Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Guiyang: $716 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

35

Cost of Living Index in Guiyang
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Guiyang 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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Guiyang

🇨🇳 China

$716

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $716 per month in Guiyang vs $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent included.

Guiyang $716
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

A couple spends around $1,134 per month in Guiyang vs $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent included.

Guiyang $1,134
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

A family of three spends $1,553 per month in Guiyang vs $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent included.

Guiyang $1,553
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Guiyang is about 17% cheaper than Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Guiyang and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) are more affordable than the global median – Guiyang 47% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.84 ¥18.97

$1.91 ₫49.6K

48.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.82 ¥146

$22.84 ₫591.2K

-4.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.78 ¥31.98

$4.54 ₫117.6K

5.29%

Cappuccino

$2.95 ¥19.73

$1.85 ₫48.0K

59.46%

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

$0.44 ¥2.92

$0.56 ₫14.6K

-21.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.96

$0.32 ₫8,185

-9.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.90 ¥6.01

$1.06 ₫27.5K

-15.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 ¥13.86

$1.72 ₫44.5K

20.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 ¥12.10

$1.66 ₫42.9K

9.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 ¥10.43

$1.11 ₫28.7K

40.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.97 ¥6.48

$1.00 ₫25.9K

-3.00%

Eggs

$1.59 ¥10.65

$1.67 ₫43.1K

-4.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.62 ¥84.4

$12.08 ₫312.8K

4.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.28 ¥21.93

$3.68 ₫95.2K

-10.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.06 ¥67.3

$10.24 ₫265.1K

-1.76%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 ¥12.14

$2.96 ₫76.5K

-38.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.20 ¥8.00

$1.24 ₫32.2K

-3.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.49 ¥9.99

$1.56 ₫40.3K

-4.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.11 ¥7.39

$1.30 ₫33.6K

-14.62%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ¥4.61

$1.23 ₫31.9K

-43.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.06

$1.15 ₫29.8K

-20.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 ¥3.71

$0.74 ₫19.1K

-24.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ¥3.48

$0.56 ₫14.4K

-7.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.16 ¥21.13

$1.24 ₫32.1K

154.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.37 ¥69.3

$12.60 ₫326.1K

-17.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 ¥5.40

$0.96 ₫24.9K

-15.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ¥10.90

$1.53 ₫39.6K

6.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.26 ₫6,694

11.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.97 ¥113

$11.51 ₫297.9K

47.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ¥9.03

$0.75 ₫19.5K

80.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 ¥2.36

$0.67 ₫17.4K

-47.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.60 ¥44.10

$3.03 ₫78.5K

117.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 ¥7.90

$0.96 ₫24.8K

22.92%

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

$19.2K ¥128.1K

$31.1K ₫804.3M

-38.33%

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

$17.1K ¥114.6K

$30.4K ₫785.9M

-43.54%

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

$45.97 ¥307

$102 ₫2.6M

-54.92%

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

$9.69 ¥64.8

$5.89 ₫152.5K

64.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.79 ¥78.8

$10.49 ₫271.6K

12.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.04 ¥274

$25.54 ₫661.2K

60.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.92 ¥93.1

$11.92 ₫308.5K

16.78%

Cinema Ticket

$6.08 ¥40.65

$3.53 ₫91.3K

72.24%

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

$331 ¥2,211

$436 ₫11.3M

-24.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K ¥111.6K

$23.3K ₫602.8M

-28.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.28 ¥296

$52.8 ₫1.4M

-16.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.65 ¥205

$34.15 ₫884.1K

-10.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.0 ¥481

$90.3 ₫2.3M

-20.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.7 ¥473

$95.0 ₫2.5M

-25.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$278 ¥1,862

$589 ₫15.3M

-52.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$195 ¥1,307

$298 ₫7.7M

-34.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$581 ¥3,888

$1,292 ₫33.5M

-55.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$367 ¥2,451

$711 ₫18.4M

-48.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,040 ¥20.3K

$4,676 ₫121.1M

-35.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,022 ¥13.5K

$1,904 ₫49.3M

6.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

8.64

-54.98%

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

Last update for Guiyang: October 10, 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

Guiyang

$197 27.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1% 5.4% $11

Accommodation & Living

Guiyang

$195 27.3%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7% 52.4% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Guiyang

$98 13.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3% 25.1% $25

Eating Out

Guiyang

$84 11.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4% 24.5% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guiyang

$67 9.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8% 75.5% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Guiyang

$53 7.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 38.7% $21

Getting Around

Guiyang

$21 3%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9% 21.6% $4.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $278 in Guiyang 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Guiyang versus $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $197 vs $207 – making Guiyang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Guiyang

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

13:46 1:46 PM

12:46 12:46 PM

1 h behind Guiyang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,324,561

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 20, 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 CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Guiyang Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 1,760 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Guiyang
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $716 in Guiyang, $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – roughly 20% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,074 per month in Guiyang 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 Guiyang, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $331 per month in Guiyang and $436 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 5% more in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Guiyang, where all-in costs run around $716, than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) at $859. In Guiyang it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $716 in Guiyang to $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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