Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Bandar Seri Begawan

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $1,193 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Bandar Seri Begawan
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Bandar Seri Begawan Living Index

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Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Bandar Seri Begawan

🇧🇳 Brunei

$1,193

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Karachi and in Bandar Seri Begawan

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

A single person spends $490 per month in Karachi vs $1,193 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent included.

Karachi $490
Bandar Seri Begawan $1,193

A couple spends around $755 per month in Karachi vs $1,725 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent included.

Karachi $755
Bandar Seri Begawan $1,725

A family of three spends $1,019 per month in Karachi vs $2,257 in Bandar Seri Begawan, rent included.

Karachi $1,019
Bandar Seri Begawan $2,257

Karachi is about 59% cheaper than Bandar Seri Begawan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Karachi and Bandar Seri Begawan are more affordable than the global median – Karachi 63% lower, Bandar Seri Begawan 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.15 PKR 596

$3.84 BND 4.91

-44.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.37 PKR 3,700

$27.17 BND 34.78

-50.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.29 PKR 1,464

$6.13 BND 7.84

-13.70%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 PKR 606

$1.90 BND 2.44

15.26%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.25 PKR 2,005

$2.31 BND 2.96

213.85%

Cappuccino

$2.11 PKR 583

$3.88 BND 4.97

-45.62%

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

$0.37 PKR 103

$0.95 BND 1.22

-61.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 PKR 78.2

$0.53 BND 0.68

-47.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.86 PKR 238

$1.84 BND 2.36

-53.26%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 PKR 144

$1.70 BND 2.18

-69.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 PKR 344

$1.24 BND 1.58

Eggs

$1.24 PKR 342

$2.01 BND 2.58

-38.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.86 PKR 1,622

$9.26 BND 11.85

-36.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.12 PKR 862

$4.39 BND 5.63

-28.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.25 PKR 1,731

$10.63 BND 13.61

-41.20%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 PKR 356

$3.19 BND 4.09

-59.56%

Banana (1kg)

$0.54 PKR 150

$2.18 BND 2.79

-75.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.99 PKR 273

$2.86 BND 3.66

-65.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 155

$2.59 BND 3.31

-78.38%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.6

$1.75 BND 2.24

-81.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.35 PKR 95.9

$2.08 BND 2.67

-83.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.45 PKR 124

$3.61 BND 4.62

-87.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 PKR 121

$0.93 BND 1.19

-52.69%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.23 PKR 341

$23.07 BND 29.54

-94.67%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PKR 381

$3.39 BND 4.35

-59.59%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.79 PKR 497

$15.45 BND 19.78

-88.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PKR 76.5

$0.82 BND 1.05

-65.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.68 PKR 2,679

$0.82 BND 1.05

1080.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 255

$3.82 BND 4.89

-75.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 PKR 196

$3.42 BND 4.38

-79.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 PKR 615

$11.89 BND 15.22

-81.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 PKR 372

$0.39 BND 0.50

246.15%

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

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

$43.7K BND 56.0K

-59.22%

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

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

$36.2K BND 46.3K

-26.09%

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

$112 PKR 30.9K

$60.7 BND 77.7

84.34%

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

$6.05 PKR 1,673

$21.58 BND 27.63

-71.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.29 PKR 3,679

$65.4 BND 83.8

-79.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.51 PKR 5,954

$45.10 BND 57.7

-52.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.80 PKR 4,927

$6.96 BND 8.91

155.75%

Cinema Ticket

$4.42 PKR 1,222

$5.34 BND 6.84

-17.23%

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

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

$214 BND 273

-76.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

$9,857 BND 12.6K

-80.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.57 PKR 4,862

$75.2 BND 96.3

-76.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.78 PKR 6,304

$92.5 BND 118

-75.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

$104 BND 133

-34.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

$73.3 BND 93.8

-44.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$117 PKR 32.5K

$734 BND 939

-84.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

$469 BND 601

-83.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$365 PKR 101.1K

$1,125 BND 1,440

-67.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$182 PKR 50.5K

$692 BND 885

-73.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

$3,106 BND 3,977

-66.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 PKR 135.8K

$2,298 BND 2,942

-78.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$185 PKR 51.2K

$1,755 BND 2,247

-89.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.21

3.88

240.46%

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

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Last update for Bandar Seri Begawan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karachi

$131 27.3%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$148 12.6% 12.6% $17

Groceries & Markets

Karachi

$101 20.9%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$218 18.6% 117% $118

Accommodation & Living

Karachi

$76 15.7%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$469 40% 520% $394

Clothing & Footwear

Karachi

$67 13.9%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$155 13.2% 131% $88

Eating Out

Karachi

$61 12.7%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$102 8.7% 66.6% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Karachi

$30 6.3%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$56 4.8% 83.8% $25

Getting Around

Karachi

$15 3.2%

Bandar Seri Begawan

$25 2.1% 64% $9.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $117 in Karachi versus $734 in Bandar Seri Begawan. 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 850% higher in Bandar Seri Begawan, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $13.00 in Karachi versus $27.00 in Bandar Seri Begawan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $101 vs $218 – making Karachi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Karachi

🇧🇳 Bandar Seri Begawan

🕒 Local time

16:56 4:56 PM

19:56 7:56 PM

3 h ahead of Karachi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,910,352

50,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Brunei Dollar BND $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

1 BND = 0.781 USD

1 BND = 0.697 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BND, USD, EUR to PKR – Pakistani Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇰 Pakistani Rupee (₨)

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).

Brunei Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 BND (1 BND = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.43 BND (1 BND = 0.697 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Karachi Bandar Seri Begawan 5,570 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Karachi
Bandar Seri Begawan

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

Karachi vs Bandar Seri Begawan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Bandar Seri Begawan is pricier by about 143%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $735 per month in Karachi and $1,789 in Bandar Seri Begawan. 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $490 in Karachi and $1,193 in Bandar Seri Begawan. That's a gap of about 143%.

Public transport costs about 1080% less in Karachi. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Karachi, where all-in costs run around $490, than in Bandar Seri Begawan at $1,193. In Karachi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bandar Seri Begawan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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.

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 Karachi. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bandar Seri Begawan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.