Salik is Dubai's road toll, and on a rental car you never deal with it directly. There are no booths and nothing to pay at the roadside. A small tag on the windscreen is read each time the car passes under a toll gate, the charge is recorded against the car, and it is added to your rental bill at the end.
What a crossing costs
- Peak, AED 6.30: from 6 to 10 in the morning and 4 to 8 in the evening, Monday to Saturday.
- Off-peak, AED 4.20: the rest of the day, and all day on Sundays.
- Free: between 1 and 6 am, every day.
Each pass under a gate is one charge. A return trip through the same gate is two.
Where the gates are
There are ten gates, most of them on the main roads you will use anyway.
- On Sheikh Zayed Road: Al Barsha, near Mall of the Emirates; Al Safa North and Al Safa South, between Downtown and Al Quoz; and Jebel Ali, on the way towards Abu Dhabi.
- On Al Khail Road: the Business Bay crossing.
- On the creek crossings: Al Garhoud Bridge and Al Maktoum Bridge.
- Near the airport: the Airport Tunnel.
- Towards Sharjah: Al Mamzar North and Al Mamzar South on Al Ittihad Road.
A drive from the Marina to Downtown on Sheikh Zayed Road goes under more than one gate each way. Map apps usually mark the gates on a route, so you can see the count before you set off.
How it appears on your bill
Each car in our fleet has its own Salik account. When the car comes back, we list the crossings made during your rental, with dates and times, and charge exactly what Salik charged. There is no markup and no fee per crossing on top.
Because the charges are tied to the car, not the driver, you do not need your own Salik account and you do not need to top anything up during the rental.
Abu Dhabi uses a different system
Outside Dubai, Salik does not apply. Abu Dhabi has its own toll, called Darb, with gates on the bridges into Abu Dhabi island. If you plan to drive there, ask us before you go how Darb is handled for your car. Our Dubai to Abu Dhabi guide covers the rest of that drive.
A few things worth knowing
- Salik is not a fine. It is a normal road charge, like fuel. Fines are a separate matter, charged at the Dubai Police figure; see traffic fines on a rental.
- Late nights are free. Driving between 1 and 6 am costs nothing at any gate.
- The charge is the same for every car. A Corolla and a Rolls-Royce pay the same AED 6.30 at peak.
If you want a rough idea of your toll cost before you book, tell us where you are staying and where you plan to drive, and we will tell you which gates you are likely to pass.
