Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Siem Reap: $818 a month against $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $420 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

41

Cost of Living Index in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Siem Reap
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Siem Reap Living Index

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$853

/mo nomad

Siem Reap

🇰🇭 Cambodia

$818

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $853 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $818 in Siem Reap.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $853
Siem Reap $818

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,391 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,338 in Siem Reap.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,391
Siem Reap $1,338

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,930 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,858 in Siem Reap.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,930
Siem Reap $1,858

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 4% more expensive than in Siem Reap, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 37% lower, Siem Reap 40% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.3K

$2.51 ៛10.2K

-23.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.93 ₫591.8K

$23.83 ៛97.1K

-3.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.69 ₫121.0K

$8.06 ៛32.8K

-41.81%

Cappuccino

$1.80 ₫46.4K

$1.67 ៛6,788

7.78%

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

$0.55 ₫14.2K

$0.71 ៛2,889

-22.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,802

$0.40 ៛1,625

-15.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₫26.7K

$1.03 ៛4,190

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.4K

$1.98 ៛8,078

-13.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 ₫43.0K

$2.18 ៛8,875

-23.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₫28.2K

$1.74 ៛7,078

-37.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.06 ₫27.2K

$0.94 ៛3,824

12.77%

Eggs

$1.60 ₫41.2K

$1.75 ៛7,119

-8.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫311.8K

$15.24 ៛62.1K

-20.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.66 ₫94.4K

$2.95 ៛12.0K

24.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.35 ₫267.0K

$10.07 ៛41.0K

2.78%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 ₫77.7K

$4.23 ៛17.2K

-28.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.28 ៛5,227

-1.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ₫41.9K

$3.83 ៛15.6K

-57.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ₫32.7K

$1.05 ៛4,284

20.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 ₫30.5K

$1.32 ៛5,377

-10.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 ₫30.7K

$1.11 ៛4,528

7.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.78 ₫20.1K

$1.29 ៛5,264

-39.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₫14.2K

$0.80 ៛3,242

-31.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.26 ₫32.5K

$1.42 ៛5,773

-11.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.85 ₫331.5K

$8.11 ៛33.1K

58.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₫23.1K

$1.00 ៛4,070

-10.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.46 ₫37.6K

$2.32 ៛9,450

-37.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₫7,252

$1.03 ៛4,178

-72.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.42 ₫294.7K

$15.11 ៛61.6K

-24.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.70 ₫18.1K

$2.01 ៛8,210

-65.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 ₫16.2K

$1.01 ៛4,134

-37.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.09 ₫79.7K

$5.08 ៛20.7K

-39.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ₫24.5K

$1.24 ៛5,065

-23.39%

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

$30.5K ₫787.4M

$24.7K ៛100.6M

23.58%

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

$29.7K ₫767.0M

$22.7K ៛92.5M

31.00%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$101 ៛410.7K

1.42%

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

$5.65 ₫145.7K

$5.53 ៛22.5K

2.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.43 ₫269.2K

$15.38 ៛62.7K

-32.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.30 ₫498.1K

$33.19 ៛135.3K

-41.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.81 ₫304.8K

$13.75 ៛56.0K

-14.11%

Cinema Ticket

$3.83 ₫98.8K

$5.14 ៛20.9K

-25.49%

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

$484 ₫12.5M

$286 ៛1.2M

69.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫601.6M

$4,379 ៛17.8M

432.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.3 ₫1.3M

$26.54 ៛108.2K

96.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.35 ₫886.3K

$13.43 ៛54.7K

155.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.3 ₫2.4M

$67.5 ៛274.8K

36.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.2 ₫2.4M

$44.82 ៛182.6K

110.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$647 ₫16.7M

$337 ៛1.4M

92.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

$244 ៛993.1K

21.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,291 ₫33.3M

$685 ៛2.8M

88.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$719 ₫18.6M

$603 ៛2.5M

19.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,327 ₫111.6M

$2,492 ៛10.2M

73.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,987 ₫51.3M

$1,074 ៛4.4M

84.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.6M

$234 ៛952.9K

109.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

9.2

-6.09%

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

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 26, 2026

Last update for Siem Reap: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.9%

Siem Reap

$244 29.8% 18% $53

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.4%

Siem Reap

$237 28.9% 13.8% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4%

Siem Reap

$69 8.4% 44.3% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9%

Siem Reap

$122 14.9% 2.9% $3.4

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

Siem Reap

$78 9.5% 23.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$27 3.2%

Siem Reap

$43 5.3% 61.2% $17

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9%

Siem Reap

$26 3.2% 60.4% $9.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $647 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $337 in Siem Reap. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $23 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $24 in Siem Reap for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $208 vs $237 per month, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇰🇭 Siem Reap

🕒 Local time

10:35 10:35 AM

Same time as Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

171,800

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Cambodian Riel KHR ៛

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.88 USD

100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR

10,000 KHR = 2.45 USD

10,000 KHR = 2.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KHR, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 25,802 VND (100,000 VND = 3.88 USD). 1 EUR = 28,810 VND (100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR).

Cambodian Riel exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4,075 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.45 USD). 1 EUR = 4,550 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.2 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Siem Reap 420 km

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Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
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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 Siem Reap: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Siem Reap wins on cost – living expenses run 4% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Siem Reap the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is about 2.1 times higher, 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: $647 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $337 in Siem Reap. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $853 per month in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $818 in Siem Reap – Siem Reap is about 4% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) runs roughly 24% less than in Siem Reap. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Siem Reap is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Siem Reap delivers better value at $818 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Siem Reap hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Siem Reap are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Siem Reap wins on affordability, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.