Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bangalore and Kabul

For one person, living costs are similar in Bangalore and in Kabul: $535 and $511 a month, rent and utilities included.

26

Cost of Living Index in Bangalore
Learn more

Bangalore Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Kabul
Learn more

Kabul Living Index

Jump to prices

Bangalore

🇮🇳 India

$535

/mo nomad

Kabul

🇦🇫 Afghanistan

$511

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bangalore and in Kabul

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $535 in Bangalore versus $511 in Kabul.

Bangalore $535
Kabul $511

Estimated couple costs with rent: $927 in Bangalore versus $684 in Kabul.

Bangalore $927
Kabul $684

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,318 in Bangalore versus $857 in Kabul.

Bangalore $1,318
Kabul $857

Living in Bangalore is roughly 5% more expensive than in Kabul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bangalore 60% lower, Kabul 62% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.04 ₹294

$2.70 ؋175

12.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.83 ₹1,725

$7.89 ؋511

125.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.78 ₹463

$4.51 ؋292

5.99%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.28 ؋148

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 ؋122

Cappuccino

$2.24 ₹217

$1.09 ؋70.5

105.50%

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

$0.39 ₹37.49

$0.45 ؋28.95

-13.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.14 ₹13.64

$0.17 ؋10.83

-17.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.34 ₹226

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 ₹379

Milk (1 liter)

$0.61 ₹58.6

$0.81 ؋52.4

-24.69%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 ₹55.2

$0.25 ؋16.23

128.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 ₹77.9

$1.86 ؋121

-56.45%

Eggs

$1.12 ₹109

$1.54 ؋99.7

-27.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.93 ₹574

$4.46 ؋289

32.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.85 ₹373

$4.03 ؋261

-4.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.71 ؋434

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 ₹269

$0.70 ؋45.11

297.14%

Banana (1kg)

$0.75 ₹72.2

$0.89 ؋57.4

-15.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₹118

$0.95 ؋61.5

28.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.40 ₹39.19

$0.55 ؋35.47

-27.27%

Potato (1kg)

$0.38 ₹36.40

$0.61 ؋39.34

-37.70%

Onion (1kg)

$0.36 ₹34.72

$0.51 ؋32.74

-29.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 ₹40.31

$0.30 ؋19.48

40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₹31.21

$0.37 ؋23.89

-13.51%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.81 ؋117

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 ؋52.0

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ؋65.8

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.61 ₹446

$2.42 ؋157

90.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.01 ₹872

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₹180

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 ₹283

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.35 ₹614

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 ₹48.89

$0.13 ؋8.60

292.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.71 ₹1,520

$21.08 ؋1,366

-25.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.01 ₹97.8

$2.12 ؋138

-52.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.30 ₹29.43

$0.45 ؋29.02

-33.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 ₹203

$2.77 ؋179

-24.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.08 ₹104

$1.08 ؋69.9

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

$12.6K ₹1.2M

$8,341 ؋540.2K

50.71%

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

$19.1K ₹1.8M

$33.8K ؋2.2M

-43.57%

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

$30.32 ₹2,934

$42.09 ؋2,726

-27.96%

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

$4.11 ₹398

$13.12 ؋850

-68.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.23 ₹990

$95.3 ؋6,174

-89.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.61 ₹1,801

$11.15 ؋722

66.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.95 ₹576

$4.11 ؋266

44.77%

Cinema Ticket

$4.60 ₹446

$2.34 ؋152

96.58%

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

$104 ₹10.1K

$20.64 ؋1,337

404.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,176 ₹307.3K

$1,045 ؋67.7K

203.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.29 ₹3,125

$10.71 ؋694

201.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.85 ₹2,889

$15.93 ؋1,032

87.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$53.3 ₹5,160

$57.8 ؋3,741

-7.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$39.66 ₹3,838

$25.51 ؋1,652

55.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₹29.9K

$125 ؋8,092

147.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$175 ₹16.9K

$109 ؋7,043

60.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₹76.3K

$219 ؋14.2K

260.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$481 ₹46.6K

$115 ؋7,463

317.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,889 ₹182.8K

$675 ؋43.7K

179.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,067 ₹103.3K

$363 ؋23.5K

193.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$919 ₹89.0K

$339 ؋21.9K

171.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.5

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

Last update for Bangalore: October 4, 2026

Last update for Kabul: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bangalore

$175 32%

Kabul

$109 21.6% 37.8% $66

Groceries & Markets

Bangalore

$122 22.4%

Kabul

$102 20.2% 17% $21

Eating Out

Bangalore

$87 15.9%

Kabul

$51 10.1% 41.9% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Bangalore

$70 12.8%

Kabul

$49 9.8% 29.1% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bangalore

$45 8.2%

Kabul

$151 29.9% 237% $106

Sport & Entertainment

Bangalore

$28 5.1%

Kabul

$16 3.2% 43.1% $12

Getting Around

Bangalore

$20 3.7%

Kabul

$26 5.2% 28.2% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $309 in Bangalore and $125 in Kabul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bangalore pays 171% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $18.00 in Bangalore vs $8.00 in Kabul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $122 vs $102 per month, with Kabul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Bangalore

🇦🇫 Kabul

🕒 Local time

12:00 12:00 PM

11:00 11:00 AM

1 h behind Bangalore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,495,492

3,289,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Afghanistan Afghani AFN ؋

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.33 USD

1,000 INR = 9.21 EUR

100 AFN = 1.54 USD

100 AFN = 1.38 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AFN, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 96.78 INR (100 INR = 1.03 USD). 1 EUR = 109 INR (1,000 INR = 9.21 EUR).

Afghanistan Afghani exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 64.76 AFN (100 AFN = 1.54 USD). 1 EUR = 72.64 AFN (100 AFN = 1.38 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bangalore Kabul 2,540 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bangalore
Kabul

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

Bangalore vs Kabul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kabul wins on cost – living expenses run 5% lower than in Bangalore. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Kabul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 171% higher in Bangalore, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $309 in Bangalore versus $125 in Kabul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Kabul runs roughly 34% less than in Bangalore. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $104 in Bangalore versus $20.64 in Kabul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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

Both work as nomad bases, but Kabul delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $511 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Kabul hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Kabul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Bangalore. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.