Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barnaul and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $999 in Barnaul, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Barnaul
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Barnaul Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
Learn more

Karachi Living Index

Jump to prices

Barnaul

🇷🇺 Russia

$999

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barnaul 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 Barnaul and in Karachi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $999 in Barnaul versus $482 in Karachi.

Barnaul $999
Karachi $482

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,517 in Barnaul versus $750 in Karachi.

Barnaul $1,517
Karachi $750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,035 in Barnaul versus $1,018 in Karachi.

Barnaul $2,035
Karachi $1,018

Living in Barnaul is roughly 107% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Barnaul 26% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.39 ₽951

$2.13 PKR 588

434.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.14 ₽3,267

$13.30 PKR 3,680

194.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.02 ₽503

$5.45 PKR 1,508

10.46%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 PKR 607

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.24 PKR 2,005

Cappuccino

$2.63 ₽219

$2.09 PKR 579

25.84%

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

$0.69 ₽57.4

$0.40 PKR 111

72.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₽46.87

$0.26 PKR 71.1

115.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.17 ₽97.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 ₽118

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 ₽86.9

$0.92 PKR 254

13.04%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 ₽47.68

$0.56 PKR 156

1.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 ₽114

$1.25 PKR 345

8.80%

Eggs

$1.47 ₽123

$1.23 PKR 341

19.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.72 ₽979

$5.67 PKR 1,570

106.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.55 ₽380

$3.16 PKR 876

43.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.84 ₽989

$6.28 PKR 1,737

88.54%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₽155

$1.26 PKR 348

47.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 ₽149

$0.53 PKR 148

237.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 ₽161

$1.00 PKR 276

93.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 ₽181

$0.56 PKR 154

285.71%

Potato (1kg)

$0.80 ₽67.2

$0.33 PKR 91.4

142.42%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ₽38.71

$0.34 PKR 95.1

35.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.50 ₽125

$0.42 PKR 116

257.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 ₽36.22

$0.44 PKR 121

-2.27%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.25 PKR 346

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 PKR 365

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 PKR 670

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.02 ₽252

$1.84 PKR 509

64.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.59 ₽800

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ₽76.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.39 ₽116

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.56 ₽46.71

$0.28 PKR 77.0

100.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.42 ₽2,121

$9.99 PKR 2,764

154.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.55 ₽129

$0.92 PKR 256

68.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.50 ₽41.80

$0.70 PKR 193

-28.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.88 ₽491

$2.16 PKR 597

172.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 ₽67.0

$1.38 PKR 382

-42.03%

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

$24.3K ₽2.0M

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

35.50%

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

$33.3K ₽2.8M

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

23.02%

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

$109 ₽9,104

$113 PKR 31.4K

-3.85%

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

$6.13 ₽511

$5.95 PKR 1,648

3.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.99 ₽667

$13.16 PKR 3,642

-39.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.55 PKR 5,965

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.64 ₽1,472

$18.23 PKR 5,044

-3.24%

Cinema Ticket

$4.91 ₽410

$4.21 PKR 1,165

16.63%

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

$351 ₽29.3K

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

573.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.5K ₽1.2M

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

647.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.9 ₽5,334

$17.55 PKR 4,858

264.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.19 ₽3,688

$23.51 PKR 6,506

87.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 ₽9,422

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

63.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 ₽8,243

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

143.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$444 ₽37.1K

$118 PKR 32.7K

276.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$335 ₽28.0K

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

355.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$660 ₽55.1K

$357 PKR 98.9K

84.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$504 ₽42.1K

$188 PKR 52.0K

168.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,005 ₽167.3K

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

89.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,697 ₽141.6K

$481 PKR 133.1K

253.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$664 ₽55.4K

$183 PKR 50.6K

262.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

22.83

13.21

72.82%

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

Last update for Barnaul: October 10, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barnaul

$335 33.5%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 78% $261

Groceries & Markets

Barnaul

$201 20.1%

Karachi

$101 21% 49.5% $99

Eating Out

Barnaul

$154 15.5%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 60.4% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Barnaul

$144 14.4%

Karachi

$68 14.1% 52.9% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barnaul

$123 12.3%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 7.6% $9.4

Getting Around

Barnaul

$32 3.2%

Karachi

$16 3.2% 51.1% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Barnaul

$9.8 * 1%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 205% $20

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $444 in Barnaul and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barnaul pays 263% 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: $39.00 in Barnaul vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇺 Barnaul

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

14:03 2:03 PM

12:03 12:03 PM

2 h behind Barnaul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

631,124

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 RUB = 1.2 USD

100 RUB = 1.07 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to RUB – Russian Ruble Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇺 Russian Ruble (₽)

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

USD to RUB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barnaul Karachi 3,460 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barnaul
Karachi

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

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Barnaul vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi wins on cost – living expenses run 107% lower than in Barnaul. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Karachi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 263% higher in Barnaul, 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: $444 in Barnaul versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $999 per month in Barnaul versus $482 in Karachi – a 107% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 154% less than in Barnaul. 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, Barnaul 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 107% less than in Barnaul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.