Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cixi and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $725 in Cixi, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Cixi
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Cixi Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

Jump to prices

Cixi

🇨🇳 China

$725

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $725 in Cixi versus $490 in Karachi.

Cixi $725
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,145 in Cixi versus $755 in Karachi.

Cixi $1,145
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,564 in Cixi versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Cixi $1,564
Karachi $1,019

Living in Cixi is roughly 48% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cixi 46% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.86 ¥19.14

$2.15 PKR 595

33.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.88 ¥146

$13.37 PKR 3,699

63.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.73 ¥31.61

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-10.59%

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

$2.96 ¥19.77

$2.11 PKR 583

40.28%

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

$0.47 ¥3.14

$0.37 PKR 103

27.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.28 PKR 78.2

3.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.94 ¥6.28

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 ¥13.64

Milk (1 liter)

$1.85 ¥12.40

$0.86 PKR 238

115.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 ¥10.68

$0.52 PKR 144

207.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 ¥6.37

$1.24 PKR 344

-23.39%

Eggs

$1.54 ¥10.28

$1.24 PKR 342

24.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 ¥85.1

$5.86 PKR 1,621

117.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.16 ¥21.11

$3.12 PKR 862

1.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.37 ¥69.3

$6.25 PKR 1,730

65.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ¥12.42

$1.29 PKR 356

44.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 ¥8.37

$0.54 PKR 150

131.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.48 ¥9.89

$0.99 PKR 273

49.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.11 ¥7.41

$0.56 PKR 155

98.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.93

$0.33 PKR 91.6

124.24%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.01

$0.35 PKR 95.8

157.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 ¥3.71

$0.45 PKR 124

24.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ¥3.63

$0.44 PKR 121

22.73%

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)

$3.15 ¥21.04

$1.79 PKR 497

75.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.77 ¥72.0

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 ¥5.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 ¥11.00

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.28 PKR 76.5

3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.62 ¥111

$9.68 PKR 2,679

71.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.42 ¥9.48

$0.92 PKR 255

54.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 ¥2.39

$0.71 PKR 196

-49.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.71 ¥44.85

$2.22 PKR 615

202.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 ¥7.55

$1.35 PKR 372

-16.30%

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

$19.7K ¥132.0K

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

10.68%

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

$17.1K ¥114.4K

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

-35.96%

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

$44.63 ¥298

$112 PKR 30.9K

-60.08%

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

$9.55 ¥63.8

$6.05 PKR 1,673

57.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.71 ¥78.3

$13.29 PKR 3,678

-11.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.36 ¥283

$21.51 PKR 5,953

96.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.18 ¥94.7

$17.80 PKR 4,926

-20.34%

Cinema Ticket

$6.06 ¥40.49

$4.42 PKR 1,222

37.10%

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

$333 ¥2,227

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

556.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ¥114.4K

$1,957 PKR 541.5K

774.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.43 ¥290

$17.57 PKR 4,861

147.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.82 ¥199

$22.78 PKR 6,302

30.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 ¥486

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

7.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.7 ¥486

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

77.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$283 ¥1,894

$117 PKR 32.4K

141.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ¥1,281

$75.7 PKR 20.9K

153.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$588 ¥3,929

$365 PKR 101.0K

60.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 ¥2,448

$182 PKR 50.5K

100.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,000 ¥20.0K

$1,054 PKR 291.5K

184.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,998 ¥13.4K

$491 PKR 135.8K

307.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$185 PKR 51.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

13.21

-70.55%

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

Last update for Cixi: 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

Cixi

$199 27.9%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 49.4% $99

Accommodation & Living

Cixi

$192 26.8%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 60.5% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Cixi

$98 13.8%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 31.9% $31

Eating Out

Cixi

$84 11.8%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 27.8% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cixi

$66 9.2%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 99% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Cixi

$54 7.6%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 44.3% $24

Getting Around

Cixi

$21 2.9%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 27.4% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $283 in Cixi and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $22.00 in Cixi vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Cixi

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

12:16 12:16 PM

09:16 9:16 AM

3 h behind Cixi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,829,488

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cixi Karachi 5,330 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Cixi
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

Cixi vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi wins on cost – living expenses run 48% lower than in Cixi. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Karachi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,088 in Cixi and $735 in Karachi to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $283 in Cixi versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $333 in Cixi versus $50.7 in Karachi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 98% higher in Cixi. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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 work as nomad bases, but Karachi delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $490 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Karachi hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cixi 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 48% less than in Cixi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.