Network Pakistan
Qualitative market research agency in Pakistan
MindMarket is a market research agency that runs qualitative studies in Pakistan, from in-depth interviews and focus groups to home visits and mobile diaries, with moderators who live in the country and one project manager for your whole study. Pakistan has 256 million people with a median age of 20.6, and 45.6 per cent of them use the internet (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Research there works when it is planned for a phone and an uncertain connection, when sessions run in Urdu or the language of the home, and when women's and men's sessions are organised from the recruitment stage. More than half the country is not online, and a study has to decide whether it needs them.
AT A GLANCE
Pakistan at a glance for researchers
- Population. 256 million people, median age 20.6, 38.8 per cent in urban areas (DataReportal, Digital 2026). The fifth most populous country in the world, and one of the youngest.
- Languages. Urdu is the national language and English is used in business and higher education. Punjabi, Sindhi and Pashto are spoken at home in their regions. Our moderators live in Pakistan and work in the language participants choose.
- Internet and mobile. 117 million internet users, 45.6 per cent of the population, and 194 million mobile connections (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Online research reaches the urban half of the market; the rest is reached in person.
- Where fieldwork happens. Karachi and Lahore first, then Islamabad and Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad or Peshawar when the decision goes beyond the three largest cities.
- Data protection. Pakistan has not yet enacted a specific data protection law. Participants are still told what is collected and why before each session, and consent is recorded, as in every country where we work.
- Timing. We do not schedule fieldwork during Ramadan, and the two Eid holidays each stop work for several days. Summer heat from May to August and the monsoon rains of July and August make travel to in-person sessions harder.
IN THE FIELD
How does an interview run in Pakistan?
Pakistan is larger and younger than most briefs assume, and less connected. The method follows from three questions: is your audience online, which language do they speak at home, and who else is in the room.
- A plan for the line. An online session is confirmed only after the participant's connection has been tried. Where a home line is not reliable, the interview moves to the recruiter's office.
- Women's and men's sessions are planned. For many topics, women speak more freely with a woman moderator and without men present. Who moderates, and who is in the room, is decided at recruitment, as we do in Saudi Arabia.
- Urdu, English, or the language of home. Urban professionals move between Urdu and English in one sentence. Outside that group, Punjabi, Sindhi or Pashto carries the everyday conversation. A moderator who lives in Pakistan follows participants across them.
- Half the market is offline. An online study hears from the connected, urban, better-off half. If your product sells beyond it, home visits and in-person interviews are the way to reach the households that decide your volume.
RECRUITMENT
How do you recruit participants in Pakistan?
- We recruit through local partners in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, who find the people your brief describes, by language, income and area.
- For women's sessions the moderator is a woman, and the time and place are agreed with the household at recruitment.
- MindMarket pays every participant's incentive itself. You never handle it.
METHODS
Which methods work in Pakistan?
Most studies in Pakistan run as in-depth interviews and focus groups, with ethnographic home visits, mobile diaries or shop-alongs when the question needs them.
| Method | Works well when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| In-depth interviews | Finance, health and family decisions, in Urdu or the language of the home | An online-only sample; it leaves out half the country |
| Focus groups | Food, personal care and household brands, women and men in separate groups | Mixed groups; some participants stay silent |
| Home visits | Cooking, cleaning and family decisions, and audiences who are not online | Joint families; decide whose view you need before the visit |
| Mobile diaries | Urban, connected participants showing daily routines | Video uses up a data bundle; ask for photos and voice notes |
| Shop-alongs | Bazaars, neighbourhood shops and modern retail | Women shoppers are accompanied by a woman researcher |
QUESTIONS
Questions buyers ask about research in Pakistan
How much does market research cost in Pakistan?
A full-service qualitative study with MindMarket starts at $40,000 for the first market, and Pakistan added to a multi-country study starts from $8,000. In-person fieldwork outside the three largest cities moves the price more than the number of sessions. Every quote is itemised and follows within 48 hours of a first call. Estimate your study.
How do I choose a market research agency in Pakistan?
Choose by what the study has to decide. A fieldwork house in Karachi or Lahore fits a team that brings its own moderator and guide. A qualitative specialist such as MindMarket fits a brand from outside Pakistan that needs local people heard in their own language, by moderators who live there, with one team across every country. Read how to choose a global qualitative research agency.
Can you run online interviews in Pakistan?
Yes, with urban, connected audiences. Fewer than half of Pakistanis use the internet (DataReportal, Digital 2026), so an online study describes the cities and the better-off. Each connection is tried before the session is confirmed, and audiences who are not online are met in person.
Which language should sessions run in Pakistan?
Urdu for most audiences, mixed with English among urban professionals. For everyday topics outside the big cities, Punjabi, Sindhi or Pashto brings more detail. We ask each participant at recruitment, and your team follows through translation.
How do you include women participants in Pakistan?
By planning for it at recruitment. Women's sessions are moderated by women, at a time and in a place that suits the household, and separate from men's sessions when the topic calls for it. The same approach guides our work in Saudi Arabia.
Can you help us decide, not only run the interviews?
Yes. Beyond the fieldwork, our Customer-Led Strategy work turns what people in Pakistan told us into a recommendation: what to do, what not to do, and why. We form the hypotheses, test them with your customers and recommend from their words. If you already work with strategy consultants, we work alongside them.
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