Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hue and Hanoi

For one person, living is cheaper in Hue: $491 a month against $796 in Hanoi, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

24

Cost of Living Index in Hue
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Hue Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Hanoi
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Hanoi Living Index

Jump to prices

Hue

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$491

/mo nomad

Hanoi

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$796

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hue and in Hanoi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $491 in Hue versus $796 in Hanoi.

Hue $491
Hanoi $796

Estimated couple costs with rent: $857 in Hue versus $1,239 in Hanoi.

Hue $857
Hanoi $1,239

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,224 in Hue versus $1,682 in Hanoi.

Hue $1,224
Hanoi $1,682

Living in Hue costs roughly 38% less than in Hanoi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Hue 64% lower, Hanoi 41% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$2.08 ₫53.8K

-45.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.41 ₫295.3K

$23.16 ₫599.5K

-50.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.45 ₫89.4K

$4.46 ₫115.4K

-22.65%

Cappuccino

$1.07 ₫27.7K

$1.87 ₫48.5K

-42.78%

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

$0.59 ₫15.3K

$0.51 ₫13.3K

15.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₫8,259

$0.33 ₫8,670

-3.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.78 ₫20.2K

$1.10 ₫28.4K

-29.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.18 ₫30.5K

$1.89 ₫48.9K

-37.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 ₫34.7K

$1.54 ₫39.8K

-12.99%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₫20.7K

$1.06 ₫27.5K

-24.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.82 ₫21.3K

$0.81 ₫21.1K

1.23%

Eggs

$1.48 ₫38.4K

$1.44 ₫37.4K

2.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.86 ₫332.8K

$10.44 ₫270.4K

23.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.18 ₫108.3K

$3.80 ₫98.5K

10.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.57 ₫247.9K

$9.83 ₫254.5K

-2.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.46 ₫63.7K

$3.47 ₫89.8K

-29.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 ₫27.4K

$1.07 ₫27.7K

-0.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.27 ₫32.8K

$1.33 ₫34.4K

-4.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.69 ₫17.9K

$1.16 ₫30.0K

-40.52%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.5K

$0.91 ₫23.6K

8.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 ₫30.1K

$1.08 ₫27.9K

7.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 ₫15.5K

$0.53 ₫13.8K

13.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 ₫10.5K

$0.57 ₫14.7K

-29.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.30 ₫33.7K

$1.45 ₫37.4K

-10.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.74 ₫200.3K

$12.39 ₫320.9K

-37.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ₫19.2K

$0.96 ₫24.9K

-22.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.33 ₫34.4K

$1.71 ₫44.4K

-22.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.33 ₫8,566

$0.41 ₫10.6K

-19.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.26 ₫188.1K

$9.21 ₫238.5K

-21.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.45 ₫11.6K

$0.76 ₫19.6K

-40.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.55 ₫14.3K

$0.59 ₫15.3K

-6.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.47 ₫64.0K

$2.36 ₫61.1K

4.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 ₫23.7K

$0.93 ₫24.1K

-2.15%

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

$31.1K ₫804.2M

$31.2K ₫807.4M

-0.39%

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

$27.6K ₫713.4M

$29.4K ₫761.8M

-6.36%

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

$38.32 ₫992.1K

$87.2 ₫2.3M

-56.06%

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

$6.39 ₫165.5K

$5.15 ₫133.5K

24.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.77 ₫201.3K

$9.11 ₫235.9K

-14.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.39 ₫1.0M

$24.70 ₫639.3K

59.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.75 ₫200.6K

$9.58 ₫248.0K

-19.10%

Cinema Ticket

$3.43 ₫88.7K

$4.53 ₫117.4K

-24.28%

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

$164 ₫4.2M

$787 ₫20.4M

-79.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,008 ₫233.2M

$27.2K ₫705.3M

-66.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.36 ₫811.9K

$49.25 ₫1.3M

-36.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.66 ₫483.1K

$26.22 ₫678.7K

-28.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$39.33 ₫1.0M

$84.9 ₫2.2M

-53.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.55 ₫998.1K

$79.2 ₫2.0M

-51.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ₫3.5M

$414 ₫10.7M

-67.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$101 ₫2.6M

$277 ₫7.2M

-63.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 ₫13.4M

$858 ₫22.2M

-39.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$353 ₫9.1M

$535 ₫13.9M

-34.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,511 ₫39.1M

$5,258 ₫136.1M

-71.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,147 ₫29.7M

$2,847 ₫73.7M

-59.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$291 ₫7.5M

$515 ₫13.3M

-43.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.87

8.28

-17.03%

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

Last update for Hue: October 17, 2026

Last update for Hanoi: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Hue

$180 36.7%

Hanoi

$197 24.7% 9% $16

Accommodation & Living

Hue

$101 20.5%

Hanoi

$277 34.8% 175% $176

Clothing & Footwear

Hue

$58 11.7%

Hanoi

$108 13.5% 87.2% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hue

$52 10.7%

Hanoi

$101 12.7% 93.3% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Hue

$46 9.4%

Hanoi

$34 4.2% 27% $12

Eating Out

Hue

$42 8.6%

Hanoi

$65 8.2% 54.2% $23

Getting Around

Hue

$12 2.4%

Hanoi

$15 1.8% 23.4% $2.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Hue and $414 in Hanoi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hanoi pays 77% 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: $11.00 in Hue vs $23.00 in Hanoi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $180 vs $197 per month, with Hue cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Hue

🇻🇳 Hanoi

🕒 Local time

21:18 9:18 PM

Same time as Hue

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,166,500

8,587,100 Capital

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Hue Hanoi 540 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Hue
Hanoi

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

Hue vs Hanoi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hue and Hanoi differ by about 62% in total monthly costs ($491 vs $796 including rent). Hue is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 77% lower in Hanoi. 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: $133 in Hue versus $414 in Hanoi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Hue runs roughly 27% less than in Hanoi. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $164 in Hue versus $787 in Hanoi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Hue gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Hue and Hanoi 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 Hue gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Hanoi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.