Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Bortala: $758 a month against $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

41

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 Bortala
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Bortala Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$853

/mo nomad

Bortala

🇨🇳 China

$758

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $758 in Bortala.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $853
Bortala $758

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,391 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,168 in Bortala.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,391
Bortala $1,168

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,930 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,577 in Bortala.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,930
Bortala $1,577

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 12% more expensive than in Bortala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 37% lower, Bortala 44% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.3K

$2.99 ¥19.88

-36.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.93 ₫592.4K

$22.84 ¥152

0.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.69 ₫121.2K

$4.86 ¥32.33

-3.50%

Cappuccino

$1.80 ₫46.5K

$2.79 ¥18.54

-35.48%

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

$0.55 ₫14.3K

$0.48 ¥3.18

14.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,812

$0.32 ¥2.10

6.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$1.11 ¥7.39

-7.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.4K

$2.16 ¥14.35

-20.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 ₫43.1K

$1.87 ¥12.46

-10.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.2K

$1.59 ¥10.58

-31.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.06 ₫27.3K

$0.95 ¥6.30

11.58%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.3K

$1.60 ¥10.68

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫312.1K

$13.42 ¥89.3

-9.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.66 ₫94.5K

$3.36 ¥22.38

8.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.35 ₫267.3K

$11.29 ¥75.1

-8.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 ₫77.7K

$1.89 ¥12.55

59.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.6K

$1.34 ¥8.89

-5.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫41.9K

$1.51 ¥10.02

7.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ₫32.7K

$1.26 ¥8.36

0.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 ₫30.5K

$0.75 ¥4.99

57.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.7K

$0.98 ¥6.50

21.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.78 ₫20.1K

$0.59 ¥3.95

32.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₫14.3K

$0.59 ¥3.90

-6.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$3.71 ¥24.71

-66.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.85 ₫331.9K

$11.52 ¥76.7

11.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₫23.1K

$0.88 ¥5.88

2.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.46 ₫37.6K

$1.55 ¥10.31

-5.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,260

$0.28 ¥1.87

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.42 ₫295.0K

$15.99 ¥106

-28.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.70 ₫18.2K

$1.57 ¥10.47

-55.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 ₫16.3K

$0.32 ¥2.15

96.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.09 ₫79.8K

$7.15 ¥47.60

-56.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.6K

$1.17 ¥7.81

-18.80%

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

$30.5K ₫788.3M

$19.4K ¥129.1K

57.26%

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

$29.7K ₫767.8M

$15.2K ¥101.0K

95.94%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$57.1 ¥380

78.96%

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

$5.65 ₫145.8K

$8.48 ¥56.5

-33.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.43 ₫269.5K

$11.13 ¥74.1

-6.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.30 ₫498.7K

$41.95 ¥279

-53.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.81 ₫305.1K

$14.98 ¥99.7

-21.16%

Cinema Ticket

$3.83 ₫98.9K

$6.53 ¥43.43

-41.35%

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

$484 ₫12.5M

$453 ¥3,016

6.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫602.3M

$19.3K ¥128.6K

20.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.3 ₫1.4M

$42.79 ¥285

22.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.35 ₫887.3K

$30.92 ¥206

11.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.3 ₫2.4M

$75.6 ¥503

22.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.2 ₫2.4M

$68.3 ¥455

37.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$647 ₫16.7M

$291 ¥1,934

122.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$214 ¥1,421

39.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,291 ₫33.3M

$582 ¥3,874

121.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$719 ₫18.6M

$343 ¥2,283

109.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,327 ₫111.8M

$3,687 ¥24.5K

17.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,987 ₫51.3M

$1,825 ¥12.1K

8.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$625 ¥4,161

-21.59%

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 26, 2026

Last update for Bortala: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.9%

Bortala

$214 28.2% 28.1% $84

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.4%

Bortala

$210 27.7% 0.8% $1.7

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

Bortala

$98 12.9% 20.3% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

Bortala

$77 10.1% 35.1% $42

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

Bortala

$85 11.2% 34.5% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$27 3.2%

Bortala

$55 7.3% 104% $28

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Bortala

$20 2.7% 23.8% $3.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $647 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $291 in Bortala. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bortala pays 28% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $23 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $23 in Bortala for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $208 vs $210 per month, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Bortala

🕒 Local time

01:37 1:37 AM

02:37 2:37 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

246,706

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.48 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 25,832 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 28,757 VND (100,000 VND = 3.48 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Bortala 4,460 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Bortala

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 Bortala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bortala wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bortala the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 22% lower in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). 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: $647 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $291 in Bortala. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $853 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $758 in Bortala – a 12% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) runs roughly 29% less than in Bortala. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.