Khalifa City & Masdar is a prime-tier Class A submarket of Abu Dhabi with average asking rent around AED 1,100/sqm/yr · ≈ $27.8 PSF/yr USD.

  • Innovation and university campus.
  • Prime tier — ~AED 1,100/sqm/yr.
  • Active Class A leasing market with deal flow across major broker desks.

Khalifa City & Masdar, Abu Dhabi — Class A submarket

Innovation and university campus. · Tier: prime · Avg rent: AED 1,100/sqm/yr · ≈ $27.8 PSF/yr USD

TL;DR

  • Innovation and university campus.
  • Prime tier — ~AED 1,100/sqm/yr.
  • Active Class A leasing market with deal flow across major broker desks.

Overview

Khalifa City and Masdar anchor Abu Dhabi's innovation and university campus belt — Masdar City sustainable district, Mubadala-related R&D, and Khalifa University.

Tenant profile

Sustainability, R&D, education (Khalifa University), AI (G42).

Typical specification

15–40,000 sqft floor plates available across newer Class A stock; 9'+ slab-to-slab and modern MEP common.

Transit

Bus only; planned light rail.

Multi-modal transit captures the metro's principal professional catchment.

Amenities

Masdar City Marketplace, Khalifa University.

Comparable buildings

  • Masdar City Office
  • Mubadala Tower Masdar
  • Khalifa University Office

Where Khalifa City & Masdar sits in Abu Dhabi

Khalifa City & Masdar is one of 5 Class A submarkets we cover in Abu Dhabi, classified as prime tier with an average asking rent around AED 1,100/sqm/yr · ≈ $27.8 PSF/yr USD. Compared with the broader Abu Dhabi Class A stock, Khalifa City & Masdar typically attracts Sustainability, R&D, education (Khalifa University), AI (G42) and competes most directly with the city's other prime submarkets on building specification, transit access, and amenitisation.

Adjacent submarkets to study alongside Khalifa City & Masdar: Al Maryah Island (ADGM), Corniche & Tourist Club, Al Reem Island, Capital Centre & ADNEC. The full Abu Dhabi submarket atlas is at /cities/abu-dhabi.

Topic deep-dives for Khalifa City & Masdar

For an institutional Class A occupier evaluating Khalifa City & Masdar, the highest-leverage analyses to commission next are the rent benchmark, the concession-package comparable, and the ESG performance baseline. Class A Atlas covers each as a dedicated topic page for this submarket:

Related glossary

Terminology specific to Abu Dhabi Class A leasing and to the prime tier: Class A, Trophy asset, Effective rent, Concession package, TI allowance, Submarket tier.

Editorial provenance

Reviewed by Samuel Okafor — EMEA contributing editor. Last updated 2026-04-15. See our methodology and editorial standards.

Primary sources for this page

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