A 21-year-old man has been charged with stabbing a man in the back with a knife at a Gold Coast unit complex.

Emergency services were called to the intersection of Marine and Imperial parades at Labrador about 6.30pm on Saturday.

Paramedics, including a critical care and high-acuity response team, took the victim, a 28-year-old Labrador man, to Gold Coast University Hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Police believed the incident occurred after a fight that escalated between the two men, who were known to each other.

The 21-year-old, also from Labrador, has been charged with wounding and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.

He will appear in Southport Magistrates Court on Thursday.