Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Langkawi and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $537 in Langkawi, rent and utilities included – about $660 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Langkawi outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

40

Cost of Living Index in Langkawi
Learn more

Langkawi Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
Learn more

Karachi Living Index

Jump to prices

Langkawi

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$537

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Langkawi 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 Langkawi and in Karachi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $537 in Langkawi versus $482 in Karachi.

Langkawi $537
Karachi $482

Estimated couple costs with rent: $770 in Langkawi versus $750 in Karachi.

Langkawi $770
Karachi $750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,003 in Langkawi versus $1,018 in Karachi.

Langkawi $1,003
Karachi $1,018

Living in Langkawi is roughly 11% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Langkawi 60% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.27 MYR 13.33

$2.13 PKR 588

53.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.71 MYR 80.4

$13.30 PKR 3,680

48.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.38 MYR 26.04

$5.45 PKR 1,508

17.06%

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

$1.65 MYR 6.72

$2.09 PKR 579

-21.05%

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

$0.82 MYR 3.36

$0.40 PKR 111

105.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 MYR 2.18

$0.26 PKR 71.1

103.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.72 MYR 7.03

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 MYR 9.22

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 MYR 7.10

$0.92 PKR 254

89.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 MYR 5.36

$0.56 PKR 156

133.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.25 PKR 345

Eggs

$1.79 MYR 7.30

$1.23 PKR 341

45.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.48 MYR 71.3

$5.67 PKR 1,570

208.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.16 PKR 876

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.28 PKR 1,737

Apples (1kg)

$2.02 MYR 8.23

$1.26 PKR 348

60.32%

Banana (1kg)

$0.99 MYR 4.05

$0.53 PKR 148

86.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.68 MYR 6.86

$1.00 PKR 276

68.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 MYR 6.83

$0.56 PKR 154

198.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.4

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 MYR 3.09

$0.34 PKR 95.1

123.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 PKR 116

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 PKR 121

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)

$3.69 MYR 15.04

$1.84 PKR 509

100.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.82 MYR 36.00

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 MYR 3.82

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.19 MYR 4.87

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PKR 77.0

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.99 PKR 2,764

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 256

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 PKR 193

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.16 PKR 597

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 MYR 3.57

$1.38 PKR 382

-36.23%

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

$24.4K MYR 99.6K

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

36.40%

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

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

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

$36.65 MYR 150

$113 PKR 31.4K

-67.70%

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

$5.95 PKR 1,648

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.16 PKR 3,642

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.82 MYR 101

$21.55 PKR 5,965

15.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.23 PKR 5,044

Cinema Ticket

$4.21 PKR 1,165

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

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.55 PKR 4,858

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.51 PKR 6,506

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$308 MYR 1,255

$118 PKR 32.7K

160.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$244 MYR 997

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

232.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$374 MYR 1,528

$357 PKR 98.9K

4.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$320 MYR 1,304

$188 PKR 52.0K

70.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,168 MYR 4,765

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

10.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$481 PKR 133.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,240 MYR 5,060

$183 PKR 50.6K

578.09%

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 Langkawi: October 11, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Langkawi

$244 45.5%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 69.9% $171

Groceries & Markets

Langkawi

$148 * 27.5%

Karachi

$101 21% 31.4% $46

Eating Out

Langkawi

$84 15.6%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 26.9% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Langkawi

$37 * 6.8%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 262% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Langkawi

$25 * 4.6%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 20.7% $5.1

Getting Around

Langkawi

- * 0%

Karachi

$16 3.2%

Clothing & Footwear

Langkawi

- * 0%

Karachi

$68 14.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $308 in Langkawi and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Langkawi pays 578% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $20.00 in Langkawi vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $148 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Langkawi

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

04:45 4:45 AM

01:45 1:45 AM

3 h behind Langkawi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,212

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 17, 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 17, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Langkawi Karachi 4,050 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Langkawi
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

Langkawi vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Langkawi and Karachi differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($537 vs $482 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 578% higher in Langkawi, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $308 in Langkawi versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Karachi – a meal for two runs $13.00 versus $20.00 in Langkawi. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $537 per month in Langkawi versus $482 in Karachi – a 11% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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, Langkawi 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 11% less than in Langkawi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.