UAE petrol price October 2026: petrol up about AED 0.60 per litre, diesel up AED 0.50. Special 95 is now AED 4.28 per litre (from AED 3.69 in September), Super 98 is AED 4.40, E-Plus 91 is AED 4.21, and diesel is AED 4.80 (from AED 4.30). Every grade is at its highest level of 2026. For a 60-litre tank of Special 95 that is roughly AED 35 more per fill-up than September. For the same tank of diesel it is about AED 30 more.
The UAE Fuel Price Committee raised petrol and diesel rates for October 2026, effective 1 October. It is the third monthly rise in a row and the largest of the three: petrol climbs by about 16 percent on every grade, and diesel adds another AED 0.50 on top of September’s. The result is a month in which no grade has been more expensive at any point this year.
How much is petrol in the UAE in October 2026?
These rates take effect on 1 October 2026 and hold across all seven emirates until the next monthly review:
| Fuel grade | October 2026 | September 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Super 98 | AED 4.40 | AED 3.80 | up AED 0.60 (15.8%) |
| Special 95 | AED 4.28 | AED 3.69 | up AED 0.59 (16.0%) |
| E-Plus 91 | AED 4.21 | AED 3.61 | up AED 0.60 (16.6%) |
| Diesel | AED 4.80 | AED 4.30 | up AED 0.50 (11.6%) |
Special 95 at AED 4.28 passes June’s AED 3.83, the previous high for 2026, by AED 0.45. Diesel at AED 4.80 passes the AED 4.69 it held in April and May. Petrol’s rise is the second-largest of the year, behind April’s AED 0.80. VAT of 5 percent is already included in every figure.
Why did prices rise so much in October?
The committee’s announcement attributes monthly changes to global energy markets and does not break the move down grade by grade. The backdrop is not hard to find, though. Through September, renewed US and Iran hostilities and tension around the Strait of Hormuz pushed Brent close to USD 110 a barrel and WTI above USD 105, according to The National, which also points to Houthi attacks on Saudi facilities in the Red Sea. UAE pump prices follow the average global price with roughly a one-month lag, so September’s crude is October’s pump price.
Put in a longer frame, Special 95 at AED 4.28 is about 84 percent above February’s AED 2.33, the cheapest month of the year.
What happened to the diesel gap?
Unusually for 2026, petrol moved harder than diesel this month, so the premium a diesel driver pays over Special 95 narrows rather than widens:
| Month | Special 95 | Diesel | Diesel premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2026 | AED 2.42 | AED 2.55 | AED 0.13 |
| February 2026 | AED 2.33 | AED 2.52 | AED 0.19 |
| March 2026 | AED 2.48 | AED 2.72 | AED 0.24 |
| April 2026 | AED 3.28 | AED 4.69 | AED 1.41 |
| May 2026 | AED 3.55 | AED 4.69 | AED 1.14 |
| June 2026 | AED 3.83 | AED 4.33 | AED 0.50 |
| July 2026 | AED 3.29 | AED 3.60 | AED 0.31 |
| August 2026 | AED 3.49 | AED 3.80 | AED 0.31 |
| September 2026 | AED 3.69 | AED 4.30 | AED 0.61 |
| October 2026 | AED 4.28 | AED 4.80 | AED 0.52 |
The gap falls from AED 0.61 to AED 0.52. That is no comfort to anyone running a diesel pickup or van, whose fuel still costs more than at any point this year. It simply means that in October the petrol driver’s budget moved further.
What the October rise costs you at the pump
On Special 95, the increase is roughly three times the size of September’s:
- A 60-litre fill-up now costs about AED 257, against roughly AED 221 in September. That is around AED 35 more each time you fill.
- Over a month of typical use (about four fills, 240 litres), the rise adds close to AED 142 versus September.
- A larger SUV on a 90-litre tank pays about AED 385, roughly AED 53 more per fill.
On diesel, the arithmetic repeats September’s:
- A 60-litre fill-up now costs about AED 288, against roughly AED 258 in September, so about AED 30 more each time.
- Over a month at 240 litres, that is close to AED 120 more than September.
