Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wenzhou and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $482 a month against $628 in Wenzhou, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Wenzhou
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Wenzhou Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Wenzhou

🇨🇳 China

$628

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$482

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $628 in Wenzhou versus $482 in Karachi.

Wenzhou $628
Karachi $482

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,059 in Wenzhou versus $750 in Karachi.

Wenzhou $1,059
Karachi $750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,489 in Wenzhou versus $1,018 in Karachi.

Wenzhou $1,489
Karachi $1,018

Living in Wenzhou is roughly 30% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Wenzhou 53% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.01 ¥20.11

$2.13 PKR 588

41.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.38 ¥203

$13.30 PKR 3,679

128.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.66 ¥51.2

$5.45 PKR 1,507

40.55%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 PKR 607

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.24 PKR 2,004

Cappuccino

$2.65 ¥17.75

$2.09 PKR 579

26.79%

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

$0.52 ¥3.50

$0.40 PKR 111

30.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ¥2.02

$0.26 PKR 71.1

15.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.86 ¥5.73

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 ¥20.28

Milk (1 liter)

$2.08 ¥13.94

$0.92 PKR 254

126.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 ¥13.01

$0.56 PKR 156

248.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ¥8.78

$1.25 PKR 345

4.80%

Eggs

$1.98 ¥13.22

$1.23 PKR 341

60.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.61 ¥50.9

$5.67 PKR 1,570

34.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.18 ¥14.61

$3.16 PKR 875

-31.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.49 ¥63.5

$6.28 PKR 1,737

51.11%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ¥12.74

$1.26 PKR 348

50.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 ¥11.95

$0.53 PKR 147

237.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.69 ¥11.32

$1.00 PKR 276

69.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.12 ¥7.46

$0.56 PKR 154

100.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.61 ¥4.09

$0.33 PKR 91.4

84.85%

Onion (1kg)

$0.72 ¥4.81

$0.34 PKR 95.1

111.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.47 ¥3.12

$0.42 PKR 116

11.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ¥3.95

$0.44 PKR 121

34.09%

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)

$3.37 ¥22.57

$1.84 PKR 509

83.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.24 ¥88.5

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 ¥8.16

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 ¥8.21

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.91

$0.28 PKR 77.0

3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.99 PKR 2,764

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 ¥11.26

$0.92 PKR 256

82.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 ¥2.35

$0.70 PKR 193

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.75 ¥51.8

$2.16 PKR 597

258.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 ¥8.46

$1.38 PKR 382

-8.70%

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

$19.5K ¥130.4K

$17.9K PKR 5.0M

8.97%

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

$15.5K ¥103.9K

$27.1K PKR 7.5M

-42.61%

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

$29.91 ¥200

$113 PKR 31.4K

-73.64%

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

$6.60 ¥44.12

$5.95 PKR 1,647

10.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.89 ¥59.4

$13.16 PKR 3,641

-32.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.62 ¥91.1

$21.55 PKR 5,963

-36.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.79 ¥179

$18.23 PKR 5,043

46.96%

Cinema Ticket

$7.60 ¥50.8

$4.21 PKR 1,165

80.52%

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

$1,247 ¥8,342

$52.2 PKR 14.4K

2291.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,703 ¥64.9K

$1,940 PKR 536.9K

400.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.55 ¥291

$17.55 PKR 4,857

148.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.78 ¥126

$23.51 PKR 6,504

-20.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.5 ¥645

$68.9 PKR 19.1K

40.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.71 ¥299

$40.59 PKR 11.2K

10.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$240 ¥1,603

$118 PKR 32.6K

103.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$170 ¥1,135

$73.6 PKR 20.4K

130.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$632 ¥4,229

$357 PKR 98.9K

76.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$363 ¥2,428

$188 PKR 52.0K

93.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,065 ¥27.2K

$1,060 PKR 293.3K

283.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,598 ¥17.4K

$481 PKR 133.0K

440.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$868 ¥5,804

$183 PKR 50.6K

374.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.46

13.21

-73.81%

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

Last update for Wenzhou: October 10, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Wenzhou

$196 31.1%

Karachi

$101 21% 48.2% $94

Accommodation & Living

Wenzhou

$170 27%

Karachi

$74 15.3% 56.6% $96

Eating Out

Wenzhou

$93 14.7%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 34% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Wenzhou

$92 14.6%

Karachi

$68 14.1% 26.1% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wenzhou

$45 7.2%

Karachi

$133 27.5% 192% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Wenzhou

$29 4.6%

Karachi

$30 6.2% 4% $1.1

Getting Around

Wenzhou

$4.6 * 0.7%

Karachi

$16 3.2% 239% $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 $240 in Wenzhou and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wenzhou pays 374% 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: $30.00 in Wenzhou vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $196 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Wenzhou

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

16:50 4:50 PM

13:50 1:50 PM

3 h behind Wenzhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,300,000

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.23 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.23 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Wenzhou Karachi 5,310 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Wenzhou
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

Wenzhou vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Wenzhou and Karachi differ by about 30% in total monthly costs ($628 vs $482 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 374% higher in Wenzhou, 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: $240 in Wenzhou versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 93% higher in Wenzhou. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $628 per month in Wenzhou versus $482 in Karachi – a 30% 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 30% less than in Wenzhou. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.