Cable price per meter in Pakistan — and how to convert a per foot or per coil quote

PILONE CABLES TECHNICAL TEAM

One meter is 3.281 feet. A coil is not a fixed length. Get every quote into the same unit before you compare two of them.

Divide a coil price by the coil length in meters, or multiply a per foot price by 3.281, and both become a rate per meter. That one step matters more than any haggling, because a 90 m coil is 295 feet of cable, so a per foot figure and a coil figure for the same cable differ by 295 times — and a number quoted with no unit at all is not a quote yet. The conversion table is below, and the reason the rate moves with size and core count is under it.

Four ways the same cable gets quoted

Ask three shops for a rate on one cable and you can get three incompatible numbers — not because the cable differs, but because one is quoting per foot, one per 90 m coil and one per meter. All three can be honest and none of them can be compared until they are in one unit. This is the conversion, and it is arithmetic, not opinion.

Unit conversions only, no rates. One foot is 0.3048 m and one yard is three feet, so one meter is 3.281 feet. Coil lengths are the ones commonly sold in Pakistan; there is no single standard length, so ask what the coil is before you use any coil figure.
Unit quoted	Length in meters	Length in feet	To get the rate per meter
Per foot	0.305 m	1 ft	× 3.281
Per yard	0.914 m	3 ft	× 1.094
Per meter	1 m	3.281 ft	already there
Per 30 m coil	30 m	98.4 ft	÷ 30
Per 45 m coil	45 m	147.6 ft	÷ 45
Per 90 m coil	90 m	295.3 ft	÷ 90
Per 80 yard coil	73.2 m	240 ft	÷ 73.2
Per 301 ft coil	91.7 m	301 ft	÷ 91.7

The per foot row is the one that catches people. A rate per foot reads as roughly a third of the same cable quoted per meter, so a per foot quote always looks like the cheapest offer on the table until it is multiplied out. It is not cheaper; it is smaller units.

Turning a coil price into a rate per meter

Coil price divided by the coil length in meters is the rate per meter. That is the whole conversion. A 90 m coil figure divided by 90 and a per foot figure multiplied by 3.281 land on the same scale, and only then does one quote sit against another honestly. Skip the step and you are comparing a coil against a foot, which is a ratio of 295 to 1.

1. Ask what the unit is

Per foot, per meter, per yard or per coil. A figure with no unit beside it is not a quote yet, and unit-less numbers are common enough in this market that asking is normal, not rude.

2. Ask the coil length

If the answer is "per coil", the next question is how many meters that coil holds. 90 m is common for building wire; 30 m and 45 m coils exist, and some sellers still work in feet or yards.

3. Convert, then compare

Divide coil figures by their length. Multiply per foot figures by 3.281. Both are now rates per meter, and the cheaper one is genuinely the cheaper one.

One more thing to settle in the same message: whether the quote is for the size you asked for. The size on the sheath, the strand code at the counter and the price on the slip have to describe the same cable — the codes are set out on 100% copper wire, along with the weight check that confirms the conductor is what it claims.

Why the rate per meter varies

SIZE

More metal, higher rate

A 6mm² core carries four times the conductor metal of a 1.5mm² core in the same meter of cable.

CORE COUNT

Each core adds metal

A 4 core cable at a given size has twice the conductor metal per meter of a 2 core cable at the same size.

CONDUCTOR

Copper vs aluminium

Aluminium costs less per meter than copper at the same size, which is why it is common on service lines and long feeds.

None of that is a matter of opinion either. Copper is most of what a cable costs, and the copper in a meter of cable is a fixed number you can work out: conductor weight per kilometre, times the number of cores, divided by 1,000. The ratios in the last column are close to the ratios you will see between the rates themselves.

Conductor copper only, computed from IEC 60228 conductor weights: weight per km × cores ÷ 1,000. Insulation, sheath and processing add on top and do not scale in the same proportion, so the rate ratio lands below the copper ratio rather than on it.
Cable	Copper per km	Copper per meter	Relative to 4mm² 3 core
1.5 mm² 3 core	39.9 kg	0.040 kg	0.37×
2.5 mm² 3 core	66.6 kg	0.067 kg	0.62×
4 mm² 3 core	106.8 kg	0.107 kg	1.00×
6 mm² 3 core	159.9 kg	0.160 kg	1.50×
10 mm² 3 core	266.7 kg	0.267 kg	2.50×
16 mm² 4 core	568.8 kg	0.569 kg	5.33×
25 mm² 4 core	889.2 kg	0.889 kg	8.33×

Read one row against another and the quote stops being a mystery. A meter of 25mm copper cable, 4 core, holds 0.889 kg of conductor against 0.107 kg in a meter of 4mm² 3 core, so it will always be over eight times the rate. And because copper trades daily, the same cable is not the same rate two weeks apart — which is why we quote on the day rather than print a figure that goes stale.

What we quote per meter, size by size

These are representative sizes across the main ranges, quoted at the day's factory rate. Send any size not shown here and you get the same treatment: rate per meter, coil length stated, and the total for your meters.

