Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in San Pedro: $724 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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 San Pedro
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San Pedro Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

San Pedro

🇵🇭 Philippines

$724

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $724 in San Pedro.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
San Pedro $724

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,089 in San Pedro.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
San Pedro $1,089

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,454 in San Pedro.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
San Pedro $1,454

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 19% more expensive than in San Pedro, 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 Pedro 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.6K

$4.02 ₱253

-52.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.84 ₫591.2K

$16.88 ₱1,063

35.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.54 ₫117.6K

$2.85 ₱180

59.30%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫48.0K

$1.86 ₱117

-0.54%

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

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.60 ₱37.65

-6.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,185

$0.31 ₱19.31

3.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ₫27.5K

$0.99 ₱62.3

7.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.5K

$1.58 ₱99.2

8.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₫42.9K

$1.62 ₱102

2.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 ₫28.7K

$1.11 ₱69.7

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$0.97 ₱61.0

3.09%

Eggs

$1.67 ₫43.1K

$2.03 ₱128

-17.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫312.8K

$5.15 ₱325

134.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ₫95.2K

$3.34 ₱211

10.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 ₫265.1K

$7.08 ₱446

44.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ₫76.5K

$2.23 ₱140

32.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 ₫32.2K

$1.55 ₱97.7

-20.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ₫40.3K

$2.35 ₱148

-33.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 ₫33.6K

$1.07 ₱67.2

21.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 ₫31.9K

$1.75 ₱110

-29.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.8K

$1.77 ₱111

-35.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 ₫19.1K

$0.62 ₱39.15

19.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.49 ₱31.02

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.24 ₫32.1K

$3.01 ₱190

-58.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.60 ₫326.1K

$8.89 ₱560

41.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.91 ₱57.5

5.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 ₫39.6K

$2.00 ₱126

-23.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,694

$0.25 ₱15.81

4.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.51 ₫297.9K

$10.12 ₱637

13.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 ₫19.5K

$0.79 ₱49.95

-5.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 ₫17.4K

$0.21 ₱13.18

219.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 ₫78.5K

$1.87 ₱118

62.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.96 ₫24.8K

$1.22 ₱76.6

-21.31%

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

$31.1K ₫804.3M

$21.0K ₱1.3M

47.77%

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

$30.4K ₫785.9M

$19.1K ₱1.2M

58.72%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$121 ₱7,644

-16.01%

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

$5.89 ₫152.5K

$15.89 ₱1,000

-62.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.49 ₫271.6K

$23.65 ₱1,489

-55.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.54 ₫661.2K

$36.88 ₱2,322

-30.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.92 ₫308.5K

$4.10 ₱258

190.73%

Cinema Ticket

$3.53 ₫91.3K

$5.12 ₱322

-31.05%

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

$436 ₫11.3M

$135 ₱8,517

222.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫602.8M

$9,087 ₱572.1K

156.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 ₫1.4M

$29.09 ₱1,831

81.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.15 ₫884.1K

$19.79 ₱1,246

72.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.3 ₫2.3M

$72.1 ₱4,540

25.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.0 ₫2.5M

$55.6 ₱3,502

70.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$589 ₫15.3M

$262 ₱16.5K

125.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ₫7.7M

$177 ₱11.2K

67.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 ₫33.5M

$542 ₱34.1K

138.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$711 ₫18.4M

$342 ₱21.5K

108.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,676 ₫121.1M

$2,313 ₱145.6K

102.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,904 ₫49.3M

$855 ₱53.8K

122.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$129 ₱8,116

279.81%

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 Pedro: October 13, 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 Pedro

$177 24.5% 40.4% $120

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1%

San Pedro

$171 23.7% 17.3% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3%

San Pedro

$79 11% 35.1% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8%

San Pedro

$161 22.2% 36% $43

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

San Pedro

$75 10.3% 17.9% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

San Pedro

$47 6.5% 44.5% $15

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9%

San Pedro

$13 1.8% 22.2% $3.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $262 in San Pedro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pays 280% 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 $17.00 in San Pedro for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $171 per month, with San Pedro cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇵🇭 San Pedro

🕒 Local time

06:50 6:50 AM

07:50 7:50 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

326,001

💱 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 17, 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 17, 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 Pedro 1,610 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
San Pedro

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 Pedro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Pedro wins on cost – living expenses run 19% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making San Pedro the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 280% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $262 in San Pedro. 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 $724 in San Pedro – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in San Pedro runs roughly 14% 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 $724 in San Pedro versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in San Pedro but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes San Pedro the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but San Pedro delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $724 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes San Pedro hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and San Pedro 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 Pedro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.