Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pontianak and Karachi

For one person, living costs are similar in Pontianak and in Karachi: $484 and $482 a month, rent and utilities included.

29

Cost of Living Index in Pontianak
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Pontianak Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
Learn more

Karachi Living Index

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Pontianak

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$484

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $484 in Pontianak versus $482 in Karachi.

Pontianak $484
Karachi $482

Estimated couple costs with rent: $600 in Pontianak versus $750 in Karachi.

Pontianak $600
Karachi $750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $717 in Pontianak versus $1,018 in Karachi.

Pontianak $717
Karachi $1,018

Living in Pontianak is roughly 1% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.77 Rp 31.9K

$2.13 PKR 588

-16.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.14 Rp 146.4K

$13.30 PKR 3,680

-38.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.99 Rp 53.8K

$5.45 PKR 1,508

-45.14%

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

$1.24 Rp 22.3K

$2.09 PKR 579

-40.67%

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

$0.46 Rp 8,327

$0.40 PKR 111

15.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.21 Rp 3,762

$0.26 PKR 71.1

-19.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.81 Rp 50.6K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 Rp 67.1K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 Rp 19.4K

$0.92 PKR 254

17.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 Rp 25.5K

$0.56 PKR 156

153.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.94 Rp 16.9K

$1.25 PKR 345

-24.80%

Eggs

$1.49 Rp 26.9K

$1.23 PKR 341

21.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.67 PKR 1,570

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.32 Rp 59.7K

$3.16 PKR 876

5.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.28 PKR 1,737

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 Rp 54.8K

$1.26 PKR 348

142.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

$0.53 PKR 148

262.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 Rp 39.6K

$1.00 PKR 276

120.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 PKR 154

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 PKR 91.4

Onion (1kg)

$0.34 PKR 95.1

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 PKR 116

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 Rp 8,633

$0.44 PKR 121

9.09%

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)

$2.82 Rp 50.7K

$1.84 PKR 509

53.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.55 Rp 405.9K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 Rp 32.0K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 Rp 40.1K

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,796

$0.28 PKR 77.0

-3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.99 PKR 2,764

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 PKR 256

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 PKR 193

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.16 PKR 597

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.73 Rp 13.2K

$1.38 PKR 382

-47.10%

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

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

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

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

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

$68.5 Rp 1.2M

$113 PKR 31.4K

-39.63%

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

$5.51 Rp 99.2K

$5.95 PKR 1,648

-7.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.14 Rp 398.4K

$13.16 PKR 3,642

68.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.86 Rp 429.5K

$21.55 PKR 5,965

10.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.79 Rp 212.2K

$18.23 PKR 5,044

-35.33%

Cinema Ticket

$3.73 Rp 67.1K

$4.21 PKR 1,165

-11.40%

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

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,940 PKR 537.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.12 Rp 596.2K

$17.55 PKR 4,858

88.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.53 Rp 603.5K

$23.51 PKR 6,506

42.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$169 Rp 3.0M

$118 PKR 32.7K

43.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$113 Rp 2.0M

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

53.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$357 PKR 98.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$188 PKR 52.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,060 PKR 293.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$481 PKR 133.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$262 Rp 4.7M

$183 PKR 50.6K

42.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.21

-24.30%

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

Last update for Pontianak: 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

Pontianak

$151 * 31.2%

Karachi

$101 21% 32.9% $50

Accommodation & Living

Pontianak

$113 23.3%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 34.7% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pontianak

$96 19.8%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 37.9% $36

Eating Out

Pontianak

$62 12.8%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 1.7% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Pontianak

$31 6.5%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 4.3% $1.4

Clothing & Footwear

Pontianak

$30 * 6.2%

Karachi

$68 14.1% 126% $38

Getting Around

Pontianak

$1.1 * 0.2%

Karachi

$16 3.2% 1351% $14

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 $169 in Pontianak and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Pontianak pays 43% 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: $8.00 in Pontianak vs $13.00 in Karachi. Groceries flip the comparison at $151 vs $101, with Karachi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Pontianak

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

14:10 2:10 PM

12:10 12:10 PM

2 h behind Pontianak

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

672,440

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 19, 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 19, 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

Pontianak Karachi 5,320 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Pontianak
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

Pontianak vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Pontianak and Karachi differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($484 vs $482 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 43% higher in Pontianak, 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: $169 in Pontianak versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Karachi – a meal for two runs $13.00 versus $8.00 in Pontianak. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $484 per month in Pontianak versus $482 in Karachi – a 1% 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 1% less than in Pontianak. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.