cells also draw on AFZA’s all-inclusive package list, obtained from AFZA in September 2026 and not published online. Where a zone does not publish a figure, the table says so: ask for a written quote. Licence times below are only what each zone advertises itself; approvals, visas and Emirates ID add time that depends on your case, and we confirm the expected dates when we submit.
| Feature | Ajman Free Zone (AFZA) | IFZA (Dubai) | SHAMS (Sharjah) | RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter licence price | Not published; the AFZA cost calculator emails a quote | Not published; IFZA sends a tailored proposal | Not published on the packages page; online calculator gives an estimate | Biz Starter: “for only AED 6,000”; all-inclusive package with one residence visa: AED 14,000 (as listed on the RAKEZ website, October 2026; T&Cs apply) |
| Visa quota | Base quota on AFZA’s product pages: 1 (Sole Professional Licence), 2 (Freelancer & Pioneers Hub, Offices, Executive Offices), minimum 14 (Warehouses). AFZA’s all-inclusive package list (obtained from AFZA, September 2026) runs from 0 to 10 visas on virtual-office packages and 1 to 10 on office packages; extra visas need immigration approval | Packages graded by visa allocation; you can start on a zero-visa package and upgrade later | “Up to 50 visas per license” | All-inclusive package: one residence visa, up to 3 more at AED 4,000 each; flexi desks limited to one visa |
| Entry-level facility | Co-working in the Freelancer & Pioneers Hub; also Business Center, Offices, Executive Offices | Flexi Desk and Flexi Desk+ shared desks, or an office | Flexi desk and lease agreement included in the Media and Standard packages | Coworking space on Biz Starter and the all-inclusive package; flexi desks and private offices |
| Business activities | 3,500+; office and virtual-office packages on AFZA’s package list allow up to 10 mixed activities, or general trading instead at extra cost; confirm with AFZA whether service and commercial can be mixed | “Thousands”; commercial and professional can be combined on one licence | “Hundreds” across consultancy, trading, media and e-commerce; up to 5 per licence | 3,000+ across 50+ sectors; Biz Starter up to 10 |
| Licence issue time (as advertised by the zone) | No published time found | “A few business days” for incorporation | Licence “in under 60 minutes, fully online” | Biz Starter: “Straight to business in 24 hours”; Instant Licence: under five minutes online |
| Bank account support | Partnership with Mashreq Bank (AFZA FAQ) | Bank account opening assistance | Corporate bank account assistance | Bank account opening support |
| Best-fit business | E-commerce, consulting, budget services | Dubai-facing professional services | Media, creative, content | Industrial, trading at scale, warehousing |
| Payment terms | Instalment plans of up to 6 months, depending on the package (AFZA FAQ) | No instalment plan published; ask in the quote | Interest-free instalments via Tabby and Tamara; monthly instalments via partner banks | Tabby instalments on the all-inclusive package |
Don’t want to figure this out alone? Sarmat is a KHDA-certified training provider and registered typing centre in Deira, Dubai. Message us on WhatsApp — we answer questions like this every day.
The “IFZA has more activities” line you keep reading? Check the current lists. AFZA says it offers over 3,500 business activities; IFZA says “thousands”. Both are more than wide enough that most founders never hit a wall, so the real difference is in the rules around them. IFZA says you can combine commercial and professional activities under a single licence. AFZA’s office and virtual-office packages (on its package list, obtained from AFZA, September 2026) allow up to 10 mixed activities, or general trading instead at extra cost. Its older FAQ still says a licence is either a service or a commercial one, so confirm with AFZA that your mix of service and commercial activities fits one licence.
So where does IFZA actually win? A Dubai address on your trade licence — IFZA sits in Dubai Silicon Oasis — and the name recognition that comes with it. If you’re pitching to European or GCC corporates who ask where your company is registered, “Dubai” reads differently than “Ajman” to a procurement manager who has never been to the UAE. Both zones let you start without a visa: IFZA on a zero-visa package you can upgrade later, AFZA on a zero-visa virtual-office package.
