Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Kuala Terengganu

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $924 in Kuala Terengganu, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Terengganu
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Kuala Terengganu Living Index

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Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Kuala Terengganu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$924

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Karachi and in Kuala Terengganu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $482 in Karachi versus $924 in Kuala Terengganu.

Karachi $482
Kuala Terengganu $924

Estimated couple costs with rent: $750 in Karachi versus $1,372 in Kuala Terengganu.

Karachi $750
Kuala Terengganu $1,372

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,018 in Karachi versus $1,821 in Kuala Terengganu.

Karachi $1,018
Kuala Terengganu $1,821

Living in Karachi costs roughly 48% less than in Kuala Terengganu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 PKR 588

$2.49 MYR 10.15

-14.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.30 PKR 3,680

$23.06 MYR 94.1

-42.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.45 PKR 1,508

$4.72 MYR 19.25

15.47%

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

$2.72 MYR 11.08

-23.16%

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

$0.40 PKR 111

$0.47 MYR 1.90

-14.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 PKR 71.1

$0.28 MYR 1.14

-7.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.56 MYR 14.52

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 MYR 17.05

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 PKR 254

$1.70 MYR 6.94

-45.88%

White Bread (500g)

$0.56 PKR 156

$1.02 MYR 4.15

-45.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.25 PKR 345

$1.28 MYR 5.22

-2.34%

Eggs

$1.23 PKR 341

$2.13 MYR 8.68

-42.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.67 PKR 1,570

$15.66 MYR 63.9

-63.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.16 PKR 876

$4.35 MYR 17.73

-27.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.28 PKR 1,737

$8.41 MYR 34.29

-25.33%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 PKR 348

$3.36 MYR 13.73

-62.50%

Banana (1kg)

$0.53 PKR 148

$1.61 MYR 6.59

-67.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.00 PKR 276

$2.10 MYR 8.59

-52.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 154

$1.50 MYR 6.13

-62.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.4

$1.47 MYR 6.01

-77.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.34 PKR 95.1

$1.09 MYR 4.45

-68.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 PKR 116

$1.00 MYR 4.09

-58.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 PKR 121

$0.53 MYR 2.17

-16.98%

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

$4.46 MYR 18.18

-58.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.84 MYR 72.8

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 MYR 11.91

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.82 MYR 19.66

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PKR 77.0

$0.67 MYR 2.75

-58.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.99 PKR 2,764

$10.62 MYR 43.31

-5.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 256

$1.27 MYR 5.20

-27.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 PKR 193

$0.46 MYR 1.89

52.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.16 PKR 597

$6.55 MYR 26.73

-67.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 PKR 382

$0.90 MYR 3.65

53.33%

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

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

$43.8K MYR 178.8K

-59.16%

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

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

$32.1K MYR 131.0K

-15.65%

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

$113 PKR 31.4K

$45.25 MYR 185

150.72%

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

$5.95 PKR 1,648

$8.79 MYR 35.87

-32.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.16 PKR 3,642

$25.10 MYR 102

-47.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.55 PKR 5,965

$44.04 MYR 180

-51.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.23 PKR 5,044

$7.97 MYR 32.49

128.73%

Cinema Ticket

$4.21 PKR 1,165

$4.81 MYR 19.61

-12.47%

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

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

$172 MYR 701

-69.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

$6,936 MYR 28.3K

-72.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.55 PKR 4,858

$57.5 MYR 235

-69.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.51 PKR 6,506

$36.37 MYR 148

-35.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

$86.5 MYR 353

-20.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

$68.0 MYR 278

-40.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$118 PKR 32.7K

$361 MYR 1,472

-67.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

$312 MYR 1,275

-76.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$357 PKR 98.9K

$722 MYR 2,946

-50.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$188 PKR 52.0K

$471 MYR 1,923

-60.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

$2,073 MYR 8,456

-48.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$481 PKR 133.1K

$1,145 MYR 4,669

-58.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$183 PKR 50.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.21

4.06

225.37%

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

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kuala Terengganu: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karachi

$133 27.5%

Kuala Terengganu

$79 8.6% 40.3% $53

Groceries & Markets

Karachi

$101 21%

Kuala Terengganu

$254 27.5% 151% $153

Accommodation & Living

Karachi

$74 15.3%

Kuala Terengganu

$312 33.8% 325% $239

Clothing & Footwear

Karachi

$68 14.1%

Kuala Terengganu

$112 12.1% 65% $44

Eating Out

Karachi

$61 12.7%

Kuala Terengganu

$96 10.4% 56.8% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Karachi

$30 6.2%

Kuala Terengganu

$54 5.8% 79% $24

Getting Around

Karachi

$16 3.2%

Kuala Terengganu

$17 1.8% 9% $1.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $118 in Karachi and $361 in Kuala Terengganu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $13.00 in Karachi vs $23.00 in Kuala Terengganu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $101 vs $254 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Karachi

🇲🇾 Kuala Terengganu

🕒 Local time

09:09 9:09 AM

12:09 12:09 PM

3 h ahead of Karachi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,910,352

375,424

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to PKR – Pakistani Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇰 Pakistani Rupee (₨)

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Karachi Kuala Terengganu 4,420 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Karachi
Kuala Terengganu

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 Kuala Terengganu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi and Kuala Terengganu differ by about 92% in total monthly costs ($482 vs $924 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $723 in Karachi and $1,386 in Kuala Terengganu to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $118 in Karachi versus $361 in Kuala Terengganu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $482 per month in Karachi versus $924 in Kuala Terengganu – a 92% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 6% less than in Kuala Terengganu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Karachi 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 Kuala Terengganu 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 92% less than in Kuala Terengganu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.