Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Kalimantan: $639 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
30

Cost of Living Index in Kalimantan
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Kalimantan Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Kalimantan

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $639 in Kalimantan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
Kalimantan $639

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $984 in Kalimantan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
Kalimantan $984

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,328 in Kalimantan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
Kalimantan $1,328

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 34% more expensive than in Kalimantan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Kalimantan 53% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.6K

$1.65 Rp 29.7K

15.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.84 ₫591.2K

$14.21 Rp 255.9K

60.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.54 ₫117.6K

$3.73 Rp 67.1K

21.72%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫48.0K

$1.49 Rp 26.8K

24.16%

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

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.46 Rp 8,364

21.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,185

$0.23 Rp 4,226

39.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ₫27.5K

$2.36 Rp 42.4K

-55.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.5K

$3.45 Rp 62.1K

-50.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₫42.9K

$1.05 Rp 18.9K

58.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 ₫28.7K

$1.21 Rp 21.7K

-8.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$0.73 Rp 13.1K

36.99%

Eggs

$1.67 ₫43.1K

$1.33 Rp 23.9K

25.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫312.8K

$7.03 Rp 126.5K

71.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ₫95.2K

$3.02 Rp 54.4K

21.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 ₫265.1K

$7.24 Rp 130.3K

41.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ₫76.5K

$2.02 Rp 36.4K

46.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 ₫32.2K

$1.10 Rp 19.8K

12.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ₫40.3K

$1.69 Rp 30.5K

-7.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 ₫33.6K

$1.10 Rp 19.8K

18.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 ₫31.9K

$1.40 Rp 25.1K

-12.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.8K

$1.93 Rp 34.7K

-40.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 ₫19.1K

$0.75 Rp 13.4K

-1.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.43 Rp 7,748

30.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.24 ₫32.1K

$2.51 Rp 45.2K

-50.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.60 ₫326.1K

$24.07 Rp 433.3K

-47.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$1.74 Rp 31.3K

-44.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 ₫39.6K

$2.66 Rp 47.9K

-42.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,694

$0.29 Rp 5,282

-10.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.51 ₫297.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 ₫19.5K

$0.53 Rp 9,475

41.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 ₫17.4K

$0.39 Rp 7,011

71.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 ₫78.5K

$2.59 Rp 46.7K

16.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.96 ₫24.8K

$0.75 Rp 13.5K

28.00%

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

$31.1K ₫804.3M

$21.9K Rp 394.1M

41.91%

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

$30.4K ₫785.9M

$27.2K Rp 490.2M

11.47%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$68.9 Rp 1.2M

47.99%

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

$5.89 ₫152.5K

$3.73 Rp 67.1K

57.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.49 ₫271.6K

$19.85 Rp 357.3K

-47.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.54 ₫661.2K

$18.32 Rp 329.7K

39.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.92 ₫308.5K

$8.79 Rp 158.1K

35.61%

Cinema Ticket

$3.53 ₫91.3K

$3.11 Rp 56.0K

13.50%

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

$436 ₫11.3M

$102 Rp 1.8M

325.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫602.8M

$6,826 Rp 122.9M

241.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 ₫1.4M

$47.05 Rp 847.0K

12.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.15 ₫884.1K

$26.14 Rp 470.5K

30.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.3 ₫2.3M

$83.9 Rp 1.5M

7.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.0 ₫2.5M

$61.5 Rp 1.1M

54.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$589 ₫15.3M

$235 Rp 4.2M

150.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ₫7.7M

$160 Rp 2.9M

85.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 ₫33.5M

$614 Rp 11.1M

110.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$711 ₫18.4M

$333 Rp 6.0M

113.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,676 ₫121.1M

$1,308 Rp 23.5M

257.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,904 ₫49.3M

$687 Rp 12.4M

177.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

9.46

-8.67%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 10, 2026

Last update for Kalimantan: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7%

Kalimantan

$160 25.1% 46.1% $137

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1%

Kalimantan

$196 30.7% 5.5% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3%

Kalimantan

$98 15.4% 19.7% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8%

Kalimantan

$92 14.5% 21.9% $26

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

Kalimantan

$64 10% 0.5% $0.3

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

Kalimantan

$25 3.8% 24.7% $8.1

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9%

Kalimantan

$3.7 * 0.6% 78.1% $13

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $235 in Kalimantan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $14.00 in Kalimantan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $196 per month, with Kalimantan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇮🇩 Kalimantan

🕒 Local time

15:02 3:02 PM

16:02 4:02 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,105 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Kalimantan 1,370 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Kalimantan

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 Kalimantan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kalimantan wins on cost – living expenses run 34% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Kalimantan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,288 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $959 in Kalimantan 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: $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $235 in Kalimantan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 6% higher in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $859 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $639 in Kalimantan – a 34% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $639 in Kalimantan versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Kalimantan but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Kalimantan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Kalimantan delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $639 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Kalimantan hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Kalimantan 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 Kalimantan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 34% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.