- A pickup or van on a 100-litre tank pays about AED 480, AED 50 more per fill.
What renters actually ask at handover
Our rentals team hears the same three questions at handover no matter which way the price moved.
“What will a full tank cost me?” At October rates, filling a typical 60-litre sedan with Special 95 comes to about AED 257. A 90-litre SUV tank is roughly AED 385. Both are now above June’s fills of about AED 230 and AED 345, so this is the most a tank has cost this year.
“How far will that tank take me?” That depends on the car far more than on the month. Multiply the tank size by the car’s real-world kilometres per litre. Cooler October evenings help a little, but idling in traffic with the air conditioning on still eats range faster than most drivers expect.
“Do I have to bring it back full?” That is the rental company’s fuel policy, not the pump price, so check the fuel line on your agreement before you drive off. Collected full means returned full, and refuelling charges added afterwards usually cost more than filling it yourself, which matters more in a month like this one.
What it means if you rent or buy a car
Fuel is one of the biggest running costs of owning a car, and a 16 percent rise in a single month is the kind of move that makes people revisit the numbers.
If you rent: the rental rate itself does not move with the pump price, so fuel is your only exposure. Customers still choose on rental price, space and comfort first. Where fuel economy starts to decide the pick is on long road trips and rentals that run into weeks or months, and at October prices the difference between a thirsty SUV and an efficient sedan over a month is worth pricing before you book.
If you are buying used: the lesson of 2026 is range, not level. Special 95 has run from AED 2.33 to AED 4.28 in eight months. Budget fuel as a variable that can move by a third in either direction within a year, and let your annual mileage, not this month’s rate, decide how much efficiency is worth paying for. Our guides to used cars under AED 100,000 and GCC vs non-GCC spec are the practical places to start.
The honest read: a single month’s move should not decide a car purchase, even one this large. Buy for the car and your real usage, and treat fuel as the monthly variable it clearly is this year.
Frequently asked questions
What is the petrol price in the UAE right now?
From 1 October 2026, Special 95 is AED 4.28 per litre, Super 98 is AED 4.40, E-Plus 91 is AED 4.21, and diesel is AED 4.80. These are the same across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the other emirates.
Did petrol prices go up or down in October 2026?
Up. Every petrol grade rose by about AED 0.60 per litre compared with September, between 15.8 and 16.6 percent depending on grade. Diesel rose by AED 0.50, about 11.6 percent.
Is October 2026 the highest petrol price of the year?
Yes. Special 95 at AED 4.28 is above June’s AED 3.83, the previous 2026 high. Diesel at AED 4.80 is above the AED 4.69 of April and May. Super 98 and E-Plus 91 are also at their highest levels of the year.
When do UAE petrol prices change?
The UAE Fuel Price Committee sets rates at the start of each month, and they stay fixed until the next review. So the October rates hold until the November announcement.
Is it cheaper to fill up in Dubai or Abu Dhabi?
Neither. UAE fuel prices are set nationally each month, so a litre of Special 95 costs the same in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and every other emirate. What changes your total is the grade: on a 60-litre fill, Super 98 costs about AED 7.20 more than Special 95 at October rates.
Is diesel still more expensive than petrol?
Yes. Diesel is AED 4.80 against AED 4.28 for Special 95, a premium of AED 0.52. That is down from AED 0.61 in September, because petrol rose more than diesel this month.
See the full year at a glance: our UAE petrol prices 2026 tracker keeps every month’s rates and the next-month outlook in one place.
Rephrase in a different way as if you were a native American speaker as a content creation expert and do not talk about yourself or your experience in the text and do not show yourself as an artificial intelligence who wrote and fill the bullet point in the topic and speak the heart of the topic itself and dont take date of blog in ther first and dont take text like box of newsliter subscribe on post from content and romove all linke insert in content and and remove all affiliate disclosure phrases on content like this “This post may contain Amazon or other affiliate links that allow us to earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please see our Disclosure Policy for more info and replace”#” put in its place bullet point, and romove name of the web site or his links we are take a content from our new creation,f content talking about another country for car rental Rephrase content to talk about car rental in morocco, and don’t publish clone new content more than just one time
