Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karachi and Skudai

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $495 a month against $900 in Skudai, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Skudai
Learn more

Skudai Living Index

Jump to prices

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$495

/mo nomad

Skudai

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$900

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Karachi and in Skudai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $495 in Karachi versus $900 in Skudai.

Karachi $495
Skudai $900

Estimated couple costs with rent: $770 in Karachi versus $1,370 in Skudai.

Karachi $770
Skudai $1,370

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,046 in Karachi versus $1,840 in Skudai.

Karachi $1,046
Skudai $1,840

Living in Karachi costs roughly 45% less than in Skudai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Karachi 64% lower, Skudai 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.21 PKR 610

$3.63 MYR 14.84

-39.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.87 PKR 3,562

$18.25 MYR 74.6

-29.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.27 PKR 1,459

$4.90 MYR 20.05

7.55%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 PKR 598

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.36 PKR 2,036

Cappuccino

$2.16 PKR 598

$2.87 MYR 11.73

-24.74%

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

$0.38 PKR 106

$0.83 MYR 3.40

-54.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 PKR 69.3

$0.45 MYR 1.83

-44.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 MYR 13.62

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.62 MYR 22.97

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 PKR 248

$1.74 MYR 7.11

-48.28%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 PKR 143

$1.02 MYR 4.18

-49.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.20 PKR 331

$1.48 MYR 6.06

-18.92%

Eggs

$1.25 PKR 346

$1.66 MYR 6.78

-24.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.82 PKR 1,611

$9.64 MYR 39.43

-39.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.11 PKR 861

$3.20 MYR 13.09

-2.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.53 PKR 1,807

$9.61 MYR 39.28

-32.05%

Apples (1kg)

$1.28 PKR 354

$3.42 MYR 13.98

-62.57%

Banana (1kg)

$0.54 PKR 149

$1.70 MYR 6.94

-68.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.02 PKR 283

$2.61 MYR 10.68

-60.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 155

$1.64 MYR 6.69

-65.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.34 PKR 94.9

$1.41 MYR 5.75

-75.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.31 PKR 87.0

$1.73 MYR 7.08

-82.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.41 PKR 113

$1.37 MYR 5.59

-70.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 PKR 120

$0.51 MYR 2.09

-15.69%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.28 PKR 355

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 PKR 368

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 PKR 679

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.78 PKR 492

$4.28 MYR 17.49

-58.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.83 MYR 56.5

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 MYR 11.19

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 MYR 12.22

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PKR 77.2

$0.83 MYR 3.40

-66.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.70 PKR 3,238

$10.95 MYR 44.78

6.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 254

$1.01 MYR 4.13

-8.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.73 PKR 203

$0.36 MYR 1.46

102.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 PKR 615

$9.03 MYR 36.92

-75.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 PKR 369

$0.86 MYR 3.51

54.65%

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

$18.3K PKR 5.1M

$44.3K MYR 181.0K

-58.76%

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

$26.4K PKR 7.3M

$36.0K MYR 147.2K

-26.73%

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

$112 PKR 31.0K

$48.79 MYR 199

129.90%

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

$5.99 PKR 1,657

$8.16 MYR 33.38

-26.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.18 PKR 3,648

$26.88 MYR 110

-50.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.67 PKR 6,826

$36.95 MYR 151

-33.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.29 PKR 5,062

$7.55 MYR 30.86

142.25%

Cinema Ticket

$4.34 PKR 1,202

$4.93 MYR 20.17

-11.97%

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

$67.2 PKR 18.6K

$235 MYR 962

-71.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,915 PKR 529.9K

$4,393 MYR 18.0K

-56.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.61 PKR 4,874

$50.5 MYR 206

-65.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.03 PKR 6,097

$16.62 MYR 68.0

32.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.3 PKR 18.9K

$77.2 MYR 316

-11.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.66 PKR 11.3K

$85.4 MYR 349

-52.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$136 PKR 37.6K

$357 MYR 1,461

-61.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$82.2 PKR 22.7K

$311 MYR 1,270

-73.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$392 PKR 108.5K

$650 MYR 2,659

-39.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$207 PKR 57.2K

$565 MYR 2,310

-63.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,046 PKR 289.5K

$1,956 MYR 7,997

-46.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$482 PKR 133.2K

$1,161 MYR 4,746

-58.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$184 PKR 51.0K

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 26, 2026

Last update for Skudai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karachi

$131 26.6%

Skudai

$84 9.3% 36.2% $48

Groceries & Markets

Karachi

$102 20.5%

Skudai

$226 25.2% 123% $125

Accommodation & Living

Karachi

$82 16.6%

Skudai

$311 34.5% 278% $229

Clothing & Footwear

Karachi

$67 13.5%

Skudai

$103 11.5% 54.6% $37

Eating Out

Karachi

$62 12.5%

Skudai

$111 12.4% 79.5% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Karachi

$33 6.7%

Skudai

$47 5.2% 40.4% $13

Getting Around

Karachi

$17 3.5%

Skudai

$17 1.9% 1.9% $0.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $136 in Karachi and $357 in Skudai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $13 in Karachi vs $18 in Skudai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $102 vs $226 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Karachi

🇲🇾 Skudai

🕒 Local time

23:15 11:15 PM

02:15 2:15 AM

3 h ahead of Karachi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,910,352

159,733

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.24 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.219 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 27, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 308 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.24 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.56 MYR (1 MYR = 0.219 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Karachi Skudai 4,710 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Karachi
Skudai

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 Skudai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karachi and Skudai differ by about 82% in total monthly costs ($495 vs $900 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $742 in Karachi and $1,349 in Skudai 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: $136 in Karachi versus $357 in Skudai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $495 per month in Karachi versus $900 in Skudai – a 82% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Skudai runs roughly 6% less than in Karachi. 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.