Cost of living comparison

Pakistan

compared to

Nepal

Kathmandu vs. Islamabad Cost of Living Summary

Kathmandu is 20.5% cheaper than Islamabad.

Restaurants: pay 14.3% less in Kathmandu
Groceries: pay 16.8% more in Kathmandu
Transportation: pay 28.9% less in Kathmandu
Housing: pay 34.8% less in Kathmandu
Childcare: pay 2.7% less in Kathmandu
Entertainment and Sports: pay 26.2% less in Kathmandu
Clothing: pay 23.3% less in Kathmandu

Expenses including housing, transportation, entertainment and sports, clothing, restaurants, and childcare are lower in Kathmandu.

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Kathmandu vs. Islamabad Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Kathmandu instead of Islamabad, you would:

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pay 14.3% less for restaurants

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$3.61 PKR1,001.00	$1.94 NPR294.83	-46.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.42 PKR1,501.50	$7.75 NPR1,179.32	+43.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.34 PKR94.38	$0.52 NPR78.70	+52.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.22 PKR60.62	$0.14 NPR21.97	-33.9%
Average			-14.3%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - Cost of restaurants

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pay 16.8% more for groceries

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Bread 1 loaf	$0.75 PKR208.08	$0.59 NPR90.29	-20.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.07 PKR851.66	$3.64 NPR553.63	+18.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$3.63 PKR1,006.51	$2.79 NPR423.66	-23.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.24 PKR343.64	$1.69 NPR256.26	+35.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.41 PKR390.48	$1.40 NPR213.38	-0.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.59 PKR163.19	$0.91 NPR137.93	+54.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.38 PKR106.19	$0.53 NPR80.24	+37.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.47 PKR131.67	$0.63 NPR96.40	+33.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.25 PKR68.12	$0.25 NPR38.45	+2.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.13 PKR35.52	$0.18 NPR27.16	+39.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.17 PKR46.29	$0.23 NPR35.38	+39.4%
Average			+16.8%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - Cost of groceries

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pay 28.9% less for transportation

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.11 PKR1,415.96	$5.12 NPR778.50	+0.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$21.66 PKR6,006.00	$9.69 NPR1,474.16	-55.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$54,159.34 PKR15M	$29,079.65 NPR4M	-46.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.04 PKR1,951.95	$11.08 NPR1,685.45	+57.4%
Average			-28.9%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - Cost of transportation

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pay 34.8% less for housing

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$17.07 PKR4,732.00	$8.95 NPR1,360.76	-47.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$273.02 PKR75,692.28	$219.17 NPR33,332.28	-19.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$139.79 PKR38,755.38	$101.02 NPR15,363.97	-27.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$77.95 PKR21,609.82	$23.92 NPR3,638.09	-69.3%
Average			-34.8%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - Cost of housing

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pay 2.7% less for childcare

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$74.62 PKR20,687.33	$65.27 NPR9,925.98	-12.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$5,015.34 PKR1M	$5,431.44 NPR826K	+8.3%
Average			-2.7%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - Cost of childcare

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pay 26.2% less for entertainment and sports

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.61 PKR1,001.00	$3.09 NPR469.27	-14.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.65 PKR734.15	$1.51 NPR230.34	-42.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.30 PKR637.64	$2.46 NPR373.45	+6.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$28.23 PKR7,826.00	$21.54 NPR3,275.90	-23.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.33 PKR1,201.20	$2.91 NPR442.25	-32.9%
Average			-26.2%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 23.3% less for clothing

	Islamabad	Kathmandu
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$24.82 PKR6,881.88	$24.97 NPR3,797.07	+0.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.87 PKR9,666.47	$26.44 NPR4,020.42	-24.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$96.43 PKR26,735.16	$62.68 NPR9,532.87	-35.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$40.62 PKR11,261.25	$28.43 NPR4,324.19	-30.0%
Average			-23.3%

Islamabad vs. Kathmandu - 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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