Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Is Patna good for expats? It's worth considering — QoL score 51/100, safety 48/100, rent ₹7,500/mo, median income ₹3,20,000/yr. Compared to 27 other Bihar cities below.
Is Patna good for expats? It's worth considering — QoL score 51/100, safety 48/100, rent ₹7,500/mo, median income ₹3,20,000/yr. Compared to 27 other Bihar cities below.
Patna: cost index 68 (-25 vs national avg 93), rent ₹7,500/month.
Bihar region average cost index: 93. Patna is -25 vs region peers.
Quality of life: 51/100 — safety 48, healthcare 48, walkability 35.
Safety score: 48/100 (crime rate 72.5/1k). National average: 62/100.
| # | City | Cost Index | Rent/mo | Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patna | 68 | ₹7,500 | ₹3,20,000 |
| 2 | Thiruvananthapuram | 88 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,40,000 |
| 3 | Kochi | 95 | ₹12,000 | ₹4,80,000 |
| 4 | Coimbatore | 82 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,20,000 |
| 5 | Dehradun | 82 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,20,000 |
| 6 | Chandigarh | 98 | ₹14,000 | ₹5,20,000 |
| 7 | Panaji | 105 | ₹15,000 | ₹4,80,000 |
| 8 | Indore | 75 | ₹9,000 | ₹3,80,000 |
| 9 | Bhopal | 72 | ₹8,500 | ₹3,60,000 |
| 10 | Bhubaneswar | 72 | ₹8,000 | ₹3,60,000 |
| 11 | Nagpur | 78 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,20,000 |
| 12 | Visakhapatnam | 82 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,20,000 |
| 13 | Guwahati | 75 | ₹9,000 | ₹3,80,000 |
| 14 | Surat | 82 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,50,000 |
| 15 | Ranchi | 70 | ₹7,500 | ₹3,50,000 |
| 16 | Raipur | 68 | ₹7,000 | ₹3,40,000 |
| 17 | Kolkata | 88 | ₹12,000 | ₹4,50,000 |
| 18 | Ahmedabad | 88 | ₹12,000 | ₹4,80,000 |
| 19 | Chennai | 112 | ₹18,000 | ₹5,80,000 |
| 20 | Lucknow | 78 | ₹10,000 | ₹4,00,000 |
Here's the finding that keeps coming up in different analyses: Patna has a cost index of 68 — 25 points below the India national average of 93. Median income is ₹3,20,000 with rent at ₹7,500/month, putting the rent-to-income ratio at 28%. This combination is rare — and valuable.
Zooming out, looking at Bihar as a whole, the spread across all 28 cities is 74 points on the cost index. Mumbai sits at the other end with index 142 and rent of ₹35,000/mo. That's not a marginal difference — it reshapes your monthly budget.
On quality of life, Patna scores a composite score of 51/100 — reflecting its safety (48), healthcare (48), and walkability (35) metrics. Context matters here. affordability and QoL don't always move in the same direction, and India is a good example of that tension.
Patna — cost index 68, rent ₹7,500/mo, income ₹3,20,000, QoL 51/100.
Thiruvananthapuram — cost index 88, rent ₹10,000/mo, income ₹4,40,000, QoL 70/100.
Kochi — cost index 95, rent ₹12,000/mo, income ₹4,80,000, QoL 67/100.
Coimbatore — cost index 82, rent ₹10,000/mo, income ₹4,20,000, QoL 65/100.
Dehradun — cost index 82, rent ₹10,000/mo, income ₹4,20,000, QoL 65/100.
Patna scores 51/100 on the relevant index for expats — with rent of ₹7,500/month and cost index 68 (25 points below the national average of 93).
The Bihar region of average QoL score is 57/100. Patna leads with 51/100, reflecting safety, healthcare access, walkability, and green space.
Our index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Sub-categories cover housing, food, transport, utilities, and healthcare. Data sources include MoSPI CPI, RBI, NHB RESIDEX, PLFS.
Patna: cost index 68, rent ₹7,500/mo, income ₹3,20,000/yr, QoL 51/100. Thiruvananthapuram: cost index 88, rent ₹10,000/mo, income ₹4,40,000/yr, QoL 70/100.
This analysis uses data from MoSPI CPI, RBI, NHB RESIDEX, PLFS to rank cities in India. The cost of living index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Quality of life scores combine safety, healthcare, walkability, air quality, green space, and transit metrics. Salary ranges use national occupation data adjusted for local cost differences. Data is updated regularly to reflect current market conditions.