Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Samarinda: $647 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Samarinda
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Samarinda Living Index
42

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

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Samarinda

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$647

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Samarinda 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 Samarinda and in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $647 in Samarinda versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Samarinda $647
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,021 in Samarinda versus $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Samarinda $1,021
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,395 in Samarinda versus $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Samarinda $1,395
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Living in Samarinda costs roughly 25% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Samarinda 52% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.70 Rp 30.6K

$1.91 ₫49.6K

-10.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.69 Rp 246.4K

$22.84 ₫591.2K

-40.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.35 Rp 60.2K

$4.54 ₫117.6K

-26.21%

Cappuccino

$1.53 Rp 27.5K

$1.85 ₫48.0K

-17.30%

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

$0.44 Rp 7,903

$0.56 ₫14.6K

-21.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 Rp 4,499

$0.32 ₫8,185

-21.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.27 Rp 40.9K

$1.06 ₫27.5K

114.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 Rp 62.1K

$1.72 ₫44.5K

100.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 Rp 19.2K

$1.66 ₫42.9K

-35.54%

White Bread (500g)

$0.83 Rp 14.9K

$1.11 ₫28.7K

-25.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.71 Rp 12.8K

$1.00 ₫25.9K

-29.00%

Eggs

$1.40 Rp 25.3K

$1.67 ₫43.1K

-16.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.21 Rp 129.9K

$12.08 ₫312.8K

-40.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.61 Rp 65.0K

$3.68 ₫95.2K

-1.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.04 Rp 180.7K

$10.24 ₫265.1K

-1.95%

Apples (1kg)

$5.14 Rp 92.4K

$2.96 ₫76.5K

73.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 Rp 20.0K

$1.24 ₫32.2K

-10.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.09 Rp 19.5K

$1.56 ₫40.3K

-30.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 Rp 26.5K

$1.30 ₫33.6K

13.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 Rp 23.8K

$1.23 ₫31.9K

7.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.76 Rp 31.7K

$1.15 ₫29.8K

53.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 Rp 13.6K

$0.74 ₫19.1K

1.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 Rp 9,097

$0.56 ₫14.4K

-8.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.08 Rp 37.4K

$1.24 ₫32.1K

67.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.04 Rp 378.7K

$12.60 ₫326.1K

66.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 Rp 28.8K

$0.96 ₫24.9K

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 Rp 45.4K

$1.53 ₫39.6K

64.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 Rp 5,403

$0.26 ₫6,694

15.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.51 ₫297.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 Rp 8,935

$0.75 ₫19.5K

-33.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.34 Rp 6,183

$0.67 ₫17.4K

-49.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 Rp 48.0K

$3.03 ₫78.5K

-11.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.81 Rp 14.6K

$0.96 ₫24.8K

-15.62%

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

$26.8K Rp 482.4M

$31.1K ₫804.3M

-13.73%

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

$31.1K Rp 559.1M

$30.4K ₫785.9M

2.32%

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

$67.2 Rp 1.2M

$102 ₫2.6M

-34.07%

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

$4.75 Rp 85.5K

$5.89 ₫152.5K

-19.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.78 Rp 338.0K

$10.49 ₫271.6K

79.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.72 Rp 354.9K

$25.54 ₫661.2K

-22.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.94 Rp 160.9K

$11.92 ₫308.5K

-25.00%

Cinema Ticket

$2.75 Rp 49.4K

$3.53 ₫91.3K

-22.10%

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

$89.9 Rp 1.6M

$436 ₫11.3M

-79.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,095 Rp 145.7M

$23.3K ₫602.8M

-65.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.77 Rp 859.9K

$52.8 ₫1.4M

-9.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.33 Rp 582.0K

$34.15 ₫884.1K

-5.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.9 Rp 1.4M

$90.3 ₫2.3M

-14.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.1 Rp 1.3M

$95.0 ₫2.5M

-21.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$195 Rp 3.5M

$589 ₫15.3M

-66.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 Rp 2.7M

$298 ₫7.7M

-50.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$491 Rp 8.8M

$1,292 ₫33.5M

-62.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$338 Rp 6.1M

$711 ₫18.4M

-52.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,107 Rp 19.9M

$4,676 ₫121.1M

-76.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$730 Rp 13.1M

$1,904 ₫49.3M

-61.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$336 Rp 6.0M

$490 ₫12.7M

-31.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

8.64

9.49%

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

Last update for Samarinda: October 12, 2026

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Samarinda

$213 32.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1% 2.7% $5.7

Accommodation & Living

Samarinda

$148 22.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7% 102% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Samarinda

$104 16.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3% 17.7% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Samarinda

$91 14%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8% 30.4% $28

Eating Out

Samarinda

$63 9.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4% 0.7% $0.5

Sport & Entertainment

Samarinda

$25 3.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 29.3% $7.4

Getting Around

Samarinda

$3.4 * 0.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9% 388% $13

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $195 in Samarinda and $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pays 46% 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: $14.00 in Samarinda vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Groceries flip the comparison at $213 vs $207, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Samarinda

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

12:06 12:06 PM

11:06 11:06 AM

1 h behind Samarinda

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

726,223

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 19, 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 IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Samarinda Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 1,700 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Samarinda
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

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

Samarinda wins on cost – living expenses run 33% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Samarinda the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 46% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $195 in Samarinda versus $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) pay roughly 3% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $647 per month in Samarinda versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – a 33% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $647 in Samarinda versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $2,000 budget is realistic in Samarinda but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Samarinda the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Samarinda delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $647 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Samarinda hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Samarinda 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 Samarinda gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.