Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Xinxiang: $644 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $2,600 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
31

Cost of Living Index in Xinxiang
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Xinxiang Living Index

Jump to prices

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Xinxiang

🇨🇳 China

$644

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $644 in Xinxiang.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859
Xinxiang $644

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,012 in Xinxiang.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395
Xinxiang $1,012

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,380 in Xinxiang.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931
Xinxiang $1,380

Living in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is roughly 33% more expensive than in Xinxiang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower, Xinxiang 52% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.91 ₫49.6K

$1.83 ¥12.22

4.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.84 ₫591.2K

$16.58 ¥111

37.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.54 ₫117.6K

$4.47 ¥29.86

1.57%

Cappuccino

$1.85 ₫48.0K

$1.92 ¥12.82

-3.65%

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

$0.56 ₫14.6K

$0.45 ¥3.01

24.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,185

$0.16 ¥1.10

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ₫27.5K

$0.84 ¥5.65

26.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.5K

$1.46 ¥9.77

17.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₫42.9K

$1.74 ¥11.62

-4.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 ₫28.7K

$1.65 ¥11.01

-32.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$0.87 ¥5.85

14.94%

Eggs

$1.67 ₫43.1K

$0.92 ¥6.15

81.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 ₫312.8K

$8.05 ¥53.8

50.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ₫95.2K

$3.25 ¥21.75

13.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 ₫265.1K

$10.66 ¥71.3

-3.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ₫76.5K

$1.50 ¥10.04

97.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 ₫32.2K

$0.99 ¥6.60

25.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ₫40.3K

$1.10 ¥7.39

41.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.30 ₫33.6K

$1.22 ¥8.13

6.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 ₫31.9K

$0.63 ¥4.21

95.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.8K

$0.71 ¥4.77

61.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 ₫19.1K

$0.28 ¥1.89

164.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₫14.4K

$0.38 ¥2.57

47.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.24 ₫32.1K

$2.67 ¥17.87

-53.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.60 ₫326.1K

$14.69 ¥98.2

-14.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₫24.9K

$0.69 ¥4.61

39.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 ₫39.6K

$2.08 ¥13.92

-26.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₫6,694

$0.28 ¥1.86

-7.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.51 ₫297.9K

$17.63 ¥118

-34.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 ₫19.5K

$1.22 ¥8.16

-38.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 ₫17.4K

$0.13 ¥0.87

415.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 ₫78.5K

$3.69 ¥24.65

-17.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.96 ₫24.8K

$1.15 ¥7.66

-16.52%

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

$31.1K ₫804.3M

$19.1K ¥127.9K

62.47%

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

$30.4K ₫785.9M

$17.4K ¥116.4K

74.42%

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

$102 ₫2.6M

$70.4 ¥470

44.94%

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

$5.89 ₫152.5K

$3.06 ¥20.46

92.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.49 ₫271.6K

$5.81 ¥38.84

80.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.54 ₫661.2K

$36.47 ¥244

-29.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.92 ₫308.5K

$13.95 ¥93.2

-14.55%

Cinema Ticket

$3.53 ₫91.3K

$5.87 ¥39.23

-39.86%

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

$436 ₫11.3M

$388 ¥2,596

12.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K ₫602.8M

$30.3K ¥202.4K

-23.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 ₫1.4M

$18.23 ¥122

189.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.15 ₫884.1K

$30.46 ¥204

12.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.3 ₫2.3M

$57.0 ¥381

58.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.0 ₫2.5M

$45.13 ¥302

110.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$589 ₫15.3M

$302 ¥2,018

95.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ₫7.7M

$184 ¥1,228

62.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 ₫33.5M

$629 ¥4,205

105.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$711 ₫18.4M

$380 ¥2,539

87.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,676 ₫121.1M

$3,873 ¥25.9K

20.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,904 ₫49.3M

$2,083 ¥13.9K

-8.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

$536 ¥3,582

-8.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.64

3.29

162.61%

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 Xinxiang: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7%

Xinxiang

$184 28.6% 38.3% $114

Groceries & Markets

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1%

Xinxiang

$183 28.5% 11.5% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3%

Xinxiang

$68 10.5% 44.6% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8%

Xinxiang

$79 12.3% 33.1% $39

Eating Out

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4%

Xinxiang

$61 9.4% 4.4% $2.8

Sport & Entertainment

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8%

Xinxiang

$48 7.5% 47.9% $16

Getting Around

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9%

Xinxiang

$21 3.2% 23.7% $4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and $302 in Xinxiang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Xinxiang pays 9% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) vs $17.00 in Xinxiang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $183 per month, with Xinxiang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇨🇳 Xinxiang

🕒 Local time

10:52 10:52 AM

11:52 11:52 AM

1 h ahead of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,456,700

5,707,801

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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) Xinxiang 2,820 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Xinxiang

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 Xinxiang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Xinxiang wins on cost – living expenses run 33% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Xinxiang the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 9% lower in Xinxiang. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $302 in Xinxiang. 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 $644 in Xinxiang – a 33% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Xinxiang runs roughly 53% 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 $644 in Xinxiang versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Xinxiang but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Xinxiang the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Xinxiang delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $644 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Xinxiang hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Xinxiang 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 Xinxiang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.