Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Putian: $518 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

25

Cost of Living Index in Putian
Learn more

Putian Living Index
42

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

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Living Index

Jump to prices

Putian

🇨🇳 China

$518

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Putian and in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $518 in Putian versus $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Putian $518
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $862

Estimated couple costs with rent: $854 in Putian versus $1,410 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Putian $854
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,190 in Putian versus $1,958 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Putian $1,190
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,958

Living in Putian costs roughly 40% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Putian 62% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.21 ¥14.79

$1.98 ₫51.3K

11.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.26 ¥156

$23.14 ₫599.0K

0.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.17 ¥34.57

$4.76 ₫123.2K

8.61%

Cappuccino

$2.44 ¥16.32

$1.86 ₫48.1K

31.18%

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

$0.43 ¥2.88

$0.51 ₫13.3K

-15.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.92

$0.32 ₫8,191

-9.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.77 ¥5.16

$1.03 ₫26.7K

-25.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 ¥19.58

$1.71 ₫44.4K

71.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 ¥9.82

$1.58 ₫40.8K

-6.96%

White Bread (500g)

$2.25 ¥15.07

$1.09 ₫28.3K

106.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.19

$1.05 ₫27.2K

-11.43%

Eggs

$1.58 ¥10.58

$1.64 ₫42.6K

-3.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.73 ¥78.4

$12.33 ₫319.2K

-4.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.43 ¥16.22

$3.58 ₫92.6K

-32.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.18 ¥81.4

$10.56 ₫273.3K

15.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 ¥17.03

$2.97 ₫76.9K

-14.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 ¥9.49

$1.26 ₫32.7K

12.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.70 ¥11.34

$1.62 ₫42.0K

4.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ¥13.25

$1.31 ₫33.8K

51.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 ¥6.79

$1.19 ₫30.8K

-14.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 ¥11.86

$1.14 ₫29.6K

55.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 ¥6.19

$0.73 ₫18.8K

27.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ¥3.36

$0.56 ₫14.6K

-10.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 ¥20.31

$1.28 ₫33.0K

137.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.18 ¥74.8

$12.46 ₫322.5K

-10.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 ¥5.58

$0.96 ₫24.9K

-13.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 ¥11.44

$1.48 ₫38.3K

15.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.74 ¥4.92

$0.26 ₫6,704

184.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.38 ¥150

$11.43 ₫296.0K

95.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 ¥10.16

$0.68 ₫17.7K

123.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 ¥1.94

$0.62 ₫16.1K

-53.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.02 ¥46.94

$3.00 ₫77.7K

134.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ¥8.76

$0.91 ₫23.5K

43.96%

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

$19.4K ¥129.8K

$30.6K ₫791.4M

-36.49%

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

$17.8K ¥118.8K

$29.4K ₫760.1M

-39.48%

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

$44.03 ¥294

$104 ₫2.7M

-57.57%

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

$8.87 ¥59.3

$5.79 ₫149.9K

53.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.55 ¥70.6

$10.48 ₫271.3K

0.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.08 ₫675.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.90 ₫308.1K

Cinema Ticket

$10.08 ¥67.4

$3.89 ₫100.7K

159.13%

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

$492 ¥3,286

$440 ₫11.4M

11.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.5K ¥163.6K

$24.1K ₫622.7M

1.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.10 ¥261

$50.9 ₫1.3M

-23.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.11 ¥195

$35.18 ₫910.8K

-17.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 ¥691

$92.1 ₫2.4M

12.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.7 ¥573

$96.5 ₫2.5M

-11.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₫15.1M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$297 ₫7.7M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,298 ₫33.6M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$727 ₫18.8M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,637 ¥17.6K

$4,782 ₫123.8M

-44.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,115 ¥7,452

$1,853 ₫48.0M

-39.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$480 ¥3,211

$490 ₫12.7M

-1.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.46

8.64

-59.95%

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

Last update for Putian: October 20, 2026

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Putian

$215 41.6%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1% 3.5% $7.6

Clothing & Footwear

Putian

$116 22.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3% 6.8% $7.8

Eating Out

Putian

$75 14.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5% 14.3% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Putian

$63 12.3%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9% 89.2% $57

Getting Around

Putian

$28 5.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9% 42.5% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Putian

$20 * 3.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9% 68% $14

Accommodation & Living

Putian

- * 0%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pays 2% 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: $23.00 in Putian vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Groceries flip the comparison at $215 vs $208, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Putian

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

06:19 6:19 AM

05:19 5:19 AM

1 h behind Putian

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,954,000

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

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).

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).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Putian Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 2,080 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Putian
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

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

Putian vs Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Putian wins on cost – living expenses run 66% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Putian the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 2% lower in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

All in, you'll spend $518 per month in Putian versus $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – a 66% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Putian runs roughly 96% 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 $518 in Putian versus $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Putian but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Putian the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Putian delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $518 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Putian hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Putian and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 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 Putian gentler on the wallet – expenses run 66% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.