Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Baiquan: $731 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

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Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Baiquan
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Baiquan Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Baiquan

🇨🇳 China

$731

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Baiquan actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $729 in Baiquan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
Baiquan $729

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,151 in Baiquan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
Baiquan $1,151

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,574 in Baiquan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
Baiquan $1,574

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 18% more expensive than in Baiquan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Baiquan 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.98 ₫51.3K

$2.93 ¥19.60

-32.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.14 ₫599.0K

$22.30 ¥149

3.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 ₫123.2K

$5.12 ¥34.22

-7.03%

Cappuccino

$1.86 ₫48.1K

$2.80 ¥18.71

-33.57%

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

$0.51 ₫13.3K

$0.51 ¥3.38

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,191

$0.29 ¥1.92

10.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$1.07 ¥7.12

-3.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₫44.4K

$2.12 ¥14.16

-19.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.81 ¥12.10

-12.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.3K

$1.58 ¥10.53

-31.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.2K

$1.01 ¥6.74

3.96%

Eggs

$1.64 ₫42.6K

$1.68 ¥11.26

-2.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 ₫319.2K

$13.20 ¥88.3

-6.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 ₫92.6K

$3.45 ¥23.04

3.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.3K

$11.23 ¥75.1

-5.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₫76.9K

$1.83 ¥12.24

62.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.7K

$1.29 ¥8.62

-2.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$1.54 ¥10.33

5.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.8K

$1.32 ¥8.79

-0.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.8K

$0.69 ¥4.63

72.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$0.90 ¥6.01

26.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ₫18.8K

$0.63 ¥4.18

15.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.59 ¥3.94

-5.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.28 ₫33.0K

$3.77 ¥25.18

-66.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 ₫322.5K

$11.46 ¥76.6

8.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.88 ¥5.91

9.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.55 ¥10.38

-4.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,704

$0.29 ¥1.91

-10.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.43 ₫296.0K

$18.19 ¥122

-37.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$1.45 ¥9.72

-53.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.36 ¥2.39

72.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 ₫77.7K

$7.01 ¥46.87

-57.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$1.31 ¥8.74

-30.53%

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

$30.6K ₫791.4M

$19.4K ¥129.7K

57.60%

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

$29.4K ₫760.1M

$17.6K ¥117.6K

66.98%

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

$104 ₫2.7M

$58.6 ¥392

77.11%

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

$5.79 ₫149.9K

$8.58 ¥57.4

-32.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ₫271.3K

$11.38 ¥76.1

-7.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

$41.43 ¥277

-37.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

$15.06 ¥101

-20.98%

Cinema Ticket

$3.89 ₫100.7K

$6.32 ¥42.23

-38.45%

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

$440 ₫11.4M

$414 ¥2,767

6.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ₫622.7M

$17.1K ¥114.6K

40.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 ₫1.3M

$42.47 ¥284

19.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.18 ₫910.8K

$33.93 ¥227

3.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₫2.4M

$73.4 ¥491

25.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 ₫2.5M

$75.1 ¥502

28.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

$302 ¥2,022

92.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$181 ¥1,208

64.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

$635 ¥4,248

104.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

$382 ¥2,555

90.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,782 ₫123.8M

$3,478 ¥23.3K

37.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,853 ₫48.0M

$1,913 ¥12.8K

-3.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.36

157.14%

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

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 17, 2026

Last update for Baiquan: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.4%

Baiquan

$181 24.7% 39.1% $116

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1%

Baiquan

$209 28.5% 0.5% $1

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3%

Baiquan

$101 13.9% 18.1% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9%

Baiquan

$79 10.8% 34.6% $41

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5%

Baiquan

$85 11.7% 32.3% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9%

Baiquan

$54 7.4% 59.7% $20

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Baiquan

$23 3.1% 38.8% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $295 in Baiquan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $20.00 in Baiquan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $202 per month, with Baiquan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Baiquan

🕒 Local time

16:58 4:58 PM

17:58 5:58 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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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Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Baiquan 2,840 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Baiquan

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 Baiquan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Baiquan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries and clothing. The 18% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,288 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $1,093 in Baiquan 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: $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $295 in Baiquan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $436 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $450 in Baiquan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $729 in Baiquan versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Baiquan but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Baiquan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Baiquan 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 Baiquan 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 Baiquan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.