Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nanjing and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $841 in Nanjing, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Nanjing
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Nanjing Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Nanjing

🇨🇳 China

$841

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $841 in Nanjing versus $490 in Karachi.

Nanjing $841
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,339 in Nanjing versus $755 in Karachi.

Nanjing $1,339
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,837 in Nanjing versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Nanjing $1,837
Karachi $1,019

Living in Nanjing is roughly 72% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Nanjing 37% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.67 ¥24.58

$2.15 PKR 596

70.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.21 ¥149

$13.37 PKR 3,700

66.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.97 ¥33.28

$5.29 PKR 1,464

-6.05%

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

$3.01 ¥20.15

$2.11 PKR 583

42.65%

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

$0.50 ¥3.32

$0.37 PKR 103

35.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.81

$0.28 PKR 78.2

-3.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.45 ¥9.68

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ¥15.31

Milk (1 liter)

$2.16 ¥14.48

$0.86 PKR 238

151.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 ¥13.86

$0.52 PKR 144

298.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.08

$1.24 PKR 344

-26.61%

Eggs

$1.35 ¥9.04

$1.24 PKR 342

8.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.64 ¥71.2

$5.86 PKR 1,622

81.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.02 ¥20.23

$3.12 PKR 862

-3.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.97 ¥60.0

$6.25 PKR 1,730

43.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 ¥13.98

$1.29 PKR 356

62.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 ¥8.60

$0.54 PKR 150

137.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 ¥11.88

$0.99 PKR 273

78.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 ¥7.18

$0.56 PKR 155

91.07%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.09

$0.33 PKR 91.6

175.76%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.06

$0.35 PKR 95.8

157.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 ¥6.25

$0.45 PKR 124

106.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ¥3.45

$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 380

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.75 ¥25.09

$1.79 PKR 497

109.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.34 ¥89.3

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 ¥6.74

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ¥10.47

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 ¥2.08

$0.28 PKR 76.5

10.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.72 ¥199

$9.68 PKR 2,679

207.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.75 ¥11.73

$0.92 PKR 255

90.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.41 ¥2.77

$0.71 PKR 196

-42.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.91 ¥59.7

$2.22 PKR 615

301.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 ¥9.15

$1.35 PKR 372

1.48%

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

$19.1K ¥128.0K

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

7.22%

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

$16.6K ¥110.8K

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

-38.10%

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

$53.6 ¥359

$112 PKR 30.9K

-52.08%

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

$7.59 ¥50.8

$6.05 PKR 1,673

25.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.28 ¥48.74

$13.29 PKR 3,679

-45.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.49 ¥191

$21.51 PKR 5,954

32.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$33.70 ¥226

$17.80 PKR 4,927

89.33%

Cinema Ticket

$5.86 ¥39.21

$4.42 PKR 1,222

32.58%

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

$1,459 ¥9,769

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

2776.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ¥150.9K

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

1052.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.40 ¥291

$17.57 PKR 4,862

147.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.88 ¥227

$22.78 PKR 6,304

48.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.7 ¥440

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

-2.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.9 ¥582

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

112.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$529 ¥3,541

$117 PKR 32.4K

351.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$295 ¥1,977

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

290.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,115 ¥7,464

$365 PKR 101.1K

205.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$557 ¥3,728

$182 PKR 50.5K

205.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,013 ¥33.6K

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

375.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,140 ¥21.0K

$491 PKR 135.8K

539.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,419 ¥9,500

$185 PKR 51.2K

667.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.42

13.21

-74.11%

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

Last update for Nanjing: October 4, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nanjing

$295 35.1%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 74.4% $220

Groceries & Markets

Nanjing

$205 24.4%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 50.9% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Nanjing

$103 12.3%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 35.2% $36

Eating Out

Nanjing

$95 11.3%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 36% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nanjing

$68 8.1%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 91.6% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Nanjing

$40 4.8%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 24.5% $9.9

Getting Around

Nanjing

$35 4.1%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 56.2% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $529 in Nanjing and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nanjing pays 668% 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: $22.00 in Nanjing vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $205 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Nanjing

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

15:14 3:14 PM

12:14 12:14 PM

3 h behind Nanjing

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,314,685

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.149 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 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 CNY in detail →

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Between locations

Nanjing Karachi 5,080 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Nanjing
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

Nanjing vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nanjing and Karachi differ by about 72% in total monthly costs ($841 vs $490 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 668% higher in Nanjing, 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: $529 in Nanjing versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $841 per month in Nanjing versus $490 in Karachi – a 72% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 207% less than in Nanjing. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $490 in Karachi versus $841 in Nanjing, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Karachi but tight or insufficient in Nanjing. 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 72% less than in Nanjing. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.