Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and San Jose del Monte

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose del Monte: $713 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

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

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in San Jose del Monte
Learn more

San Jose del Monte Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

San Jose del Monte

🇵🇭 Philippines

$713

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and in San Jose del Monte

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 San Jose del Monte actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $713 in San Jose del Monte.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
San Jose del Monte $713

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,072 in San Jose del Monte.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
San Jose del Monte $1,072

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,432 in San Jose del Monte.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
San Jose del Monte $1,432

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 20% more expensive than in San Jose del Monte, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.6K

$4.09 ₱257

-53.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.84 ₫591.2K

$16.69 ₱1,051

36.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.54 ₫117.6K

$2.87 ₱181

58.19%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫48.0K

$1.78 ₱112

3.93%

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

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.57 ₱35.83

-1.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,185

$0.33 ₱20.79

-3.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ₫27.5K

$0.98 ₱61.6

8.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.5K

$1.55 ₱97.8

10.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₫42.9K

$1.66 ₱105

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 ₫28.7K

$1.11 ₱69.8

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$1.03 ₱64.9

-2.91%

Eggs

$1.67 ₫43.1K

$2.02 ₱127

-17.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫312.8K

$5.18 ₱326

133.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ₫95.2K

$3.35 ₱211

9.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 ₫265.1K

$7.07 ₱445

44.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ₫76.5K

$2.27 ₱143

30.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 ₫32.2K

$1.53 ₱96.6

-18.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ₫40.3K

$2.35 ₱148

-33.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 ₫33.6K

$1.03 ₱64.9

26.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 ₫31.9K

$1.68 ₱106

-26.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.8K

$1.73 ₱109

-33.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 ₫19.1K

$0.61 ₱38.45

21.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.52 ₱32.85

7.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.24 ₫32.1K

$2.89 ₱182

-57.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.60 ₫326.1K

$8.89 ₱560

41.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.97 ₱61.2

-1.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 ₫39.6K

$2.08 ₱131

-26.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,694

$0.24 ₱15.09

8.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.51 ₫297.9K

$11.59 ₱730

-0.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 ₫19.5K

$0.80 ₱50.2

-6.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 ₫17.4K

$0.23 ₱14.51

191.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 ₫78.5K

$1.95 ₱123

55.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.96 ₫24.8K

$1.19 ₱75.1

-19.33%

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

$31.1K ₫804.3M

$21.1K ₱1.3M

47.50%

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

$30.4K ₫785.9M

$19.2K ₱1.2M

58.34%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$124 ₱7,822

-17.92%

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

$5.89 ₫152.5K

$15.79 ₱994

-62.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.49 ₫271.6K

$23.17 ₱1,459

-54.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.54 ₫661.2K

$35.10 ₱2,210

-27.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.92 ₫308.5K

$4.42 ₱278

169.68%

Cinema Ticket

$3.53 ₫91.3K

$5.25 ₱331

-32.76%

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

$436 ₫11.3M

$134 ₱8,428

226.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫602.8M

$8,925 ₱561.9K

160.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 ₫1.4M

$29.38 ₱1,850

79.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.15 ₫884.1K

$19.87 ₱1,251

71.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.3 ₫2.3M

$71.0 ₱4,472

27.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.0 ₫2.5M

$55.0 ₱3,463

72.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$589 ₫15.3M

$257 ₱16.2K

129.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ₫7.7M

$164 ₱10.3K

81.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 ₫33.5M

$506 ₱31.9K

155.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$711 ₫18.4M

$318 ₱20.0K

123.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,676 ₫121.1M

$2,707 ₱170.4K

72.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,904 ₫49.3M

$942 ₱59.3K

102.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

6.75

28.00%

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 San Jose del Monte: 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%

San Jose del Monte

$164 23% 45% $134

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1%

San Jose del Monte

$173 24.2% 16.8% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3%

San Jose del Monte

$79 11.1% 35.6% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8%

San Jose del Monte

$163 22.9% 37.9% $45

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

San Jose del Monte

$74 10.4% 17% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

San Jose del Monte

$46 6.4% 39.9% $13

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9%

San Jose del Monte

$15 2% 12.9% $2.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $257 in San Jose del Monte. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $17.00 in San Jose del Monte for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $173 per month, with San Jose del Monte cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇵🇭 San Jose del Monte

🕒 Local time

03:32 3:32 AM

04:32 4:32 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

651,813

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,105 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) San Jose del Monte 1,620 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
San Jose del Monte

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 San Jose del Monte: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose del Monte wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making San Jose del Monte the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,288 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $1,069 in San Jose del Monte 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 $257 in San Jose del Monte. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $859 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $713 in San Jose del Monte – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose del Monte runs roughly 1% 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 $713 in San Jose del Monte versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,000 budget is realistic in San Jose del Monte but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes San Jose del Monte the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but San Jose del Monte delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $713 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes San Jose del Monte hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and San Jose del Monte 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 San Jose del Monte gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.