Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hoi An and Zanzibar

For one person, living is cheaper in Zanzibar: $579 a month against $876 in Hoi An, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Hoi An outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

43

Cost of Living Index in Hoi An
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Hoi An Living Index
28

Cost of Living Index in Zanzibar
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Zanzibar Living Index

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Hoi An

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$876

/mo nomad

Zanzibar

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$579

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hoi An and in Zanzibar

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

A single person spends $876 per month in Hoi An vs $579 in Zanzibar, rent included.

Hoi An $876
Zanzibar $579

A couple spends around $1,279 per month in Hoi An vs $864 in Zanzibar, rent included.

Hoi An $1,279
Zanzibar $864

A family of three spends $1,682 per month in Hoi An vs $1,148 in Zanzibar, rent included.

Hoi An $1,682
Zanzibar $1,148

Hoi An costs about 51% more than Zanzibar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Hoi An and Zanzibar are more affordable than the global median – Hoi An 35% lower, Zanzibar 57% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ₫59.1K

$4.70 TZS 12.3K

-51.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.56 ₫480.5K

$22.08 TZS 57.8K

-15.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.77 ₫97.7K

$5.59 TZS 14.6K

-32.56%

Cappuccino

$1.74 ₫44.9K

$2.20 TZS 5,769

-20.91%

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

$0.62 ₫16.0K

$0.58 TZS 1,520

6.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ₫8,896

$0.30 TZS 776

13.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.36 ₫35.2K

$1.86 TZS 4,879

-26.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₫34.0K

$2.58 TZS 6,764

-49.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ₫40.8K

$2.11 TZS 5,521

-25.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.20 ₫31.2K

$0.71 TZS 1,859

69.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.00 ₫25.9K

$0.79 TZS 2,058

26.58%

Eggs

$1.49 ₫38.5K

$2.71 TZS 7,092

-45.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.96 ₫335.6K

$7.58 TZS 19.9K

70.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.09 ₫105.8K

$2.21 TZS 5,776

85.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.27 ₫239.9K

$5.87 TZS 15.4K

57.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 ₫68.2K

$2.78 TZS 7,271

-5.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 ₫28.6K

$1.15 TZS 3,001

-3.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.00 ₫26.0K

$0.78 TZS 2,050

28.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ₫37.4K

$0.55 TZS 1,428

161.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 ₫30.6K

$0.90 TZS 2,351

31.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ₫28.1K

$1.55 TZS 4,063

-29.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ₫16.1K

$0.76 TZS 2,003

-18.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₫12.8K

$0.49 TZS 1,274

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.50 ₫38.7K

$2.08 TZS 5,445

-27.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.57 ₫196.1K

$9.55 TZS 25.0K

-20.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ₫23.9K

$1.50 TZS 3,921

-38.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 ₫39.4K

$1.35 TZS 3,536

12.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₫5,666

$0.31 TZS 825

-29.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$3.82 ₫98.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.99 ₫25.6K

$3.69 TZS 9,672

-73.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ₫14.7K

$0.73 TZS 1,920

-21.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.96 ₫102.6K

$2.66 TZS 6,964

48.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 ₫24.3K

$1.21 TZS 3,180

-22.31%

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

$30.9K ₫800.8M

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

$28.4K ₫736.2M

$48.9K TZS 128.1M

-41.87%

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

$77.8 ₫2.0M

$74.3 TZS 194.6K

4.64%

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

$6.45 ₫167.1K

$11.29 TZS 29.6K

-42.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.03 ₫207.9K

$48.43 TZS 126.8K

-83.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.74 ₫433.5K

$28.77 TZS 75.3K

-41.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.74 ₫122.8K

Cinema Ticket

$3.06 ₫79.1K

$9.26 TZS 24.3K

-66.95%

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

$116 ₫3.0M

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ₫441.8M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.44 ₫1.2M

$13.12 TZS 34.3K

253.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.51 ₫712.2K

$16.88 TZS 44.2K

62.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.8 ₫1.8M

$15.05 TZS 39.4K

357.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 ₫2.1M

$13.05 TZS 34.2K

519.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 ₫11.2M

$147 TZS 385.1K

194.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$395 ₫10.2M

$100 TZS 262.1K

295.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$533 ₫13.8M

$198 TZS 518.2K

169.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$626 ₫16.2M

$148 TZS 388.8K

321.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,561 ₫40.4M

$37.8K TZS 99.1M

-95.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$982 ₫25.4M

$11.5K TZS 30.1M

-91.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$294 ₫7.6M

$312 TZS 816.7K

-5.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.34

3.40%

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

Last update for Hoi An: October 19, 2026

Last update for Zanzibar: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hoi An

$395 45.1%

Zanzibar

$100 17.3% 74.7% $295

Groceries & Markets

Hoi An

$193 22%

Zanzibar

$164 28.3% 14.9% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Hoi An

$101 11.5%

Zanzibar

$26 4.5% 74% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hoi An

$92 10.5%

Zanzibar

$134 23.2% 45.3% $42

Eating Out

Hoi An

$64 7.3%

Zanzibar

$99 17.1% 55% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Hoi An

$23 2.6%

Zanzibar

$47 8.2% 107% $24

Getting Around

Hoi An

$8.5 1%

Zanzibar

$8.6 * 1.5% 1.3% $0.1

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $433 in Hoi An versus $147 in Zanzibar. 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 6% higher in Zanzibar, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Hoi An versus $22.00 in Zanzibar. Groceries tell a different story – $193 in Hoi An vs $164 in Zanzibar – so Zanzibar wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Hoi An

🇹🇿 Zanzibar

🕒 Local time

18:11 6:11 PM

14:11 2:11 PM

4 h behind Hoi An

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

120,000

709,809

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TZS, 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).

Tanzanian Shilling exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2,619 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD). 1 EUR = 2,944 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hoi An Zanzibar 7,990 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Hoi An
Zanzibar

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 Zanzibar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $876 in Hoi An, $579 in Zanzibar – roughly 51% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,314 per month in Hoi An and $869 in Zanzibar. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Hoi An and $22.00 in Zanzibar. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $876 in Hoi An and $579 in Zanzibar. That's a gap of about 51%.

$800 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $876 in Hoi An and $579 in Zanzibar, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Hoi An has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $579 in Zanzibar to $876 in Hoi An. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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