In most countries Snapchat is a side channel. In the Gulf it is often the main one. Snap reaches about 20 million people a month in Saudi Arabia, including nine in ten people aged 13 to 34, and during Ramadan 2021 Saudi users viewed AR Lenses more than 90 billion times, according to figures Snap shared with Arabian Business. Snap runs its regional business from Dubai, which is why so many Gulf Snapchat campaigns are planned there.
The hard part is choosing who to trust with the budget. Plenty of Dubai agencies list Snapchat as a service, but far fewer have shipped real Snapchat work. So this list starts from a stricter filter: Snap’s own Advanced Partner announcements for MENA, plus documented Snapchat campaigns in trade press. Every agency below has a Dubai office and was researched individually.
Why Snap’s Partner Badge Is the Best First Filter
Snap does not have a public directory of Gulf agencies, but it has named its MENA partners twice. In May 2024 it picked three agencies for the first MENA Advanced Partner Program pilot. In December 2024 it added a creator-agency cohort focused on Snap Stars. Both groups get the Snap Advanced Partner badge, training and certifications.
Table 1: Snap’s MENA Advanced Partner Announcements
| Cohort | Date | Agencies Named | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agency pilot | May 2024 | ArabyAds, Acquisit, Assembly | Paid Snapchat campaigns, certifications, account management |
| Creator-agency cohort | December 2024 | ArabyAds, Brand Ripplr, Creo, Influencer, InHype, LAVAD, Moalen, Publicis Groupe Content Practice, Sociata, The Goat Agency MENA, Vamp | Snap Star creators, Creator Discovery API, Creator Marketplace beta |
A badge proves training and access, not results. That is why this list also gives weight to published Snapchat campaigns and to formats each agency actually builds.
Snapchat Formats and Which Agency Builds Each
Table 2: Snapchat Ad Formats Explained
| Format | What It Is | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Snap Ads | Full-screen vertical video or image between Stories, with a swipe-up action | Traffic, app installs, leads, sales |
| Story Ads and Commercials | Branded tiles in Discover and 6-second non-skippable ads inside Snap Shows | Reach and awareness among young audiences |
| Dynamic and Collection Ads | Ads built automatically from a product catalogue | E-commerce, cars, real estate listings |
| AR Lenses | Branded face or world Lenses that users play with and share | Launches, Ramadan, National Day, engagement |
| Snap Star creators | Sponsored content from verified Snapchat creators | Trust, product discovery, Saudi audiences |
The Five Agencies
1. Acquisit: The Performance Pick
Snapchat Evidence
One of three agencies Snap chose for its first MENA Advanced Partner Program pilot in May 2024, alongside ArabyAds and Assembly. The badge comes with Snap certifications, custom training and dedicated account management.
Acquisit is a Dubai performance marketing agency founded in 2019 by Timothée Desormeaux and Édouard Daou. It works from The Dome Tower in Jumeirah Lake Towers, with offices in Riyadh and Beirut, and holds partner status with Google (Premier), Meta, TikTok, Amazon Ads and Snapchat.
Snapchat sits inside a wider paid media, CRO and measurement practice, which matters more than it sounds. Snap campaigns in the Gulf often drive cheap swipe-ups that never turn into sales, and an agency that also handles GA4, dashboards and conversion rate work is better placed to tell real buyers from curious teenagers.
Its client list leans heavily on beauty and retail: it is L’Oréal Middle East’s agency of record for the GCC and Levant, and also works with YSL, Lancôme, Kiehl’s, Clarins, IKEA, Birkenstock and Calvin Klein. Clarins reports that ROAS doubled after it started working with Acquisit in March 2023, and FNP saw a 24% rise in its Arabic sales share from a Saudi regional strategy.
