Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chang-hua and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

For one person, living costs are similar in Chang-hua and in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): $864 and $859 a month, rent and utilities included.

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Cost of Living Index in Chang-hua
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Chang-hua Living Index
42

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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Chang-hua

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$864

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chang-hua 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 Chang-hua and in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $864 per month in Chang-hua vs $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent included.

Chang-hua $864
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

A couple spends around $1,343 per month in Chang-hua vs $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent included.

Chang-hua $1,343
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

A family of three spends $1,822 per month in Chang-hua vs $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent included.

Chang-hua $1,822
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Chang-hua costs about 1% more than Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chang-hua and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) are more affordable than the global median – Chang-hua 36% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.83 NT$124

$1.91 ₫49.6K

100.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.76 NT$1,062

$22.84 ₫591.2K

43.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 NT$179

$4.54 ₫117.6K

21.81%

Cappuccino

$1.63 NT$52.7

$1.85 ₫48.0K

-11.89%

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

$0.96 NT$30.99

$0.56 ₫14.6K

71.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 NT$18.01

$0.32 ₫8,185

75.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.36 NT$44.21

$1.06 ₫27.5K

28.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 NT$70.3

$1.72 ₫44.5K

26.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.38 NT$77.1

$1.66 ₫42.9K

43.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 NT$67.2

$1.11 ₫28.7K

86.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 NT$95.5

$1.00 ₫25.9K

194.00%

Eggs

$2.76 NT$89.5

$1.67 ₫43.1K

65.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.19 NT$525

$12.08 ₫312.8K

34.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.51 NT$308

$3.68 ₫95.2K

158.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.23 NT$688

$10.24 ₫265.1K

107.32%

Apples (1kg)

$4.82 NT$156

$2.96 ₫76.5K

62.84%

Banana (1kg)

$3.38 NT$110

$1.24 ₫32.2K

172.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 NT$95.1

$1.56 ₫40.3K

87.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.17 NT$103

$1.30 ₫33.6K

143.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.77 NT$89.8

$1.23 ₫31.9K

125.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.11 NT$68.4

$1.15 ₫29.8K

83.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.69 NT$54.9

$0.74 ₫19.1K

128.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 NT$24.97

$0.56 ₫14.4K

37.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 NT$128

$1.24 ₫32.1K

219.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.43 NT$306

$12.60 ₫326.1K

-25.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 NT$44.70

$0.96 ₫24.9K

43.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 NT$74.4

$1.53 ₫39.6K

49.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 NT$50.4

$0.26 ₫6,694

496.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.80 NT$1,129

$11.51 ₫297.9K

202.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.65 NT$85.9

$0.75 ₫19.5K

253.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 NT$24.71

$0.67 ₫17.4K

13.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.29 NT$301

$3.03 ₫78.5K

206.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 NT$34.39

$0.96 ₫24.8K

10.42%

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

$33.1K NT$1.1M

$31.1K ₫804.3M

6.67%

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

$24.3K NT$787.5K

$30.4K ₫785.9M

-20.01%

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

$31.62 NT$1,025

$102 ₫2.6M

-68.99%

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

$16.99 NT$551

$5.89 ₫152.5K

188.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.71 NT$607

$10.49 ₫271.6K

78.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.75 NT$1,029

$25.54 ₫661.2K

24.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.92 ₫308.5K

Cinema Ticket

$9.38 NT$304

$3.53 ₫91.3K

165.72%

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

$636 NT$20.6K

$436 ₫11.3M

45.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,946 NT$257.7K

$23.3K ₫602.8M

-65.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.35 NT$1,600

$52.8 ₫1.4M

-6.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.47 NT$502

$34.15 ₫884.1K

-54.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.1 NT$2,534

$90.3 ₫2.3M

-13.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.57 NT$1,607

$95.0 ₫2.5M

-47.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$252 NT$8,160

$589 ₫15.3M

-57.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$170 NT$5,528

$298 ₫7.7M

-42.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$509 NT$16.5K

$1,292 ₫33.5M

-60.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$169 NT$5,480

$711 ₫18.4M

-76.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,959 NT$96.0K

$4,676 ₫121.1M

-36.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,631 NT$52.9K

$1,904 ₫49.3M

-14.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,011 NT$65.2K

$490 ₫12.7M

310.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.2

8.64

-74.54%

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

Last update for Chang-hua: October 12, 2026

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Chang-hua

$358 41.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1% 42.1% $151

Accommodation & Living

Chang-hua

$170 19.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7% 74.7% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Chang-hua

$87 10%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3% 41.4% $36

Eating Out

Chang-hua

$84 9.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4% 24.4% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chang-hua

$67 7.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8% 75.8% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Chang-hua

$51 5.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 35.4% $18

Getting Around

Chang-hua

$47 5.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9% 64.9% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $252 in Chang-hua versus $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 311% higher in Chang-hua, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $33.00 in Chang-hua versus $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $358 vs $207 – making Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Chang-hua

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

06:35 6:35 AM

05:35 5:35 AM

1 h behind Chang-hua

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

226,564

9,456,700

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,105 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chang-hua Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 2,080 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Chang-hua
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

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

Chang-hua costs about 1% more than Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,296 per month in Chang-hua and $1,288 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $864 in Chang-hua and $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). That's a gap of about 1%.

Public transport costs about 202% less in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), where all-in costs run around $859, than in Chang-hua at $864. In Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chang-hua it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) costs $859 versus $864 in Chang-hua. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chang-hua makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.