Last update: Oct 2026

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

Name: China
Address: CN

For one person, living is cheaper in China: $784 a month against $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $850 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

42

Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in China
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China Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$855

/mo nomad

🇨🇳 China

$784

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is 8.2% cheaper than China without rent, and 9.1% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is 7% cheaper than China without rent, and 11% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.90 ₫49.1K

$2.90 ¥19.39

-34.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.32 ₫603.5K

$22.02 ¥147

5.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.67 ₫120.9K

$5.20 ¥34.74

-10.19%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫47.9K

$3.04 ¥20.31

-39.14%

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

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.52 ¥3.45

7.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,857

$0.28 ¥1.85

21.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₫26.2K

$1.01 ¥6.75

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 ₫43.7K

$2.19 ¥14.64

-22.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.75 ¥11.71

-9.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 ₫27.0K

$1.64 ¥10.96

-36.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.7K

$0.92 ¥6.12

7.61%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.5K

$1.59 ¥10.66

0.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.23 ₫316.6K

$12.99 ¥86.8

-5.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.54 ₫91.7K

$3.35 ¥22.38

5.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.44 ₫270.2K

$11.18 ¥74.7

-6.62%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 ₫79.9K

$1.80 ¥12.02

71.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.31 ¥8.78

-3.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 ₫40.6K

$1.47 ¥9.80

6.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.32 ¥8.79

-4.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 ₫30.4K

$0.76 ¥5.07

53.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.7K

$0.92 ¥6.15

25.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ₫18.7K

$0.59 ¥3.94

22.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₫14.0K

$0.54 ¥3.63

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.22 ₫31.5K

$3.79 ¥25.34

-67.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.28 ₫317.8K

$12.14 ¥81.1

1.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ₫25.4K

$0.82 ¥5.48

19.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 ₫38.5K

$1.63 ¥10.92

-8.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,249

$0.29 ¥1.93

-3.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.62 ₫300.8K

$22.33 ¥149

-47.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₫18.9K

$1.53 ¥10.24

-52.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₫16.7K

$0.35 ¥2.31

82.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 ₫82.0K

$7.00 ¥46.79

-54.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.6K

$1.31 ¥8.77

-27.48%

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

$30.7K ₫795.6M

$19.0K ¥127.1K

61.61%

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

$30.6K ₫791.6M

$17.0K ¥113.7K

79.75%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$54.1 ¥362

88.99%

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

$5.65 ₫146.1K

$8.42 ¥56.3

-32.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ₫272.2K

$10.72 ¥71.6

-1.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.86 ₫669.2K

$40.72 ¥272

-36.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.82 ₫305.9K

$14.58 ¥97.4

-18.93%

Cinema Ticket

$3.39 ₫87.8K

$6.76 ¥45.15

-49.85%

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

$438 ₫11.3M

$462 ¥3,089

-5.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫603.1M

$19.6K ¥131.0K

18.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.5 ₫1.3M

$45.57 ¥305

13.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.56 ₫894.3K

$36.05 ¥241

-4.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.3 ₫2.4M

$75.4 ¥504

21.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.9 ₫2.5M

$79.0 ¥528

20.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$577 ₫14.9M

$386 ¥2,577

49.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$292 ₫7.6M

$240 ¥1,601

21.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,293 ₫33.5M

$843 ¥5,637

53.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 ₫18.6M

$461 ¥3,083

55.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,714 ₫122.0M

$4,590 ¥30.7K

2.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,882 ₫48.7M

$2,279 ¥15.2K

-17.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$486 ₫12.6M

$1,060 ¥7,082

-54.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.46

149.71%

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 China: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$292 34.3%

China

$240 30.1% 18% $53

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$206 24.1%

China

$207 26.1% 0.8% $1.7

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

China

$106 13.4% 13.3% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

China

$73 9.2% 38.1% $45

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.5%

China

$88 11.1% 38.5% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

China

$54 6.8% 66.1% $22

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2%

China

$27 3.4% 60.2% $10

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 China

🕒 Local time

19:02 7:02 PM

20:02 8:02 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

1,442,965,000

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,879 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 28,999 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

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