Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Erdenet

For one person, living is cheaper in Erdenet: $377 a month against $490 in Karachi, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Erdenet
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Erdenet Living Index

Jump to prices

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Erdenet

🇲🇳 Mongolia

$377

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Karachi and in Erdenet

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $490 in Karachi versus $377 in Erdenet.

Karachi $490
Erdenet $377

Estimated couple costs with rent: $755 in Karachi versus $617 in Erdenet.

Karachi $755
Erdenet $617

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,019 in Karachi versus $858 in Erdenet.

Karachi $1,019
Erdenet $858

Living in Karachi is roughly 30% more expensive than in Erdenet, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Karachi 63% lower, Erdenet 72% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.15 PKR 596

$4.08 MNT 14.7K

-47.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.37 PKR 3,700

$27.28 MNT 98.0K

-50.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.29 PKR 1,464

$4.08 MNT 14.7K

29.66%

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

$2.11 PKR 583

$2.29 MNT 8,214

-7.86%

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

$0.37 PKR 103

$0.66 MNT 2,373

-43.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 PKR 78.2

$0.40 MNT 1,454

-30.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 MNT 6,100

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 MNT 5,840

Milk (1 liter)

$0.86 PKR 238

$1.01 MNT 3,627

-14.85%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 PKR 144

$0.91 MNT 3,281

-42.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 PKR 344

$2.85 MNT 10.3K

-56.49%

Eggs

$1.24 PKR 342

$2.02 MNT 7,270

-38.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.86 PKR 1,622

$7.05 MNT 25.3K

-16.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.12 PKR 862

$6.78 MNT 24.4K

-53.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.25 PKR 1,731

$4.54 MNT 16.3K

37.67%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 PKR 356

$2.24 MNT 8,038

-42.41%

Banana (1kg)

$0.54 PKR 150

$1.68 MNT 6,054

-67.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.99 PKR 273

$1.63 MNT 5,857

-39.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 155

$1.37 MNT 4,925

-59.12%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.6

$1.43 MNT 5,136

-76.92%

Onion (1kg)

$0.35 PKR 95.9

$0.85 MNT 3,040

-58.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.45 PKR 124

$1.41 MNT 5,071

-68.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 PKR 121

$0.98 MNT 3,539

-55.10%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.23 PKR 341

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PKR 381

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.79 PKR 497

$2.83 MNT 10.2K

-36.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 MNT 20.4K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 MNT 5,830

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 MNT 5,938

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PKR 76.5

$0.15 MNT 549

86.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.68 PKR 2,679

$19.59 MNT 70.4K

-50.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 255

$0.61 MNT 2,209

50.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 PKR 196

$0.43 MNT 1,546

65.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 PKR 615

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 PKR 372

$0.75 MNT 2,689

80.00%

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

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

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

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

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

$112 PKR 30.9K

$57.7 MNT 207.4K

93.66%

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

$6.05 PKR 1,673

$2.86 MNT 10.3K

111.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.29 PKR 3,679

$14.06 MNT 50.5K

-5.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.51 PKR 5,954

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.80 PKR 4,927

Cinema Ticket

$4.42 PKR 1,222

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

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

$281 MNT 1.0M

-81.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

$2,474 MNT 8.9M

-20.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.57 PKR 4,862

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.78 PKR 6,304

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$117 PKR 32.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$365 PKR 101.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$182 PKR 50.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 PKR 135.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$185 PKR 51.2K

$218 MNT 782.9K

-15.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.21

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

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Last update for Erdenet: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karachi

$131 27.3%

Erdenet

$75 20% 43.1% $56

Groceries & Markets

Karachi

$101 20.9%

Erdenet

$188 50.3% 86.8% $88

Accommodation & Living

Karachi

$76 15.7%

Erdenet

- * 0% 100%

Clothing & Footwear

Karachi

$67 13.9%

Erdenet

- * 0% 100%

Eating Out

Karachi

$61 12.7%

Erdenet

$88 23.6% 44.8% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Karachi

$30 6.3%

Erdenet

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Karachi

$15 3.2%

Erdenet

$23 6.1% 50.7% $7.7

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

Cost Breakdown

Erdenet pays 18% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $13.00 in Karachi vs $27.00 in Erdenet for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $101 vs $188 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Karachi

🇲🇳 Erdenet

🕒 Local time

10:45 10:45 AM

13:45 1:45 PM

3 h ahead of Karachi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,910,352

86,866

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Mongolian Tögrög MNT ₮

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD

10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MNT, 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).

Mongolian Tögrög exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,593 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD). 1 EUR = 4,030 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Karachi Erdenet 4,180 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Karachi
Erdenet

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 Erdenet: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi and Erdenet differ by about 30% in total monthly costs ($490 vs $377 including rent). Erdenet is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 18% lower in Erdenet. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Childcare runs $50.7 in Karachi versus $281 in Erdenet. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Karachi pay roughly 87% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Erdenet gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Erdenet 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 Erdenet gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Karachi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.