Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): $855 a month against $1,183 in Taiwan, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Taiwan
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Taiwan 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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🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,183

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$855

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Taiwan is 68% more expensive than Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) without rent, and 38.3% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Taiwan is 66.5% more expensive than Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) without rent, and 38.2% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.86 NT$155

$1.90 ₫49.1K

155.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.39 NT$1,002

$23.32 ₫603.5K

34.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.48 NT$175

$4.67 ₫120.9K

17.34%

Cappuccino

$2.89 NT$92.1

$1.85 ₫47.9K

56.22%

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

$0.99 NT$31.43

$0.56 ₫14.4K

76.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 NT$21.75

$0.34 ₫8,857

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 NT$59.3

$1.01 ₫26.2K

84.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 NT$78.0

$1.69 ₫43.7K

44.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.08 NT$98.2

$1.58 ₫40.8K

94.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 NT$59.3

$1.04 ₫27.0K

78.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.00 NT$95.7

$0.99 ₫25.7K

203.03%

Eggs

$2.72 NT$86.8

$1.60 ₫41.5K

70.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.38 NT$587

$12.23 ₫316.6K

50.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.07 NT$289

$3.54 ₫91.7K

156.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.49 NT$654

$10.44 ₫270.2K

96.26%

Apples (1kg)

$4.69 NT$150

$3.09 ₫79.9K

51.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.72 NT$86.8

$1.26 ₫32.5K

115.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.94 NT$93.7

$1.57 ₫40.6K

87.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.86 NT$123

$1.26 ₫32.5K

206.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 NT$90.1

$1.17 ₫30.4K

141.03%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 NT$73.0

$1.15 ₫29.7K

99.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.13 NT$67.9

$0.72 ₫18.7K

195.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 NT$38.02

$0.54 ₫14.0K

120.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.87 NT$124

$1.22 ₫31.5K

217.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.74 NT$406

$12.28 ₫317.8K

3.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 NT$54.4

$0.98 ₫25.4K

74.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 NT$69.8

$1.49 ₫38.5K

46.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 NT$20.69

$0.28 ₫7,249

132.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.53 NT$1,229

$11.62 ₫300.8K

231.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.82 NT$90.0

$0.73 ₫18.9K

286.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.82 NT$26.21

$0.64 ₫16.7K

28.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.67 NT$309

$3.17 ₫82.0K

205.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 NT$32.54

$0.95 ₫24.6K

7.37%

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

$33.3K NT$1.1M

$30.7K ₫795.6M

8.37%

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

$23.8K NT$760.9K

$30.6K ₫791.6M

-22.04%

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

$87.6 NT$2,797

$102 ₫2.6M

-14.33%

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

$17.29 NT$552

$5.65 ₫146.1K

206.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.97 NT$765

$10.52 ₫272.2K

127.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.76 NT$1,205

$25.86 ₫669.2K

46.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.77 NT$376

$11.82 ₫305.9K

-0.42%

Cinema Ticket

$10.24 NT$327

$3.39 ₫87.8K

202.06%

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

$562 NT$17.9K

$438 ₫11.3M

28.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K NT$518.1K

$23.3K ₫603.1M

-30.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.0 NT$2,009

$51.5 ₫1.3M

22.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.32 NT$1,063

$34.56 ₫894.3K

-3.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 NT$2,642

$91.3 ₫2.4M

-9.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 NT$3,325

$94.9 ₫2.5M

9.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$525 NT$16.7K

$577 ₫14.9M

-9.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$318 NT$10.2K

$292 ₫7.6M

8.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 NT$35.9K

$1,293 ₫33.5M

-12.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$798 NT$25.5K

$717 ₫18.6M

11.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,113 NT$258.9K

$4,714 ₫122.0M

72.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,437 NT$173.5K

$1,882 ₫48.7M

188.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,752 NT$55.9K

$486 ₫12.6M

260.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.45

8.64

-71.64%

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

Last update for Taiwan: October 5, 2026

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Taiwan

$379 32.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$206 24.1% 45.8% $174

Accommodation & Living

Taiwan

$318 27.2%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$292 34.3% 8.2% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Taiwan

$129 11%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9% 8.1% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Taiwan

$127 10.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4% 3.9% $4.9

Eating Out

Taiwan

$111 9.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.5% 42.7% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Taiwan

$58 5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 44% $26

Getting Around

Taiwan

$48 4.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2% 65.2% $31

Good to know

🇹🇼 Taiwan

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

21:53 9:53 PM

20:53 8:53 PM

1 h behind Taiwan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

23,409,323

9,456,700

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.13 USD

100 TWD = 2.8 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 31.91 TWD (100 TWD = 3.13 USD). 1 EUR = 35.76 TWD (100 TWD = 2.8 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,879 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 28,999 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

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