Makani number Dubai 2026: what it is, how to find yours, and why it matters
A Makani number is the 10-digit code printed on the blue plate at the entrance of every Dubai building. It looks anonymous but it does the heavy lifting on a surprising amount of Dubai's everyday administration: ambulance dispatch, food deliveries, Ejari registration, DEWA activation, developer NOCs, and — relevant to everyone reading this — the property purchase paperwork that gets you to keys.
This guide covers what the Makani number is, how Dubai Municipality designed it, the three ways to find a Makani number for any building in the emirate, the Makani app, and exactly where you'll encounter the number during a property purchase and mortgage process.
What a Makani number is
Makani — Arabic for "my location" — is Dubai Municipality's geocoding system. Every officially registered building entrance in Dubai is assigned a unique 10-digit code, displayed on a blue plate near the main door, and recorded in a centralised geo-database. Launched in 2015 and now covering every completed building in the emirate, the system serves three purposes:
- Emergency services dispatch. Ambulance, police and Civil Defence units can use a Makani number to navigate directly to a building entrance — bypassing the ambiguity of street names and building numbers in newer communities.
- Logistics and delivery. Couriers, food delivery, ride-hailing and home services use the Makani number for precise drop-off in communities where street addressing alone isn't enough.
- Government administration. Several official processes — Ejari, DEWA activation, NOC applications, property buyer documentation — request the Makani number as a definitive address identifier.
The three ways to find a Makani number
1. The blue plate at the building entrance
Every Dubai building has a Makani plate — typically blue with white text — at the main entrance. The 10-digit number is printed clearly, and the plate often includes a QR code that opens the Makani app to that specific entrance. If you're physically at the property, this is the fastest way to get the number.
2. The Makani app
Dubai Municipality's free Makani app (available on iOS and Android) is the easiest way to find a Makani number remotely. You can:
- Search by building name (e.g. "Marina Heights, Dubai Marina")
- Search by community and street
- Use your current GPS location to find your nearest Makani
- Scan a Makani QR code from another source
- Share a Makani number to WhatsApp, email or any messaging app — recipients see the precise entrance, not just a general area
For property buyers, this is the recommended way to find the Makani number for a unit you're considering purchasing — without needing to visit the property.
3. Existing documents
Your DEWA bill, your Ejari certificate, your tenancy contract and many official letters from Dubai government bodies display the Makani number alongside the address. If you've lived in or visited the property, the number is almost certainly already on a document you have.
Where the Makani number shows up in a Dubai property purchase
Buying a property in Dubai involves a chain of administrative processes — most of which now request or use the Makani number at some point:
| Process | Where Makani is needed |
|---|---|
| NOC from developer | Address verification on the NOC application |
| DLD trustee transfer | Some trustee templates record the Makani as part of the property identifier |
| DEWA activation in your name | Required field on the DEWA online application |
| Ejari registration (if you'll rent it out) | Required field on the Ejari application |
| Du or Etisalat connection | Speeds up service activation |
| School registration | Some schools request as part of address verification |
| Mortgage valuation booking | Helps the panel valuer locate the unit precisely |
None of these will block your mortgage if the number is missing — but having it ready saves time at each stage. We recommend buyers note the Makani number when they first view a property and keep it with the rest of the property paperwork.
Makani vs other Dubai address systems
Dubai uses several overlapping address identifiers. It helps to know what each is for:
- Makani number (10-digit): Geocode for a specific building entrance. Used for navigation, emergency services and government administration.
- PO Box: Postal mailing address — not tied to a specific building but to a registered box at a post office. Mail delivery in Dubai still relies on PO Box.
- DEWA premise number (7-digit): Specific to a unit (not the building). Required for Ejari and DEWA. Different from Makani.
- Plot number / community / street name: Traditional address used in DLD records and tenancy contracts.
- Title deed number: Property identifier specific to the legal ownership record. Issued by DLD.
None of these replace each other — the right one depends on what you're trying to do. For property buyers, you'll need most of them at different stages.
The Makani number for off-plan and brand new buildings
Newly completed or off-plan-handover buildings sometimes don't yet appear in the public Makani database, even when the building plate is physically installed. The Municipality back-end takes time to publish new entries. Practical workaround: contact the developer's customer service and request the Makani number — they have it on the building handover documentation. Once the database catches up, the number is searchable like any other Makani.
For off-plan units that haven't completed yet, the Makani is assigned at handover. Until then you reference the building by developer name, project name and unit number. See our off-plan property UAE guide for how this affects the wider purchase process.
Common Makani questions
Is there a fee to get a Makani number?
No. Makani numbers are free, public and assigned automatically by Dubai Municipality. The Makani app is free.
Can two units in the same building have different Makani numbers?
Generally no — the Makani number identifies the building entrance, not individual units within it. A villa with two separate entrances may have two Makani numbers; a tower with hundreds of apartments and one main entrance has one Makani for the whole building. Individual units are identified by the Makani plus the unit number, or via the DEWA premise number (which is unit-specific).
Does Abu Dhabi or Sharjah have Makani?
Makani is Dubai-specific. Abu Dhabi has Onwani — its own equivalent geocoding system run by the Department of Municipalities and Transport. Other emirates use a mix of traditional addressing and PO Box systems.
I work in Dubai but my building's Makani plate is missing
Use the Makani app — the database has the number even if the physical plate is damaged or missing. You can also report missing plates to Dubai Municipality via the same app.
The bottom line
The Makani number is small infrastructure that makes a lot of bigger processes work. For a property buyer or mortgage applicant, the practical advice is straightforward: find the Makani number for any property you're seriously considering (use the Makani app — 30 seconds), keep it with the rest of your purchase paperwork, and have it ready when you reach DEWA activation, NOC application, and the trustee appointment.
Beyond that, the Makani number isn't something you need to think about often — it just needs to be in the file. To run your mortgage numbers on a property you're considering, use the mortgage calculator, see live rates on the rate page, or check what you can borrow on the eligibility tool.
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