Headcount & Licensing
Most costs scale linearly with headcount — M365 licences per user, EDR licences per endpoint, laptop count. The choice between M365 Business Standard, Business Premium and E3 creates the largest per-user variance.
Office Setup Cost Guide · Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi Office IT Setup Cost Guide — What Actually Affects the Price
Emirtech Technology can deliver new-office IT setup across Abu Dhabi. This guide explains the cost factors honestly — what drives the price, what does not, and why two office IT quotes can differ 30-50%.
ADMCC-approved (security systems) Free Site Survey Since 2018 Honest Scope
In short: This guide, “Abu Dhabi Office IT Setup Cost Guide — What Actually Affects the Price”, explains what drives the cost. Ranges, where shown, are indicative planning figures, not a quotation or an Emirtech price list; a written, itemised quotation follows a survey or assessment.
Abu Dhabi Office IT Setup Cost Guide — What Actually Affects the Price: key facts
| Published by | Published by Emirtech Technology, an independent integrator in Mussafah, Abu Dhabi, in operation since 2018. |
|---|---|
| Where? | Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, served from Emirtech's Mussafah, Abu Dhabi base; there is no Al Ain office. In Dubai: smart home, PABX and IP-PBX phone systems, IT AMC and time attendance by scheduled on-site visits, gate barriers, ANPR, video intercoms and turnstiles by Emirtech itself; CCTV, alarm and access control through SIRA-approved partners, with Emirtech coordinating. |
| Survey and quotation | Emirtech publishes no price list. Any ranges on this page are indicative planning figures, not a quotation; a written, itemised quotation follows a survey or assessment. |
| Credentials | Emirtech is an independent systems integrator. It holds no manufacturer-level credential of its own, and its ADMCC approval covers security systems only, not IT services. |
| Last reviewed | 21 October 2026 |
What actually determines Abu Dhabi office IT setup cost?
There is no single price for "office IT setup" — a 5-staff SMB office and a 50-staff mid-market office live in entirely different price universes, and within each scale the choices made on cabling category, Wi-Fi platform, firewall, M365 licensing, EDR, backup and IP-PBX drive 30-50% cost differences. Emirtech does not publish fixed office-IT-setup prices because honest pricing requires understanding what is actually being delivered. This guide explains the eleven factors that drive Abu Dhabi office IT setup cost so you can understand a quote rather than just react to the bottom-line number: (1) headcount — scales most costs linearly (M365 licences per user, EDR per endpoint, laptop count); (2) office size and layout — cabling drop count, Wi-Fi AP count, CCTV camera count; (3) cabling category — Cat6, Cat6A, OM3 fibre; (4) Wi-Fi platform — Aruba Instant On vs Cisco Meraki (subscription) vs UniFi (no subscription); (5) firewall — FortiGate 40F vs 80F vs 100F based on throughput; (6) M365 tier — Business Basic vs Standard vs Premium vs E3/E5; (7) EDR platform — Defender for Business bundled vs Sophos / SentinelOne / CrowdStrike standalone; (8) backup — third-party M365 backup is a per-user-per-month cost; (9) IP-PBX — 3CX per-simultaneous-call vs Yeastar appliance vs Microsoft Teams Phone; (10) CCTV — camera count, brand, NVR; (11) AMC — tier and response arrangements. Emirtech itemises every quote across these factors so customers can compare like-for-like with other quotes. Call +971 55 651 7843 for a free office IT setup survey.
What each office size includes
What office IT infrastructure setup includes, by headcount
Each office size below covers the network infrastructure itself — cabling, Wi-Fi, firewall, switching and install labour — and is priced in the itemised written quotation after a free site survey. Recurring per-user licensing (M365, EDR, backup) is quoted separately, as described below.
| Office size | Typical scope | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 5–15 staff SMB | Wall-mount rack, FortiGate 40F/60F, 2–3 APs, basic cabling | Quoted after survey |
| 15–30 staff growing SMB | 18U rack, FortiGate 80F/100F, 4–6 APs, structured cabling, 3-2-1 backup setup | Quoted after survey |
| 30–50 staff mid-market | 24U–42U rack, FortiGate 100F+, 6–10 APs, dedicated server | Quoted after survey |
A customer-facing addition (guest Wi-Fi, reception CCTV, digital signage, POS networking) is quoted as its own line. On top of this one-time infrastructure cost, recurring per-user licensing applies monthly — M365 is licensed per user per month, with the plan (Basic to E5) setting the rate (Microsoft list prices change; check Microsoft's current price list), plus EDR and backup where not bundled — see the FAQ below for the current tiers. A transparent, itemised quotation follows a free site survey — call +971 55 651 7843.
What you are actually paying for
The factors that drive office IT cost
Office Size, Cabling & Wi-Fi
Office size drives cabling drop count, Wi-Fi AP count and CCTV camera count. Cat6A vs Cat6 cable category matters; Wi-Fi platform (Aruba Instant On vs Meraki subscription vs UniFi no-subscription) drives 5-year cost more than initial hardware.
Firewall, EDR & Backup
FortiGate sizing (40F vs 80F vs 100F) drives firewall cost; EDR platform choice (Defender for Business bundled in M365 Business Premium vs standalone Sophos / SentinelOne / CrowdStrike) drives ongoing licence cost.
