Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hoi An and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Hoi An: $876 a month against $1,599 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Hoi An
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Hoi An Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

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Hoi An

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$876

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,599

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hoi An and in Cape Town

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Hoi An and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $876 per month in Hoi An vs $1,599 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hoi An $876
Cape Town $1,599

A couple spends around $1,279 per month in Hoi An vs $2,460 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hoi An $1,279
Cape Town $2,460

A family of three spends $1,682 per month in Hoi An vs $3,320 in Cape Town, rent included.

Hoi An $1,682
Cape Town $3,320

Hoi An is about 45% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Hoi An sits 35% below the global median, while Cape Town is 18% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ₫59.1K

$12.07 R 199

-81.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.56 ₫480.5K

$46.65 R 769

-60.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.77 ₫97.7K

$6.20 R 102

-39.19%

Cappuccino

$1.74 ₫44.9K

$2.50 R 41.13

-30.40%

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

$0.62 ₫16.0K

$1.35 R 22.28

-54.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,896

$1.00 R 16.47

-66.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.36 ₫35.2K

$3.06 R 50.4

-55.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₫34.0K

$3.67 R 60.5

-64.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$1.30 R 21.45

21.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.20 ₫31.2K

$1.27 R 20.89

-5.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$2.17 R 35.68

-53.92%

Eggs

$1.49 ₫38.5K

$3.09 R 50.9

-51.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.96 ₫335.6K

$8.98 R 148

44.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.09 ₫105.8K

$6.99 R 115

-41.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.27 ₫239.9K

$9.67 R 159

-4.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 ₫68.2K

$1.87 R 30.78

40.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 ₫28.6K

$1.93 R 31.72

-42.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.00 ₫26.0K

$1.77 R 29.13

-43.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ₫37.4K

$2.18 R 35.86

-33.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 ₫30.6K

$1.52 R 25.07

-22.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ₫28.1K

$1.56 R 25.63

-30.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$1.32 R 21.74

-53.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₫12.8K

$1.15 R 18.97

-57.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.50 ₫38.7K

$3.72 R 61.4

-59.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.57 ₫196.1K

$6.01 R 99.0

25.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ₫23.9K

$1.34 R 22.13

-31.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 ₫39.4K

$2.13 R 35.11

-28.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₫5,666

$1.55 R 25.53

-85.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$3.82 ₫98.8K

$61.3 R 1,010

-93.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.99 ₫25.6K

$0.60 R 9.85

65.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ₫14.7K

$1.54 R 25.36

-62.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.96 ₫102.6K

$5.01 R 82.5

-20.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 ₫24.3K

$1.60 R 26.33

-41.25%

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

$30.9K ₫800.8M

$35.4K R 583.4K

-12.66%

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

$28.4K ₫736.2M

$34.7K R 570.9K

-17.94%

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

$77.8 ₫2.0M

$119 R 1,955

-34.45%

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

$6.45 ₫167.1K

$29.42 R 485

-78.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.03 ₫207.9K

$39.81 R 656

-79.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.74 ₫433.5K

$50.8 R 836

-67.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.74 ₫122.8K

$10.93 R 180

-56.63%

Cinema Ticket

$3.06 ₫79.1K

$8.99 R 148

-65.96%

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

$116 ₫3.0M

$261 R 4,303

-55.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ₫441.8M

$6,966 R 114.8K

144.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.44 ₫1.2M

$56.1 R 925

-17.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.51 ₫712.2K

$33.26 R 548

-17.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.8 ₫1.8M

$121 R 1,999

-43.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 ₫2.1M

$108 R 1,779

-25.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 ₫11.2M

$1,028 R 16.9K

-57.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$395 ₫10.2M

$720 R 11.9K

-45.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$533 ₫13.8M

$1,835 R 30.2K

-70.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$626 ₫16.2M

$1,360 R 22.4K

-54.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,561 ₫40.4M

$2,407 R 39.6K

-35.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$982 ₫25.4M

$1,504 R 24.8K

-34.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$294 ₫7.6M

$1,649 R 27.2K

-82.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.34

10.97

-5.74%

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

Last update for Hoi An: October 19, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hoi An

$395 45.1%

Cape Town

$720 45% 82% $324

Groceries & Markets

Hoi An

$193 22%

Cape Town

$226 14.2% 17.3% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Hoi An

$101 11.5%

Cape Town

$143 9% 42.5% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hoi An

$92 10.5%

Cape Town

$188 11.8% 104% $96

Eating Out

Hoi An

$64 7.3%

Cape Town

$177 11.1% 178% $113

Sport & Entertainment

Hoi An

$23 2.6%

Cape Town

$69 4.3% 201% $46

Getting Around

Hoi An

$8.5 1%

Cape Town

$76 4.7% 791% $67

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $433 in Hoi An versus $1,028 in Cape Town. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 462% higher in Cape Town, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Hoi An versus $47.00 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $193 vs $226 – making Hoi An the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Hoi An

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

21:24 9:24 PM

16:24 4:24 PM

5 h behind Hoi An

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

120,000

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hoi An Cape Town 10,980 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Hoi An
Cape Town

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

Hoi An vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 82% more than Hoi An, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,314 per month in Hoi An and $2,398 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Hoi An, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $876 in Hoi An and $1,599 in Cape Town. That's a gap of about 82%.

Public transport costs about 1504% less in Hoi An. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Hoi An, where all-in costs run around $876, than in Cape Town at $1,599. In Hoi An it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cape Town it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Hoi An costs $876 versus $1,599 in Cape Town. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Hoi An. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.