Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Bozhou: $667 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

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

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Bozhou
Learn more

Bozhou Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Bozhou

🇨🇳 China

$667

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $667 in Bozhou.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
Bozhou $667

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,072 in Bozhou.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
Bozhou $1,072

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,477 in Bozhou.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
Bozhou $1,477

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 29% more expensive than in Bozhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Bozhou 51% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.98 ₫51.3K

$1.53 ¥10.26

29.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.14 ₫599.0K

$22.28 ¥149

3.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 ₫123.2K

$4.42 ¥29.57

7.69%

Cappuccino

$1.86 ₫48.1K

$2.63 ¥17.60

-29.28%

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

$0.51 ₫13.3K

$0.42 ¥2.79

21.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,191

$0.27 ¥1.80

18.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$1.02 ¥6.85

0.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₫44.4K

$1.81 ¥12.10

-5.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.19 ¥7.93

32.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.3K

$2.05 ¥13.69

-46.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.2K

$0.47 ¥3.14

123.40%

Eggs

$1.64 ₫42.6K

$0.94 ¥6.32

74.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 ₫319.2K

$13.79 ¥92.2

-10.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 ₫92.6K

$2.27 ¥15.16

57.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.3K

$10.55 ¥70.5

0.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₫76.9K

$1.18 ¥7.86

151.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.7K

$1.03 ¥6.88

22.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$0.71 ¥4.78

128.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.8K

$0.74 ¥4.94

77.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.8K

$0.47 ¥3.14

153.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$0.59 ¥3.93

93.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ₫18.8K

$0.61 ¥4.08

19.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.57 ¥3.83

-1.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.28 ₫33.0K

$2.91 ¥19.44

-56.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 ₫322.5K

$12.05 ¥80.6

3.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.92 ¥6.14

4.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.18 ¥7.89

25.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,704

$0.29 ¥1.93

-10.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.43 ₫296.0K

$18.20 ¥122

-37.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$1.07 ¥7.16

-36.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.33 ¥2.19

87.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 ₫77.7K

$3.69 ¥24.66

-18.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$1.10 ¥7.36

-17.27%

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

$30.6K ₫791.4M

$19.3K ¥128.7K

58.75%

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

$29.4K ₫760.1M

$16.7K ¥111.4K

76.17%

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

$104 ₫2.7M

$49.87 ¥333

108.08%

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

$5.79 ₫149.9K

$4.28 ¥28.61

35.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ₫271.3K

$7.44 ¥49.75

40.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

$40.99 ¥274

-36.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

$14.91 ¥99.7

-20.19%

Cinema Ticket

$3.89 ₫100.7K

$3.68 ¥24.64

5.71%

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

$440 ₫11.4M

$241 ¥1,611

82.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ₫622.7M

$8,448 ¥56.5K

184.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 ₫1.3M

$45.02 ¥301

13.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.18 ₫910.8K

$33.44 ¥224

5.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₫2.4M

$64.1 ¥429

43.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 ₫2.5M

$76.1 ¥509

26.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

$295 ¥1,970

97.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$184 ¥1,232

61.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

$625 ¥4,182

107.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

$376 ¥2,514

93.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,782 ₫123.8M

$3,551 ¥23.7K

34.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,853 ₫48.0M

$1,940 ¥13.0K

-4.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$743 ¥4,966

-34.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.15

174.29%

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 Bozhou: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.4%

Bozhou

$184 27.6% 37.9% $112

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1%

Bozhou

$184 27.6% 11.5% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3%

Bozhou

$98 14.8% 20.4% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9%

Bozhou

$62 9.2% 48.7% $58

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5%

Bozhou

$69 10.3% 6.6% $4.3

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9%

Bozhou

$48 7.3% 42.8% $15

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Bozhou

$22 3.3% 35.7% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

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

Bozhou pays 52% 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 $22.00 in Bozhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $184 per month, with Bozhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Bozhou

🕒 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

1,537,231

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Bozhou 2,730 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Bozhou

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 Bozhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bozhou is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and utilities. The 29% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 52% lower in Bozhou. 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 $295 in Bozhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Bozhou – a meal for two runs $22.00 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 $667 in Bozhou – a 29% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $667 in Bozhou versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Bozhou but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Bozhou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Bozhou 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 Bozhou 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 Bozhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 29% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.