Cost of Living inKandahār, Afghanistan
Image credit: PFC ANGULO, LESLIE
Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Afghanistan: $1,984/capita.
How Far Your Money Goes
Prices are 79% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Using the country-level NYC comparison for now. We do not have a defensible city-level aggregate cost index for this city yet.
Income Category
GDP per Capita
City Population
Child Education
Public-schooling rules and international-school pricing are not sourced for Afghanistan yet. Quality, expat-access, instruction language, and tuition will appear here once verified.
Childcare & Domestic Help
Nanny, housekeeper, and driver pricing is not yet sourced for Kandahār. We publish this section only when we can tie it to local job-board, agency, or country fallback evidence.
Getting Around
Neighborhood mobility profiles are rolling out city by city.Kandahār is still missing a verified walkability, transit, airport, and rideshare profile.
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Afghanistan.
Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.
Healthcare system
LimitedCoverage looks thinner, doctor staffing is lighter, and hospital capacity looks tighter weigh on this rating.
Public care
LimitedA visible public hospital footprint help, but public coverage looks thinner and public funding looks lighter.
Private care
LimitedThe tracked private-style network still looks thin and self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse weigh on this rating.
UHC coverage
42/100
2023
Physicians
0.32/1k
2023
Hospital beds
0.35/1k
2023
Out of pocket
77%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
66.3 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
521/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
33.1/1k
2024
International patient readiness
LimitedPrice transparency is still sparse and headline outcomes are less reassuring weigh on this rating.
Pricing transparency
LimitedPublished self-pay prices are scarce and few facilities expose web pages we can verify weigh on this rating.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Afghanistan yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI · Updated 2026-06-01
Safety & Governance
Street Safety
Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.
Political Stability
World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.
Wages by Sector
| Sector | Median |
|---|---|
| Agriculture & Farming | — |
| Manufacturing | — |
2020 annual wages in Kandahār, Afghanistan · Source: ILO ILOSTAT (sector aggregate) (national)
Price Comparison vs. US
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders need advance travel authorization or a visa before entry.
Quick comparison FAQ
Structured from the deltas already shown on this page — no invented facts, no extra data sources.
How far does your money go in Kandahār compared with the US?
Your money goes about 4.5x further in Kandahār than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate. We are using the country-level cost index for Afghanistan here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
Is Kandahār cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?
Kandahār is cheaper overall than New York City — overall living costs are about 79% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Kandahār. We are using the country-level cost index for Afghanistan here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How does rent in Kandahār compare with New York City?
Rent in Kandahār is about 98% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City). We are using the country-level cost index for Afghanistan here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Kandahār?
Groceries in Kandahār are about 82% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 85% cheaper than the same benchmark. We are using the country-level cost index for Afghanistan here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
About Kandahār
Kandahār is the second-largest city in Afghanistan and the historic seat of the Taliban movement, on the road and rail corridor linking the Indian subcontinent to Iran and Central Asia via Quetta. The local economy combines fruit and pomegranate cultivation, traditional handicrafts, smuggling and informal trade, and the substantial public-sector presence of the Taliban-led administration. Since the 2021 takeover, the humanitarian, economic, and women's-rights situation has deteriorated sharply, with severe constraints on female education and employment and most international embassies, NGOs, and businesses operating in extremely limited form. Pashto is dominant alongside Dari and English is rare. Foreign relocation is effectively impossible outside specific humanitarian frameworks under strict security and operational constraints.
See the full breakdown — free
No password needed. Takes ~30 seconds.