Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living costs are similar in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and in Bintulu: $855 and $849 a month, rent and utilities included.

42

Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Bintulu
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Bintulu Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$855

/mo nomad

Bintulu

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$849

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $849 in Bintulu.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $855
Bintulu $849

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,400 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,312 in Bintulu.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,400
Bintulu $1,312

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,944 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,775 in Bintulu.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,944
Bintulu $1,775

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 1% more expensive than in Bintulu, 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, Bintulu 37% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.90 ₫49.1K

$3.95 MYR 16.13

-51.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.32 ₫603.5K

$18.43 MYR 75.3

26.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.67 ₫120.9K

$5.79 MYR 23.63

-19.34%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫47.9K

$2.99 MYR 12.20

-38.13%

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

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.63 MYR 2.59

-11.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,857

$0.38 MYR 1.54

-10.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₫26.2K

$2.98 MYR 12.17

-66.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 ₫43.7K

$5.17 MYR 21.12

-67.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$2.15 MYR 8.77

-26.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 ₫27.0K

$1.37 MYR 5.59

-24.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.7K

$1.32 MYR 5.41

-25.00%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.5K

$2.16 MYR 8.83

-25.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.23 ₫316.6K

$16.81 MYR 68.6

-27.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.54 ₫91.7K

$3.48 MYR 14.19

1.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.44 ₫270.2K

$5.90 MYR 24.11

76.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 ₫79.9K

$1.76 MYR 7.19

75.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.02 MYR 4.18

23.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 ₫40.6K

$1.76 MYR 7.17

-10.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.13 MYR 4.60

11.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 ₫30.4K

$0.51 MYR 2.08

129.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.7K

$1.19 MYR 4.85

-3.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ₫18.7K

$0.69 MYR 2.84

4.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₫14.0K

$0.42 MYR 1.71

28.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.22 ₫31.5K

$4.18 MYR 17.08

-70.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.28 ₫317.8K

$19.74 MYR 80.6

-37.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ₫25.4K

$3.01 MYR 12.29

-67.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 ₫38.5K

$2.00 MYR 8.17

-25.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,249

$1.20 MYR 4.91

-76.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.62 ₫300.8K

$16.62 MYR 67.9

-30.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₫18.9K

$1.02 MYR 4.18

-28.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₫16.7K

$0.83 MYR 3.39

-22.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 ₫82.0K

$2.50 MYR 10.21

26.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.6K

$0.63 MYR 2.57

50.79%

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

$30.7K ₫795.6M

$44.5K MYR 181.7K

-30.91%

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

$30.6K ₫791.6M

$38.5K MYR 157.0K

-20.48%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$59.2 MYR 242

72.75%

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

$5.65 ₫146.1K

$31.51 MYR 129

-82.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ₫272.2K

$29.98 MYR 122

-64.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.86 ₫669.2K

$66.4 MYR 271

-61.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.82 ₫305.9K

$12.43 MYR 50.8

-4.91%

Cinema Ticket

$3.39 ₫87.8K

$4.33 MYR 17.67

-21.71%

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

$438 ₫11.3M

$124 MYR 508

251.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫603.1M

$7,230 MYR 29.5K

222.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.5 ₫1.3M

$64.2 MYR 262

-19.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.56 ₫894.3K

$36.02 MYR 147

-4.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.3 ₫2.4M

$80.5 MYR 329

13.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.9 ₫2.5M

$90.8 MYR 371

4.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$577 ₫14.9M

$220 MYR 898

162.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$292 ₫7.6M

$157 MYR 642

85.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,293 ₫33.5M

$485 MYR 1,979

166.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 ₫18.6M

$333 MYR 1,361

115.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,714 ₫122.0M

$1,730 MYR 7,062

172.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,882 ₫48.7M

$1,137 MYR 4,644

65.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$486 ₫12.6M

$598 MYR 2,441

-18.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

4.5

92.00%

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

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 5, 2026

Last update for Bintulu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$292 34.3%

Bintulu

$157 18.5% 46.2% $135

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$206 24.1%

Bintulu

$232 27.4% 13.1% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

Bintulu

$122 14.4% 0.3% $0.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

Bintulu

$121 14.2% 1.9% $2.3

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.5%

Bintulu

$114 13.5% 79.8% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

Bintulu

$75 8.9% 130% $42

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2%

Bintulu

$27 3.1% 59.3% $9.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $577 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $220 in Bintulu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bintulu pays 23% 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 $18.00 in Bintulu. Groceries flip the comparison at $206 vs $232, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇲🇾 Bintulu

🕒 Local time

15:01 3:01 PM

16:01 4:01 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

240,172

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,879 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,025 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.58 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Bintulu 1,100 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Bintulu

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 Bintulu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bintulu wins on cost – living expenses run 1% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bintulu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 23% lower in Bintulu. 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: $577 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $220 in Bintulu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $855 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $849 in Bintulu – a 1% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bintulu runs roughly 43% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $849 in Bintulu versus $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bintulu but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Bintulu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bintulu delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $849 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bintulu hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Bintulu 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 Bintulu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.