Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Xiamen and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $490 a month against $842 in Xiamen, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Xiamen
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Xiamen Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Xiamen

🇨🇳 China

$842

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$490

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $842 in Xiamen versus $490 in Karachi.

Xiamen $842
Karachi $490

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,338 in Xiamen versus $755 in Karachi.

Xiamen $1,338
Karachi $755

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,835 in Xiamen versus $1,019 in Karachi.

Xiamen $1,835
Karachi $1,019

Living in Xiamen 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: Xiamen 37% lower, Karachi 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.01 ¥20.10

$2.15 PKR 596

40.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.67 ¥158

$13.37 PKR 3,700

77.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.36 ¥35.85

$5.29 PKR 1,464

1.32%

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

$2.51 ¥16.78

$2.11 PKR 583

18.96%

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

$0.47 ¥3.14

$0.37 PKR 103

27.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 ¥2.37

$0.28 PKR 78.2

25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.47 ¥9.86

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 ¥19.97

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 ¥9.78

$0.86 PKR 238

69.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 ¥15.20

$0.52 PKR 144

336.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ¥6.55

$1.24 PKR 344

-20.97%

Eggs

$1.63 ¥10.92

$1.24 PKR 342

31.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.95 ¥79.9

$5.86 PKR 1,622

103.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.52 ¥16.83

$3.12 PKR 862

-19.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.73 ¥78.4

$6.25 PKR 1,731

87.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 ¥17.05

$1.29 PKR 356

97.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.47 ¥9.85

$0.54 PKR 150

172.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.09

$0.99 PKR 273

67.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 ¥13.19

$0.56 PKR 155

251.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 ¥6.86

$0.33 PKR 91.6

212.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 ¥12.18

$0.35 PKR 95.9

420.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.91 ¥6.05

$0.45 PKR 124

102.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ¥3.31

$0.44 PKR 121

11.36%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.23 PKR 341

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PKR 381

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 PKR 676

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.06 ¥20.47

$1.79 PKR 497

70.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.22 ¥75.0

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 ¥5.40

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 ¥11.37

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.16 ¥1.07

$0.28 PKR 76.5

-42.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.10 ¥80.9

$9.68 PKR 2,679

25.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.47 ¥9.82

$0.92 PKR 255

59.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$0.71 PKR 196

-59.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.34 ¥49.07

$2.22 PKR 615

230.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ¥8.78

$1.35 PKR 372

-2.96%

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

$19.3K ¥128.8K

$17.8K PKR 4.9M

8.00%

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

$17.3K ¥115.4K

$26.7K PKR 7.4M

-35.42%

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

$44.42 ¥297

$112 PKR 30.9K

-60.27%

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

$8.81 ¥58.9

$6.05 PKR 1,673

45.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.23 ¥68.3

$13.29 PKR 3,679

-23.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.22 ¥322

$21.51 PKR 5,954

124.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.59 ¥70.8

$17.80 PKR 4,927

-40.51%

Cinema Ticket

$10.22 ¥68.3

$4.42 PKR 1,222

131.22%

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

$488 ¥3,264

$50.7 PKR 14.0K

862.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ¥161.3K

$1,957 PKR 541.6K

1133.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.84 ¥260

$17.57 PKR 4,862

121.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.49 ¥190

$22.78 PKR 6,304

25.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 ¥703

$67.6 PKR 18.7K

55.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.5 ¥565

$40.97 PKR 11.3K

106.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$342 ¥2,283

$117 PKR 32.5K

191.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$269 ¥1,798

$75.7 PKR 21.0K

255.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$825 ¥5,511

$365 PKR 101.1K

125.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$547 ¥3,655

$182 PKR 50.5K

199.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,597 ¥57.5K

$1,054 PKR 291.6K

715.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,684 ¥31.3K

$491 PKR 135.8K

854.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,138 ¥7,607

$185 PKR 51.2K

515.74%

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 Xiamen: October 6, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Xiamen

$269 32.2%

Karachi

$76 15.7% 71.9% $193

Groceries & Markets

Xiamen

$216 25.8%

Karachi

$101 20.9% 53.3% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Xiamen

$116 13.9%

Karachi

$67 13.9% 42.1% $49

Eating Out

Xiamen

$87 10.4%

Karachi

$61 12.7% 29.8% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Xiamen

$69 8.2%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 55.8% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Xiamen

$63 7.6%

Karachi

$131 27.3% 107% $68

Getting Around

Xiamen

$16 1.9%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 2.6% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $342 in Xiamen and $117 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Xiamen pays 516% 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: $24.00 in Xiamen vs $13.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $216 vs $101 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Xiamen

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

16:48 4:48 PM

13:48 1:48 PM

3 h behind Xiamen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,531,000

14,910,352

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 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 = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Xiamen Karachi 5,130 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Xiamen
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

Xiamen vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Xiamen and Karachi differ by about 72% in total monthly costs ($842 vs $490 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 516% higher in Xiamen, 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: $342 in Xiamen versus $117 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $842 per month in Xiamen 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 25% less than in Xiamen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

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 72% less than in Xiamen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.