Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuala Terengganu and Karachi

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.

45

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Terengganu
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Kuala Terengganu Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Kuala Terengganu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$924

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Kuala Terengganu and in Karachi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

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

Kuala Terengganu $924
Karachi $482

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

Kuala Terengganu $1,372
Karachi $750

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

Kuala Terengganu $1,821
Karachi $1,018

Living in Kuala Terengganu is roughly 92% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.49 MYR 10.15

$2.13 PKR 588

16.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.06 MYR 94.1

$13.30 PKR 3,680

73.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.72 MYR 19.25

$5.45 PKR 1,508

-13.39%

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

$2.72 MYR 11.08

$2.09 PKR 579

30.14%

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

$0.47 MYR 1.90

$0.40 PKR 111

17.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 MYR 1.14

$0.26 PKR 71.1

7.69%

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)

$1.70 MYR 6.94

$0.92 PKR 254

84.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 MYR 4.15

$0.56 PKR 156

82.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 MYR 5.22

$1.25 PKR 345

2.40%

Eggs

$2.13 MYR 8.68

$1.23 PKR 341

73.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.66 MYR 63.9

$5.67 PKR 1,570

176.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.35 MYR 17.73

$3.16 PKR 876

37.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.41 MYR 34.29

$6.28 PKR 1,737

33.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 MYR 13.73

$1.26 PKR 348

166.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 MYR 6.59

$0.53 PKR 148

203.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 MYR 8.59

$1.00 PKR 276

110.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 MYR 6.13

$0.56 PKR 154

167.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 MYR 6.01

$0.33 PKR 91.4

345.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 MYR 4.45

$0.34 PKR 95.1

220.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 MYR 4.09

$0.42 PKR 116

138.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 MYR 2.17

$0.44 PKR 121

20.45%

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)

$4.46 MYR 18.18

$1.84 PKR 509

142.39%

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)

$0.67 MYR 2.75

$0.28 PKR 77.0

139.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.62 MYR 43.31

$9.99 PKR 2,764

6.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 MYR 5.20

$0.92 PKR 256

38.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.46 MYR 1.89

$0.70 PKR 193

-34.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.55 MYR 26.73

$2.16 PKR 597

203.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 MYR 3.65

$1.38 PKR 382

-34.78%

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

$43.8K MYR 178.8K

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

144.88%

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

$32.1K MYR 131.0K

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

18.56%

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

$45.25 MYR 185

$113 PKR 31.4K

-60.11%

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

$8.79 MYR 35.87

$5.95 PKR 1,648

47.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.10 MYR 102

$13.16 PKR 3,642

90.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.04 MYR 180

$21.55 PKR 5,965

104.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.97 MYR 32.49

$18.23 PKR 5,044

-56.28%

Cinema Ticket

$4.81 MYR 19.61

$4.21 PKR 1,165

14.25%

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

$172 MYR 701

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

229.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,936 MYR 28.3K

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

257.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.5 MYR 235

$17.55 PKR 4,858

227.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.37 MYR 148

$23.51 PKR 6,506

54.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.5 MYR 353

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

25.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.0 MYR 278

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

67.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$361 MYR 1,472

$118 PKR 32.7K

205.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$312 MYR 1,275

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

324.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$722 MYR 2,946

$357 PKR 98.9K

101.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$471 MYR 1,923

$188 PKR 52.0K

150.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,073 MYR 8,456

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

95.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,145 MYR 4,669

$481 PKR 133.1K

138.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$183 PKR 50.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

13.21

-69.27%

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

Last update for Kuala Terengganu: October 10, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kuala Terengganu

$312 33.8%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 76.4% $239

Groceries & Markets

Kuala Terengganu

$254 27.5%

Karachi

$101 21% 60.2% $153

Clothing & Footwear

Kuala Terengganu

$112 12.1%

Karachi

$68 14.1% 39.4% $44

Eating Out

Kuala Terengganu

$96 10.4%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 36.2% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kuala Terengganu

$79 8.6%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 67.5% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Kuala Terengganu

$54 5.8%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 44.1% $24

Getting Around

Kuala Terengganu

$17 1.8%

Karachi

$16 3.2% 8.2% $1.4

Cost Breakdown

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

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

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kuala Terengganu

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

11:21 11:21 AM

08:21 8:21 AM

3 h behind Kuala Terengganu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

375,424

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

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).

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).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Kuala Terengganu
Karachi

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

Kuala Terengganu vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

You'd need roughly $1,386 in Kuala Terengganu and $723 in Karachi 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: $361 in Kuala Terengganu versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $924 per month in Kuala Terengganu versus $482 in Karachi – 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, Kuala Terengganu and Karachi 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.