AMC Tier & Response Arrangements
AMC tier (visit frequency and scope) and response arrangements (a longer vs a shorter response window) drive ongoing cost. Often a fraction of installation cost per year but matters for total 3-5 year cost.
Two office IT quotes can differ 30-50% — why
The bottom-line price on an office IT quote is driven by visible factors (headcount, office size). The total project cost is also driven by less visible factors that determine whether you have a properly designed setup or a cheap setup that will need re-doing. Call +971 55 651 7843 or request a free office IT survey.
- Cable category and brand (Cat6 vs Cat6A; Commscope vs no-name)
- Wi-Fi platform and subscription model
- PoE switch grade (managed vs unmanaged)
- Firewall sizing and subscription (FortiGuard, Sophos Central)
- M365 tier (Basic / Standard / Premium / E3 / E5)
- EDR platform (bundled Defender vs standalone Sophos / SentinelOne)
- Third-party M365 backup
- IP-PBX choice (3CX vs Yeastar vs Teams Phone)
- CCTV camera count, brand, NVR
- AMC tier and response arrangements
- ADMCC documentation depth (CCTV and access control)
Typical configurations
Sizing patterns by office headcount
5-15 staff SMB
Compact: wall-mount rack, FortiGate 40F/60F, 2-3 APs, M365 Business Standard or Premium, EDR (Defender for Business bundled), basic AMC. Lower total per-staff cost.
15-30 staff growing SMB
Mid-size: 18U rack, FortiGate 80F/100F, 4-6 APs, M365 Business Premium (Intune, EDR, Conditional Access bundled), 3-2-1 backup, standard AMC.
30-50 staff mid-market
Larger: 24U-42U rack, FortiGate 100F+, 6-10 APs, M365 Business Premium or E3, dedicated server for AD/file/applications, a higher AMC tier with a shorter response target.
Customer-facing addition
Customer-facing offices need additional guest captive-portal Wi-Fi, queue management if applicable, reception CCTV, digital signage and POS networking if card payments — adds ~15-25% to base SMB office cost.
What an honest Abu Dhabi office IT quote looks like
Emirtech quotes itemise every component:
- Network & cabling: Drop count, cable category, brand, conduit / trunking, certification.
- Wi-Fi: Platform, AP model, AP count, subscription tier and term.
- Firewall & switch: Model, sizing, subscription (FortiGuard, Sophos Central).
- M365: Tier per user, user count, ongoing per-user-per-month.
- EDR: Platform, per-endpoint cost, term.
- Backup: M365 backup per user per month plus any on-premise.
- IP-PBX: Platform, licensing model, phone count and model, SIP trunk.
- CCTV: Camera count, model, NVR, retention.
- Access control: Door count, biometric / card hardware.
- Project labour: Site visits, install days, commissioning.
- AMC: Tier, scope and response arrangements priced separately.
Emirtech does not publish fixed office IT setup prices because honest pricing requires understanding what is actually being delivered. Every quote we issue is itemised on the above structure so you can compare like-for-like with other quotes. We are a security and IT systems integrator (ADMCC-approved for security systems) based in Mussafah M44 since 2018. Free office IT setup surveys across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Dubai.
Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Abu Dhabi office IT setup cost depend on?
There is no single answer — headcount, office size, cabling category, Wi-Fi platform, firewall sizing, M365 tier, EDR choice, backup, IP-PBX, CCTV and AMC all matter. The network infrastructure itself (cabling, Wi-Fi, firewall, switching) is priced by office size in the itemised written quotation, plus recurring per-user M365, EDR and backup licensing. The only honest way to know the cost for your project is a site survey. Call +971 55 651 7843 to arrange one — free.
Why are two office IT quotes so different?
Usually because they are not actually quoting the same thing. Different cable category, different Wi-Fi platform (subscription vs no-subscription), different M365 tier, different EDR platform, different AMC scope. The cheaper quote often becomes the more expensive system once you add what was excluded — properly designed quotes itemise every component so you can compare like-for-like.
Does Emirtech publish fixed office IT setup prices?
No. Camera count, cabling, Wi-Fi, M365, EDR, backup and AMC vary enough from project to project that a single fixed price would be misleading. Every Emirtech quote starts with a free site survey so we understand the real project before quoting — and every quote is itemised so you understand what drives the cost.
What is the typical M365 licence cost per user?
M365 is licensed per user per month, and the rate depends on the plan: Business Basic, Business Standard (adds desktop Office), Business Premium (adds EDR, Intune, Conditional Access), E3 (mid-market) or E5 (enterprise). Microsoft changes its list prices, so check Microsoft's current price list. Emirtech publishes no price list; we quote after a free site survey.
Should I budget for ongoing AMC on top of installation?
Yes. Office IT systems benefit from regular firmware updates, M365 administration, security review and on-call response when something goes wrong. AMC pricing depends on system size and response-time expectation — typically a fraction of the installation cost per year but matters for 3-5 year total cost.
How do I get a free office IT setup survey?
Call +971 55 651 7843 or request a free office IT survey. A specialist visits your office, walks through the headcount, layout and operational reality with you and responds with an itemised, transparent quotation once the survey is done.
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