Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Singapore and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $3,454 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $35,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

168

Cost of Living Index in Singapore
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Singapore Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

Jump to prices

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,454

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,454 in Singapore versus $490 in Karachi.

Singapore $3,454
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,224 in Singapore versus $755 in Karachi.

Singapore $5,224
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,994 in Singapore versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Singapore $6,994
Karachi $1,019

Living in Singapore is roughly 605% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Singapore is 158% above, Karachi is 63% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.53 SGD 14.77

$2.15 PKR 596

436.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.2 SGD 91.2

$13.37 PKR 3,700

432.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 SGD 11.22

$5.29 PKR 1,464

65.60%

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

$5.25 SGD 6.73

$2.11 PKR 583

148.82%

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

$1.83 SGD 2.34

$0.37 PKR 103

394.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 SGD 1.60

$0.28 PKR 78.2

346.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.42 SGD 10.79

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.02 SGD 12.83

Milk (1 liter)

$2.94 SGD 3.76

$0.86 PKR 238

241.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.47 SGD 3.16

$0.52 PKR 144

375.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 SGD 3.47

$1.24 PKR 344

118.55%

Eggs

$3.73 SGD 4.77

$1.24 PKR 342

200.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.54 SGD 27.58

$5.86 PKR 1,622

267.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.52 SGD 12.20

$3.12 PKR 862

205.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.98 SGD 33.27

$6.25 PKR 1,730

315.68%

Apples (1kg)

$4.48 SGD 5.74

$1.29 PKR 356

247.29%

Banana (1kg)

$3.11 SGD 3.99

$0.54 PKR 150

475.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.62 SGD 5.92

$0.99 PKR 273

366.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 SGD 2.86

$0.56 PKR 155

298.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 SGD 3.20

$0.33 PKR 91.6

657.58%

Onion (1kg)

$2.38 SGD 3.05

$0.35 PKR 95.8

580.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 SGD 2.28

$0.45 PKR 124

295.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 SGD 1.93

$0.44 PKR 121

243.18%

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)

$14.18 SGD 18.16

$1.79 PKR 497

692.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.79 SGD 30.47

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.51 SGD 5.78

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 SGD 5.86

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.58 SGD 2.03

$0.28 PKR 76.5

464.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.4 SGD 123

$9.68 PKR 2,679

895.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.63 SGD 4.65

$0.92 PKR 255

294.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 SGD 1.02

$0.71 PKR 196

12.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.18 SGD 20.72

$2.22 PKR 615

628.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.51 SGD 3.21

$1.35 PKR 372

85.93%

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

$155.9K SGD 199.6K

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

773.70%

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

$145.8K SGD 186.7K

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

445.13%

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

$175 SGD 224

$112 PKR 30.9K

56.55%

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

$12.45 SGD 15.94

$6.05 PKR 1,673

105.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.64 SGD 34.11

$13.29 PKR 3,679

100.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$112 SGD 143

$21.51 PKR 5,954

418.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.07 SGD 15.46

$17.80 PKR 4,927

-32.19%

Cinema Ticket

$11.60 SGD 14.85

$4.42 PKR 1,222

162.44%

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

$1,463 SGD 1,874

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

2784.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.4K SGD 36.3K

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

1349.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.5 SGD 104

$17.57 PKR 4,862

363.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.6 SGD 64.8

$22.78 PKR 6,304

122.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 SGD 143

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

65.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 SGD 166

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

216.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,916 SGD 3,734

$117 PKR 32.4K

2386.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,128 SGD 2,725

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

2710.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,654 SGD 7,241

$365 PKR 101.1K

1448.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,968 SGD 5,081

$182 PKR 50.5K

2075.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$23.6K SGD 30.2K

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

2140.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.8K SGD 21.5K

$491 PKR 135.8K

3329.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,369 SGD 5,594

$185 PKR 51.2K

2263.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.44

13.21

-81.53%

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

Last update for Singapore: 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

Singapore

$2.1K 61.4%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 96.4% $2.1K

Groceries & Markets

Singapore

$457 13.2%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 78% $357

Eating Out

Singapore

$256 7.4%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 76.2% $195

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Singapore

$214 6.2%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 38.8% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Singapore

$168 4.9%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 60.1% $101

Sport & Entertainment

Singapore

$135 3.9%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 77.5% $104

Getting Around

Singapore

$110 3.2%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 86.2% $95

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,916 in Singapore and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Singapore pays 2263% 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: $71.0 in Singapore vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $457 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇬 Singapore

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

14:00 2:00 PM

11:00 11:00 AM

3 h behind Singapore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,535,002 Capital

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Singapore Dollar SGD $

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 SGD = 0.781 USD

1 SGD = 0.696 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to SGD – Singapore Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇬 Singapore Dollar ($)

Singapore Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 SGD (1 SGD = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.44 SGD (1 SGD = 0.696 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 SGD in detail →

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Singapore Karachi 4,740 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Singapore
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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

Singapore vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Singapore and Karachi differ by about 605% in total monthly costs ($3,454 vs $490 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 2263% higher in Singapore, 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: $2,916 in Singapore versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $3,454 per month in Singapore versus $490 in Karachi – a 605% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 895% less than in Singapore. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $490 in Karachi versus $3,454 in Singapore, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Karachi but tight or insufficient in Singapore. 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.

Safety-wise, Singapore 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 605% less than in Singapore. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.