Table 3: Acquisit Agency Card
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Website | acquisit.io |
| Dubai Office | Office 2503, The Dome Tower, Cluster N, JLT, Dubai |
| Founded | 2019 |
| Leadership | Timothée Desormeaux, Co-founder and Managing Partner; Édouard Daou, Co-founder |
| Snapchat Work | Snap Ads and Story Ads, performance campaigns, tracking and dashboards |
| Other Channels | Google, Meta, TikTok, Amazon and noon, SEO, CRM, CRO |
| Markets | UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, GCC, Levant |
| Clients | L’Oréal, YSL, Lancôme, Clarins, IKEA, Birkenstock, Costa Coffee, Tamara |
| Budget Guide | Projects typically from $10,000 to $25,000 over three to six months |
| Contact | hello@acquisit.io or +971 4 566 4822 |
Pros
- Snap Advanced Partner from the first MENA pilot
- Strong measurement and CRO alongside media buying
- Riyadh office for Saudi campaigns
- Proven with luxury and mass beauty brands
Cons
- No public Snapchat-only case study with metrics
- Snapchat is one channel among many
- Project sizes suit mid-sized and large brands
2. ArabyAds: The Creator and Commerce Pick
Snapchat Evidence
The only Dubai company in both of Snap’s MENA Advanced Partner cohorts: the agency pilot in May 2024 and the creator-agency cohort in December 2024. In 2025 it announced Advanced Partner status covering more than 40 of its media specialists.
ArabyAds is a Dubai-headquartered ad-tech and e-commerce marketing group founded in 2013. Rather than a single agency, it runs a set of platforms: Boostiny for social commerce with deterministic attribution, iConnect for influencer management, ReEngage for app retargeting, and ArabyAds Talent for creator representation. It also owns indaHash, the influencer platform.
That mix suits Snapchat well, because Snap in the Gulf works best when creators and performance ads run together. Through Snap’s creator program, ArabyAds has access to the Creator Discovery API for finding Snap Stars and early access to the Snap Creator Marketplace.
The group says it has powered more than 25 million e-commerce transactions and won Marketing Platform of the Year at the 2023 MMA MENA Smarties. Its VP of Digital, Ayah Reyad, has said Snapchat has been “instrumental” in expanding its market share.
Table 4: ArabyAds Agency Card
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Website | arabyads.com |
| Dubai Office | Choueiri Group Building, 5th Floor, Al Falak Street, Dubai |
| Founded | 2013 |
| Leadership | Ayah Reyad, VP of Digital |
| Snapchat Work | Snap Ads, Snap Star creator campaigns, commerce tracking |
| Other Channels | Influencer platforms, app retargeting, connected TV, retail media |
| Markets | UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia |
| Clients | Dettol, NIVEA, Home Centre, Majid Al Futtaim’s Precision Media |
| Budget Guide | Quote-based by platform and campaign |
| Contact | Contact page on arabyads.com |
Pros
- Double Snap Advanced Partner (agency and creator cohorts)
- Creators, commerce attribution and retargeting in one group
- Large team trained on Snap
- Strong in Saudi and Egyptian e-commerce
Cons
- Platform-led, so it suits performance briefs more than brand storytelling
- Several products to choose from can confuse first-time buyers
- Few named Snapchat campaigns published
3. We Are Social Dubai: The Creative and Social-First Pick
Snapchat Evidence
As Socialize, it ran Volkswagen Middle East’s Snapchat Dynamic Ads test in Saudi Arabia, the first time an automotive brand outside the US used the format. The campaign produced 194 test-drive sign-ups in 14 days.
We Are Social Dubai began life in 2010 as Socialize, one of the region’s first social agencies, founded by Akanksha Goel. We Are Social bought a majority stake in 2018 and the Dubai team took the global name in 2025. It now has about 60 people in Dubai under Managing Director Aurelien Fonteneau.
The Volkswagen case shows what this agency does well with Snapchat: it took a format built for e-commerce product catalogues, rebuilt the catalogue around car models such as the Tiguan, Teramont and Touareg, set up conversion tracking on test-drive sign-ups, and fed auto-event signals back to Snap. That is a creative problem and a technical one at once.
Its wider client list includes Sephora, Starbucks, Sony, Mercedes-Benz, Babyshop and Dubai World Trade Centre, and its Pringles work won Gold for Creative Effectiveness at the MENA Digital Awards. It suits brands that want Snapchat content that looks native to the app, not a cut-down TV spot.
