Groupon UAE
- Company typePublic
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersDubai, United Arab Emirates
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
Groupon UAE firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Groupon UAE
- Legal name
- Groupon, Inc.
- Website
- https://groupon.ae
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Groupon UAE industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Local Deals Marketplace
- akta.pro primary industry
- Local Services & Experiences Generalist Marketplaces (CRAFAAAD)
Keywords
Where Groupon UAE is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dubai
- HQ country
- United Arab Emirates
- HQ region
- Middle East
Offices1 record
Markets served
Groupon UAE business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel
Revenue model
- Deal Commission Revenue: Groupon earns revenue by taking a commission on each deal sold through the platform. Merchants list deals at a discount and Groupon retains a percentage of the transaction value. This is a transaction-based revenue model.
- Promotional Codes and Premium Placement: Merchants can pay for promotional codes and featured placement within categories to increase visibility of their deals, providing additional revenue streams.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Voucher-based deal pricing - prices vary by deal |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Merchant pricing - no upfront cost |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Groupon UAE product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Groupon UAE operates a two-sided online marketplace where UAE consumers discover, purchase, and redeem discounted vouchers for local experiences, dining, beauty, activities, travel, and other merchant offers. On the merchant side, it provides self-service deal listing, management, performance tracking, bookings, and paid promotion tools.
Product overview
Groupon UAE operates as a two-sided marketplace connecting local merchants with consumers seeking deals on experiences. The platform consists of the Groupon Marketplace (consumer-facing deal discovery and purchase platform) and Groupon Merchant (merchant-facing portal for deal creation, Booking Solutions, and Groupon Promotions tools). Supporting products include Groupon Gift Cards, Groupon Mobile App (100M+ downloads), and seasonal promotional campaigns like Do More Together, Dubai Summer Surprises, and Beauty Week. Categories include food & drink, beauty & spas, things to do (leisure), travel, and local experiences.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Groupon Marketplace Online marketplace for UAE consumers to discover, purchase, and redeem vouchers for discounted experiences, dining, beauty services, activities, travel, and other local deals offered by third-party merchants.
- Groupon Merchant Self-serve merchant platform for creating, managing, and promoting deals, attracting new customers, building brand loyalty, and managing bookings without an upfront merchant cost.
- Groupon Mobile App Mobile application for iOS and Android that enables consumers to discover deals, receive push notifications for offers, purchase deals, and manage digital vouchers on the go.
- Groupon Gift Cards Digital gift card offering that allows users to purchase and send Groupon deal vouchers to friends and family with personalized messages.
- Groupon Promotions Merchant promotion service through which businesses can pay for promotional codes and featured placement within categories to increase the visibility of their deals.
Quantifiable outcome
- Up to 70% off on featured deals during promotional periods
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Groupon UAE
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Groupon UAE technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Groupon UAE partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Groupon UAE competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Cobone: Dubai-headquartered deals and group-buying marketplace covering the UAE and wider MENA. Directly comparable to Groupon UAE in business model, target merchants, and consumer segments.
- The Entertainer: UAE-founded 2-for-1 and discount offers platform serving restaurants, spas, hotels, and attractions across the GCC. Same merchant-consumer marketplace mechanics and same UAE customer base as Groupon UAE.
- Groupon, Inc. US-listed parent (NASDAQ: GRPN) operating the same two-sided deals marketplace globally. Groupon UAE is a direct regional extension of this parent platform and shares its product, technology, and merchant network.
Emerging players
- Klook: Asia-headquartered travel experiences and activities marketplace with growing UAE presence. Overlaps with Groupon UAE in 'Things To Do' and attraction inventory, though focused primarily on tourist bookable experiences.
- GetYourGuide: Global online marketplace for tours, attractions, and experiences with curated inventory in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Competes with Groupon UAE for tourist experience bookings and merchant partnerships in the things-to-do category.
- Viator: Tripadvisor-owned experiences marketplace with substantial UAE attraction inventory. Comparable to Groupon UAE's travel and things-to-do vertical, especially for tourist-driven deal discovery.
Broad incumbents
- Yelp: US-listed local business discovery platform that has run deals and gift offerings. A broad incumbent adjacent to Groupon UAE's local-merchant consumer marketplace, though not UAE-focused.
- Booking.com: Global travel platform with an expanding experiences and attractions offering in the UAE. A broad incumbent whose UAE experiences inventory and consumer reach compete with Groupon UAE's travel and things-to-do categories.
Others
- LivingSocial: Historical direct competitor in the daily-deals category that has wound down operations. Cited as a comparable illustrating execution and category-level risk for the marketplace model Groupon UAE runs.
- Amazon Local: Historical deals offering from Amazon that operated a similar local-merchant discount marketplace. Referenced as a now-defunct comparable illustrating the structural challenges of the deals marketplace category Groupon UAE operates in.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Groupon UAE social profiles
Digital presenceGroupon UAE financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Groupon UAE leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Groupon UAE funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Groupon UAE M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Groupon UAE
What does Groupon UAE do?
Groupon UAE operates a two-sided online marketplace where UAE consumers discover, purchase, and redeem discounted vouchers for local experiences, dining, beauty, activities, travel, and other merchant offers. On the merchant side, it provides self-service deal listing, management, performance tracking, bookings, and paid promotion tools.
Is Groupon UAE a public or private company?
Groupon UAE is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was Groupon UAE founded?
Groupon UAE was founded in 2008.
Where is Groupon UAE based?
Groupon UAE is headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in the Middle East region.
How does Groupon UAE make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Deal Commission Revenue is the primary driver. The others are promotional Codes and Premium Placement.
Who are Groupon UAE's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Cobone, The Entertainer and Groupon, Inc.. Emerging players are Klook, GetYourGuide and Viator. Broad incumbents are Yelp and Booking.com. Others are LivingSocial and Amazon Local.
Does Groupon UAE have an API?
No public API is recorded for Groupon UAE.
What industry is Groupon UAE in?
Groupon UAE's product category is Local Deals Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAFAAAD, Local Services & Experiences Generalist Marketplaces.