Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zhangzhou and Karachi

For one person, living is cheaper in Karachi: $483 a month against $716 in Zhangzhou, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Zhangzhou
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Zhangzhou Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Karachi
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Karachi Living Index

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Zhangzhou

🇨🇳 China

$716

/mo nomad

Karachi

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$483

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $716 in Zhangzhou versus $483 in Karachi.

Zhangzhou $716
Karachi $483

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,132 in Zhangzhou versus $754 in Karachi.

Zhangzhou $1,132
Karachi $754

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,547 in Zhangzhou versus $1,025 in Karachi.

Zhangzhou $1,547
Karachi $1,025

Living in Zhangzhou is roughly 48% more expensive than in Karachi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Zhangzhou 47% lower, Karachi 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.74 ¥18.35

$2.11 PKR 585

29.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.73 ¥145

$13.73 PKR 3,801

58.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.80 ¥32.11

$5.53 PKR 1,531

-13.20%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 PKR 609

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.37 PKR 2,040

Cappuccino

$3.05 ¥20.39

$2.14 PKR 593

42.52%

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

$0.47 ¥3.16

$0.40 PKR 111

17.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.78

$0.28 PKR 77.7

-3.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.90 ¥6.01

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥13.75

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 ¥12.13

$0.90 PKR 250

101.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.59 ¥10.65

$0.55 PKR 153

189.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.03

$1.20 PKR 333

-25.00%

Eggs

$1.55 ¥10.35

$1.25 PKR 346

24.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.58 ¥84.1

$5.96 PKR 1,650

111.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.15 ¥21.08

$3.19 PKR 883

-1.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.14 ¥67.8

$6.48 PKR 1,793

56.48%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ¥12.45

$1.24 PKR 344

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 ¥8.36

$0.53 PKR 147

135.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.48 ¥9.91

$1.03 PKR 284

43.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.10 ¥7.38

$0.51 PKR 142

115.69%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 ¥4.88

$0.31 PKR 85.1

135.48%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.11

$0.31 PKR 87.1

193.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.55 ¥3.70

$0.41 PKR 113

34.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ¥3.72

$0.44 PKR 120

27.27%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.31 PKR 362

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 PKR 369

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 PKR 670

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.06 ¥20.49

$1.83 PKR 508

67.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.62 ¥71.0

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 ¥4.89

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 ¥10.55

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.28 PKR 76.8

3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.89 ¥113

$9.81 PKR 2,716

72.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.41 ¥9.43

$0.87 PKR 240

62.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.32 ¥2.17

$0.74 PKR 204

-56.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.55 ¥43.79

$2.23 PKR 617

193.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 ¥7.48

$1.38 PKR 383

-18.84%

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

$19.1K ¥127.9K

$18.4K PKR 5.1M

4.21%

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

$17.2K ¥115.3K

$26.4K PKR 7.3M

-34.80%

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

$45.55 ¥305

$113 PKR 31.4K

-59.79%

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

$9.74 ¥65.1

$6.12 PKR 1,694

59.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.81 ¥79.0

$13.11 PKR 3,628

-9.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.19 ¥275

$21.78 PKR 6,029

89.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.66 ¥91.4

$18.27 PKR 5,058

-25.23%

Cinema Ticket

$5.94 ¥39.75

$4.26 PKR 1,179

39.44%

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

$337 ¥2,251

$52.1 PKR 14.4K

546.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K ¥111.4K

$1,941 PKR 537.3K

758.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.23 ¥289

$17.53 PKR 4,852

146.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.11 ¥201

$22.88 PKR 6,332

31.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 ¥476

$68.1 PKR 18.8K

4.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.8 ¥487

$41.55 PKR 11.5K

75.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$282 ¥1,886

$118 PKR 32.5K

139.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$196 ¥1,308

$73.2 PKR 20.3K

167.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$584 ¥3,902

$360 PKR 99.6K

62.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 ¥2,411

$188 PKR 52.1K

91.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,977 ¥19.9K

$1,082 PKR 299.4K

175.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,003 ¥13.4K

$474 PKR 131.2K

322.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$182 PKR 50.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

13.21

-70.55%

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

Last update for Zhangzhou: October 19, 2026

Last update for Karachi: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Zhangzhou

$197 27.5%

Karachi

$102 21.1% 48.2% $95

Accommodation & Living

Zhangzhou

$196 27.3%

Karachi

$73 15.2% 62.6% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Zhangzhou

$98 13.7%

Karachi

$68 14% 30.9% $30

Eating Out

Zhangzhou

$85 11.8%

Karachi

$62 12.8% 26.7% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zhangzhou

$67 9.4%

Karachi

$133 27.4% 97.5% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Zhangzhou

$53 7.4%

Karachi

$30 6.3% 42.9% $23

Getting Around

Zhangzhou

$21 2.9%

Karachi

$15 3.2% 26.6% $5.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $282 in Zhangzhou and $118 in Karachi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $22.00 in Zhangzhou vs $14.00 in Karachi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $197 vs $102 per month, with Karachi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Zhangzhou

🇵🇰 Karachi

🕒 Local time

07:27 7:27 AM

04:27 4:27 AM

3 h behind Zhangzhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,809,983

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 = 3.21 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Zhangzhou Karachi 5,080 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Zhangzhou
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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

Zhangzhou vs Karachi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zhangzhou and Karachi differ by about 48% in total monthly costs ($716 vs $483 including rent). Karachi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,074 in Zhangzhou and $725 in Karachi to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $282 in Zhangzhou versus $118 in Karachi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $716 per month in Zhangzhou versus $483 in Karachi – a 48% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karachi runs roughly 72% less than in Zhangzhou. 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.

Safety-wise, Zhangzhou 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 48% less than in Zhangzhou. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.