Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Baguio and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $755 in Baguio, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Baguio
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Baguio Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

Jump to prices

Baguio

🇵🇭 Philippines

$755

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Baguio and in Karachi

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Baguio and in Karachi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $755 in Baguio versus $490 in Karachi.

Baguio $755
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,183 in Baguio versus $755 in Karachi.

Baguio $1,183
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,611 in Baguio versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Baguio $1,611
Karachi $1,019

Living in Baguio is roughly 54% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Baguio 44% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.97 ₱249

$2.15 PKR 596

84.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.85 ₱1,057

$13.37 PKR 3,700

26.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.76 ₱173

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-47.83%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 PKR 606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.25 PKR 2,005

Cappuccino

$1.84 ₱115

$2.11 PKR 583

-12.80%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.60 ₱37.75

$0.37 PKR 103

62.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₱21.40

$0.28 PKR 78.2

21.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₱63.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₱103

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ₱106

$0.86 PKR 238

96.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 ₱70.9

$0.52 PKR 144

117.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ₱64.5

$1.24 PKR 344

-16.94%

Eggs

$2.02 ₱126

$1.24 PKR 342

62.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.96 ₱311

$5.86 PKR 1,622

-15.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.37 ₱211

$3.12 PKR 862

8.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.68 ₱482

$6.25 PKR 1,731

22.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 ₱145

$1.29 PKR 356

79.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 ₱100

$0.54 PKR 150

196.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱146

$0.99 PKR 273

135.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.08 ₱67.5

$0.56 PKR 155

92.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 ₱104

$0.33 PKR 91.6

406.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.72 ₱108

$0.35 PKR 95.9

391.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ₱41.91

$0.45 PKR 124

48.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.15

$0.44 PKR 121

20.45%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.23 PKR 341

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PKR 381

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.98 ₱187

$1.79 PKR 497

66.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.72 ₱547

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 ₱61.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 ₱130

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.73

$0.28 PKR 76.5

-10.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.66 ₱794

$9.68 PKR 2,679

30.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.83 ₱52.0

$0.92 PKR 255

-9.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.78

$0.71 PKR 196

-64.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 ₱119

$2.22 PKR 615

-14.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ₱78.7

$1.35 PKR 372

-7.41%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.1K ₱1.3M

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

18.50%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

-27.61%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$142 ₱8,910

$112 PKR 30.9K

27.08%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$17.90 ₱1,122

$6.05 PKR 1,673

195.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.77 ₱1,491

$13.29 PKR 3,679

78.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.07 ₱1,322

$21.51 PKR 5,954

-2.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.18 ₱325

$17.80 PKR 4,927

-70.90%

Cinema Ticket

$5.15 ₱323

$4.42 PKR 1,222

16.52%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$132 ₱8,307

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

161.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K ₱675.4K

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

450.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.14 ₱1,827

$17.57 PKR 4,862

65.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.94 ₱1,251

$22.78 PKR 6,304

-12.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.0 ₱4,578

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

8.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.5 ₱3,480

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

35.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$403 ₱25.3K

$117 PKR 32.5K

243.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 ₱12.2K

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

157.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$824 ₱51.7K

$365 PKR 101.1K

125.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ₱28.9K

$182 PKR 50.5K

152.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,677 ₱167.9K

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

154.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$928 ₱58.2K

$491 PKR 135.8K

89.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$185 ₱11.6K

$185 PKR 51.2K

-0.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

13.21

-48.90%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Baguio: October 3, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Baguio

$195 25.8%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 61.1% $119

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Baguio

$184 24.4%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 28.6% $53

Groceries & Markets

Baguio

$175 23.2%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 42.4% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Baguio

$80 10.6%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 16.1% $13

Eating Out

Baguio

$74 9.8%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 17.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Baguio

$31 4.2%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 3.3% $1

Getting Around

Baguio

$16 2.1%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 3.2% $0.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $403 in Baguio and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Karachi pays 0% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $17.00 in Baguio vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $175 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Baguio

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

15:02 3:02 PM

12:02 12:02 PM

3 h behind Baguio

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

366,358

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Baguio Karachi 5,620 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Baguio
Karachi

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Baguio vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi wins on cost – living expenses run 54% lower than in Baguio. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Karachi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 0% lower in Karachi. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $403 in Baguio versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $755 per month in Baguio versus $490 in Karachi – a 54% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 31% less than in Baguio. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Karachi gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Baguio and Karachi are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Karachi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 54% less than in Baguio. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.