Dubai to Sharjah Airport: Taxi Fare, Meter Rules and a Fixed-Fare Private Car

If you are asking what a taxi from Dubai to Sharjah Airport costs, you probably have an early Air Arabia flight, a hotel in Dubai and a morning that needs to work. The short version: the airport sits only a short hop across the emirate line from Dubai, but the fare on the meter moves with where you start, when you leave and how congested the Dubai to Sharjah corridor is.

This page explains how the taxi fare is built, what the airport itself says about taxis, how long the drive really takes from different parts of Dubai, and when a fixed-fare private car beats the meter. For the car, the booker shows the all-in fare for your pickup and vehicle before you pay.

Check your fixed fare

How far is Dubai to Sharjah Airport?

The airport's own location page says it is 13 km south-east of Sharjah and 15 km from central Dubai. Air Arabia, which has used Sharjah as its official hub since 2003, describes the airport as 10 km from Sharjah's city centre and 15 km from the emirate of Dubai.

Those are best-case figures from the nearest part of Dubai. In practice, your start point matters.

Figures are approximate. Check your confirmation for the exact route.

When does the road jam?

The Dubai to Sharjah corridor is heavily used by people who live in one emirate and work in the other. Traffic is heaviest toward Dubai in the morning and back toward Sharjah in the evening. A Dubai to Sharjah Airport transfer in the middle of the day, or very late at night, is usually quick. A pickup at 4:30 pm for a 7 pm departure is where people get caught out.

Practical timing rules:

• For a flight departing before 8 am, leave Dubai in the small hours when the road is clear, and allow about 30 – 45 minutes.
• For a mid-morning flight, add a traffic cushion, particularly from the south of Dubai.
• For an evening flight, remember the road toward Sharjah fills up between about 4 pm and 8 pm.
• Leave earlier if you check a bag or need to complete any airline formalities at the airport.

Dubai to Sharjah Airport taxi fare: how it is built

There is no single published "Dubai to Sharjah Airport taxi fare", and anyone quoting one without knowing your start point is guessing. A metered taxi fare is made from a start charge, a per-kilometre rate, time spent in traffic and any extra charges such as tolls or a border supplement. Here is what we can verify.

• At Dubai International, taxis at the terminal ranks begin at AED 25, according to the DXB taxi page, as of 2026. That is a start fare for pickups at the airport rank. It is not the price of the trip to Sharjah.
• For trips that start at Sharjah Airport, the airport's taxi page says fares are metered and that an airport surcharge of AED 20 applies to every trip originating at the airport. That matters for your return, not for the outbound journey.
• Salik, Dubai's electronic toll, changes with the time of day, and whether a gate is crossed depends on the route you take.

The bottom line: the meter makes the fare a range, not a number. If you would rather have a known cost before the trip, a pre-booked fixed fare solves that. Ask the booker, and it shows the figure before you pay.

Taxi versus other ways to reach Sharjah Airport

Here is the comparison. Times are door to door from central Dubai.

On public transport, we could not confirm a direct route to the airport. The airport's own public-transport page returned no content when we checked, so treat bus access as something to verify with the operator or in the RTA's journey planner before relying on it. The RTA's intercity bus page links to its ticketing, but it did not list airport stops when we looked.

When a taxi is the better choice, and when it is not

Take a taxi if you travel alone with a single bag, you are at a hotel with a taxi rank outside, and you have no fixed deadline. A taxi also makes sense when you decide at the last minute.

Book a private car if:

• the flight is early and you do not want to hunt for a cab in the dark;
• there are three or more of you, or you have extra bags;
• you need a child seat or a booster;
• you want a known fare on a day when meter totals are unpredictable;
• you are travelling for work and need a receipt in a single invoice.

For an early departure, the sensible choice is the pickup you arranged the night before.

A worked example: a Dubai Marina hotel to a morning flight

Say your flight leaves Sharjah at 9:30 am and you are staying near Dubai Marina. The distance is roughly 60 km, which takes close to an hour at an easy pace and more once the morning rush toward Dubai begins on the other side of the road. You also want to be at the airport comfortably ahead of departure, which means asking when your airline opens check-in and deciding how much buffer you want for a checked bag.

Work backwards from the flight: check-in time first, then the drive with a traffic cushion, then a few minutes at the hotel for luggage and the car. The pickup is usually set well before sunrise. With a fixed-fare booking the chauffeur is at the door at that time, the car is already cool and you are not trying to catch a cab at the hotel rank in the dark.

Early-flight checklist

• Confirm the airline's check-in opening time for your flight the day before.
• Share your flight number and the number of bags when you book.
• Add child seat ages if you travel with children.
• Keep passports and boarding documents in your hand luggage, not the boot.
• Check that your hotel can release your key card and bill early.
• Message the 24/7 desk if your hotel changes or the departure time moves.

Booking the Dubai to Sharjah Airport transfer

The booking asks for your pickup address in Dubai, the date and time, the airline and flight number, and the number of passengers and bags. You choose a vehicle and see the fixed fare. The desk in Toronto confirms the booking, and a vetted, licensed and commercially insured local transfer partner delivers the ride, with vehicles no more than four model years old.

For a couple with two bags, an Executive Sedan (Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Cadillac or similar) is plenty. A family of five or six heading off on holiday with big cases should look at the Luxury SUV (Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon Denali, Chevrolet Suburban or similar), and a group flying together can use an Executive Sprinter (Mercedes-Benz Sprinter) for up to twelve people. The exact model is confirmed at booking. Ask for a child, toddler or booster seat when you reserve and it is waiting at the door. Most vehicles carry water and a phone charger, and the fleet page shows the classes.

Book this transfer

If you are arriving at Sharjah and heading to Dubai

The reverse direction is just as common: land at Sharjah, then continue to a Dubai hotel. The airport states that taxis are available at stands on the arrival level of each terminal, that family and ladies-only taxis are available, and that Sharjah Taxi runs 24 hours. A pre-booked car for arrivals works differently: the chauffeur tracks your flight, and free waiting is 60 minutes after an international landing and 30 after a domestic one. A name-board greeting in the arrivals hall can be added on request.

Plan your drop-off accordingly. The reverse trip into Dubai crosses the same corridor, and the morning rush runs toward Dubai, so a mid-morning landing can cost more time than a night-time one. For a Dubai hotel drop-off, see Dubai hotel transfers.

Linking Sharjah with the rest of your Gulf trip

Many trips combine Sharjah with other UAE stops. If your itinerary includes Dubai International, see DXB airport transfers and the Dubai airport meet and greet page. A day in the capital is covered by Dubai Airport to Abu Dhabi. For hourly hire with a driver in Dubai, see car with driver in Dubai, and the Middle East overview lists the other Gulf cities. Every route is in the transfers hub. For a fuller comparison of taxis, rideshare and booked cars, read airport transfer vs taxi vs rideshare.

Cancellation is counted from the scheduled pickup: more than 72 hours' notice, no charge; 72 hours or less, 10%; 48 hours or less, 50%; 24 hours or less or a no-show, 100%. For large events the cut-off can differ, and the confirmation says so.

Reserve your car