A representational image of Islamabad’s iconic Faisal Mosque in the federal capital. — AFP/File

Pakistan’s capital Islamabad is often considered one of the most scenic and beautiful cities in the country owing to its greenery and location near the Margalla Hills mountain range.

Islamabad, which hosts the iconic Faisal Mosque, various key state institutions such as the parliament and the Supreme Court, has now added another feather to its cap by having one of the lowest cost of living in the world.

The city, as per the “2024 Mercer Cost of Living Survey,” is ranked as the third city (224) with the lowest cost of living across 226 cities around the world. However, it is cheap for people earning in foreign currency.

The survey assessed the cities in various countries around the world on the comparative cost of over 200 items such as transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.

In the report, Nigeria’s Lagos and Buja are ranked as the cities with the lowest cost of living as they are ranked 225 and 226, respectively in the list.

Furthermore, Pakistan’s financial hub Karachi has also made it to the list and is ranked at 222 making it one of the least expensive cities in the region and in the world.

The survey maintains that the “demonstrably lower costs of living of international assignees have, in part, been driven by currency depreciations”.

Conversely, Hong Kong is ranked as the most expensive city to live with the highest cost of living in the world, followed by Singapore in the second place.

The next four places are all taken by various cities of Switzerland namely Zurich (third), Geneva (fourth), Basel (fifth) and Bern (sixth).

Whereas the United States’ New York and the United Kingdom’s London are ranked as the seventh and eighth most expensive cities in the world.

The report underscores “heightened economic and geopolitical volatility, local conflicts and emergencies” as key elements driving the expenses in various domains such as housing, utilities, taxes, education etc which amount to an increased cost of living in a particular area.

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