Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palembang and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $615 in Palembang, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Palembang
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Palembang Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Palembang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$615

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $615 in Palembang versus $482 in Karachi.

Palembang $615
Karachi $482

Estimated couple costs with rent: $980 in Palembang versus $750 in Karachi.

Palembang $980
Karachi $750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,344 in Palembang versus $1,018 in Karachi.

Palembang $1,344
Karachi $1,018

Living in Palembang is roughly 28% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Palembang 54% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.14 Rp 20.4K

$2.13 PKR 588

-46.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.00 Rp 287.9K

$13.30 PKR 3,680

20.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.82 Rp 50.8K

$5.45 PKR 1,508

-48.26%

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

$1.29 Rp 23.1K

$2.09 PKR 579

-38.28%

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

$0.84 Rp 15.1K

$0.40 PKR 111

110.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 Rp 4,503

$0.26 PKR 71.1

-3.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 Rp 30.6K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 Rp 58.9K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Rp 20.1K

$0.92 PKR 254

21.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 Rp 20.6K

$0.56 PKR 156

105.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.82 Rp 14.7K

$1.25 PKR 345

-34.40%

Eggs

$1.22 Rp 22.0K

$1.23 PKR 341

-0.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.24 Rp 130.4K

$5.67 PKR 1,570

27.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.99 Rp 53.9K

$3.16 PKR 876

-5.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 Rp 133.9K

$6.28 PKR 1,737

18.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 Rp 40.3K

$1.26 PKR 348

77.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 Rp 20.0K

$0.53 PKR 148

109.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.47 Rp 26.5K

$1.00 PKR 276

47.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 Rp 24.6K

$0.56 PKR 154

144.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 Rp 21.1K

$0.33 PKR 91.4

254.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.95 Rp 35.0K

$0.34 PKR 95.1

473.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 Rp 11.7K

$0.42 PKR 116

54.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,856

$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)

$2.21 Rp 39.8K

$1.84 PKR 509

20.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.49 Rp 386.7K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 Rp 52.9K

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.44 Rp 7,878

$0.28 PKR 77.0

57.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.99 PKR 2,764

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.53 Rp 9,526

$0.92 PKR 256

-42.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 Rp 7,284

$0.70 PKR 193

-42.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.84 Rp 51.2K

$2.16 PKR 597

31.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 Rp 14.8K

$1.38 PKR 382

-40.58%

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

$23.2K Rp 417.8M

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

29.67%

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

$31.6K Rp 568.7M

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

16.66%

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

$71.6 Rp 1.3M

$113 PKR 31.4K

-36.91%

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

$4.39 Rp 79.0K

$5.95 PKR 1,648

-26.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.20 Rp 345.5K

$13.16 PKR 3,642

45.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.72 Rp 355.0K

$21.55 PKR 5,965

-8.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.99 Rp 143.8K

$18.23 PKR 5,044

-56.17%

Cinema Ticket

$2.85 Rp 51.4K

$4.21 PKR 1,165

-32.30%

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

$90.1 Rp 1.6M

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

72.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,423 Rp 151.6M

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

334.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.78 Rp 770.0K

$17.55 PKR 4,858

143.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.77 Rp 517.8K

$23.51 PKR 6,506

22.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.6 Rp 1.3M

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

8.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.3 Rp 1.2M

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

70.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$230 Rp 4.1M

$118 PKR 32.7K

94.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.6M

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

99.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$532 Rp 9.6M

$357 PKR 98.9K

48.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 Rp 6.5M

$188 PKR 52.0K

92.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,254 Rp 22.6M

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

18.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$886 Rp 15.9M

$481 PKR 133.1K

84.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$309 Rp 5.6M

$183 PKR 50.6K

68.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

13.21

-28.39%

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

Last update for Palembang: October 11, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Palembang

$194 31.5%

Karachi

$101 21% 47.8% $93

Accommodation & Living

Palembang

$147 23.9%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 50% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Palembang

$97 15.8%

Karachi

$68 14.1% 30.1% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palembang

$95 15.5%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 39.3% $37

Eating Out

Palembang

$52 8.5%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 16.6% $8.7

Sport & Entertainment

Palembang

$25 4.1%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 17.9% $4.5

Getting Around

Palembang

$4.3 * 0.7%

Karachi

$16 3.2% 261% $11

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 $230 in Palembang and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Palembang pays 69% 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: $16.00 in Palembang vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $194 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Palembang

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

19:27 7:27 PM

17:27 5:27 PM

2 h behind Palembang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,708,413

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Palembang Karachi 5,110 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Palembang
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

Palembang vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Palembang and Karachi differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($615 vs $482 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 69% higher in Palembang, 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: $230 in Palembang versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 92% higher in Palembang. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $615 per month in Palembang versus $482 in Karachi – a 28% 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.

Expats usually find Karachi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Palembang. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.