Where does AFZA win? Payment terms and a published base visa quota. AFZA’s FAQ says instalment plans of up to six months are available depending on your package, and its product pages state the visa quota for each facility: one for the Sole Professional Licence, two for the Freelancer & Pioneers Hub, Offices and Executive Offices, and a minimum of 14 for warehouses. Its package list goes up to 10 visas, so ask how many your package carries. Neither zone publishes a licence price list online, so ask both for a written quote for the same activities, facility and number of visas, and compare them line by line. For a bootstrapped e-commerce seller or a freelancer consolidating contracts under one licence, AFZA is often the more practical choice.
Sharjah Media City (SHAMS) is what happens when a free zone builds around a niche. Its Media Package covers up to five media activities and suits content creators, media production, advertising, publishing and digital agencies. SHAMS advertises a licence “in under 60 minutes, fully online”, its Media and Standard packages both come with a flexi desk and lease agreement, and it offers interest-free instalments through Tabby and Tamara.
If you’re running a YouTube channel, a video production company, a creative agency, or publishing work as a content creator, SHAMS gives you a package built around what you actually do.
But SHAMS is not media-only: its Standard Package takes any five business activities, and it lists hundreds of approved activities across consultancy, trading, media and e-commerce. The limit to watch is five activities per licence. If your plan needs more than that, or a warehouse, compare AFZA’s 3,500+ activity catalogue and its warehouse facilities before you choose.
RAKEZ (Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone) is two things at once: an industrial zone with warehousing, manufacturing and heavy-asset infrastructure, and a business zone with packages for small companies. Its Biz Starter package, aimed at UAE-based entrepreneurs and coming with a coworking space, is listed at AED 6,000, and its all-inclusive package with one UAE residence visa at AED 14,000 (as listed on the RAKEZ website, October 2026; T&Cs apply). Founders often miss that it’s split this way and end up comparing the wrong package.
If you’re planning to import and warehouse goods, run a factory, or manufacture at scale, RAKEZ is genuinely built for you: it runs the Al Ghail and Al Hamra industrial zones and leases warehouses of various sizes. It also advertises support with business bank account opening. Check the facility against your visa plan, though: RAKEZ’s FAQ says flexi desks are limited to one visa.
Where does RAKEZ lose to Ajman? Geography. Ras Al Khaimah is much further from Dubai than Ajman is. If your customers, meetings, suppliers and bank branches are all in Dubai or Sharjah, an AFZA licence a short drive from Deira makes daily operations noticeably easier. An e-commerce founder who stores inventory with a 3PL in Dubai and meets clients in JLT doesn’t need Ras Al Khaimah; they need Ajman’s location.
Forget brand. Pick by what you actually do.
AFZA. Broad activity catalogue, a short drive to Dubai suppliers and 3PL warehouses, and instalment plans of up to six months on some packages. Read our itemised Ajman Free Zone cost breakdown for the cost lines to ask about.
SHAMS. A Media Package with up to five media activities, a flexi desk and lease agreement, and a licence it advertises in under 60 minutes. Don’t pay for a general package elsewhere when SHAMS has one built for this.
RAKEZ. Dedicated industrial zones and warehouse leases, plus bank account opening support for larger operations.
IFZA. The Dubai address matters for client-facing credibility. Get a written quote and decide whether that address is worth the difference to you.
AFZA. Ask for a written quote for your facility and visa count, and compare it line by line with the others. See how Ajman compares to Dubai free zones overall if you’re still wavering.
Yes. AFZA’s FAQ says it has partnered with Mashreq Bank to help its companies open accounts, and IFZA, SHAMS and RAKEZ all advertise bank-account-opening assistance too. None of that is an approval: the bank decides after its own KYC review, and banks differ in which activities and ownership structures they are comfortable with. Each bank sets its own timeline, whichever zone you choose. It depends on your activity, ownership structure, and how quickly the KYC review and interviews are completed.
