Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Qinhuangdao: $714 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,800 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Qinhuangdao
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Qinhuangdao Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Qinhuangdao

🇨🇳 China

$714

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $714 in Qinhuangdao.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $862
Qinhuangdao $714

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,410 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,135 in Qinhuangdao.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,410
Qinhuangdao $1,135

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,958 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,556 in Qinhuangdao.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,958
Qinhuangdao $1,556

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 21% more expensive than in Qinhuangdao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Qinhuangdao 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.98 ₫51.3K

$2.76 ¥18.44

-28.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.14 ₫599.0K

$21.79 ¥146

6.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.76 ₫123.2K

$4.88 ¥32.64

-2.46%

Cappuccino

$1.86 ₫48.1K

$3.04 ¥20.33

-38.82%

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

$0.51 ₫13.3K

$0.47 ¥3.13

8.51%

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

$0.92 ¥6.18

11.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ₫44.4K

$2.13 ¥14.24

-19.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.85 ¥12.37

-14.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.3K

$1.55 ¥10.38

-29.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.2K

$0.89 ¥5.94

17.98%

Eggs

$1.64 ₫42.6K

$1.53 ¥10.25

7.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.33 ₫319.2K

$13.05 ¥87.3

-5.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 ₫92.6K

$3.11 ¥20.80

15.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.3K

$10.33 ¥69.1

2.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₫76.9K

$1.87 ¥12.52

58.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.7K

$1.25 ¥8.36

0.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$1.47 ¥9.82

10.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.8K

$1.15 ¥7.66

13.91%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.8K

$0.73 ¥4.90

63.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$0.95 ¥6.36

20.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ₫18.8K

$0.60 ¥4.01

21.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.51 ¥3.42

9.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.28 ₫33.0K

$3.05 ¥20.41

-58.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.46 ₫322.5K

$10.69 ¥71.5

16.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.79 ¥5.28

21.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.64 ¥10.94

-9.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,704

$0.27 ¥1.79

-3.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.43 ₫296.0K

$16.97 ¥113

-32.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$1.42 ¥9.52

-52.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.33 ¥2.19

87.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 ₫77.7K

$6.62 ¥44.23

-54.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.5K

$1.14 ¥7.61

-20.18%

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

$30.6K ₫791.4M

$19.2K ¥128.4K

59.18%

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

$29.4K ₫760.1M

$17.1K ¥114.3K

71.72%

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

$104 ₫2.7M

$44.64 ¥298

132.46%

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

$5.79 ₫149.9K

$9.87 ¥66.0

-41.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ₫271.3K

$11.90 ¥79.5

-11.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

$42.14 ¥282

-38.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

$14.09 ¥94.2

-15.54%

Cinema Ticket

$3.89 ₫100.7K

$5.79 ¥38.72

-32.82%

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

$440 ₫11.4M

$337 ¥2,254

30.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K ₫622.7M

$17.2K ¥114.7K

40.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 ₫1.3M

$44.18 ¥295

15.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.18 ₫910.8K

$30.35 ¥203

15.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 ₫2.4M

$71.8 ¥480

28.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.5 ₫2.5M

$70.6 ¥472

36.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

$276 ¥1,843

111.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$191 ¥1,277

55.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

$601 ¥4,016

116.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

$362 ¥2,423

100.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,782 ₫123.8M

$3,063 ¥20.5K

56.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,853 ₫48.0M

$2,068 ¥13.8K

-10.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.89

122.11%

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 Qinhuangdao: 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%

Qinhuangdao

$191 26.8% 35.6% $106

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1%

Qinhuangdao

$199 27.9% 4.1% $8.6

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3%

Qinhuangdao

$98 13.7% 21% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9%

Qinhuangdao

$66 9.3% 44.7% $54

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5%

Qinhuangdao

$85 11.9% 32.1% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9%

Qinhuangdao

$54 7.5% 58.7% $20

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Qinhuangdao

$21 3% 29.8% $4.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $582 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $276 in Qinhuangdao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $22.00 in Qinhuangdao for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $208 vs $199 per month, with Qinhuangdao cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Qinhuangdao

🕒 Local time

16:58 4:58 PM

17:58 5:58 PM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

2,987,605

💱 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 25, 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 25, 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

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Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Qinhuangdao 3,480 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Qinhuangdao

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 Qinhuangdao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Qinhuangdao wins on cost – living expenses run 21% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Qinhuangdao the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,294 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $1,071 in Qinhuangdao 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: $582 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $276 in Qinhuangdao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $862 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $714 in Qinhuangdao – a 21% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Qinhuangdao runs roughly 48% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $714 in Qinhuangdao versus $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $2,000 budget is realistic in Qinhuangdao but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Qinhuangdao the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Qinhuangdao delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $714 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Qinhuangdao hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Qinhuangdao 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 Qinhuangdao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.