Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kaohsiung and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $1,108 in Kaohsiung, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Kaohsiung
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Kaohsiung Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Kaohsiung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,108

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,108 in Kaohsiung versus $490 in Karachi.

Kaohsiung $1,108
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,821 in Kaohsiung versus $755 in Karachi.

Kaohsiung $1,821
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,535 in Kaohsiung versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Kaohsiung $2,535
Karachi $1,019

Living in Kaohsiung is roughly 126% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kaohsiung 17% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.46 NT$174

$2.15 PKR 596

153.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.96 NT$1,020

$13.37 PKR 3,700

139.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.87 NT$155

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-7.94%

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

$2.83 NT$90.4

$2.11 PKR 583

34.12%

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

$1.14 NT$36.42

$0.37 PKR 103

208.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 NT$22.77

$0.28 PKR 78.2

153.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.53 NT$48.87

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.55 NT$81.6

Milk (1 liter)

$3.25 NT$104

$0.86 PKR 238

277.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 NT$69.8

$0.52 PKR 144

321.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.07 NT$98.2

$1.24 PKR 344

147.58%

Eggs

$2.67 NT$85.2

$1.24 PKR 342

115.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.13 NT$515

$5.86 PKR 1,622

175.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.08 NT$258

$3.12 PKR 862

158.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.24 NT$486

$6.25 PKR 1,730

143.84%

Apples (1kg)

$6.80 NT$217

$1.29 PKR 356

427.13%

Banana (1kg)

$2.82 NT$90.1

$0.54 PKR 150

422.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 NT$82.0

$0.99 PKR 273

159.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.08 NT$98.4

$0.56 PKR 155

450.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.84 NT$90.7

$0.33 PKR 91.6

760.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 NT$65.8

$0.35 PKR 95.8

488.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 NT$78.2

$0.45 PKR 124

444.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 NT$33.19

$0.44 PKR 121

136.36%

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)

$4.54 NT$145

$1.79 PKR 497

153.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.72 NT$502

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 NT$53.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 NT$71.7

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 NT$21.69

$0.28 PKR 76.5

142.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.67 NT$405

$9.68 PKR 2,679

30.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.76 NT$88.0

$0.92 PKR 255

200.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 NT$23.99

$0.71 PKR 196

5.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.51 NT$176

$2.22 PKR 615

148.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 NT$32.52

$1.35 PKR 372

-24.44%

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

$33.6K NT$1.1M

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

88.58%

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

$23.0K NT$735.6K

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

-13.83%

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

$84.8 NT$2,706

$112 PKR 30.9K

-24.17%

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

$17.34 NT$553

$6.05 PKR 1,673

186.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.77 NT$823

$13.29 PKR 3,679

93.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.21 NT$1,315

$21.51 PKR 5,954

91.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.41 NT$332

$17.80 PKR 4,927

-41.52%

Cinema Ticket

$10.96 NT$350

$4.42 PKR 1,222

147.96%

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

$462 NT$14.8K

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

811.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K NT$449.4K

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

619.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.5 NT$2,983

$17.57 PKR 4,862

431.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.88 NT$1,018

$22.78 PKR 6,304

39.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.9 NT$2,741

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

27.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 NT$3,315

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

153.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$415 NT$13.2K

$117 PKR 32.4K

253.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$276 NT$8,812

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

264.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$979 NT$31.3K

$365 PKR 101.1K

168.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$668 NT$21.3K

$182 PKR 50.5K

266.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,588 NT$146.5K

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

335.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,154 NT$100.7K

$491 PKR 135.8K

542.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,462 NT$46.7K

$185 PKR 51.2K

691.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.56

13.21

-80.62%

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

Last update for Kaohsiung: October 3, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Kaohsiung

$368 33.1%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 72.6% $267

Accommodation & Living

Kaohsiung

$276 24.9%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 72.6% $200

Clothing & Footwear

Kaohsiung

$142 12.8%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 52.7% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kaohsiung

$128 11.5%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 2.5% $3.3

Eating Out

Kaohsiung

$112 10.1%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 45.7% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Kaohsiung

$63 5.7%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 51.9% $33

Getting Around

Kaohsiung

$22 2%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 30.4% $6.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $415 in Kaohsiung and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kaohsiung pays 691% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32.00 in Kaohsiung vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $368 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Kaohsiung

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

15:26 3:26 PM

12:26 12:26 PM

3 h behind Kaohsiung

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,777,873

14,910,352

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.13 USD

100 TWD = 2.79 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 31.92 TWD (100 TWD = 3.13 USD). 1 EUR = 35.81 TWD (100 TWD = 2.79 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 TWD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kaohsiung Karachi 5,400 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Kaohsiung
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

Kaohsiung vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kaohsiung and Karachi differ by about 126% in total monthly costs ($1,108 vs $490 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 691% higher in Kaohsiung, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $415 in Kaohsiung versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $462 in Kaohsiung 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 265% higher in Kaohsiung. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $490 in Karachi versus $1,108 in Kaohsiung, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Karachi but tight or insufficient in Kaohsiung. The gap between the two cities makes Karachi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Kaohsiung 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 126% less than in Kaohsiung. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.