Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Guizhou: $598 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Guizhou
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Guizhou 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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Guizhou

🇨🇳 China

$598

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $598 in Guizhou versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Guizhou $598
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $964 in Guizhou versus $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Guizhou $964
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,329 in Guizhou versus $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Guizhou $1,329
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Living in Guizhou costs roughly 30% 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: Guizhou 56% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.66 ¥17.78

$1.91 ₫49.6K

39.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.16 ¥141

$22.84 ₫591.2K

-7.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.83 ¥38.92

$4.54 ₫117.6K

28.41%

Cappuccino

$2.89 ¥19.31

$1.85 ₫48.0K

56.22%

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

$0.50 ¥3.32

$0.56 ₫14.6K

-10.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.81

$0.32 ₫8,185

-15.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.78 ¥5.19

$1.06 ₫27.5K

-26.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 ¥12.33

$1.72 ₫44.5K

7.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 ¥12.01

$1.66 ₫42.9K

8.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 ¥11.28

$1.11 ₫28.7K

52.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 ¥5.30

$1.00 ₫25.9K

-21.00%

Eggs

$1.98 ¥13.21

$1.67 ₫43.1K

18.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.27 ¥48.55

$12.08 ₫312.8K

-39.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.56 ¥30.46

$3.68 ₫95.2K

23.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.96 ¥73.2

$10.24 ₫265.1K

7.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 ¥14.00

$2.96 ₫76.5K

-29.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ¥10.81

$1.24 ₫32.2K

30.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 ¥10.54

$1.56 ₫40.3K

1.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.41 ¥9.40

$1.30 ₫33.6K

8.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ¥4.59

$1.23 ₫31.9K

-43.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.78 ¥5.23

$1.15 ₫29.8K

-32.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.36 ¥2.40

$0.74 ₫19.1K

-51.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ¥3.86

$0.56 ₫14.4K

3.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.02 ¥20.17

$1.24 ₫32.1K

143.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.62 ¥50.9

$12.60 ₫326.1K

-39.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 ¥5.64

$0.96 ₫24.9K

-11.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 ¥7.78

$1.53 ₫39.6K

-24.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 ¥2.37

$0.26 ₫6,694

34.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.28 ¥182

$11.51 ₫297.9K

137.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 ¥10.14

$0.75 ₫19.5K

102.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 ¥2.07

$0.67 ₫17.4K

-53.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.09 ¥33.99

$3.03 ₫78.5K

67.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ¥8.56

$0.96 ₫24.8K

33.33%

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

$18.5K ¥123.7K

$31.1K ₫804.3M

-40.38%

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

$15.6K ¥104.3K

$30.4K ₫785.9M

-48.56%

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

$28.58 ¥191

$102 ₫2.6M

-71.97%

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

$6.52 ¥43.54

$5.89 ₫152.5K

10.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$5.96 ¥39.77

$10.49 ₫271.6K

-43.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.00 ¥147

$25.54 ₫661.2K

-13.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.13 ¥81.0

$11.92 ₫308.5K

1.76%

Cinema Ticket

$7.30 ¥48.71

$3.53 ₫91.3K

106.80%

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

$244 ¥1,631

$436 ₫11.3M

-44.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K ¥74.4K

$23.3K ₫602.8M

-52.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.87 ¥226

$52.8 ₫1.4M

-35.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.23 ¥148

$34.15 ₫884.1K

-34.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.8 ¥493

$90.3 ₫2.3M

-18.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.91 ¥280

$95.0 ₫2.5M

-55.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$267 ¥1,785

$589 ₫15.3M

-54.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$137 ¥912

$298 ₫7.7M

-54.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$385 ¥2,572

$1,292 ₫33.5M

-70.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$241 ¥1,609

$711 ₫18.4M

-66.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,816 ¥12.1K

$4,676 ₫121.1M

-61.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,106 ¥7,386

$1,904 ₫49.3M

-41.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$682 ¥4,550

$490 ₫12.7M

39.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.4

8.64

-60.65%

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

Last update for Guizhou: 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

Guizhou

$191 31.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1% 8.6% $16

Accommodation & Living

Guizhou

$137 22.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7% 118% $161

Eating Out

Guizhou

$84 14.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4% 24.6% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Guizhou

$77 12.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3% 58.4% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guizhou

$41 6.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8% 188% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Guizhou

$37 6.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 10.9% $4

Getting Around

Guizhou

$32 5.3%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9% 47.6% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $267 in Guizhou and $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Guizhou pays 39% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $21.00 in Guizhou vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $191 vs $207 per month, with Guizhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Guizhou

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

17:58 5:58 PM

16:58 4:58 PM

1 h behind Guizhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 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 CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Guizhou Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 2,290 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Guizhou
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

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

Guizhou is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and utilities. The 44% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 39% higher in Guizhou, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $267 in Guizhou versus $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Guizhou runs roughly 137% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $244 in Guizhou versus $436 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $598 in Guizhou versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Guizhou but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Guizhou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Guizhou is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Guizhou and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Guizhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.