Building a House · Property
Construction material prices in Pakistan, September 2026, from PBS: cement Rs 1,586 a bag and sarya Rs 2.31 lakh a tonne in Lahore, plus bricks, sand and wages.
AI Summary
In September 2026, PBS recorded local cement at Rs 1,586 a 50 kg bag in Lahore, Rs 1,467 in Karachi and Rs 1,507 in Islamabad. Half-inch Grade 40 steel bars cost Rs 2.31 lakh to Rs 2.46 lakh a tonne in those cities, and 1,000 first-class bricks Rs 22,000 to Rs 27,016. Prices of construction inputs in cities were 6.24% higher than a year earlier, and wages 9.69% higher. PBS publishes no Grade 60 steel or brand-wise cement prices.
Construction material prices in Pakistan, as of September 2026 (the latest month the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics has published): local cement cost Rs 1,586 a 50 kg bag in Lahore, Rs 1,467 in Karachi and Rs 1,507 in Islamabad. Half-inch Grade 40 steel bars (sarya) cost Rs 2.31 lakh a tonne in Lahore and Rs 2.46 lakh in Islamabad. A thousand first-class bricks cost Rs 24,831 in Lahore.
These figures come from PBS’s monthly table of construction prices in 35 cities, which we downloaded on 18 October 2026. They are consumer prices averaged over the month, so a dealer’s quote on the day can differ.
| City | Cement (50 kg bag) | Sarya, Grade 40 (tonne) | Bricks (1,000) | Sand (100 cft truck) | Bajri (100 cft truck) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lahore | Rs 1,586 | Rs 231,380 | Rs 24,831 | Rs 7,998 | Rs 18,773 |
| Karachi | Rs 1,467 | Rs 241,542 | Rs 22,000 | Rs 8,233 | Rs 9,253 |
| Islamabad | Rs 1,507 | Rs 246,167 | Rs 27,016 | Rs 13,631 | Rs 16,522 |
| Rawalpindi | Rs 1,498 | Rs 245,633 | Rs 26,694 | Rs 13,558 | Rs 15,870 |
| Multan | Rs 1,590 | Rs 238,999 | Rs 16,533 | Rs 7,771 | Rs 11,426 |
| Peshawar | Rs 1,563 | Rs 235,167 | Rs 21,439 | Rs 10,328 | Rs 10,887 |
| Quetta | Rs 1,560 | Rs 249,967 | Rs 15,242 | Rs 6,499 | Rs 6,998 |
| Faisalabad | Rs 1,550 | Rs 240,000 | Rs 22,000 | Rs 7,000 | Rs 13,500 |
| Hyderabad | Rs 1,519 | Rs 240,333 | Rs 15,659 | Rs 2,932 | Rs 4,732 |
Source: PBS, Urban Inter-City Consumer Prices of Construction and Energy Items, September 2026. Figures rounded to the rupee. Bricks are “new first class”; sand is “black pit”; bajri is “rata”.
The cheapest of the 35 cities in September 2026 was Attock at Rs 1,463 a bag, and the dearest Sukkur and Bahawalnagar at Rs 1,613. Half the cities paid about Rs 1,563 or less.
PBS also records cement in its Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) survey. The SPI’s September average for Lahore was Rs 1,596 a bag, Karachi Rs 1,470 and Islamabad Rs 1,517, close to the table above. The 17-city average was Rs 1,549.
PBS prices “local” cement as one item, so it doesn’t tell you the rate for a particular brand or for sulphate-resistant cement. We found no official brand-wise price list online.
Sarya, ½-inch Grade 40, Sept 2026
Rs 2.30 lakh to Rs 2.50 lakh a tonne
Gujranwala lowest at Rs 230,000; D.G. Khan and D.M. Jamali highest at Rs 250,000. Lahore's Rs 231,380 a tonne is about Rs 231 a kg.
PBS prices only half-inch Grade 40 mild steel bars. Your structural drawings may call for Grade 60 bars, which PBS doesn’t track. We couldn’t find a dated Grade 60 mill rate for September or October 2026, so ask your structural engineer which grade the drawings need, and get two dealer quotes for that grade.
Bricks cost Rs 13,000 per 1,000 in Dadu and Nawabshah and Rs 27,663 in Gujranwala, the most expensive of the 32 cities PBS reports bricks for. In Lahore one brick works out at about Rs 25.
