Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Islamabad Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Islamabad

🙂 Solo nomad: Karachi is 15.6% cheaper than Islamabad without rent, and 9.2% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Karachi is 10.4% cheaper than Islamabad without rent, and 17.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.08 PKR 588

$2.85 PKR 806

-27.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.27 PKR 3,465

$14.4 PKR 4,068

-14.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.07 PKR 1,149

$5.28 PKR 1,491

-22.92%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2 PKR 565

$1.75 PKR 496

14.29%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.14 PKR 1,453

$3.83 PKR 1,083

34.20%

Cappuccino

$1.84 PKR 519

$2.01 PKR 567

-8.46%

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

$0.37 PKR 104

$0.39 PKR 111

-5.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 PKR 65.2

$0.24 PKR 68.1

-4.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.8 PKR 225

$1 PKR 282

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.55 PKR 155

$0.67 PKR 188

-17.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.13 PKR 319

$1.22 PKR 344

-7.38%

Eggs

$1.18 PKR 332

$1.27 PKR 358

-7.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.54 PKR 1,846

$6.15 PKR 1,736

6.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.24 PKR 915

$3.55 PKR 1,004

-8.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.08 PKR 1,435

$4.31 PKR 1,216

17.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.08 PKR 306

$1.03 PKR 292

4.85%

Banana (1kg)

$0.55 PKR 155

$0.85 PKR 239

-35.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.89 PKR 250

$0.9 PKR 255

-1.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.54 PKR 152

$0.59 PKR 167

-8.47%

Potato (1kg)

$0.38 PKR 108

$0.42 PKR 118

-9.52%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 PKR 133

$0.52 PKR 148

-9.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.36 PKR 100

$0.31 PKR 87.3

16.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 PKR 124

$0.4 PKR 114

10.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.22 PKR 344

$1.78 PKR 503

-31.46%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 PKR 371

$0.87 PKR 247

50.57%

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 PKR 599

$1.96 PKR 554

8.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.18 PKR 616

$2.17 PKR 613

0.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 PKR 103

$0.19 PKR 53

94.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.28 PKR 1,772

$6.95 PKR 1,964

-9.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.7 PKR 197

$0.85 PKR 239

-17.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.66 PKR 187

$0.44 PKR 123

50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.72 PKR 485

$2.9 PKR 820

-40.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 PKR 263

$0.98 PKR 277

-5.10%

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

$16.8K PKR 4.7M

$21.6K PKR 6.1M

-22.34%

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

$25K PKR 7.1M

$26K PKR 7.3M

-3.79%

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

$136 PKR 38.3K

$111 PKR 31.3K

22.42%

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

$4.88 PKR 1,379

$5.35 PKR 1,512

-8.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.36 PKR 3,775

$18.38 PKR 5,191

-27.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.31 PKR 4,325

$22.44 PKR 6,339

-31.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.22 PKR 4,016

$6.02 PKR 1,700

136.21%

Cinema Ticket

$4.35 PKR 1,230

$4.3 PKR 1,214

1.16%

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

$57.7 PKR 16.3K

$59.2 PKR 16.7K

-2.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,350 PKR 381.3K

$2,713 PKR 766.3K

-50.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.87 PKR 5,047

$21.17 PKR 5,980

-15.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.27 PKR 7,138

$28.14 PKR 7,947

-10.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.4 PKR 18.5K

$87.7 PKR 24.8K

-25.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$35.61 PKR 10.1K

$39.86 PKR 11.3K

-10.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$121 PKR 34.2K

$202 PKR 57K

-40.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$75.9 PKR 21.4K

$112 PKR 31.5K

-32.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$321 PKR 90.7K

$499 PKR 141.1K

-35.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$182 PKR 51.4K

$298 PKR 84.3K

-39.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$576 PKR 162.7K

$1,315 PKR 371.4K

-56.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$365 PKR 103.2K

$781 PKR 220.5K

-53.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$190 PKR 53.8K

$289 PKR 81.6K

-34.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

17.8

20.2

-11.88%

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

Last update for Karachi: October 27, 2025

Last update for Islamabad: October 29, 2025

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