Table 5: We Are Social Dubai Agency Card
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Website | wearesocial.com |
| Dubai Office | Dubai, UAE |
| Founded | 2010 (as Socialize) |
| Leadership | Aurelien Fonteneau, Managing Director, Dubai |
| Snapchat Work | Snap Ads, Dynamic Ads, conversion tracking, social-first creative |
| Other Channels | Social strategy, creative, influencer, media and production |
| Markets | UAE, Saudi Arabia, wider Middle East |
| Clients | Volkswagen Middle East, Sephora, Starbucks, Sony, Mercedes-Benz, Babyshop |
| Budget Guide | Quote-based retainers and campaigns |
| Contact | Dubai office via wearesocial.com |
Pros
- Documented Snapchat Dynamic Ads result in Saudi Arabia
- Native social creative backed by a global network
- Long regional history since 2010
- Strong with retail, beauty and automotive brands
Cons
- Its best-known Snapchat result dates from 2021
- No Snap partner badge listed
- Budgets suit established brands rather than startups
4. Brand Ripplr: The Snap Star Creator Pick
Snapchat Evidence
Part of Snap’s December 2024 MENA creator-agency cohort, which gives it the Snap Advanced Partner badge, Snap Focus certifications and early access to the Snap Creator Marketplace.
Brand Ripplr is a Dubai influencer marketing company founded in 2017 by CEO Tanaz Dizadji. It built one of the region’s largest creator networks, passing 55,000 creators by 2020, and runs campaigns across Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
Snap’s own research explains why creator agencies matter on the app: more than 67% of Snapchatters follow creators to see their daily lives, and 59% have bought a product after seeing sponsored creator content. Snap Stars in Saudi Arabia and the UAE often film unpolished daily stories, so a brief that tries to control every frame tends to fail. Brand Ripplr’s job is matching brands with creators whose audience actually buys.
Clients include PepsiCo, Nestlé, Etisalat, Uber, Spotify, Mars, Alshaya Group and the Saudi Tourism Authority, which reflects how much of its work is aimed at Saudi audiences.
Table 6: Brand Ripplr Agency Card
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Website | brandripplr.com |
| Dubai Office | Dubai, UAE (+971 52 657 4408) |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Leadership | Tanaz Dizadji, Founder and CEO |
| Snapchat Work | Snap Star creator campaigns, creator discovery, sponsored creator content |
| Other Channels | Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X, Twitch creators |
| Markets | UAE, Saudi Arabia, MENA |
| Clients | PepsiCo, Nestlé, Etisalat, Uber, Spotify, Saudi Tourism Authority |
| Budget Guide | Quote-based per campaign |
| Contact | support@brandripplr.com |
Pros
- Snap Advanced Partner for creator campaigns
- Very large regional creator network
- Strong Saudi audience reach
- Blue-chip FMCG and telecom clients
Cons
- Focused on creators rather than paid Snap Ads or Lenses
- Campaign metrics are rarely published
- Pricing is entirely custom
5. 7awi: The Arabic Content and AR Lens Pick
Snapchat Evidence
Named the first of 20 regional media partners when Snapchat launched Discover publishers in the Middle East in 2018, reporting more than 11 million unique views. Its 7awi Studio builds branded AR Lenses, including a UAE National Day Lens.
7awi is a Dubai Arabic digital media group led by co-founder and CEO Anas Abbar, working from Al Sufouh with more than 100 staff across Dubai, Amman, Cairo and Istanbul. It owns more than 15 Arabic platforms, including Layalina, Yummy, UAE Moments and Social Camels, with over 60 million monthly page views and 65 million social followers.
That makes it a different kind of Snapchat partner. Instead of only buying ads, brands can appear inside 7awi’s own Arabic Snapchat Shows, run Snap Ads takeovers on its channels, sponsor a Snapchat advertorial or commission a custom AR Lens from 7awi Studio. Its 2026 media kit lists all of these as products.
For brands that want Arabic content first, especially in food, lifestyle and youth categories, 7awi offers native Arabic storytelling at a scale that most agencies can’t.
