Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sa Pa and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $731 in Sa Pa, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Sa Pa
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Sa Pa Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index

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Sa Pa

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$731

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sa Pa and in Dhaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $731 in Sa Pa versus $406 in Dhaka.

Sa Pa $731
Dhaka $406

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,170 in Sa Pa versus $687 in Dhaka.

Sa Pa $1,170
Dhaka $687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,608 in Sa Pa versus $969 in Dhaka.

Sa Pa $1,608
Dhaka $969

Living in Sa Pa is roughly 80% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sa Pa 46% lower, Dhaka 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.89 ₫48.9K

$2.28 ৳282

-17.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.25 ₫550.1K

$12.33 ৳1,523

72.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.50 ₫116.4K

$3.95 ৳488

13.92%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$1.70 ₫44.1K

$2.28 ৳281

-25.44%

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

$0.47 ₫12.1K

$0.33 ৳40.88

42.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ₫7,831

$0.16 ৳19.86

87.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.97 ₫25.1K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₫41.0K

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 ₫35.7K

$0.85 ৳104

62.35%

White Bread (500g)

$0.99 ₫25.8K

$0.60 ৳74.5

65.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.5K

$0.69 ৳85.4

43.48%

Eggs

$1.40 ₫36.2K

$1.23 ৳152

13.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.73 ₫303.8K

$8.80 ৳1,087

33.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ₫95.4K

$3.33 ৳412

10.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.07 ₫260.7K

$6.63 ৳819

51.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 ₫71.0K

$2.85 ৳352

-3.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ₫26.6K

$0.90 ৳111

14.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.36 ₫35.1K

$2.34 ৳289

-41.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 ₫27.8K

$0.63 ৳78.4

69.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 ₫26.5K

$0.24 ৳29.59

325.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.05 ₫27.1K

$0.46 ৳57.3

128.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 ₫16.8K

$0.35 ৳42.79

85.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 ₫12.4K

$0.28 ৳34.24

71.43%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.38 ₫35.7K

$3.28 ৳405

-57.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.61 ₫300.6K

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 ₫19.4K

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 ₫41.7K

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 ₫8,276

$0.42 ৳52.3

-23.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.51 ₫168.6K

$22.43 ৳2,772

-70.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.72 ₫18.7K

$1.19 ৳147

-39.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₫16.0K

$0.39 ৳48.71

58.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.83 ₫73.2K

$3.28 ৳406

-13.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 ₫21.6K

$1.10 ৳136

-24.55%

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

$35.5K ₫920.2M

$29.4K ৳3.6M

20.77%

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

$32.1K ₫829.7M

$32.2K ৳4.0M

-0.34%

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

$76.5 ₫2.0M

$38.28 ৳4,729

99.92%

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

$5.96 ₫154.3K

$4.09 ৳506

45.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.62 ₫223.1K

$9.02 ৳1,114

-4.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.19 ₫574.5K

$13.66 ৳1,688

62.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.59 ₫196.5K

$10.21 ৳1,261

-25.66%

Cinema Ticket

$3.09 ₫79.9K

$4.11 ৳508

-24.82%

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

$266 ₫6.9M

$90.7 ৳11.2K

192.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K ₫303.6M

$2,591 ৳320.2K

352.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.21 ₫1.0M

$17.06 ৳2,108

135.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.33 ₫603.9K

$21.38 ৳2,641

9.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.4 ₫2.2M

$51.4 ৳6,355

65.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.8 ₫2.0M

$36.78 ৳4,545

105.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$365 ₫9.4M

$133 ৳16.4K

174.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$248 ₫6.4M

$65.1 ৳8,041

280.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ₫18.9M

$377 ৳46.6K

93.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$535 ₫13.8M

$192 ৳23.8K

177.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,076 ₫53.7M

$1,621 ৳200.3K

28.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,264 ₫32.7M

$760 ৳93.9K

66.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

10.48

-13.17%

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

Last update for Sa Pa: October 12, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sa Pa

$248 33.9%

Dhaka

$65 16% 73.7% $183

Groceries & Markets

Sa Pa

$191 26.2%

Dhaka

$124 30.5% 35.4% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Sa Pa

$101 13.8%

Dhaka

$57 14.1% 43.6% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sa Pa

$91 12.5%

Dhaka

$51 12.7% 43.6% $40

Eating Out

Sa Pa

$60 8.2%

Dhaka

$59 14.6% 1.2% $0.7

Sport & Entertainment

Sa Pa

$28 3.9%

Dhaka

$22 5.4% 22.8% $6.5

Getting Around

Sa Pa

$12 1.6%

Dhaka

$27 6.7% 135% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $365 in Sa Pa and $133 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $21.00 in Sa Pa vs $12.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $191 vs $124 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Sa Pa

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

07:02 7:02 AM

06:02 6:02 AM

1 h behind Sa Pa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,882

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,105 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sa Pa Dhaka 1,380 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sa Pa
Dhaka

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

Sa Pa vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 80% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,097 in Sa Pa and $609 in Dhaka to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $365 in Sa Pa versus $133 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $731 per month in Sa Pa versus $406 in Dhaka – a 80% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 245% less than in Sa Pa. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka 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, Sa Pa and Dhaka 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 80% less than in Sa Pa. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.