Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Longyan: $462 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $4,800 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
22

Cost of Living Index in Longyan
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Longyan Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Longyan

🇨🇳 China

$462

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $462 in Longyan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $862
Longyan $462

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,410 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $750 in Longyan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,410
Longyan $750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,958 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,038 in Longyan.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,958
Longyan $1,038

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 87% more expensive than in Longyan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Longyan 66% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.98 ₫51.3K

$2.95 ¥19.74

-32.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.14 ₫599.0K

$22.57 ¥151

2.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 ₫123.2K

$4.96 ¥33.19

-4.03%

Cappuccino

$1.86 ₫48.1K

$2.20 ¥14.72

-15.45%

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

$0.51 ₫13.3K

$0.44 ¥2.94

15.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,191

$0.27 ¥1.79

18.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$0.88 ¥5.87

17.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₫44.4K

$1.60 ¥10.68

6.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$2.08 ¥13.90

-24.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.3K

$1.42 ¥9.47

-23.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.2K

$0.78 ¥5.22

34.62%

Eggs

$1.64 ₫42.6K

$1.48 ¥9.90

10.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 ₫319.2K

$7.63 ¥51.0

61.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 ₫92.6K

$2.18 ¥14.61

64.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.3K

$8.99 ¥60.1

17.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₫76.9K

$1.89 ¥12.63

57.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.7K

$1.34 ¥8.95

-5.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$1.77 ¥11.83

-8.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.8K

$1.12 ¥7.48

16.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.8K

$0.89 ¥5.97

33.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$1.01 ¥6.75

12.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ₫18.8K

$0.43 ¥2.90

69.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.48 ¥3.21

16.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.28 ₫33.0K

$3.42 ¥22.85

-62.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 ₫322.5K

$12.16 ¥81.3

2.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.78 ¥5.21

23.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.18 ¥7.89

25.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,704

$0.16 ¥1.08

62.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.43 ₫296.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$1.06 ¥7.10

-35.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.47 ¥3.12

31.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 ₫77.7K

$7.57 ¥50.6

-60.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$1.31 ¥8.76

-30.53%

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

$30.6K ₫791.4M

$19.3K ¥129.1K

58.33%

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

$29.4K ₫760.1M

$15.6K ¥104.3K

88.29%

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

$104 ₫2.7M

$66.3 ¥443

56.49%

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

$5.79 ₫149.9K

$15.68 ¥105

-63.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ₫271.3K

$8.86 ¥59.3

18.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

$4.40 ¥29.44

170.45%

Cinema Ticket

$3.89 ₫100.7K

$7.61 ¥50.9

-48.88%

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

$440 ₫11.4M

$213 ¥1,425

106.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ₫622.7M

$11.7K ¥78.4K

105.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 ₫1.3M

$29.86 ¥200

70.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.18 ₫910.8K

$14.92 ¥99.8

135.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₫2.4M

$76.0 ¥508

21.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 ₫2.5M

$98.4 ¥658

-1.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

$377 ¥2,518

244.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,782 ₫123.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,853 ₫48.0M

$1,338 ¥8,949

38.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$485 ¥3,243

1.02%

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 17, 2026

Last update for Longyan: 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%

Longyan

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1%

Longyan

$178 38.5% 14.5% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3%

Longyan

$99 21.4% 20.2% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9%

Longyan

$91 19.7% 24.3% $29

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5%

Longyan

$75 16.3% 17.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9%

Longyan

$15 * 3.3% 55.1% $19

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Longyan

$4 * 0.9% 75.2% $12

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

Cost Breakdown

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pays 1% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $23.00 in Longyan. Groceries flip the comparison at $208 vs $178, with Longyan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Longyan

🕒 Local time

10:33 10:33 AM

11:33 11:33 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

2,559,545

💱 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 23, 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 23, 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) Longyan 1,930 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Longyan

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 Longyan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Longyan wins on cost – living expenses run 87% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Longyan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 1% higher in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% 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 $862 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $462 in Longyan – a 87% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $462 in Longyan versus $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $2,000 budget is realistic in Longyan but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Longyan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Longyan delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $462 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Longyan hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Longyan 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 Longyan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 87% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.