Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Islamabad and Lalitpur

For one person, living is cheaper in Lalitpur: $452 a month against $599 in Islamabad, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Islamabad
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Islamabad Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Lalitpur
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Lalitpur Living Index

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Islamabad

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$599

/mo nomad

Lalitpur

🇳🇵 Nepal

$452

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Islamabad and in Lalitpur

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Islamabad and in Lalitpur actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $599 per month in Islamabad vs $452 in Lalitpur, rent included.

Islamabad $599
Lalitpur $452

A couple spends around $930 per month in Islamabad vs $823 in Lalitpur, rent included.

Islamabad $930
Lalitpur $823

A family of three spends $1,261 per month in Islamabad vs $1,193 in Lalitpur, rent included.

Islamabad $1,261
Lalitpur $1,193

Islamabad costs about 33% more than Lalitpur, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Islamabad and Lalitpur are more affordable than the global median – Islamabad 56% lower, Lalitpur 67% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.63 PKR 1,004

$1.92 NPR 292

89.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.40 PKR 6,478

$19.80 NPR 3,008

18.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.54 PKR 1,534

$6.35 NPR 964

-12.76%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.57 PKR 987

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.73 PKR 1,864

Cappuccino

$2.64 PKR 730

$1.52 NPR 231

73.68%

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

$0.32 PKR 89.6

$0.28 NPR 42.49

14.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 PKR 63.7

$0.13 NPR 19.89

76.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.75 NPR 266

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 NPR 367

Milk (1 liter)

$0.94 PKR 259

$0.76 NPR 116

23.68%

White Bread (500g)

$0.72 PKR 200

$0.58 NPR 88.7

24.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 PKR 361

$0.92 NPR 139

41.30%

Eggs

$1.22 PKR 339

$1.73 NPR 264

-29.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.05 PKR 1,674

$7.53 NPR 1,144

-19.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.09 PKR 855

$3.15 NPR 479

-1.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.35 PKR 1,482

$5.98 NPR 909

-10.54%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 PKR 350

$2.00 NPR 304

-37.00%

Banana (1kg)

$0.87 PKR 241

$1.14 NPR 173

-23.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.04 PKR 288

$1.42 NPR 216

-26.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.53 PKR 146

$0.54 NPR 81.9

-1.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.29 PKR 81.2

$0.42 NPR 63.4

-30.95%

Onion (1kg)

$0.36 PKR 99.4

$0.54 NPR 81.6

-33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.28 PKR 76.4

$0.46 NPR 69.8

-39.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.39 PKR 108

$0.24 NPR 36.68

62.50%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.95 PKR 539

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 PKR 331

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 PKR 743

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.24 PKR 619

$2.50 NPR 380

-10.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.93 NPR 1,205

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.29 NPR 348

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 NPR 464

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.16 PKR 43.07

$0.18 NPR 27.32

-11.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.34 PKR 5,905

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.24 PKR 344

$1.76 NPR 267

-29.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.74 PKR 204

$1.14 NPR 173

-35.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.60 PKR 442

$3.30 NPR 501

-51.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 PKR 378

$1.11 NPR 169

23.42%

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

$54.5K PKR 15.1M

$29.4K NPR 4.5M

85.13%

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

$23.9K PKR 6.6M

$36.9K NPR 5.6M

-35.26%

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

$103 PKR 28.6K

$31.42 NPR 4,774

228.64%

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

$5.99 PKR 1,658

$3.50 NPR 531

71.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.15 PKR 4,746

$8.92 NPR 1,356

92.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.20 PKR 7,806

$33.00 NPR 5,014

-14.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.47 PKR 2,344

$9.97 NPR 1,515

-15.05%

Cinema Ticket

$4.43 PKR 1,226

$2.93 NPR 445

51.19%

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

$75.7 PKR 20.9K

$64.7 NPR 9,836

16.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,004 PKR 1.4M

$2,709 NPR 411.6K

84.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.72 PKR 7,118

$24.84 NPR 3,775

3.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.48 PKR 9,543

$19.67 NPR 2,989

75.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.5 PKR 26.4K

$63.7 NPR 9,681

49.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.32 PKR 11.4K

$28.54 NPR 4,337

44.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$276 PKR 76.5K

$162 NPR 24.5K

71.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 PKR 38.3K

$85.6 NPR 13.0K

61.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$572 PKR 158.2K

$498 NPR 75.7K

14.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$270 PKR 74.9K

$350 NPR 53.1K

-22.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,629 PKR 450.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$836 PKR 231.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$380 PKR 105.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.08

9.72

34.57%

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

Last update for Islamabad: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lalitpur: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Islamabad

$139 23.1%

Lalitpur

$86 19% 38.2% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Islamabad

$126 21.1%

Lalitpur

$44 9.7% 65.3% $83

Groceries & Markets

Islamabad

$102 17%

Lalitpur

$146 32.3% 43.1% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Islamabad

$89 14.8%

Lalitpur

$62 13.6% 30.6% $27

Eating Out

Islamabad

$80 13.3%

Lalitpur

$68 15% 14.7% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Islamabad

$37 6.2%

Lalitpur

$39 8.6% 4.8% $1.8

Getting Around

Islamabad

$27 4.5%

Lalitpur

$8.2 * 1.8% 69.6% $19

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $276 in Islamabad versus $162 in Lalitpur. 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 $23.00 in Islamabad versus $20.00 in Lalitpur. Groceries tell a different story – $102 in Islamabad vs $146 in Lalitpur – so Islamabad wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Islamabad

🇳🇵 Lalitpur

🕒 Local time

22:30 10:30 PM

23:15 11:15 PM

45 min ahead of Islamabad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,009,832 Capital

254,000

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Nepalese Rupee NPR रु

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

1,000 NPR = 6.58 USD

1,000 NPR = 5.85 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NPR, USD, EUR to PKR – Pakistani Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇰 Pakistani Rupee (₨)

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

Nepalese Rupee exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 152 NPR (1,000 NPR = 6.58 USD). 1 EUR = 171 NPR (1,000 NPR = 5.85 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Islamabad Lalitpur 1,350 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Islamabad
Lalitpur

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

Islamabad vs Lalitpur: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Islamabad is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $899 per month in Islamabad and $678 in Lalitpur. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lalitpur, 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 $23.00 in Islamabad and $20.00 in Lalitpur. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 43% cheaper in Islamabad – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $599 in Islamabad and $452 in Lalitpur, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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