Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Miaoli: $794 a month against $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $730 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)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Miaoli
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Miaoli Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$855

/mo nomad

Miaoli

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$794

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $794 in Miaoli.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $855
Miaoli $794

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,400 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,109 in Miaoli.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,400
Miaoli $1,109

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,944 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,425 in Miaoli.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,944
Miaoli $1,425

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 8% more expensive than in Miaoli, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Miaoli 41% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.90 ₫49.1K

$2.46 NT$78.6

-22.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.32 ₫603.5K

$23.69 NT$756

-1.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.67 ₫120.9K

$4.69 NT$150

-0.43%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫47.9K

$3.01 NT$96.1

-38.54%

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

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.86 NT$27.33

-34.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,857

$0.53 NT$16.97

-35.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₫26.2K

$1.23 NT$39.22

-17.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 ₫43.7K

$1.36 NT$43.36

24.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$2.69 NT$86.0

-41.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 ₫27.0K

$1.25 NT$39.79

-16.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.7K

$2.72 NT$86.7

-63.60%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.5K

$2.21 NT$70.5

-27.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.23 ₫316.6K

$9.25 NT$295

32.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.54 ₫91.7K

$7.54 NT$241

-53.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.44 ₫270.2K

$21.84 NT$697

-52.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 ₫79.9K

$3.74 NT$119

-17.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.98 NT$63.2

-36.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 ₫40.6K

$3.05 NT$97.3

-48.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$3.09 NT$98.5

-59.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 ₫30.4K

$2.47 NT$78.9

-52.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.7K

$2.04 NT$65.2

-43.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ₫18.7K

$2.30 NT$73.5

-68.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₫14.0K

$0.87 NT$27.78

-37.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.22 ₫31.5K

$4.06 NT$129

-69.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.28 ₫317.8K

$10.99 NT$351

11.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ₫25.4K

$1.49 NT$47.39

-34.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 ₫38.5K

$2.08 NT$66.5

-28.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,249

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.62 ₫300.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₫18.9K

$2.90 NT$92.6

-74.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₫16.7K

$0.75 NT$23.97

-14.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 ₫82.0K

$7.05 NT$225

-55.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.6K

$1.03 NT$32.92

-7.77%

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

$30.7K ₫795.6M

$33.3K NT$1.1M

-7.62%

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

$30.6K ₫791.6M

$23.8K NT$758.4K

28.69%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$69.0 NT$2,201

48.33%

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

$5.65 ₫146.1K

$18.41 NT$587

-69.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ₫272.2K

$22.34 NT$713

-52.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.86 ₫669.2K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.82 ₫305.9K

Cinema Ticket

$3.39 ₫87.8K

$10.97 NT$350

-69.10%

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

$438 ₫11.3M

$517 NT$16.5K

-15.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫603.1M

$31.7K NT$1.0M

-26.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.5 ₫1.3M

$12.55 NT$400

310.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.56 ₫894.3K

$25.14 NT$802

37.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.3 ₫2.4M

$63.8 NT$2,036

43.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.9 ₫2.5M

$99.4 NT$3,172

-4.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$577 ₫14.9M

$217 NT$6,917

166.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$292 ₫7.6M

$158 NT$5,030

85.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,293 ₫33.5M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 ₫18.6M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,714 ₫122.0M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,882 ₫48.7M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$486 ₫12.6M

$2,500 NT$79.8K

-80.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

2.38

263.03%

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

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 5, 2026

Last update for Miaoli: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$292 34.3%

Miaoli

$158 20.1% 46% $134

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$206 24.1%

Miaoli

$313 39.9% 52.3% $108

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

Miaoli

$90 11.5% 26.2% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

Miaoli

$110 14% 7.4% $8.7

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.5%

Miaoli

$84 10.8% 32.8% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

Miaoli

$22 * 2.8% 32.8% $11

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2%

Miaoli

$6.7 * 0.9% 60.1% $10

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 $577 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $217 in Miaoli. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Miaoli pays 415% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $24.00 in Miaoli for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $313 per month, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇹🇼 Miaoli

🕒 Local time

02:00 2:00 AM

03:00 3:00 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

89,892

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

100 TWD = 3.13 USD

100 TWD = 2.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,879 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 28,999 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 31.91 TWD (100 TWD = 3.13 USD). 1 EUR = 35.76 TWD (100 TWD = 2.8 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Miaoli 2,140 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Miaoli

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 Miaoli: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Miaoli wins on cost – living expenses run 8% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Miaoli the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 415% lower in Miaoli. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $577 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $217 in Miaoli. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pay roughly 52% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $855 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $794 in Miaoli – a 8% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $794 in Miaoli versus $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $2,000 budget is realistic in Miaoli but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Miaoli the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Miaoli delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $794 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Miaoli hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Miaoli 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 Miaoli gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.