Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Anshan: $630 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Anshan
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Anshan Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Anshan

🇨🇳 China

$630

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $630 in Anshan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
Anshan $630

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,018 in Anshan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
Anshan $1,018

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,406 in Anshan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
Anshan $1,406

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 36% more expensive than in Anshan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Anshan 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.6K

$3.08 ¥20.59

-37.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.84 ₫591.2K

$18.82 ¥126

21.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.54 ₫117.6K

$4.36 ¥29.16

4.13%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫48.0K

$2.49 ¥16.65

-25.70%

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

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.39 ¥2.58

43.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,185

$0.23 ¥1.54

39.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ₫27.5K

$0.78 ¥5.25

35.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.5K

$1.66 ¥11.09

3.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₫42.9K

$1.77 ¥11.83

-6.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 ₫28.7K

$1.29 ¥8.64

-13.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$0.35 ¥2.37

185.71%

Eggs

$1.67 ₫43.1K

$1.06 ¥7.12

57.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫312.8K

$8.74 ¥58.4

38.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ₫95.2K

$1.77 ¥11.82

107.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 ₫265.1K

$9.11 ¥60.9

12.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ₫76.5K

$1.06 ¥7.11

179.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 ₫32.2K

$1.17 ¥7.82

5.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ₫40.3K

$1.18 ¥7.88

32.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 ₫33.6K

$1.17 ¥7.81

11.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 ₫31.9K

$0.31 ¥2.09

296.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.8K

$0.89 ¥5.95

29.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 ₫19.1K

$0.29 ¥1.94

155.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.43 ¥2.89

30.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.24 ₫32.1K

$3.66 ¥24.45

-66.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.60 ₫326.1K

$7.66 ¥51.2

64.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.77 ¥5.14

24.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 ₫39.6K

$1.10 ¥7.38

39.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,694

$0.29 ¥1.94

-10.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.51 ₫297.9K

$17.75 ¥119

-35.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 ₫19.5K

$1.07 ¥7.13

-29.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 ₫17.4K

$0.16 ¥1.06

318.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 ₫78.5K

$2.92 ¥19.53

3.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.96 ₫24.8K

$1.06 ¥7.07

-9.43%

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

$31.1K ₫804.3M

$19.5K ¥130.6K

59.02%

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

$30.4K ₫785.9M

$15.2K ¥101.9K

99.20%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$29.30 ¥196

248.05%

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

$5.89 ₫152.5K

$7.25 ¥48.47

-18.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.49 ₫271.6K

$14.66 ¥98.0

-28.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.54 ₫661.2K

$42.00 ¥281

-39.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.92 ₫308.5K

$15.17 ¥101

-21.42%

Cinema Ticket

$3.53 ₫91.3K

$5.91 ¥39.53

-40.27%

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

$436 ₫11.3M

$221 ¥1,478

97.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫602.8M

$21.7K ¥144.9K

7.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 ₫1.4M

$37.91 ¥253

39.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.15 ₫884.1K

$33.24 ¥222

2.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.3 ₫2.3M

$60.1 ¥402

50.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.0 ₫2.5M

$70.2 ¥470

35.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$589 ₫15.3M

$298 ¥1,996

97.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ₫7.7M

$184 ¥1,229

62.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 ₫33.5M

$626 ¥4,187

106.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$711 ₫18.4M

$380 ¥2,540

87.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,676 ₫121.1M

$3,597 ¥24.0K

30.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,904 ₫49.3M

$1,957 ¥13.1K

-2.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$960 ¥6,418

-49.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

332.00%

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

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

Last update for Anshan: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7%

Anshan

$184 29.2% 38.3% $114

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1%

Anshan

$152 24.1% 26.7% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3%

Anshan

$91 14.4% 26% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8%

Anshan

$51 8.1% 56.7% $67

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

Anshan

$77 12.3% 21.8% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

Anshan

$54 8.6% 65.1% $21

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9%

Anshan

$21 3.3% 24.7% $4.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $298 in Anshan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Anshan pays 96% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $19.00 in Anshan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $152 per month, with Anshan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Anshan

🕒 Local time

04:51 4:51 AM

05:51 5:51 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

1,543,696

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

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).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Anshan 3,730 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Anshan

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

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

Anshan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries and clothing. The 36% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 96% lower in Anshan. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $298 in Anshan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Anshan – a meal for two runs $19.00 versus $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $859 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $630 in Anshan – a 36% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $630 in Anshan versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Anshan but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Anshan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Anshan 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, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Anshan 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 Anshan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.