Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Hai Phong: $700 a month against $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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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
34

Cost of Living Index in Hai Phong
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Hai Phong Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$853

/mo nomad

Hai Phong

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$700

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $700 in Hai Phong.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $853
Hai Phong $700

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,391 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,184 in Hai Phong.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,391
Hai Phong $1,184

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,930 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,669 in Hai Phong.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,930
Hai Phong $1,669

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 22% more expensive than in Hai Phong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 37% lower, Hai Phong 49% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.3K

$1.53 ₫39.5K

24.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.93 ₫591.8K

$19.32 ₫498.5K

18.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.69 ₫121.0K

$4.30 ₫111.0K

9.07%

Cappuccino

$1.80 ₫46.4K

$1.83 ₫47.1K

-1.64%

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

$0.55 ₫14.2K

$0.52 ₫13.4K

5.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,802

$0.30 ₫7,859

13.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$0.76 ₫19.5K

35.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.4K

$1.54 ₫39.7K

11.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 ₫43.0K

$1.54 ₫39.6K

8.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.2K

$0.48 ₫12.4K

127.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.06 ₫27.2K

$0.80 ₫20.7K

32.50%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.2K

$1.47 ₫38.1K

8.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫311.8K

$11.49 ₫296.5K

5.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.66 ₫94.4K

$3.65 ₫94.1K

0.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.35 ₫267.0K

$9.95 ₫256.7K

4.02%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 ₫77.7K

$3.09 ₫79.6K

-2.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.05 ₫27.1K

20.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫41.9K

$1.28 ₫33.1K

26.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ₫32.7K

$1.10 ₫28.3K

15.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 ₫30.5K

$0.95 ₫24.4K

24.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.7K

$1.20 ₫30.8K

-0.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.78 ₫20.1K

$0.58 ₫15.0K

34.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₫14.2K

$0.55 ₫14.1K

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.21 ₫31.3K

4.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.85 ₫331.5K

$11.39 ₫293.9K

12.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₫23.1K

$0.75 ₫19.4K

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.46 ₫37.6K

$1.63 ₫42.2K

-10.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,252

$0.39 ₫10.1K

-28.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.42 ₫294.7K

$5.78 ₫149.1K

97.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.70 ₫18.1K

$0.80 ₫20.6K

-12.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 ₫16.2K

$0.60 ₫15.6K

5.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.09 ₫79.7K

$1.89 ₫48.8K

63.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.5K

$0.90 ₫23.3K

5.56%

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

$30.5K ₫787.4M

$30.6K ₫788.5M

-0.15%

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

$29.7K ₫767.0M

$28.5K ₫736.3M

4.16%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$45.44 ₫1.2M

124.96%

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

$5.65 ₫145.7K

$5.17 ₫133.3K

9.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.43 ₫269.2K

$8.79 ₫226.7K

18.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.30 ₫498.1K

$23.20 ₫598.6K

-16.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.81 ₫304.8K

$7.53 ₫194.3K

56.84%

Cinema Ticket

$3.83 ₫98.8K

$4.53 ₫116.9K

-15.45%

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

$484 ₫12.5M

$158 ₫4.1M

207.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫601.6M

$4,692 ₫121.1M

396.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.3 ₫1.3M

$46.79 ₫1.2M

11.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.35 ₫886.3K

$21.10 ₫544.4K

62.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.3 ₫2.4M

$84.6 ₫2.2M

9.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.2 ₫2.4M

$77.0 ₫2.0M

22.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$647 ₫16.7M

$248 ₫6.4M

160.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$248 ₫6.4M

19.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,291 ₫33.3M

$1,040 ₫26.8M

24.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$719 ₫18.6M

$638 ₫16.4M

12.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,327 ₫111.6M

$1,333 ₫34.4M

224.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,987 ₫51.3M

$970 ₫25.0M

104.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.6M

$493 ₫12.7M

-0.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

23.43%

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 Hai Phong: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.9%

Hai Phong

$248 35.5% 16.5% $49

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.4%

Hai Phong

$188 26.9% 9.6% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

Hai Phong

$103 14.8% 16% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

Hai Phong

$59 8.5% 49.8% $59

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

Hai Phong

$57 8.2% 9.4% $5.9

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$27 3.2%

Hai Phong

$32 4.6% 19.7% $5.3

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Hai Phong

$11 1.6% 32% $5.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $647 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $248 in Hai Phong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $19 in Hai Phong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $208 vs $188 per month, with Hai Phong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Hai Phong

🕒 Local time

15:34 3:34 PM

Same time as Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

2,105,000

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Hai Phong 1,120 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Hai Phong

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 Hai Phong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $700 in Hai Phong, so Hai Phong is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,279 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $1,049 in Hai Phong 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: $647 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $248 in Hai Phong. 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 $700 in Hai Phong – Hai Phong is about 18% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Hai Phong runs roughly 49% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Hai Phong gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Hai Phong are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Hai Phong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.