Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Siargao: $787 a month against $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $860 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

38

Cost of Living Index in Siargao
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Siargao 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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Siargao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$787

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $787 in Siargao versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Siargao $787
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,226 in Siargao versus $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Siargao $1,226
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,664 in Siargao versus $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Siargao $1,664
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Living in Siargao costs roughly 8% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Siargao 42% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.60 ₱227

$1.91 ₫49.5K

88.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.21 ₱1,210

$22.84 ₫590.9K

-15.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.36 ₱212

$4.54 ₫117.5K

-25.99%

Cappuccino

$2.62 ₱165

$1.85 ₫48.0K

41.62%

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

$0.78 ₱49.46

$0.56 ₫14.6K

39.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.40 ₱24.97

$0.32 ₫8,180

25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.25 ₱79.0

$1.06 ₫27.5K

17.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 ₱138

$1.72 ₫44.5K

26.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 ₱119

$1.66 ₫42.8K

13.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.23 ₱77.4

$1.11 ₫28.6K

10.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.96 ₱60.3

$1.00 ₫25.9K

-4.00%

Eggs

$2.00 ₱126

$1.67 ₫43.1K

19.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.23 ₱519

$12.08 ₫312.6K

-31.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.32 ₱273

$3.68 ₫95.1K

17.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.50 ₱473

$10.24 ₫264.9K

-26.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 ₱187

$2.96 ₫76.5K

0.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 ₱99.9

$1.24 ₫32.1K

27.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.58 ₱162

$1.56 ₫40.3K

65.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.62 ₱102

$1.30 ₫33.5K

24.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.25 ₱142

$1.23 ₫31.8K

82.93%

Onion (1kg)

$2.53 ₱160

$1.15 ₫29.8K

120.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₱69.4

$0.74 ₫19.1K

48.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 ₱44.50

$0.56 ₫14.4K

26.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.83 ₱178

$1.24 ₫32.1K

128.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.79 ₱428

$12.60 ₫325.9K

-46.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 ₱75.3

$0.96 ₫24.9K

23.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 ₱128

$1.53 ₫39.5K

32.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₱16.34

$0.26 ₫6,690

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.65 ₱734

$11.51 ₫297.7K

1.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.78 ₱48.93

$0.75 ₫19.5K

4.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.82

$0.67 ₫17.3K

-67.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.08 ₱131

$3.03 ₫78.5K

-31.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.15 ₱72.5

$0.96 ₫24.8K

19.79%

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

$26.3K ₱1.7M

$31.1K ₫803.8M

-15.48%

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

$20.2K ₱1.3M

$30.4K ₫785.4M

-33.59%

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

$112 ₱7,067

$102 ₫2.6M

9.96%

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

$33.18 ₱2,091

$5.89 ₫152.4K

463.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.75 ₱1,749

$10.49 ₫271.5K

164.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.05 ₱2,146

$25.54 ₫660.8K

33.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.45 ₱280

$11.92 ₫308.3K

-62.67%

Cinema Ticket

$5.85 ₱368

$3.53 ₫91.3K

65.72%

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

$154 ₱9,706

$436 ₫11.3M

-64.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,271 ₱269.1K

$23.3K ₫602.4M

-81.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.34 ₱2,920

$52.8 ₫1.4M

-12.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.69 ₱1,682

$34.15 ₫883.6K

-21.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.7 ₱4,831

$90.3 ₫2.3M

-15.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$54.2 ₱3,413

$95.0 ₫2.5M

-42.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$266 ₱16.8K

$589 ₫15.3M

-54.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$174 ₱10.9K

$298 ₫7.7M

-41.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$582 ₱36.7K

$1,292 ₫33.4M

-54.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$387 ₱24.4K

$711 ₫18.4M

-45.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,349 ₱148.0K

$4,676 ₫121.0M

-49.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$978 ₱61.6K

$1,904 ₫49.3M

-48.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.67

8.64

-22.80%

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

Last update for Siargao: 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

Siargao

$203 25.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$207 24.1% 2.2% $4.5

Accommodation & Living

Siargao

$174 22.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$298 34.7% 71.5% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Siargao

$173 22%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.8% 31.6% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Siargao

$92 11.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$122 14.3% 33.5% $31

Eating Out

Siargao

$86 10.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.4% 26% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Siargao

$46 5.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 28.7% $13

Getting Around

Siargao

$15 1.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 1.9% 14.4% $2.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $266 in Siargao and $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $19.00 in Siargao vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $203 vs $207 per month, with Siargao cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Siargao

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

15:28 3:28 PM

14:28 2:28 PM

1 h behind Siargao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

150,000

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 63.02 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.65 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 25,872 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 29,005 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Siargao Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 2,120 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Siargao
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

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

Siargao wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Siargao the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,181 in Siargao and $1,288 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 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: $266 in Siargao 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 $787 per month in Siargao versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – a 9% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Siargao runs roughly 1% 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 $787 in Siargao versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Siargao but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Siargao the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Siargao delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $787 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Siargao hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Siargao 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 Siargao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.