Market Research Companies in Karachi

Key figures for researchers

Population

20.38 million in Karachi Division (2023 census)¹

Districts

7: Central, East, Keamari, Korangi, Malir, South and West (2023 census)¹

Urban / rural

18.87 million urban; 1.51 million rural, in Malir and Karachi West (2023 census)¹

Household size

5.9 people on average (2023 census)¹

Mother tongues

Urdu 50.7%, Pashto 13.5%, Sindhi 11.2%, Punjabi 8.1% (2023 census)²

Literacy rate

70.65% (2023 census)²

Housing

94.2% of houses are brick-built (pacca) (2023 census)⁴

Katchi abadis

582 informal settlements, as declared by the Sindh Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (Nov. 2024)⁴

Trade

Karachi’s ports handle 76% of Pakistan’s exports (PSW, 2024)⁵

Monsoon

588 mm of rain at Karachi-Faisal in August 2020, against a normal of 68 mm⁶

Research guide

Research landscape

Karachi is Pakistan’s main commercial centre and its gateway for trade: the city’s ports handle 76% of the country’s exports. As the largest city and the main business centre, it concentrates a large share of FMCG, retail, financial services and B2B research. Local agencies often run fieldwork in Karachi and in the rest of Sindh, and many national studies are coordinated from the city.

Who you will interview

Karachi Division had 20.38 million people at the 2023 census, almost all of them urban. It is very mixed: Urdu is the mother tongue of 50.7% of residents, followed by Pashto (13.5%), Sindhi (11.2%) and Punjabi (8.1%), with Balochi, Saraiki and Hindko communities. The mix changes a lot by district: Urdu dominates in Central, while Pashto is the largest group in Keamari and Sindhi in Malir.

Urdu questionnaires work for most consumer studies, but plan interviewers who speak Pashto or Sindhi in the districts where these groups are large. The literacy rate is 70.65%, and lower in Keamari, Malir and Karachi West, so self-completion methods do not suit every target. Set quotas on Karachi figures rather than national ones: the city is far more urban and Urdu-speaking than Pakistan as a whole.

Fieldwork in practice

Karachi has seven districts: Central, East, Keamari, Korangi, Malir, South and West. East (3.92 million) and Central (3.82 million) are the largest; Malir and Karachi West include the only rural areas of the division. Sampling by district helps control the spread of interviews and the language mix.

Most houses are brick-built (94.2%), but the city also has 582 katchi abadis (informal settlements) according to the Sindh Assembly, where addresses and maps can be incomplete. Face-to-face teams usually work with local supervisors who know each area. Security conditions vary between neighbourhoods and over time: ask the agency how it assesses areas before fieldwork, how interviewers travel and are tracked, and what happens if an area becomes inaccessible.

Focus groups and qualitative research

Focus groups are usually held in agency premises or rented venues, often in separate groups for men and women. Allow for long travel times across the city when you plan evening groups and in-home visits.

Ask the agency for recruitment lead times, incentive levels and moderators who speak the language of the group. Senior B2B respondents in Karachi’s business districts often prefer short in-office or online interviews, frequently in English.

Timing

Summer heat peaks before the monsoon: in late May 2024 Karachi reached 41.5°C, against a normal May maximum of 35.8°C, and the PMD issued a heatwave warning. Plan door-to-door work early in the day during heatwaves.

The monsoon (July to September) can bring urban flooding: in August 2020 the Karachi-Faisal station recorded 588 mm, against a normal of 68 mm, in one of the worst urban floods in the city’s history. Keep spare days in face-to-face schedules for these months.

Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha follow the lunar calendar and move earlier every year, with exact dates set by the moon sighting: in 2026, Eid al-Fitr was on 21–23 March and Eid al-Adha on 27–29 May. Avoid fieldwork around Ashura (9 and 10 Muharram: 25–26 June in 2026), when processions and security measures affect movement in the city, and on Independence Day (14 August).

Working with a Karachi agency

• Share a clear brief: objectives, target, sample size, districts, method, languages and deadline.
• Ask which districts the field team covers directly, and whether Pashto- and Sindhi-speaking and female interviewers are available.
• Ask how fieldwork in katchi abadis and other sensitive areas is planned, and how interviewer safety is managed.
• Ask about quality control: back-checks, GPS or audio checks, and contingency plans for heatwaves, monsoon rain and Muharram.
• Compare several proposals: you can send one request to up to 5 Karachi companies from this page.

National rules (data protection, holidays, sampling across regions) are covered in our guide to market research in Pakistan.