Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Datong: $715 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

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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 Datong
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Datong Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Datong

🇨🇳 China

$715

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $715 in Datong.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $862
Datong $715

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,410 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,133 in Datong.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,410
Datong $1,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,958 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,551 in Datong.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,958
Datong $1,551

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 21% more expensive than in Datong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Datong 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.98 ₫51.3K

$2.77 ¥18.50

-28.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.14 ₫599.0K

$21.44 ¥143

7.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 ₫123.2K

$4.93 ¥32.98

-3.45%

Cappuccino

$1.86 ₫48.1K

$3.05 ¥20.42

-39.02%

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

$0.51 ₫13.3K

$0.47 ¥3.11

8.51%

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

$0.94 ¥6.31

9.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₫44.4K

$2.06 ¥13.76

-16.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.82 ¥12.16

-13.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.3K

$1.62 ¥10.80

-32.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.2K

$0.89 ¥5.92

17.98%

Eggs

$1.64 ₫42.6K

$1.55 ¥10.36

5.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 ₫319.2K

$12.59 ¥84.2

-2.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 ₫92.6K

$3.23 ¥21.62

10.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.3K

$10.12 ¥67.7

4.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₫76.9K

$1.87 ¥12.52

58.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.7K

$1.26 ¥8.39

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$1.47 ¥9.83

10.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.8K

$1.15 ¥7.68

13.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.8K

$0.73 ¥4.89

63.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$0.92 ¥6.13

23.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ₫18.8K

$0.56 ¥3.77

30.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.51 ¥3.44

9.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.28 ₫33.0K

$3.17 ¥21.22

-59.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 ₫322.5K

$10.71 ¥71.6

16.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.79 ¥5.29

21.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.60 ¥10.69

-7.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,704

$0.27 ¥1.80

-3.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.43 ₫296.0K

$16.82 ¥112

-32.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$1.42 ¥9.48

-52.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.33 ¥2.19

87.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 ₫77.7K

$6.87 ¥45.96

-56.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$1.17 ¥7.83

-22.22%

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

$30.6K ₫791.4M

$19.4K ¥129.6K

57.69%

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

$29.4K ₫760.1M

$17.4K ¥116.3K

68.78%

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

$104 ₫2.7M

$44.62 ¥298

132.56%

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

$5.79 ₫149.9K

$9.53 ¥63.7

-39.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ₫271.3K

$11.92 ¥79.7

-12.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

$42.32 ¥283

-38.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

$13.88 ¥92.8

-14.27%

Cinema Ticket

$3.89 ₫100.7K

$5.84 ¥39.05

-33.39%

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

$440 ₫11.4M

$329 ¥2,198

33.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ₫622.7M

$16.5K ¥110.5K

45.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 ₫1.3M

$44.27 ¥296

15.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.18 ₫910.8K

$30.48 ¥204

15.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₫2.4M

$71.5 ¥478

28.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 ₫2.5M

$70.7 ¥473

36.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

$283 ¥1,890

105.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$193 ¥1,289

53.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

$598 ¥3,999

117.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

$363 ¥2,424

100.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,782 ₫123.8M

$3,069 ¥20.5K

55.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,853 ₫48.0M

$2,036 ¥13.6K

-9.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.89

122.11%

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 Datong: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.4%

Datong

$193 27% 35% $104

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1%

Datong

$198 27.7% 4.7% $9.8

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3%

Datong

$98 13.7% 21% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9%

Datong

$66 9.2% 45% $54

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5%

Datong

$85 11.9% 32.7% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9%

Datong

$54 7.6% 59.5% $20

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Datong

$21 2.9% 28.8% $4.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $582 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $283 in Datong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $21.00 in Datong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $208 vs $198 per month, with Datong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Datong

🕒 Local time

09:28 9:28 AM

10:28 10:28 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

3,318,057

💱 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) Datong 3,320 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Datong

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 Datong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Datong wins on cost – living expenses run 21% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Datong the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,294 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $1,072 in Datong to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $582 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $283 in Datong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $440 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $329 in Datong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $715 in Datong versus $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,000 budget is realistic in Datong but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Datong the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Datong delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $715 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Datong hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Datong 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 Datong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.