Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bac Kan and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

For one person, living is cheaper in Bac Kan: $819 a month against $850 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $370 less a year. The total is higher in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) despite lower rent and utilities.

38

Cost of Living Index in Bac Kan
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Bac Kan Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index

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Bac Kan

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$819

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$850

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bac Kan and in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bac Kan and in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $819 in Bac Kan versus $850 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Bac Kan $819
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $850

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,293 in Bac Kan versus $1,386 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Bac Kan $1,293
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,386

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,768 in Bac Kan versus $1,921 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Bac Kan $1,768
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,921

Living in Bac Kan costs roughly 4% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bac Kan 39% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 37% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.99 ₫51.4K

$2.13 ₫54.8K

-6.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.09 ₫594.9K

$23.43 ₫603.7K

-1.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.54 ₫116.9K

$4.55 ₫117.1K

-0.22%

Cappuccino

$1.88 ₫48.4K

$1.78 ₫45.9K

5.62%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₫12.6K

$0.53 ₫13.6K

-7.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ₫8,591

$0.32 ₫8,213

3.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.19 ₫30.7K

$1.08 ₫27.8K

10.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 ₫50.8K

$1.69 ₫43.6K

16.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 ₫39.2K

$1.66 ₫42.8K

-8.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 ₫25.9K

$1.19 ₫30.6K

-15.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 ₫21.0K

$1.03 ₫26.4K

-21.36%

Eggs

$1.52 ₫39.1K

$1.67 ₫43.1K

-8.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫311.1K

$12.24 ₫315.2K

-1.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.70 ₫95.4K

$3.54 ₫91.1K

4.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.27 ₫238.8K

$10.25 ₫264.1K

-9.56%

Apples (1kg)

$3.18 ₫82.0K

$3.11 ₫80.2K

2.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.02 ₫26.4K

$1.22 ₫31.5K

-16.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 ₫33.5K

$1.43 ₫37.0K

-9.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.12 ₫28.8K

$1.22 ₫31.5K

-8.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 ₫23.4K

$1.20 ₫30.9K

-24.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.5K

$1.20 ₫31.0K

-4.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 ₫15.2K

$0.73 ₫18.8K

-19.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₫13.7K

$0.52 ₫13.5K

1.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.40 ₫36.0K

$1.23 ₫31.6K

13.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.61 ₫273.4K

$11.55 ₫297.6K

-8.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ₫23.8K

$0.93 ₫24.0K

-1.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ₫42.0K

$1.48 ₫38.0K

10.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 ₫9,037

$0.28 ₫7,233

25.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.71 ₫198.5K

$11.62 ₫299.2K

-33.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 ₫23.7K

$0.76 ₫19.5K

21.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 ₫15.5K

$0.62 ₫15.8K

-3.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.40 ₫61.8K

$3.12 ₫80.3K

-23.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$0.90 ₫23.3K

1.11%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$30.7K ₫790.2M

$30.9K ₫796.1M

-0.74%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$28.8K ₫743.0M

$29.6K ₫762.3M

-2.53%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$83.5 ₫2.2M

$99.8 ₫2.6M

-16.37%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$4.92 ₫126.8K

$5.75 ₫148.1K

-14.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.79 ₫226.4K

$10.29 ₫265.0K

-14.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.75 ₫457.3K

$18.18 ₫468.3K

-2.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.94 ₫204.7K

$12.16 ₫313.2K

-34.70%

Cinema Ticket

$4.52 ₫116.5K

$3.90 ₫100.4K

15.90%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$333 ₫8.6M

$530 ₫13.7M

-37.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.3K ₫755.6M

$26.6K ₫686.2M

10.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.64 ₫1.1M

$52.8 ₫1.4M

-15.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.13 ₫724.7K

$34.88 ₫898.5K

-19.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 ₫2.2M

$95.1 ₫2.5M

-10.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.1 ₫1.9M

$95.5 ₫2.5M

-23.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$452 ₫11.6M

$617 ₫15.9M

-26.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$320 ₫8.2M

$297 ₫7.7M

7.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$606 ₫15.6M

$1,311 ₫33.8M

-53.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$660 ₫17.0M

$708 ₫18.2M

-6.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,473 ₫63.7M

$4,430 ₫114.1M

-44.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,146 ₫29.5M

$2,011 ₫51.8M

-43.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$505 ₫13.0M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.17

8.64

-5.44%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Bac Kan: November 2, 2026

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Bac Kan

$320 39.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 35% 7.1% $23

Groceries & Markets

Bac Kan

$193 23.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$205 24.1% 6.4% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Bac Kan

$104 12.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$125 14.7% 20.6% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bac Kan

$97 11.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$116 13.6% 19.2% $19

Eating Out

Bac Kan

$65 8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.6% 1.7% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Bac Kan

$27 3.3%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$26 3.1% 3.1% $0.8

Getting Around

Bac Kan

$13 1.6%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2% 27.1% $3.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $452 in Bac Kan and $617 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23 in Bac Kan vs $23 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $205 per month, with Bac Kan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Bac Kan

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

05:28 5:28 AM

Same time as Bac Kan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,510

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Bac Kan Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 1,270 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Bac Kan
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Bac Kan vs Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bac Kan is about 4% cheaper overall, especially in clothing, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,229 in Bac Kan and $1,275 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $452 in Bac Kan versus $617 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 6% higher in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $819 per month in Bac Kan versus $850 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – Bac Kan is about 4% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Bac Kan gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Bac Kan and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.