Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guwahati and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Guwahati: $397 a month against $495 in Karachi, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

19

Cost of Living Index in Guwahati
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Guwahati Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
Learn more

Karachi Living Index

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Guwahati

🇮🇳 India

$397

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$495

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $397 per month in Guwahati vs $495 in Karachi, rent included.

Guwahati $397
Karachi $495

A couple spends around $664 per month in Guwahati vs $770 in Karachi, rent included.

Guwahati $664
Karachi $770

A family of three spends $931 per month in Guwahati vs $1,046 in Karachi, rent included.

Guwahati $931
Karachi $1,046

Guwahati is about 20% cheaper than Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Guwahati and Karachi are more affordable than the global median – Guwahati 71% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.83 ₹269

$2.21 PKR 610

28.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.50 ₹1,095

$12.87 PKR 3,562

-10.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.21 ₹496

$5.27 PKR 1,459

-1.14%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 PKR 598

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.36 PKR 2,036

Cappuccino

$2.45 ₹233

$2.16 PKR 598

13.43%

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

$0.40 ₹38.45

$0.38 PKR 106

5.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.15 ₹14.14

$0.25 PKR 69.3

-40.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.29 ₹123

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.36 ₹320

Milk (1 liter)

$0.67 ₹63.9

$0.90 PKR 248

-25.56%

White Bread (500g)

$0.46 ₹43.88

$0.52 PKR 143

-11.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.54 ₹51.7

$1.20 PKR 331

-55.00%

Eggs

$0.93 ₹88.8

$1.25 PKR 346

-25.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.07 ₹387

$5.82 PKR 1,611

-30.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ₹314

$3.11 PKR 860

6.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.53 PKR 1,807

Apples (1kg)

$2.28 ₹217

$1.28 PKR 354

78.12%

Banana (1kg)

$0.70 ₹66.9

$0.54 PKR 149

29.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.90 ₹85.3

$1.02 PKR 283

-11.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.61 ₹58.3

$0.56 PKR 155

8.93%

Potato (1kg)

$0.35 ₹33.63

$0.34 PKR 94.9

2.94%

Onion (1kg)

$0.35 ₹33.28

$0.31 PKR 87.0

12.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 ₹31.43

$0.41 PKR 113

-19.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.29 ₹27.81

$0.43 PKR 120

-32.56%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.28 PKR 355

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 PKR 368

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 PKR 678

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.11 ₹486

$1.78 PKR 492

187.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.23 ₹689

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₹164

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 ₹233

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

$4.96 ₹472

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.20 ₹19.04

$0.28 PKR 77.2

-28.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.15 ₹490

$11.70 PKR 3,237

-55.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₹69.5

$0.92 PKR 254

-20.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.30 ₹28.79

$0.73 PKR 203

-58.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.33 ₹127

$2.22 PKR 615

-40.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ₹105

$1.33 PKR 369

-17.29%

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

$11.3K ₹1.1M

$18.3K PKR 5.1M

-38.23%

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

$16.4K ₹1.6M

$26.4K PKR 7.3M

-37.93%

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

$34.80 ₹3,314

$112 PKR 31.0K

-68.98%

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

$3.33 ₹317

$5.99 PKR 1,656

-44.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.43 ₹612

$13.18 PKR 3,648

-51.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$12.01 ₹1,144

$24.67 PKR 6,826

-51.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.02 ₹954

$18.29 PKR 5,061

-45.22%

Cinema Ticket

$3.21 ₹306

$4.34 PKR 1,201

-26.04%

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

$27.18 ₹2,588

$67.2 PKR 18.6K

-59.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,201 ₹209.6K

$1,915 PKR 529.9K

14.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.96 ₹1,615

$17.61 PKR 4,873

-3.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.82 ₹2,935

$22.03 PKR 6,097

39.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$37.87 ₹3,606

$68.3 PKR 18.9K

-44.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$27.59 ₹2,627

$40.66 PKR 11.3K

-32.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$154 ₹14.6K

$136 PKR 37.6K

12.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$89.4 ₹8,508

$82.2 PKR 22.7K

8.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$359 ₹34.2K

$392 PKR 108.5K

-8.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$263 ₹25.1K

$207 PKR 57.2K

27.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$742 ₹70.7K

$1,046 PKR 289.5K

-29.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$519 ₹49.4K

$482 PKR 133.2K

7.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$336 ₹32.0K

$184 PKR 51.0K

82.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.38

13.21

-44.13%

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

Last update for Guwahati: October 25, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Guwahati

$103 25.9%

Karachi

$102 20.5% 1.2% $1.3

Accommodation & Living

Guwahati

$89 22.5%

Karachi

$82 16.6% 8% $7.2

Eating Out

Guwahati

$83 20.9%

Karachi

$62 12.5% 25.4% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Guwahati

$51 12.8%

Karachi

$67 13.5% 31.3% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guwahati

$45 11.2%

Karachi

$131 26.6% 195% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Guwahati

$18 4.6%

Karachi

$33 6.7% 81% $15

Getting Around

Guwahati

$8.2 2.1%

Karachi

$17 3.5% 113% $9.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $154 in Guwahati versus $136 in Karachi. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 82% higher in Guwahati, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $12 in Guwahati versus $13 in Karachi. Groceries tell a different story – $103 in Guwahati vs $102 in Karachi – so Karachi wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Guwahati

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

01:28 1:28 AM

00:58 12:58 AM

30 min behind Guwahati

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,000,000

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.5 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.25 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 95.22 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 308 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.25 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Guwahati Karachi 2,480 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Guwahati
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

Guwahati vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Karachi is pricier by about 25%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $596 per month in Guwahati and $742 in Karachi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Karachi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $136 there versus $154 in Guwahati.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $12 in Guwahati and $13 in Karachi. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 56% less in Guwahati. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $397 in Guwahati and $495 in Karachi, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Karachi has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $397 in Guwahati to $495 in Karachi. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.