Last update: Oct 2026

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

Name: Philippines
Address: PH

For one person, living is cheaper in the Philippines: $754 a month against $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,200 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
36

Cost of Living Index in the Philippines
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Philippines Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$855

/mo nomad

🇵🇭 Philippines

$754

/mo nomad

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.90 ₫49.1K

$4.08 ₱256

-53.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.32 ₫603.5K

$21.43 ₱1,344

8.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.67 ₫120.9K

$3.18 ₱199

46.86%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫47.9K

$2.22 ₱139

-16.67%

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

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.70 ₱43.83

-20.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,857

$0.37 ₱22.97

-8.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 ₫26.2K

$1.29 ₱81.2

-21.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 ₫43.7K

$2.00 ₱126

-15.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.69 ₱106

-6.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 ₫27.0K

$1.18 ₱74.1

-11.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.7K

$0.87 ₱54.3

13.79%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.5K

$1.96 ₱123

-18.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.23 ₫316.6K

$6.95 ₱436

75.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.54 ₫91.7K

$4.29 ₱269

-17.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.44 ₫270.2K

$7.07 ₱444

47.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 ₫79.9K

$2.90 ₱182

6.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.44 ₱90.2

-12.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 ₫40.6K

$2.52 ₱158

-37.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.50 ₱94.4

-16.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.17 ₫30.4K

$2.19 ₱137

-46.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.7K

$2.56 ₱161

-55.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ₫18.7K

$1.33 ₱83.2

-45.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₫14.0K

$0.65 ₱40.91

-16.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.22 ₫31.5K

$2.83 ₱177

-56.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.28 ₫317.8K

$6.20 ₱389

98.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ₫25.4K

$1.17 ₱73.5

-16.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 ₫38.5K

$1.73 ₱108

-13.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,249

$0.28 ₱17.68

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.62 ₫300.8K

$12.71 ₱797

-8.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.73 ₫18.9K

$0.78 ₱48.96

-6.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₫16.7K

$0.23 ₱14.43

178.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 ₫82.0K

$1.88 ₱118

68.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.6K

$1.16 ₱72.6

-18.10%

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

$30.7K ₫795.6M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

44.93%

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

$30.6K ₫791.6M

$19.5K ₱1.2M

56.99%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$103 ₱6,459

-0.66%

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

$5.65 ₫146.1K

$14.13 ₱886

-60.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ₫272.2K

$27.09 ₱1,699

-61.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.86 ₫669.2K

$31.47 ₱1,974

-17.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.82 ₫305.9K

$5.95 ₱373

98.66%

Cinema Ticket

$3.39 ₫87.8K

$5.46 ₱342

-37.91%

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

$438 ₫11.3M

$142 ₱8,889

208.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫603.1M

$5,663 ₱355.2K

311.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.5 ₫1.3M

$43.92 ₱2,755

17.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.56 ₫894.3K

$24.08 ₱1,510

43.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.3 ₫2.4M

$67.1 ₱4,210

36.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.9 ₫2.5M

$60.4 ₱3,789

57.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$577 ₫14.9M

$322 ₱20.2K

79.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$292 ₫7.6M

$184 ₱11.5K

58.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,293 ₫33.5M

$652 ₱40.9K

98.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$717 ₫18.6M

$355 ₱22.2K

102.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,714 ₫122.0M

$2,998 ₱188.0K

57.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,882 ₫48.7M

$1,394 ₱87.4K

35.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$486 ₫12.6M

$313 ₱19.6K

55.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

7.2

20.00%

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 the Philippines: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$292 34.3%

Philippines

$184 24.6% 37.1% $108

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$206 24.1%

Philippines

$191 25.5% 7.1% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

Philippines

$88 11.8% 28.2% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

Philippines

$144 19.3% 21.7% $26

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.5%

Philippines

$84 11.2% 31.7% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

Philippines

$42 5.7% 29.8% $9.7

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2%

Philippines

$16 2.1% 5.6% $0.9

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇵🇭 Philippines

🕒 Local time

15:52 3:52 PM

16:52 4:52 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

109,035,343

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, 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 = 29,025 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

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