Cost of living comparison

Ethiopia

compared to

Pakistan

Islamabad vs. Addis Ababa Cost of Living Summary

Islamabad is 41.0% cheaper than Addis Ababa.

Restaurants: pay 24.2% less in Islamabad
Groceries: pay 42.3% less in Islamabad
Transportation: pay 22.2% more in Islamabad
Housing: pay 64.2% less in Islamabad
Childcare: pay 69.9% less in Islamabad
Entertainment and Sports: pay 36.7% more in Islamabad
Clothing: pay 31.4% less in Islamabad

The cost of entertainment and sports and transportation in Islamabad are more expensive than in Addis Ababa. Expenses including childcare, housing, groceries, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Islamabad.

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Islamabad vs. Addis Ababa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Islamabad instead of Addis Ababa, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 24.2% less for restaurants

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.00 ETB654.34	$3.61 PKR1,001.00	-9.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$6.50 ETB1,063.31	$5.42 PKR1,501.50	-16.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.61 ETB99.06	$0.34 PKR94.38	-43.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.66 ETB107.50	$0.22 PKR60.62	-66.7%
Average			-24.2%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of restaurants

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pay 42.3% less for groceries

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Bread 1 loaf	$1.19 ETB194.58	$0.75 PKR208.08	-36.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.70 ETB604.57	$3.07 PKR851.66	-16.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.09 ETB669.40	$3.63 PKR1,006.51	-11.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.77 ETB289.63	$1.24 PKR343.64	-30.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.59 ETB750.34	$1.41 PKR390.48	-69.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.44 ETB399.44	$0.59 PKR163.19	-75.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.30 ETB48.73	$0.38 PKR106.19	+28.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.99 ETB161.65	$0.47 PKR131.67	-51.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.31 ETB50.42	$0.25 PKR68.12	-20.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.22 ETB35.99	$0.13 PKR35.52	-41.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.49 ETB79.77	$0.17 PKR46.29	-65.8%
Average			-42.3%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of groceries

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pay 22.2% more for transportation

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.53 ETB577.22	$5.11 PKR1,415.96	+44.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$21.11 ETB3,453.30	$21.66 PKR6,006.00	+2.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$55,000.00 ETB9M	$54,159.34 PKR15M	-1.5%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$3.53 ETB576.64	$7.04 PKR1,951.95	+99.7%
Average			+22.2%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of transportation

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pay 64.2% less for housing

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$212.33 ETB34,734.76	$17.07 PKR4,732.00	-92.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$706.95 ETB116K	$273.02 PKR75,692.28	-61.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$394.55 ETB64,542.82	$139.79 PKR38,755.38	-64.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$156.76 ETB25,644.51	$77.95 PKR21,609.82	-50.3%
Average			-64.2%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of housing

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pay 69.9% less for childcare

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$136.41 ETB22,314.75	$74.62 PKR20,687.33	-45.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$30,187.50 ETB5M	$5,015.34 PKR1M	-83.4%
Average			-69.9%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of childcare

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pay 36.7% more for entertainment and sports

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.80 ETB130.87	$3.61 PKR1,001.00	+351.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$0.92 ETB150.32	$2.65 PKR734.15	+188.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.00 ETB1,308.69	$2.30 PKR637.64	-71.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$44.15 ETB7,221.55	$28.23 PKR7,826.00	-36.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.75 ETB613.45	$4.33 PKR1,201.20	+15.5%
Average			+36.7%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 31.4% less for clothing

	Addis Ababa	Islamabad
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$33.14 ETB5,421.12	$24.82 PKR6,881.88	-25.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$70.86 ETB11,591.24	$34.87 PKR9,666.47	-50.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$78.65 ETB12,865.68	$96.43 PKR26,735.16	+22.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$82.70 ETB13,529.26	$40.62 PKR11,261.25	-50.9%
Average			-31.4%

Addis Ababa vs. Islamabad - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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