Key Takeaways
The UAE's tradition of paying rent with 1, 2, or 4 post-dated cheques can create cash flow challenges for tenants who earn a monthly salary.
"Rent Now, Pay Later" (RNPL) services have emerged as a solution, paying your landlord upfront while you make manageable monthly payments.
This article compares the top RNPL providers in the UAE—including Rently, Keyper, Rentify, and ezy.rent—based on their flexibility, coverage, and unique features.
For maximum flexibility, Rently UAE works with any property across five emirates and is the only provider that can bundle your security deposit into your monthly plan.
While most residents in the UAE are paid a monthly salary, the traditional rental system often requires tenants to pay for their annual rent in one, two, or four large instalments via post-dated cheques.
This mismatch can create a significant financial burden. The need to pay for three, six, or even twelve months of rent in a single transaction, on top of moving costs and security deposits, puts pressure on household budgets and can make it difficult for tenants to secure their ideal home. Landlords often prefer fewer payments because it simplifies their administration and improves their own cash flow, but this practice can be challenging for tenants.
The good news? A new category of fintech services — Rent Now, Pay Later (RNPL) — has emerged to solve this problem. These platforms pay your landlord the full annual rent upfront, while you make manageable monthly payments. While several companies offer this service, including Rently, Keyper, Rentify, and ezy.rent, their models have important differences.
Understanding how each service works is key to choosing the right one for your apartment search. Here’s a breakdown of your options, starting with the most flexible.
Deep Dive: How Each Service Actually Works
Rently: Full Flexibility for Any Property
Rently is a UAE-based proptech and fintech company built around one core idea: your landlord gets paid in full upfront, and you pay Rently in 12 monthly payments via credit or debit card.
What sets Rently apart is that it works with any residential property across five emirates — Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, and Ras Al Khaimah — regardless of which agent, portal, or landlord you found it through. Found your apartment on Dubizzle? Through a friend? Directly from the landlord? Rently covers it. This property-agnostic approach, combined with the widest geographic coverage, is its clearest differentiator.
How the process works:
Submit a 2-minute online form — enter your annual rent, number of cheques, move-in date, and whether you want Rently to also cover your security deposit.
Upload your documents — proof of income (salary certificate or bank statements), your AECB credit report, and Emirates ID.
Get approved within 24 hours — Rently reviews eligible applications fast.
Sign digitally via DocuSign — no printing, no running around.
Make your first monthly payment to Rently.
Rently pays your landlord the full annual rent in 1, 2, 3, or 4 cheques as per your lease terms. You're in.
The security deposit bonus: This is a genuine standout feature, and Rently is the only provider to offer it as a bundled service. Most tenants dread the security deposit — typically 5% of annual rent — as it adds another significant upfront cost. With Rently, you can toggle on deposit coverage in the application form. Rently pays the deposit to the landlord, and you repay it as part of your monthly plan. At the end of your lease, the landlord returns the full deposit to you directly.
Credit card rewards: Because monthly payments go through your Visa, Mastercard, or Amex, you can earn points, miles, or cashback on what is likely your single largest monthly expense. Effectively turning rent into rewards.
Fees & eligibility: Rently's service fee is personalised based on your credit profile and landlord's payment terms. The minimum income requirement is AED 7,000/month, and they are known to support freelancers and self-employed individuals who can provide bank statements.
If you haven't found a property yet, you can get pre-approved now — so when you find the right apartment, you can move fast without financial hesitation.
Keyper: The Property Finder Play
Keyper has built its RNPL solution around a strategic partnership with Property Finder, one of the UAE's largest property listing platforms. The integration is designed to make monthly rent payments a native feature within the Property Finder experience — meaning you can browse, apply, and arrange monthly payments all within one ecosystem.
The trade-off is clear: Keyper's utility is largely tied to the Property Finder ecosystem. If your dream apartment is listed on another portal or found directly, Keyper likely isn't an option. Its geographic coverage is also focused on Dubai and Abu Dhabi, making it less suitable for tenants in the Northern Emirates. For dedicated Property Finder users, however, it offers a seamless and integrated experience.
Rentify: Rent and Utilities in One
Rentify also offers a flexible RNPL service (called Rentify Pay) that works with any property. Like Rently and ezy.rent, it is property-agnostic, giving you freedom in your apartment search.
