Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Chongqing: $722 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,700 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)
Learn more

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Chongqing
Learn more

Chongqing Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Chongqing

🇨🇳 China

$722

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $862 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $722 in Chongqing, rent included.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $862
Chongqing $722

A couple spends around $1,410 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $1,175 in Chongqing, rent included.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,410
Chongqing $1,175

A family of three spends $1,958 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $1,629 in Chongqing, rent included.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,958
Chongqing $1,629

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) costs about 20% more than Chongqing, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Chongqing are more affordable than the global median – Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Chongqing 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.98 ₫51.3K

$2.64 ¥17.62

-25.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.14 ₫599.0K

$22.26 ¥149

3.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 ₫123.2K

$4.83 ¥32.27

-1.45%

Cappuccino

$1.86 ₫48.1K

$2.07 ¥13.81

-10.14%

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

$0.51 ₫13.3K

$0.46 ¥3.11

10.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,191

$0.31 ¥2.09

3.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$1.22 ¥8.15

-15.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₫44.4K

$1.77 ¥11.84

-3.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$2.01 ¥13.44

-21.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.3K

$1.66 ¥11.07

-34.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.2K

$0.61 ¥4.05

72.13%

Eggs

$1.64 ₫42.6K

$2.25 ¥15.04

-27.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 ₫319.2K

$17.76 ¥119

-30.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 ₫92.6K

$3.31 ¥22.11

8.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.3K

$10.03 ¥67.1

5.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₫76.9K

$1.49 ¥10.00

99.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.7K

$1.28 ¥8.57

-1.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$1.23 ¥8.26

31.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.8K

$1.21 ¥8.07

8.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.8K

$0.61 ¥4.08

95.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$1.02 ¥6.79

11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ₫18.8K

$0.90 ¥6.02

-18.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.62 ¥4.12

-9.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.28 ₫33.0K

$3.04 ¥20.32

-57.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 ₫322.5K

$8.98 ¥60.1

38.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.76 ¥5.10

26.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.73 ¥11.55

-14.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,704

$0.36 ¥2.38

-27.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.43 ₫296.0K

$22.52 ¥151

-49.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$1.46 ¥9.74

-53.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.31 ¥2.09

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 ₫77.7K

$2.91 ¥19.46

3.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$1.32 ¥8.80

-31.06%

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

$30.6K ₫791.4M

$19.4K ¥129.8K

57.41%

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

$29.4K ₫760.1M

$17.2K ¥115.0K

70.76%

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

$104 ₫2.7M

$45.07 ¥301

130.24%

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

$5.79 ₫149.9K

$7.26 ¥48.52

-20.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ₫271.3K

$7.19 ¥48.09

45.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

$49.49 ¥331

-47.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

$10.40 ¥69.6

14.42%

Cinema Ticket

$3.89 ₫100.7K

$5.95 ¥39.81

-34.62%

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

$440 ₫11.4M

$289 ¥1,929

52.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ₫622.7M

$25.1K ¥167.8K

-4.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 ₫1.3M

$39.99 ¥267

27.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.18 ₫910.8K

$29.64 ¥198

18.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₫2.4M

$66.0 ¥441

39.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 ₫2.5M

$64.4 ¥430

49.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

$426 ¥2,851

36.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$196 ¥1,313

51.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

$894 ¥5,977

45.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

$422 ¥2,823

72.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,782 ₫123.8M

$2,741 ¥18.3K

74.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,853 ₫48.0M

$1,741 ¥11.6K

6.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$1,102 ¥7,371

-55.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.34

158.68%

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 Chongqing: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.4%

Chongqing

$196 27.2% 33.8% $100

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1%

Chongqing

$214 29.7% 3.1% $6.5

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3%

Chongqing

$90 12.5% 27.2% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9%

Chongqing

$60 8.3% 50.4% $61

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5%

Chongqing

$73 10.1% 13.6% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9%

Chongqing

$61 8.5% 81.3% $28

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Chongqing

$27 3.7% 65.8% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $582 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $426 in Chongqing. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 125% higher in Chongqing, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $22.00 in Chongqing. Groceries tell a different story – $208 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $214 in Chongqing – so Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Chongqing

🕒 Local time

22:05 10:05 PM

23:05 11:05 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

1,564,449

💱 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 21, 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 21, 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) Chongqing 2,090 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Chongqing

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 Chongqing: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is pricier by about 20%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,294 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $1,082 in Chongqing. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chongqing, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $440 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $289 in Chongqing. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 3% cheaper in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Chongqing, where all-in costs run around $722, than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) at $862. In Chongqing it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Chongqing – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Chongqing. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.