Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Erdenet and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Erdenet: $377 a month against $490 in Karachi, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Erdenet
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Erdenet Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Erdenet

🇲🇳 Mongolia

$377

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $377 in Erdenet versus $490 in Karachi.

Erdenet $377
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $617 in Erdenet versus $755 in Karachi.

Erdenet $617
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $858 in Erdenet versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Erdenet $858
Karachi $1,019

Living in Erdenet costs roughly 23% less than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Erdenet 72% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.08 MNT 14.7K

$2.15 PKR 596

89.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.28 MNT 98.0K

$13.37 PKR 3,700

104.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.08 MNT 14.7K

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-22.87%

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

$2.29 MNT 8,214

$2.11 PKR 583

8.53%

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

$0.66 MNT 2,373

$0.37 PKR 103

78.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.40 MNT 1,454

$0.28 PKR 78.2

42.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 MNT 6,100

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 MNT 5,840

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 MNT 3,627

$0.86 PKR 238

17.44%

White Bread (500g)

$0.91 MNT 3,281

$0.52 PKR 144

75.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.85 MNT 10.3K

$1.24 PKR 344

129.84%

Eggs

$2.02 MNT 7,270

$1.24 PKR 342

62.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.05 MNT 25.3K

$5.86 PKR 1,622

20.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.78 MNT 24.4K

$3.12 PKR 862

117.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.54 MNT 16.3K

$6.25 PKR 1,731

-27.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 MNT 8,038

$1.29 PKR 356

73.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 MNT 6,054

$0.54 PKR 150

211.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 MNT 5,857

$0.99 PKR 273

64.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 MNT 4,925

$0.56 PKR 155

144.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.43 MNT 5,136

$0.33 PKR 91.6

333.33%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 MNT 3,040

$0.35 PKR 95.9

142.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 MNT 5,071

$0.45 PKR 124

213.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 MNT 3,539

$0.44 PKR 121

122.73%

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)

$2.83 MNT 10.2K

$1.79 PKR 497

58.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 MNT 20.4K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 MNT 5,830

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 MNT 5,938

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.15 MNT 549

$0.28 PKR 76.5

-46.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.59 MNT 70.4K

$9.68 PKR 2,679

102.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 MNT 2,209

$0.92 PKR 255

-33.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 MNT 1,546

$0.71 PKR 196

-39.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 PKR 615

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.75 MNT 2,689

$1.35 PKR 372

-44.44%

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

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

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

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

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

$57.7 MNT 207.4K

$112 PKR 30.9K

-48.36%

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

$2.86 MNT 10.3K

$6.05 PKR 1,673

-52.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.06 MNT 50.5K

$13.29 PKR 3,679

5.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.51 PKR 5,954

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.80 PKR 4,927

Cinema Ticket

$4.42 PKR 1,222

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

$281 MNT 1.0M

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

453.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,474 MNT 8.9M

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

26.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.57 PKR 4,862

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.78 PKR 6,304

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$117 PKR 32.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$365 PKR 101.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$182 PKR 50.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 PKR 135.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$218 MNT 782.9K

$185 PKR 51.2K

17.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.21

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

Last update for Erdenet: October 6, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Erdenet

$188 50.3%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 46.5% $88

Eating Out

Erdenet

$88 23.6%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 30.9% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Erdenet

$75 20%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 75.7% $56

Getting Around

Erdenet

$23 6.1%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 33.7% $7.7

Sport & Entertainment

Erdenet

- * 0%

Karachi

$30 6.3%

Clothing & Footwear

Erdenet

- * 0%

Karachi

$67 13.9%

Accommodation & Living

Erdenet

- * 0%

Karachi

$76 15.7%

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

Cost Breakdown

Erdenet pays 18% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $27.00 in Erdenet vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $188 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇳 Erdenet

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

12:59 12:59 PM

09:59 9:59 AM

3 h behind Erdenet

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

86,866

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Mongolian Tögrög MNT ₮

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD

10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to MNT – Mongolian Tögrög Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇳 Mongolian Tögrög (₮)

Mongolian Tögrög exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,593 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD). 1 EUR = 4,030 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.48 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 MNT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Erdenet Karachi 4,180 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Erdenet
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

Erdenet vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Erdenet and Karachi differ by about 30% in total monthly costs ($377 vs $490 including rent). Erdenet is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 18% higher in Erdenet, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $281 in Erdenet versus $50.7 in Karachi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Karachi pay roughly 87% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Erdenet 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, Erdenet 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 Erdenet gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Karachi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.