Table 7: 7awi Agency Card
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Website | 7awi.com |
| Dubai Office | Gargash Design House Building, Floor A-203, Al Sufouh First, Dubai |
| Founded | Operating since at least 2012 |
| Leadership | Anas Abbar, Co-founder and CEO |
| Snapchat Work | Discover Shows, Snap Ads takeovers, AR Lens creation, Snapchat advertorials |
| Other Channels | 15+ Arabic web portals, social media, branded content, programmatic |
| Markets | UAE, Saudi Arabia, Arabic-speaking MENA |
| Clients | Brands advertising across its Arabic portals and Snapchat Shows |
| Budget Guide | Published media kit; Lens creation and advertorials quoted on request |
| Contact | +971 4 580 5022 or the Advertise With Us form |
Pros
- Original Snapchat Discover publisher partner in the region
- Native Arabic content and its own audiences
- In-house AR Lens studio
- Media kit gives a clear starting point
Cons
- A publisher first, not a full paid media agency
- No conversion tracking or CAPI service listed
- Best for awareness and engagement rather than direct sales
Running Snapchat in the UAE vs Saudi Arabia
Table 8: UAE and Saudi Snapchat Campaigns Compared
| Factor | UAE | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|
| Audience | Mixed expat and Emirati, English and Arabic | Mostly Saudi nationals, very young, Arabic first |
| Creative language | Often bilingual; English works for many categories | Gulf Arabic dialect performs best |
| Creators | Lifestyle and luxury creators, smaller pools | Large Snap Star scene, daily-life storytelling |
| Big moments | Dubai Shopping Festival, National Day (2 December), White Friday | Ramadan, Saudi National Day (23 September), Founding Day (22 February), Riyadh Season |
| Typical goals | Retail, travel, real estate, apps | E-commerce, food delivery, telecom, automotive |
Snapchat budgets usually sit alongside Meta and TikTok rather than replacing them. Our social media marketing statistics show how ad budgets are split across platforms.
Tracking Snapchat Results Properly
- Install the Snap Pixel and Conversions API together. Browser tracking alone misses many iOS and in-app conversions, so ask for server-side events.
- Check the attribution window. Snapchat reports conversions within set windows after a swipe or a view. Compare it with your GA4 and CRM numbers before judging ROAS.
- Track WhatsApp and phone leads. In the Gulf many Snapchat leads continue in WhatsApp. Make sure those chats are tagged back to the campaign.
- Separate Lens engagement from sales. AR Lens plays and shares are great awareness signals, but measure them against brand lift or search lift, not direct purchases.
- Test creative weekly. Snapchat creative wears out quickly. Plan several vertical videos per ad set and rotate them often.
Questions to Ask Before You Sign
- Are you a Snap Advanced Partner, and which of your team members hold Snap certifications?
- Can you show a Snapchat campaign in our category with the budget, timeframe and results?
- Who writes our Arabic scripts, and do you use Gulf dialect?
- Will the Snapchat Ads Manager account and pixel be in our name?
- How will you track sales or leads that happen outside the app?
- What will you do differently for Ramadan or National Day?
FAQs
Which Dubai Agencies Are Official Snapchat Partners?
Snap named ArabyAds, Acquisit and Assembly in its May 2024 MENA Advanced Partner pilot. Its December 2024 creator-agency cohort included ArabyAds, Brand Ripplr, InHype, Sociata, Vamp, The Goat Agency MENA and others.
Is Snapchat Advertising Worth It in the UAE?
Yes for brands targeting under-35s, retail, food delivery, apps and travel. It is even stronger in Saudi Arabia, where Snapchat reaches nine in ten people aged 13 to 34.
How Much Should I Budget for Snapchat Ads in Dubai?
Snapchat lets you start with small daily budgets, but meaningful agency-managed tests usually need several thousand dollars a month in ad spend plus the management fee. Agency projects often start around $10,000.
Can a Dubai Agency Make a Branded Snapchat Lens?
Yes. 7awi Studio creates custom AR Lenses, and Lenses are popular for Ramadan, National Day and product launches.
Should I Use Creators or Snap Ads?
Use both if possible. Snap Ads scale reach and conversions, while Snap Star creators build trust. Agencies like ArabyAds and Brand Ripplr can run creator content and then amplify it.
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