Rates are per meter, in PKR, quoted for the day — ask for the coil length with the rate if you are buying a full coil. Conductor class per IEC 60228. Size the cable for its load and run length before pricing it; verify sizing with a licensed electrician.
Cable	Size	Rate per meter	Typical use
Flexible, 2 core	1.5 mm²	Contact for quote	Lighting and fan circuits
Flexible, 2 core	2.5 mm²	Contact for quote	Socket circuits and 1 ton AC
Flexible, 2 core	4 mm²	Contact for quote	1.5 to 2 ton AC circuits
Standard, 4 core	6 mm²	Contact for quote	Submains to distribution boards
Standard, 4 core	16 mm²	Contact for quote	Three-phase feeders
Solar DC, single core	6 mm²	Contact for quote	5 kW solar strings
Aluminium, 2 core	16 mm²	Contact for quote	Residential service connection
Aluminium, 2 core	25 mm²	Contact for quote	House main connection

Looking for a size not listed here — a 25 mm copper cable, a 1.5mm flexible, anything between? The full price list covers every size Pilone makes, and the cable size calculator finds the right size from your load.

Where the number for your exact cable lives

This page is about the unit. The datasheet for your exact cable carries the specs, the strand code and the current capacity, and a WhatsApp button that already names that size — so the rate comes back without you typing it. If you already know the size and the core count, go straight there.

Size and core count known — the datasheet: 25mm 4 core cable price, 25mm 3 core copper cable price, 16mm 3 core copper cable price, 16mm 2 core cable price, 10mm 3 core flexible cable price, 6mm 4 core cable price.
Size known, core count not — orders arrive written 3core cable and 4core cable, with the space dropped, and it is the same question underneath: how many conductors under the sheath. 3 and 4 core standard cable lays that ladder out from 4mm² to 25mm², so the build is settled before the rate.
Comparing several sizes at once — the cable price list is the size-by-family matrix.
Size not settled yet — the cable size calculator works it out from the load and run length, and how much cable a house needs turns a plan into meters.

Whichever page you land on, the message that gets quoted fastest names the cable, the size, the meters and the city — "cable 25mm 4 core, 60 meters, Multan" is enough to work from. The superscript rarely survives a keyboard, so a 25mm2 cable price and a 25 mm² one are the same question. A bare 25mm always gets one reply first: 25 or 2.5?

Rate per meter is a buying question, not a sizing one. Size the cable for its load, its installation method and its run length first, then price it — and have a licensed electrician confirm the size for your installation. Dropping a size because it is cheaper per meter is the one saving on a job that never pays.

Frequently asked

Cable ka rate per meter hota hai ya per foot?

Dono chalte hain, aur yahi saari confusion ki jar hai. Aik meter 3.281 foot ke barabar hai, is liye per foot ka rate dekhne mein per meter se teen guna kam lagta hai - jabke cable wahi hai. Kisi bhi per foot quote ko 3.281 se zarb dein, per meter ban jayega. Hum per meter quote karte hain aur coil ka rate bhi sath bata dete hain.

How do I convert a per foot cable price to per meter?

Multiply by 3.281. One foot is 0.3048 meters, so a meter is 3.281 feet and the per meter figure is always the larger one. To go the other way, divide the per meter rate by 3.281. A per yard rate sits much closer to a per meter rate than people expect: a yard is 0.914 m, so multiply that one by 1.094.

How many meters are in one coil of cable?

There is no single answer in Pakistan, which is why a coil price on its own means nothing. 90 m is the common length for building wire, but 30 m and 45 m coils are sold too, and some sellers still quote 301 ft or 80-yard coils. Ask the length first, then divide the coil price by that length to get the rate per meter.

Why isn't there a fixed price per meter?

Copper is most of what a cable costs, and copper is traded on a market that moves daily. A fixed printed price would be wrong within days, so Pilone Cables quotes the rate per meter on the day you order, over WhatsApp. That is also why a quote you were given last month is worth re-checking rather than re-using.

Does price per meter change with core count?

Yes. A 3 or 4 core cable at a given size carries more conductor metal per meter than a 2 core cable at the same size, so the rate per meter is higher. The size printed on the sheath is the size of each core, not of the whole cable - a 25 mm² 4 core cable holds 0.889 kg of copper in every meter of it.

Is aluminium cheaper per meter than copper?

Yes, at the same cross-sectional size. Aluminium is a cheaper conductor than copper, which is why it is used for meter connections and long feeds where a larger size is acceptable. It also carries less current than copper at the same size, so a run usually steps up a size or two to compensate.

What is the 25mm 4 core copper cable price per meter in Pakistan?

It is quoted on the day, because the copper inside it is priced on the day - 0.889 kg of conductor copper in every meter. Size, core count and total length set the figure. The datasheet carrying the specs and the current rate is the 25mm 4 core cable page; send the meters and your city on WhatsApp and you get the number for that day.

Is 25mm cable the same as 2.5mm?

No. 25 mm² is a submain and meter-tail size carrying 112 A on two loaded conductors; 2.5 mm² is a socket-circuit size carrying 27 A. Ten times the conductor area, and ten times the copper in every meter. Both get typed as 25mm in a chat message, so say the decimal out loud when you order.

Send the size, get the rate per meter

Tell us the cable type, size, core count, total meters and your city. You get the factory rate per meter for that day, the coil length stated, and the total — Punjab in 1–2 days, the rest of Pakistan in 2–4.

WhatsApp for today's rate