Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): $859 a month against $1,020 in Selangor, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Selangor
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Selangor 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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Selangor

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,020

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,020 in Selangor versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Selangor $1,020
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,469 in Selangor versus $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Selangor $1,469
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,918 in Selangor versus $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Selangor $1,918
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Living in Selangor is roughly 19% more expensive than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Selangor 24% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.33 MYR 17.67

$1.91 ₫49.6K

126.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.20 MYR 78.3

$22.84 ₫591.2K

-15.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.04 MYR 16.46

$4.54 ₫117.6K

-11.01%

Cappuccino

$2.26 MYR 9.23

$1.85 ₫48.0K

22.16%

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

$0.78 MYR 3.18

$0.56 ₫14.6K

39.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.93

$0.32 ₫8,185

46.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.43 MYR 18.08

$1.06 ₫27.5K

317.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.96 MYR 20.24

$1.72 ₫44.5K

188.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 MYR 7.87

$1.66 ₫42.9K

16.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 MYR 4.30

$1.11 ₫28.7K

-5.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 MYR 6.25

$1.00 ₫25.9K

53.00%

Eggs

$1.92 MYR 7.82

$1.67 ₫43.1K

14.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.26 MYR 58.2

$12.08 ₫312.8K

18.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.36 MYR 17.78

$3.68 ₫95.2K

18.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.60 MYR 39.16

$10.24 ₫265.1K

-6.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 MYR 14.04

$2.96 ₫76.5K

16.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 MYR 7.52

$1.24 ₫32.2K

48.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 MYR 9.55

$1.56 ₫40.3K

50.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 MYR 6.49

$1.30 ₫33.6K

22.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 MYR 5.45

$1.23 ₫31.9K

8.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 MYR 4.21

$1.15 ₫29.8K

-10.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 MYR 4.52

$0.74 ₫19.1K

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MYR 2.19

$0.56 ₫14.4K

-3.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.50 MYR 18.35

$1.24 ₫32.1K

262.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.53 MYR 79.7

$12.60 ₫326.1K

55.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.59 MYR 14.64

$0.96 ₫24.9K

273.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.86 MYR 19.81

$1.53 ₫39.6K

217.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 MYR 4.87

$0.26 ₫6,694

357.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.26 MYR 50.0

$11.51 ₫297.9K

6.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.24 MYR 5.06

$0.75 ₫19.5K

65.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 MYR 5.10

$0.67 ₫17.4K

86.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.34 MYR 17.72

$3.03 ₫78.5K

43.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.73 MYR 2.99

$0.96 ₫24.8K

-23.96%

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

$41.9K MYR 171.0K

$31.1K ₫804.3M

34.89%

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

$35.3K MYR 143.8K

$30.4K ₫785.9M

16.12%

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

$63.4 MYR 258

$102 ₫2.6M

-37.87%

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

$8.50 MYR 34.69

$5.89 ₫152.5K

44.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.97 MYR 106

$10.49 ₫271.6K

147.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.09 MYR 168

$25.54 ₫661.2K

60.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.87 MYR 28.04

$11.92 ₫308.5K

-42.37%

Cinema Ticket

$5.05 MYR 20.59

$3.53 ₫91.3K

43.06%

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

$122 MYR 499

$436 ₫11.3M

-71.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,175 MYR 29.3K

$23.3K ₫602.8M

-69.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MYR 289

$52.8 ₫1.4M

34.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.40 MYR 169

$34.15 ₫884.1K

21.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.1 MYR 315

$90.3 ₫2.3M

-14.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.0 MYR 339

$95.0 ₫2.5M

-12.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$511 MYR 2,083

$589 ₫15.3M

-13.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 MYR 1,413

$298 ₫7.7M

16.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$880 MYR 3,589

$1,292 ₫33.5M

-31.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$481 MYR 1,963

$711 ₫18.4M

-32.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,578 MYR 6,438

$4,676 ₫121.1M

-66.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$705 MYR 2,875

$1,904 ₫49.3M

-62.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,019 MYR 4,157

$490 ₫12.7M

108.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.96

8.64

-54.17%

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

Last update for Selangor: 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.

Accommodation & Living

Selangor

$346 34%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7% 14% $48

Groceries & Markets

Selangor

$266 26.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1% 22.2% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Selangor

$123 12%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3% 0.1% $0.1

Eating Out

Selangor

$111 10.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4% 42.8% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Selangor

$98 9.6%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8% 21% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Selangor

$51 5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 36.3% $19

Getting Around

Selangor

$25 2.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9% 32.1% $7.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $511 in Selangor and $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Selangor pays 108% 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: $19.00 in Selangor vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $207, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Selangor

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

15:45 3:45 PM

14:45 2:45 PM

1 h behind Selangor

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

281,717

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

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).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Selangor Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 1,020 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Selangor
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

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

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) wins on cost – living expenses run 19% lower than in Selangor. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 108% higher in Selangor, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $511 in Selangor versus $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,020 per month in Selangor versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) runs roughly 7% less than in Selangor. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,020 in Selangor, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) but tight or insufficient in Selangor. The gap between the two cities makes Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $859 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Selangor 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 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Selangor. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.