Cost of living comparison

Dhaka, Bangladesh

compared to

Islamabad, Pakistan

Islamabad vs. Dhaka Cost of Living Summary

Islamabad is 25.1% more expensive than Dhaka.

Restaurants: pay 13.7% more in Islamabad
Groceries: pay 21.2% less in Islamabad
Transportation: pay 24.9% less in Islamabad
Housing: pay 2.1 times more in Islamabad
Childcare: pay 73.6% more in Islamabad
Entertainment and Sports: pay 10.8% less in Islamabad
Clothing: pay 38.1% more in Islamabad

The cost of housing, childcare, clothing, and restaurants in Islamabad are more expensive than in Dhaka. Expenses including transportation, groceries, and entertainment and sports are lower in Islamabad. Notably, housing is significantly more expensive in Islamabad.

Islamabad vs. Dhaka Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 13.7% more for restaurants

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.08 BDT252.76	$1.79 PKR501.59	-13.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.58 BDT556.06	$4.30 PKR1,203.83	-6.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.29 BDT35.80	$0.35 PKR99.18	+20.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.16 BDT19.04	$0.24 PKR67.82	+54.5%
Average			+13.7%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of restaurants

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pay 21.2% less for groceries

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Bread 1 loaf	$0.68 BDT82.49	$0.68 PKR190.02	-0.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.97 BDT482.63	$2.96 PKR829.49	-25.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$2.94 BDT356.75	$3.31 PKR928.60	+12.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.29 BDT157.24	$1.25 PKR350.32	-3.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.45 BDT176.33	$1.64 PKR459.87	+13.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.16 BDT141.13	$0.48 PKR135.15	-58.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.51 BDT61.78	$0.38 PKR107.26	-24.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.09 BDT132.33	$0.37 PKR104.12	-65.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.38 BDT46.30	$0.26 PKR73.12	-31.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.22 BDT26.15	$0.19 PKR52.85	-12.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.40 BDT48.59	$0.25 PKR70.26	-37.3%
Average			-21.2%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of groceries

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pay 24.9% less for transportation

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.06 BDT492.94	$3.81 PKR1,066.70	-6.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$24.96 BDT3,033.08	$6.80 PKR1,906.06	-72.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$24,957.67 BDT3,033,077.35	$21,479.46 PKR6,019,126.70	-13.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$4.58 BDT556.06	$4.27 PKR1,197.81	-6.6%
Average			-24.9%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.1 times more for housing

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$13.11 BDT1,593.09	$18.16 PKR5,087.60	+38.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$115.12 BDT13,990.41	$174.15 PKR48,802.14	+51.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$63.20 BDT7,680.53	$99.01 PKR27,744.41	+56.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$22.22 BDT2,700.07	$84.99 PKR23,815.54	+282.5%
Average			+107.2%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of housing

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pay 73.6% more for childcare

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$44.32 BDT5,385.66	$60.17 PKR16,861.27	+35.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$1,486.12 BDT180,605.97	$3,142.14 PKR880,512.25	+111.4%
Average			+73.6%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of childcare

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pay 10.8% less for entertainment and sports

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.16 BDT505.51	$1.79 PKR501.59	-57.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.03 BDT246.89	$1.97 PKR551.28	-3.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.91 BDT353.86	$2.15 PKR601.91	-26.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$17.81 BDT2,164.99	$23.01 PKR6,449.06	+29.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.16 BDT505.51	$4.30 PKR1,203.83	+3.3%
Average			-10.8%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 38.1% more for clothing

	Dhaka	Islamabad
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$16.53 BDT2,009.41	$19.06 PKR5,340.50	+15.3%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$19.66 BDT2,389.70	$26.18 PKR7,335.81	+33.1%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$41.85 BDT5,085.43	$83.29 PKR23,340.84	+99.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$36.92 BDT4,486.77	$38.79 PKR10,870.79	+5.1%
Average			+38.1%

Dhaka vs. Islamabad - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: April 2025

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