Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Chaiyaphum

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $915 in Chaiyaphum, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
Learn more

Karachi Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Chaiyaphum
Learn more

Chaiyaphum Living Index

Jump to prices

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Chaiyaphum

🇹🇭 Thailand

$915

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Karachi and in Chaiyaphum

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 Chaiyaphum actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $482 in Karachi versus $915 in Chaiyaphum.

Karachi $482
Chaiyaphum $915

Estimated couple costs with rent: $750 in Karachi versus $1,550 in Chaiyaphum.

Karachi $750
Chaiyaphum $1,550

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,018 in Karachi versus $2,185 in Chaiyaphum.

Karachi $1,018
Chaiyaphum $2,185

Living in Karachi costs roughly 47% less than in Chaiyaphum, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Karachi 64% lower, Chaiyaphum 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 PKR 588

$1.21 ฿40.48

76.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.30 PKR 3,680

$36.12 ฿1,207

-63.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.45 PKR 1,508

$6.79 ฿227

-19.73%

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

$2.09 PKR 579

$1.22 ฿40.66

71.31%

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

$0.40 PKR 111

$0.50 ฿16.83

-20.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 PKR 71.1

$0.36 ฿12.16

-27.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.63 ฿87.9

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 ฿153

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 PKR 254

$1.89 ฿63.3

-51.32%

White Bread (500g)

$0.56 PKR 156

$1.44 ฿48.10

-61.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.25 PKR 345

$1.41 ฿47.13

-11.35%

Eggs

$1.23 PKR 341

$1.54 ฿51.6

-20.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.67 PKR 1,570

$17.53 ฿586

-67.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.16 PKR 876

$3.69 ฿123

-14.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.28 PKR 1,737

$13.19 ฿441

-52.39%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 PKR 348

$3.79 ฿127

-66.75%

Banana (1kg)

$0.53 PKR 148

$0.60 ฿20.08

-11.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.00 PKR 276

$2.82 ฿94.1

-64.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 154

$1.89 ฿63.3

-70.37%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.4

$1.74 ฿58.0

-81.03%

Onion (1kg)

$0.34 PKR 95.1

$1.48 ฿49.52

-77.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 PKR 116

$1.24 ฿41.49

-66.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 PKR 121

$0.31 ฿10.52

41.94%

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)

$1.84 PKR 509

$4.72 ฿158

-61.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.90 ฿498

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 ฿61.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 ฿109

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PKR 77.0

$0.93 ฿30.95

-69.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.99 PKR 2,764

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 256

$1.06 ฿35.43

-13.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 PKR 193

$1.22 ฿40.91

-42.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.16 PKR 597

$6.07 ฿203

-64.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 PKR 382

$1.05 ฿35.08

31.43%

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

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

$31.7K ฿1.1M

-43.55%

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

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

$27.6K ฿922.3K

-1.86%

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

$113 PKR 31.4K

$43.17 ฿1,443

162.80%

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

$5.95 PKR 1,648

$11.22 ฿375

-46.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.16 PKR 3,642

$11.99 ฿401

9.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.55 PKR 5,965

$47.25 ฿1,579

-54.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.23 PKR 5,044

$14.22 ฿475

28.20%

Cinema Ticket

$4.21 PKR 1,165

$7.53 ฿252

-44.09%

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

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

$572 ฿19.1K

-90.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

$16.8K ฿561.3K

-88.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.55 PKR 4,858

$69.4 ฿2,319

-74.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.51 PKR 6,506

$42.28 ฿1,413

-44.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

$95.2 ฿3,181

-27.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

$110 ฿3,676

-63.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$118 PKR 32.7K

$437 ฿14.6K

-72.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

$301 ฿10.1K

-75.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$357 PKR 98.9K

$1,382 ฿46.2K

-74.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$188 PKR 52.0K

$721 ฿24.1K

-73.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

$1,921 ฿64.2K

-44.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$481 PKR 133.1K

$1,604 ฿53.6K

-70.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$183 PKR 50.6K

$445 ฿14.9K

-58.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.21

5.25

151.62%

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

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chaiyaphum: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karachi

$133 27.5%

Chaiyaphum

$66 7.3% 49.9% $66

Groceries & Markets

Karachi

$101 21%

Chaiyaphum

$261 28.6% 158% $160

Accommodation & Living

Karachi

$74 15.3%

Chaiyaphum

$301 32.9% 309% $227

Clothing & Footwear

Karachi

$68 14.1%

Chaiyaphum

$143 15.6% 111% $75

Eating Out

Karachi

$61 12.7%

Chaiyaphum

$70 7.7% 15.3% $9.3

Sport & Entertainment

Karachi

$30 6.2%

Chaiyaphum

$62 6.8% 108% $32

Getting Around

Karachi

$16 3.2%

Chaiyaphum

$11 * 1.2% 29.8% $4.6

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $118 in Karachi and $437 in Chaiyaphum. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chaiyaphum pays 143% 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: $13.00 in Karachi vs $36.00 in Chaiyaphum for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $101 vs $261 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Karachi

🇹🇭 Chaiyaphum

🕒 Local time

23:07 11:07 PM

01:07 1:07 AM

2 h ahead of Karachi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,910,352

42,436

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PKR – Pakistani Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇰 Pakistani Rupee (₨)

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Karachi Chaiyaphum 3,770 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Karachi
Chaiyaphum

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 Chaiyaphum: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 90% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 143% lower in Chaiyaphum. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $118 in Karachi versus $437 in Chaiyaphum. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $52.2 in Karachi versus $572 in Chaiyaphum. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Karachi – a meal for two runs $13.00 versus $36.00 in Chaiyaphum. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $482 in Karachi versus $915 in Chaiyaphum, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Karachi but tight or insufficient in Chaiyaphum. 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, Karachi and Chaiyaphum 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 90% less than in Chaiyaphum. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.