Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Miri and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $814 in Miri, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Miri
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Miri Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Miri

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$814

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $814 in Miri versus $490 in Karachi.

Miri $814
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,247 in Miri versus $755 in Karachi.

Miri $1,247
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,680 in Miri versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Miri $1,680
Karachi $1,019

Living in Miri is roughly 66% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Miri 39% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.43 MYR 14.02

$2.15 PKR 596

59.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.16 MYR 49.65

$13.37 PKR 3,700

-9.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.55 MYR 18.58

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-13.99%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 PKR 606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.25 PKR 2,005

Cappuccino

$2.30 MYR 9.40

$2.11 PKR 583

9.00%

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

$0.78 MYR 3.17

$0.37 PKR 103

110.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 MYR 1.24

$0.28 PKR 78.2

7.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 MYR 12.10

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.82 MYR 15.59

Milk (1 liter)

$1.40 MYR 5.72

$0.86 PKR 238

62.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.81 MYR 7.40

$0.52 PKR 144

248.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.94 MYR 3.85

$1.24 PKR 344

-24.19%

Eggs

$3.50 MYR 14.27

$1.24 PKR 342

182.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.86 PKR 1,622

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.79 MYR 19.58

$3.12 PKR 862

53.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.10 MYR 61.6

$6.25 PKR 1,731

141.60%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 PKR 356

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MYR 8.01

$0.54 PKR 150

262.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.99 PKR 273

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 155

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.6

Onion (1kg)

$0.35 PKR 95.9

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.45 PKR 124

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.47

$0.44 PKR 121

-18.18%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.23 PKR 341

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PKR 381

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.35 MYR 17.77

$1.79 PKR 497

143.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.28 MYR 78.7

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.08 MYR 12.59

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 MYR 9.85

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 MYR 2.09

$0.28 PKR 76.5

82.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.41 MYR 58.8

$9.68 PKR 2,679

48.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 MYR 4.87

$0.92 PKR 255

29.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 MYR 2.60

$0.71 PKR 196

-9.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.05 MYR 24.71

$2.22 PKR 615

172.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.65 MYR 2.64

$1.35 PKR 372

-51.85%

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

$51.0K MYR 208.3K

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

185.95%

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

$32.7K MYR 133.3K

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

22.12%

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

$49.79 MYR 203

$112 PKR 30.9K

-55.47%

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

$9.53 MYR 38.91

$6.05 PKR 1,673

57.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.24 MYR 136

$13.29 PKR 3,679

150.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.63 MYR 121

$21.51 PKR 5,954

37.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.17 MYR 25.21

$17.80 PKR 4,927

-65.34%

Cinema Ticket

$4.45 MYR 18.18

$4.42 PKR 1,222

0.68%

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

$102 MYR 416

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

100.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,641 MYR 27.1K

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

239.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.13 MYR 180

$17.57 PKR 4,862

151.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.74 MYR 92.9

$22.78 PKR 6,304

-0.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$56.2 MYR 230

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

-16.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.80 MYR 175

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

4.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$341 MYR 1,390

$117 PKR 32.5K

190.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 MYR 1,145

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

270.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$596 MYR 2,435

$365 PKR 101.1K

63.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$594 MYR 2,425

$182 PKR 50.5K

225.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,219 MYR 4,977

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

15.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$671 MYR 2,741

$491 PKR 135.8K

36.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$692 MYR 2,826

$185 PKR 51.2K

274.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.12

13.21

-68.81%

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

Last update for Miri: October 5, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Miri

$280 35.2%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 73% $205

Groceries & Markets

Miri

$194 * 24.4%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 48.1% $93

Eating Out

Miri

$96 12%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 36.1% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Miri

$93 11.6%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 41.7% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Miri

$75 9.4%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 10.2% $7.7

Sport & Entertainment

Miri

$39 4.8%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 21.2% $8.2

Getting Around

Miri

$21 2.6%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 26.8% $5.6

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 $341 in Miri and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Miri pays 274% 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: $12.00 in Miri vs $13.00 in Karachi. Groceries flip the comparison at $194 vs $101, with Karachi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Miri

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

16:22 4:22 PM

13:22 1:22 PM

3 h behind Miri

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

248,877

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 = 3.22 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Miri Karachi 5,500 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Miri
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

Miri vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Miri and Karachi differ by about 66% in total monthly costs ($814 vs $490 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 274% higher in Miri, 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: $341 in Miri versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $814 per month in Miri versus $490 in Karachi – a 66% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 49% less than in Miri. 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, Miri 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 66% less than in Miri. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.