Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Uluwatu, Bali and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

For one person, living is cheaper in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): $855 a month against $1,675 in Uluwatu, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Uluwatu, Bali
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Uluwatu, Bali 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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Uluwatu, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,675

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$855

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,675 in Uluwatu, Bali versus $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Uluwatu, Bali $1,675
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $855

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,848 in Uluwatu, Bali versus $1,400 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Uluwatu, Bali $2,848
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,400

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,020 in Uluwatu, Bali versus $1,944 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Uluwatu, Bali $4,020
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,944

Living in Uluwatu, Bali is roughly 96% more expensive than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Uluwatu, Bali is 25% above, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is 36% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.95 Rp 70.7K

$1.90 ₫49.2K

107.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.45 Rp 759.4K

$23.32 ₫603.7K

82.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.92 Rp 123.7K

$4.67 ₫121.0K

48.18%

Cappuccino

$3.22 Rp 57.5K

$1.85 ₫48.0K

74.05%

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

$2.00 Rp 35.8K

$0.56 ₫14.4K

257.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 Rp 17.8K

$0.34 ₫8,860

191.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 Rp 57.4K

$1.01 ₫26.2K

217.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.34 Rp 95.5K

$1.69 ₫43.7K

215.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 Rp 28.9K

$1.58 ₫40.8K

1.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.30 Rp 41.1K

$1.04 ₫27.0K

121.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.27 Rp 22.7K

$0.99 ₫25.7K

28.28%

Eggs

$2.26 Rp 40.4K

$1.60 ₫41.5K

41.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.24 Rp 326.3K

$12.23 ₫316.7K

49.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.07 Rp 72.7K

$3.54 ₫91.7K

14.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.90 Rp 230.7K

$10.44 ₫270.3K

23.56%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 Rp 65.5K

$3.09 ₫79.9K

18.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 Rp 28.9K

$1.26 ₫32.5K

28.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 Rp 41.9K

$1.57 ₫40.6K

49.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 Rp 36.4K

$1.26 ₫32.5K

61.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.2K

$1.17 ₫30.4K

68.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 Rp 43.6K

$1.15 ₫29.7K

112.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 Rp 19.2K

$0.72 ₫18.7K

48.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 Rp 9,319

$0.54 ₫14.0K

-3.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.29 Rp 41.0K

$1.22 ₫31.5K

87.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.34 Rp 417.6K

$12.28 ₫317.9K

90.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.37 Rp 42.5K

$0.98 ₫25.4K

141.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 Rp 55.9K

$1.49 ₫38.6K

109.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 Rp 5,791

$0.28 ₫7,252

14.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.24 Rp 183.1K

$11.62 ₫301.0K

-11.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.57 Rp 10.1K

$0.73 ₫18.9K

-21.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 Rp 10.2K

$0.64 ₫16.7K

-10.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.71 Rp 48.5K

$3.17 ₫82.0K

-14.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 Rp 19.7K

$0.95 ₫24.6K

15.79%

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

$30.7K Rp 549.1M

$30.7K ₫795.9M

-0.16%

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

$38.3K Rp 685.4M

$30.6K ₫791.9M

25.25%

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

$90.2 Rp 1.6M

$102 ₫2.6M

-11.81%

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

$7.15 Rp 128.0K

$5.65 ₫146.2K

26.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.44 Rp 365.7K

$10.52 ₫272.3K

94.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.8 Rp 1.2M

$25.86 ₫669.5K

150.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.82 Rp 372.4K

$11.82 ₫306.1K

76.14%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 Rp 91.2K

$3.39 ₫87.8K

50.44%

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

$556 Rp 10.0M

$438 ₫11.3M

27.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,498 Rp 116.2M

$23.3K ₫603.3M

-72.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.8 Rp 908.3K

$51.5 ₫1.3M

-1.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.30 Rp 703.0K

$34.56 ₫894.6K

13.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.4 Rp 1.6M

$91.3 ₫2.4M

-3.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.7 Rp 1.5M

$94.9 ₫2.5M

-10.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,523 Rp 27.2M

$577 ₫14.9M

163.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$929 Rp 16.6M

$292 ₫7.6M

217.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,862 Rp 87.0M

$1,293 ₫33.5M

275.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,353 Rp 42.1M

$717 ₫18.6M

228.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,679 Rp 65.8M

$4,714 ₫122.0M

-21.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,038 Rp 54.4M

$1,882 ₫48.7M

61.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$486 ₫12.6M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.78

8.64

59.49%

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

Last update for Uluwatu, Bali: October 4, 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.

Accommodation & Living

Uluwatu, Bali

$929 55.1%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$292 34.3% 68.5% $637

Groceries & Markets

Uluwatu, Bali

$301 17.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$206 24.1% 31.6% $95

Eating Out

Uluwatu, Bali

$130 7.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$63 7.5% 51% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Uluwatu, Bali

$118 7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$123 14.4% 3.5% $4.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Uluwatu, Bali

$118 7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$118 13.9% 0.6% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

Uluwatu, Bali

$75 4.5%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$33 3.8% 56.5% $42

Getting Around

Uluwatu, Bali

$15 0.9%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$17 2% 11.7% $1.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,523 in Uluwatu, Bali and $577 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $42.00 in Uluwatu, Bali vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $301 vs $206 per month, with Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Uluwatu, Bali

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

16:59 4:59 PM

15:59 3:59 PM

1 h behind Uluwatu, Bali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,890 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,065 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,037 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Uluwatu, Bali Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 2,370 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Uluwatu, Bali
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

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

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) wins on cost – living expenses run 96% lower than in Uluwatu, Bali. 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.

You'd need roughly $2,513 in Uluwatu, Bali and $1,283 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: $1,523 in Uluwatu, Bali versus $577 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 $1,675 per month in Uluwatu, Bali versus $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – a 96% 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 13% less than in Uluwatu, Bali. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $855 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) versus $1,675 in Uluwatu, Bali, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) but tight or insufficient in Uluwatu, Bali. 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 $855 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, Uluwatu, Bali 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 96% less than in Uluwatu, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.