Its unique selling point is utility payment coverage. Rentify is the only service that can bundle your utility bills along with your rent into a single monthly payment. This can simplify household budgeting by consolidating major expenses. Currently, the service is focused on the Dubai market.
ezy.rent: The Flexible Alternative
Like Rently and Rentify, ezy.rent provides an RNPL solution that works with any property, regardless of the landlord or agent. This makes it another flexible option for tenants across Dubai. The company offers a fully digital process for applications and payments.
While it doesn't offer bundled security deposits or utility payments, its core service provides the freedom to find a home on any platform and convert the annual rent into manageable monthly instalments.
An Alternative Model: Rewa
Rewa operates differently from the RNPL providers. It is not a "pay later" service but rather a platform that facilitates direct rent payments to your landlord using your credit or debit card, even if the landlord doesn't accept cards.
Its model is "rewards-first," designed for tenants who can afford the upfront payment but want to earn credit card rewards (points, miles, cashback) on a large transaction. It's a useful service for maximising rewards but doesn't solve the cash flow problem of paying for a full year's rent in one or two cheques.
The Verdict: Which Service Is Right for You?
Your choice of RNPL service depends on your specific needs: flexibility, unique features, or platform loyalty.
For Maximum Flexibility & Coverage: Rently is the clear choice if you want the most options. It works with any property, covers five emirates (the widest range), and is the only service that bundles your security deposit into your monthly payments. This combination solves the two biggest upfront cash hurdles and gives you total freedom in your apartment search.
For Property Finder Users: If you live on Property Finder and find your next home there, Keyper offers a deeply integrated and seamless experience. Its value is tied directly to that ecosystem.
To Bundle Rent + Utilities: If your main goal is to simplify all your major household bills into one payment, Rentify is the only provider that offers utility payment coverage alongside your rent.
For Other Flexible Options: ezy.rent is another solid, property-agnostic choice that provides the core RNPL service with a fully digital process, giving you freedom in your search.
The bottom line is simple: While most services now offer the flexibility to choose your own property, Rently provides the most comprehensive solution by also tackling the security deposit and covering the most ground geographically.
For tenants who've been stuck living in hotels or shared accommodation just to save up for an upfront payment, or who find the process of managing large lump-sum payments to be a source of stress, there's now a real, practical solution. You just need to know which tool actually fits your situation.
Don't Let Cheques Limit Your Apartment Search
The biggest takeaway is that you have options beyond post-dated cheques. While several RNPL services give you the flexibility to choose any property, their features and coverage vary. Your payment plan shouldn't dictate where you can live.
Whether you're scrolling through listings, working with an agent, or have already found the perfect place, the pressure of upfront costs is very real. It's easy to default to the traditional cheque system just to close a deal, but that decision can lock you into months of tight cash flow. The smart move is to know all your options before you sign the tenancy contract.
We built our service to work with any property, so you never have to compromise on your search. We also cover the security deposit upfront and fold it into your monthly payments, solving the two biggest cash hurdles at once. If you're still comparing apartments, it’s worth taking two minutes to check your monthly estimate — you’ll walk into your next viewing with a clear plan.
FAQs
What is "Rent Now, Pay Later" and how does it help tenants in the UAE?
"Rent Now, Pay Later" (RNPL) is a service that pays your landlord your full annual rent upfront. This helps tenants by converting a large lump-sum payment into 12 manageable monthly payments, easing cash flow pressure.
Do I need my landlord to agree to use an RNPL service?
No, you do not need your landlord to agree to use an RNPL service. The service pays your landlord with the number of cheques they require (1, 2, or 4), so from their perspective, the process remains exactly the same.
What fees are involved with using a service like Rently?
The fees involved with using a service like Rently are personalised, typically ranging from 5% to 16% of the annual rent. Your specific service fee is calculated based on your credit profile and the landlord's payment terms.
Can I use Rently for any apartment, or only specific ones?
Yes, you can use Rently for any residential apartment in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, and Ras Al Khaimah. It works with any landlord or real estate agent, regardless of where you found the property listing.
What documents do I need to apply for a Rent Now, Pay Later plan?
To apply for a Rent Now, Pay Later plan, you typically need proof of income (like a salary certificate), your Emirates ID, and your AECB credit report. The process is fully digital, with documents uploaded online.