Sand is sold by the truck of 100 cubic feet (cft). It ranged from Rs 2,932 in Hyderabad to Rs 15,165 in Abbottabad. That is about Rs 80 a cft in Lahore and Rs 136 in Islamabad.
Bajri (crushed stone for concrete) ranged from Rs 4,466 a truck in Khuzdar to Rs 18,996 in Sahiwal. PBS reports one product per city (“black pit” sand and “rata” bajri), so other kinds of sand and crush will cost differently.
Cement blocks (6 x 8 x 12 inch) are priced in only 17 cities: Rs 5,902 per 100 in Karachi and Rs 9,847 in Islamabad. PBS shows no block price for Lahore.
| City | Mason (raj) | Unskilled labourer | Plumber | Electrician (per point) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lahore | Rs 2,461 | Rs 1,747 | Rs 2,037 | Rs 319 |
| Karachi | Rs 2,482 | Rs 1,500 | Rs 2,359 | Rs 418 |
| Islamabad | Rs 2,405 | Rs 1,500 | Rs 2,238 | Rs 487 |
| Rawalpindi | Rs 2,370 | Rs 1,500 | Rs 2,232 | Rs 471 |
| Multan | Rs 1,909 | Rs 1,153 | Rs 1,811 | Rs 284 |
| Peshawar | Rs 2,421 | Rs 1,466 | Rs 2,500 | Rs 332 |
| Quetta | Rs 2,194 | Rs 1,449 | Rs 1,498 | Rs 317 |
Source: PBS, September 2026, wages per day (electrician per point). Across the 35 cities a mason earned Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,482 a day, Karachi being the highest. An unskilled labourer earned Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,747, Lahore being the highest.
Yes, but more slowly than wages. PBS’s urban consumer index for construction input items was 6.24% higher in September 2026 than a year earlier, and 0.29% higher than in August. Construction wages in cities rose 9.69% in the year. In rural areas, input prices rose 18.08%.
At wholesale, the year to September 2026 saw:
Since January, steel has risen faster than cement. The News reported January 2026 figures from the same urban inter-city price survey: cement then cost Rs 1,467 a bag in Lahore and iron bars Rs 212,333 a tonne. By September that was Rs 1,586 and Rs 231,380, up 8.1% and 9.0% (our calculation). In Karachi, bars rose 14.3% over the same months.
PBS prices tell you what materials cost. They don’t tell you how many bags, bricks or tonnes your house needs. That depends on the structural drawings, wall thickness and whether the frame is RCC (reinforced concrete) or load-bearing brick.
To estimate quantities and a materials total for your covered area, use the construction material calculator. It applies rules of thumb published by Pakistani contractors and builders, so treat the result as a planning range, not a bill of quantities. Zameen’s construction cost calculator, last updated 16 October 2026, also gives totals without quantities. For a per-square-foot budget, see house construction cost in Pakistan.
To work out your covered area first, use the marla to square feet converter. Building portions to let out? See building a house to rent out.
More guides: home loans in Pakistan, Akhuwat house loan, property tax in Punjab, Property.
PBS recorded Rs 1,586 for a 50 kg bag of local cement in Lahore in September 2026, its latest month. Its separate SPI survey for the same month shows Rs 1,596.
In September 2026, PBS recorded Rs 2.30 lakh to Rs 2.50 lakh a tonne for half-inch Grade 40 bars across 35 cities: Rs 2.31 lakh in Lahore, Rs 2.42 lakh in Karachi and Rs 2.46 lakh in Islamabad. It doesn't price Grade 60 bars.
Rs 24,831 for 1,000 new first-class bricks in September 2026, according to PBS. Islamabad was Rs 27,016 and Karachi Rs 22,000.
PBS prices sand by the 100 cft truck. In September 2026 that was Rs 7,998 in Lahore (about Rs 80 a cft) and Rs 13,631 in Islamabad (about Rs 136 a cft).
Ask us. We read every question and reply by email when you leave one.
Building a House
A construction material calculator for Pakistan: enter your covered area and city to estimate cement bags, sarya, bricks, sand and crush at PBS Sep 2026 prices.
Building a House
House construction cost in Pakistan in 2026: Rs 2,762 to Rs 3,500 a sq ft for grey structure and Rs 4,384 to Rs 4,786 finished, from Zameen and a builder.
Building a House
A double unit house for rent earned less than a whole house in our check of Zameen listings: Rs 1.16 lakh vs Rs 1.25 lakh for 5 marla. Rules, meters and tax.
