Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $495 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $20,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$495

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $495 in Karachi.

Lisbon $2,210
Karachi $495

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $770 in Karachi.

Lisbon $3,275
Karachi $770

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,046 in Karachi.

Lisbon $4,341
Karachi $1,046

Living in Lisbon is roughly 347% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Karachi is 64% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$2.21 PKR 610

653.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$12.87 PKR 3,559

379.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$5.27 PKR 1,458

115.56%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 PKR 597

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.36 PKR 2,035

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$2.16 PKR 598

37.50%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.38 PKR 106

502.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.25 PKR 69.2

596.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$0.90 PKR 248

28.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.52 PKR 143

267.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.20 PKR 331

25.83%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$1.25 PKR 345

221.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$5.82 PKR 1,609

122.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$3.11 PKR 860

149.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$6.53 PKR 1,805

171.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.28 PKR 354

79.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$0.54 PKR 149

220.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.02 PKR 282

82.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$0.56 PKR 155

362.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.34 PKR 94.9

435.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.31 PKR 86.9

535.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.41 PKR 113

258.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.43 PKR 120

67.44%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.28 PKR 355

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 PKR 367

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 PKR 678

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$1.78 PKR 492

269.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.28 PKR 77.1

732.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$11.70 PKR 3,235

281.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$0.92 PKR 254

318.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.73 PKR 203

46.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$2.22 PKR 614

641.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.33 PKR 369

65.41%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$18.3K PKR 5.0M

87.27%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$26.4K PKR 7.3M

46.79%

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

$161 €144

$112 PKR 31.0K

43.73%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$5.99 PKR 1,655

207.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$13.18 PKR 3,645

148.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$24.67 PKR 6,820

80.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$18.29 PKR 5,057

4.43%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$4.34 PKR 1,200

121.20%

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

$668 €598

$67.2 PKR 18.6K

893.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$1,915 PKR 529.4K

819.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$17.61 PKR 4,869

479.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$22.03 PKR 6,091

101.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$68.3 PKR 18.9K

44.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$40.66 PKR 11.2K

204.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$136 PKR 37.6K

1082.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$82.2 PKR 22.7K

1348.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$392 PKR 108.4K

617.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$207 PKR 57.2K

873.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$1,046 PKR 289.2K

649.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$482 PKR 133.1K

850.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$184 PKR 51.0K

754.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

13.21

-70.86%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Karachi

$82 16.6% 93.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Karachi

$102 20.5% 62.7% $171

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Karachi

$62 12.5% 74.5% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Karachi

$131 26.6% 38.2% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Karachi

$67 13.5% 59.7% $99

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Karachi

$33 6.7% 47.7% $30

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Karachi

$17 3.5% 72.5% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $136 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 8.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $13 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $102 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

04:38 4:38 AM

09:38 9:38 AM

5 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.25 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 276 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD). 1 EUR = 308 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.25 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Lisbon Karachi 7,160 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

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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

Lisbon vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $495 in Karachi, so Karachi is about 78% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 8.5 times higher, 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $136 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $495 in Karachi – Karachi is about 78% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 74% less than in Lisbon. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $495 in Karachi versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Karachi but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Karachi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 78% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.