Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Batam and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $596 in Batam, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. The total is higher in Batam despite lower rent and utilities.

29

Cost of Living Index in Batam
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Batam Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Batam

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$596

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $596 in Batam versus $490 in Karachi.

Batam $596
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,010 in Batam versus $755 in Karachi.

Batam $1,010
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,424 in Batam versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Batam $1,424
Karachi $1,019

Living in Batam is roughly 22% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Batam 56% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.97 Rp 35.3K

$2.15 PKR 596

-8.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.33 Rp 149.0K

$13.37 PKR 3,700

-37.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.01 Rp 71.7K

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-24.20%

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

$2.12 Rp 37.9K

$2.11 PKR 583

0.47%

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

$0.65 Rp 11.6K

$0.37 PKR 103

75.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 Rp 5,617

$0.28 PKR 78.2

10.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 Rp 45.3K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 Rp 65.5K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Rp 20.6K

$0.86 PKR 238

33.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 Rp 19.8K

$0.52 PKR 144

113.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.5K

$1.24 PKR 344

-34.68%

Eggs

$1.24 Rp 22.1K

$1.24 PKR 342

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.40 Rp 132.4K

$5.86 PKR 1,622

26.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.40 Rp 43.0K

$3.12 PKR 862

-23.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.35 Rp 77.7K

$6.25 PKR 1,730

-30.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.25 Rp 40.3K

$1.29 PKR 356

74.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.3K

$0.54 PKR 150

264.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.02 Rp 36.2K

$0.99 PKR 273

104.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

$0.56 PKR 155

78.57%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 Rp 17.4K

$0.33 PKR 91.6

193.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.93 Rp 34.5K

$0.35 PKR 95.8

451.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 Rp 23.6K

$0.45 PKR 124

193.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,951

$0.44 PKR 121

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.23 PKR 341

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PKR 380

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.74 Rp 49.0K

$1.79 PKR 497

53.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.91 Rp 248.9K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 Rp 30.4K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 Rp 43.7K

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 Rp 6,667

$0.28 PKR 76.5

32.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.68 PKR 2,679

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.15 Rp 20.5K

$0.92 PKR 255

25.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 Rp 11.3K

$0.71 PKR 196

-11.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.55 Rp 63.4K

$2.22 PKR 615

59.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.7K

$1.35 PKR 372

-39.26%

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

$28.3K Rp 506.8M

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

58.80%

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

$24.4K Rp 436.2M

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

-8.82%

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

$68.6 Rp 1.2M

$112 PKR 30.9K

-38.62%

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

$4.08 Rp 72.9K

$6.05 PKR 1,673

-32.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.00 Rp 411.5K

$13.29 PKR 3,679

73.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.70 Rp 477.7K

$21.51 PKR 5,954

24.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.69 Rp 101.8K

$17.80 PKR 4,927

-68.03%

Cinema Ticket

$2.62 Rp 46.9K

$4.42 PKR 1,222

-40.72%

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

$82.4 Rp 1.5M

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

62.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,273 Rp 58.6M

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

67.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.39 Rp 561.6K

$17.57 PKR 4,862

78.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.43 Rp 329.8K

$22.78 PKR 6,304

-19.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.2 Rp 1.2M

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

-3.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$24.41 Rp 436.7K

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

-40.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$270 Rp 4.8M

$117 PKR 32.4K

130.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 Rp 2.7M

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

95.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$818 Rp 14.6M

$365 PKR 101.1K

123.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$496 Rp 8.9M

$182 PKR 50.5K

172.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$559 Rp 10.0M

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

-46.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 PKR 135.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$343 Rp 6.1M

$185 PKR 51.2K

85.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.17

13.21

-0.30%

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

Last update for Batam: October 4, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Batam

$173 29.1%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 41.7% $72

Accommodation & Living

Batam

$148 25%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 49% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Batam

$96 16.1%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 37% $35

Eating Out

Batam

$77 13%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 20.9% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Batam

$63 10.6%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 6.8% $4.3

Sport & Entertainment

Batam

$32 5.4%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 5% $1.6

Getting Around

Batam

$5.8 * 1%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 163% $9.5

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 $270 in Batam and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Batam pays 86% 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: $8.00 in Batam vs $13.00 in Karachi. Groceries flip the comparison at $173 vs $101, with Karachi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Batam

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

08:04 8:04 AM

06:04 6:04 AM

2 h behind Batam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,196,396

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,890 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,065 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 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 IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Batam Karachi 4,770 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Batam
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

Batam vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 22% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 86% higher in Batam, 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: $270 in Batam versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 71% higher in Batam. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $596 per month in Batam versus $490 in Karachi – a 22% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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.

Expats usually find Karachi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Batam. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.