Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Huainan and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $718 in Huainan, 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 Huainan
Learn more

Huainan Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
Learn more

Karachi Living Index

Jump to prices

Huainan

🇨🇳 China

$718

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $718 per month in Huainan vs $482 in Karachi, rent included.

Huainan $718
Karachi $482

A couple spends around $1,132 per month in Huainan vs $750 in Karachi, rent included.

Huainan $1,132
Karachi $750

A family of three spends $1,546 per month in Huainan vs $1,018 in Karachi, rent included.

Huainan $1,546
Karachi $1,018

Huainan costs about 49% more than Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Huainan and Karachi are more affordable than the global median – Huainan 47% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.82 ¥18.87

$2.13 PKR 588

32.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.93 ¥147

$13.30 PKR 3,680

64.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.75 ¥31.75

$5.45 PKR 1,508

-12.84%

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

$2.99 ¥19.96

$2.09 PKR 579

43.06%

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

$0.43 ¥2.88

$0.40 PKR 111

7.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.80

$0.26 PKR 71.1

3.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.95 ¥6.38

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 ¥13.82

Milk (1 liter)

$1.78 ¥11.90

$0.92 PKR 254

93.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 ¥10.88

$0.56 PKR 156

191.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 ¥6.35

$1.25 PKR 345

-24.00%

Eggs

$1.54 ¥10.27

$1.23 PKR 341

25.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 ¥87.0

$5.67 PKR 1,570

129.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.12 ¥20.83

$3.16 PKR 876

-1.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.04 ¥67.2

$6.28 PKR 1,737

59.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 ¥12.62

$1.26 PKR 348

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 ¥8.15

$0.53 PKR 148

130.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 ¥10.25

$1.00 PKR 276

53.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.13 ¥7.57

$0.56 PKR 154

101.79%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 ¥4.72

$0.33 PKR 91.4

115.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.96 ¥6.41

$0.34 PKR 95.1

182.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 ¥3.95

$0.42 PKR 116

40.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.67

$0.44 PKR 121

25.00%

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)

$3.19 ¥21.30

$1.84 PKR 509

73.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.53 ¥70.4

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 ¥5.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.67

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.28 PKR 77.0

3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.92 ¥113

$9.99 PKR 2,764

69.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.42 ¥9.47

$0.92 PKR 256

54.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 ¥2.38

$0.70 PKR 193

-48.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.65 ¥44.45

$2.16 PKR 597

207.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 ¥7.55

$1.38 PKR 382

-18.12%

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

$19.6K ¥131.4K

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

9.76%

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

$17.4K ¥116.5K

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

-35.67%

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

$44.59 ¥298

$113 PKR 31.4K

-60.70%

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

$9.99 ¥66.8

$5.95 PKR 1,648

67.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.74 ¥78.5

$13.16 PKR 3,642

-10.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.38 ¥277

$21.55 PKR 5,965

92.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.14 ¥94.5

$18.23 PKR 5,044

-22.44%

Cinema Ticket

$6.03 ¥40.31

$4.21 PKR 1,165

43.23%

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

$338 ¥2,257

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

547.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K ¥111.3K

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

758.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.50 ¥298

$17.55 PKR 4,858

153.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.22 ¥202

$23.51 PKR 6,506

28.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.5 ¥478

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

3.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.3 ¥483

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

78.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$278 ¥1,859

$118 PKR 32.7K

135.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$196 ¥1,310

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

166.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ¥3,892

$357 PKR 98.9K

62.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$354 ¥2,366

$188 PKR 52.0K

88.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,984 ¥20.0K

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

181.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,043 ¥13.7K

$481 PKR 133.1K

324.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$183 PKR 50.6K

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 Huainan: October 13, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Huainan

$198 27.6%

Karachi

$101 21% 48.9% $97

Accommodation & Living

Huainan

$196 27.3%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 62.4% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Huainan

$98 13.7%

Karachi

$68 14.1% 31.1% $31

Eating Out

Huainan

$84 11.8%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 27.6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Huainan

$66 9.2%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 99.9% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Huainan

$53 7.4%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 43.9% $23

Getting Around

Huainan

$21 3%

Karachi

$16 3.2% 27.1% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $278 in Huainan versus $118 in Karachi. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Huainan versus $13.00 in Karachi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $198 vs $101 – making Karachi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Huainan

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

16:32 4:32 PM

13:32 1:32 PM

3 h behind Huainan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,033,528

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Huainan Karachi 4,910 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Huainan
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

Huainan vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Huainan is pricier by about 49%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,077 per month in Huainan and $723 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Huainan and $13.00 in Karachi. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $718 in Huainan and $482 in Karachi. That's a gap of about 49%.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $718 in Huainan and $482 in Karachi, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Karachi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Karachi. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Huainan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.