Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lhasa and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $483 a month against $733 in Lhasa, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Lhasa
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Lhasa Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Lhasa

🇨🇳 China

$733

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$483

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $733 in Lhasa versus $483 in Karachi.

Lhasa $733
Karachi $483

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,192 in Lhasa versus $754 in Karachi.

Lhasa $1,192
Karachi $754

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,651 in Lhasa versus $1,025 in Karachi.

Lhasa $1,651
Karachi $1,025

Living in Lhasa is roughly 52% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lhasa 46% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.53 ¥30.26

$2.11 PKR 585

114.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.37 ¥203

$13.73 PKR 3,801

121.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ¥50.3

$5.53 PKR 1,531

35.99%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 PKR 609

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.37 PKR 2,040

Cappuccino

$2.79 ¥18.69

$2.14 PKR 593

30.37%

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

$0.43 ¥2.90

$0.40 PKR 111

7.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ¥2.04

$0.28 PKR 77.7

7.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.48 ¥9.89

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥13.80

Milk (1 liter)

$1.78 ¥11.93

$0.90 PKR 250

97.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.65 ¥11.00

$0.55 PKR 153

200.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.96 ¥6.39

$1.20 PKR 333

-20.00%

Eggs

$1.68 ¥11.26

$1.25 PKR 346

34.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.16 ¥47.89

$5.96 PKR 1,650

20.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.92 ¥19.52

$3.19 PKR 883

-8.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.97 ¥73.3

$6.48 PKR 1,793

69.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 ¥12.57

$1.24 PKR 344

51.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.29 ¥8.61

$0.53 PKR 147

143.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 ¥10.37

$1.03 PKR 284

50.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ¥8.52

$0.51 PKR 142

149.02%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 ¥4.70

$0.31 PKR 85.1

125.81%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.26

$0.31 PKR 87.1

203.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 ¥3.89

$0.41 PKR 113

41.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.70

$0.44 PKR 120

25.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.31 PKR 362

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 PKR 369

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 PKR 670

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.77 ¥25.18

$1.83 PKR 508

106.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.77 ¥78.7

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ¥5.95

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ¥10.42

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$0.28 PKR 76.8

3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.84 ¥119

$9.81 PKR 2,716

81.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.45 ¥9.72

$0.87 PKR 240

66.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ¥2.20

$0.74 PKR 204

-55.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.00 ¥46.79

$2.23 PKR 617

213.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ¥8.36

$1.38 PKR 383

-9.42%

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

$19.5K ¥130.2K

$18.4K PKR 5.1M

6.14%

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

$17.2K ¥114.7K

$26.4K PKR 7.3M

-35.14%

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

$57.0 ¥381

$113 PKR 31.4K

-49.65%

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

$8.51 ¥56.9

$6.12 PKR 1,694

39.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.05 ¥73.9

$13.11 PKR 3,628

-15.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.14 ¥282

$21.78 PKR 6,029

93.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.97 ¥100

$18.27 PKR 5,058

-18.06%

Cinema Ticket

$6.48 ¥43.33

$4.26 PKR 1,179

52.11%

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

$413 ¥2,762

$52.1 PKR 14.4K

692.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K ¥117.9K

$1,941 PKR 537.3K

808.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.14 ¥295

$17.53 PKR 4,852

151.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.10 ¥221

$22.88 PKR 6,332

44.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.9 ¥494

$68.1 PKR 18.8K

8.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.9 ¥507

$41.55 PKR 11.5K

82.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$294 ¥1,965

$118 PKR 32.5K

149.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$183 ¥1,223

$73.2 PKR 20.3K

149.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$624 ¥4,174

$360 PKR 99.6K

73.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$375 ¥2,508

$188 PKR 52.1K

99.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,432 ¥22.9K

$1,082 PKR 299.4K

217.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,929 ¥12.9K

$474 PKR 131.2K

307.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,127 ¥14.2K

$182 PKR 50.4K

1068.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

13.21

-74.56%

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

Last update for Lhasa: October 19, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lhasa

$188 25.6%

Karachi

$102 21.1% 45.6% $85

Accommodation & Living

Lhasa

$183 24.9%

Karachi

$73 15.2% 60% $110

Eating Out

Lhasa

$107 14.6%

Karachi

$62 12.8% 42% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Lhasa

$102 13.9%

Karachi

$68 14% 33.9% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lhasa

$77 10.5%

Karachi

$133 27.4% 73% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Lhasa

$55 7.5%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 45% $25

Getting Around

Lhasa

$22 3%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 29.9% $6.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $294 in Lhasa and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lhasa pays 1068% 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: $30.00 in Lhasa vs $14.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $188 vs $102 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Lhasa

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

02:26 2:26 AM

23:26 11:26 PM

3 h behind Lhasa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

867,891

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Between locations

Lhasa Karachi 2,440 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lhasa
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

Lhasa vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lhasa and Karachi differ by about 52% in total monthly costs ($733 vs $483 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1068% higher in Lhasa, 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: $294 in Lhasa versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $733 per month in Lhasa versus $483 in Karachi – a 52% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 82% less than in Lhasa. 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.

Expats usually find Karachi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Lhasa. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.