More than the licence line on the quote. For an AFZA company, the federal fees are published. ICP’s establishment card lists AED 100 for the application, AED 100 per year and AED 100 in smart service fees, plus a AED 2,000 subscription to its electronic system for establishments, a AED 1,000 guarantee and a AED 20 deposit fee. Per visa, ICP lists AED 300 for the work entry permit, AED 420 for a two-year residence permit and AED 300 for a two-year Emirates ID, and Emirates Health Services charges AED 250 plus the centre’s printing fee for the standard medical test in Ajman. Add AED 500 if the person changes status inside the country. AFZA’s own service charges, health insurance and typing fees come on top, and AFZA gives those in a quote. AFZA’s all-inclusive packages already bundle the establishment card, residence visa, medical test, Emirates ID and status change, so check which of these your quote covers before you add them; health insurance stays separate. IFZA is in Dubai, where GDRFA handles residence visas, so its fee stack is different.
Whichever zone you pick, ask for a written quote that shows each of these lines separately:
Add corporate tax registration for every company. Our complete AFZA setup walkthrough covers the full cost stack so you’re not surprised in month two.
AFZA is in Ajman and IFZA is in Dubai Silicon Oasis, so IFZA gives you a Dubai address on the licence. Neither publishes a licence price list online: AFZA’s cost calculator emails a quote and IFZA sends a tailored proposal, so ask both for a written quote for the same activities, facility and visas. AFZA lists over 3,500 activities, and the office and virtual-office packages on its package list (obtained from AFZA, September 2026) allow up to 10 mixed activities, or general trading instead at extra cost (its older FAQ says a licence is either service or commercial, so confirm your mix with AFZA); IFZA says it offers thousands of activities and lets you combine commercial and professional activities on one licence. AFZA’s product pages give a base visa quota by facility (one for the Sole Professional Licence, two for the Freelancer & Pioneers Hub, Offices and Executive Offices, a minimum of 14 for warehouses) and its package list runs from zero to ten visas; IFZA also lets you start on a zero-visa package and upgrade later. AFZA’s FAQ also mentions instalment plans of up to six months, depending on the package.
For media, creative, publishing and content-creator businesses, SHAMS (Sharjah Media City) has a Media Package with up to five media activities and a flexi desk and lease agreement, and it advertises a licence in under 60 minutes, fully online. For a freelancer consolidating general consulting work under one licence, AFZA’s Sole Professional Licence (one residence visa) or its Freelancer & Pioneers Hub (two residence visas) is worth a quote, and AFZA’s FAQ mentions instalment plans of up to six months depending on the package.
For small-to-medium trading focused on e-commerce or the UAE domestic market, AFZA is a short drive from Dubai suppliers and lists over 3,500 activities. Its FAQ says a general trading licence carries one activity, and that you move to a commercial trade licence to add more, so check which licence your product list needs. For industrial-scale trading with warehousing, manufacturing or bulk imports, RAKEZ runs the Al Ghail and Al Hamra industrial zones and leases warehouses; AFZA also has warehouses, with a minimum of 14 residence visas.
Yes. AFZA’s FAQ says it has partnered with Mashreq Bank to help its companies open accounts, and IFZA, SHAMS and RAKEZ also advertise bank-account-opening assistance. The bank still makes the decision after its own KYC review. Each bank sets its own account-opening timeline, whatever the zone: it depends on your activity, ownership structure, and how quickly the KYC review is completed.
You can spend four weekends researching, make a zone choice based on a Reddit thread, and still find yourself explaining to a bank why your activity codes don’t match your invoices. Or you can sit down with someone who handles these setups and get a structured, honest answer in an hour.
That’s what Sarmat does. With 12+ years in UAE government services, 5,000+ clients served across Dubai, and 300+ graduates from our KHDA-certified training programmes, we know where each of these four free zones genuinely fits — and where the marketing departments are stretching the truth. Our 100-Step Business Accelerator takes founders through the zone-selection, banking, and activity-mapping decisions as part of the 15 hours of structured content, and our Sarmat’s Dubai business setup service handles the paperwork end-to-end once you’ve decided.
If you want a direct answer for your specific business, message us on WhatsApp at wa.me/971506395245 with two lines — what you plan to sell and what your setup budget is — and we’ll tell you which of these four zones fits within an hour. No sales pitch, no retainer pressure. You get a straight recommendation; you do what you want with it.
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