Last update: Oct 2026

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

For one person, living is cheaper in Yichang: $710 a month against $862 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

35

Cost of Living Index in Yichang
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Yichang 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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Yichang

🇨🇳 China

$710

/mo nomad

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$862

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $710 in Yichang versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Yichang $710
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $859

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,130 in Yichang versus $1,395 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Yichang $1,130
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,395

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,550 in Yichang versus $1,931 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Yichang $1,550
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) $1,931

Living in Yichang costs roughly 17% 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: Yichang 48% lower, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 37% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.75 ¥18.36

$1.98 ₫51.3K

38.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.67 ¥145

$23.14 ₫599.0K

-6.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.92 ¥32.87

$4.76 ₫123.2K

3.36%

Cappuccino

$2.96 ¥19.79

$1.86 ₫48.1K

59.14%

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

$0.46 ¥3.08

$0.51 ₫13.3K

-9.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.95

$0.32 ₫8,191

-9.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.92 ¥6.15

$1.03 ₫26.7K

-10.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 ¥14.13

$1.71 ₫44.4K

23.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 ¥12.44

$1.58 ₫40.8K

17.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 ¥10.25

$1.09 ₫28.3K

40.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.88 ¥5.91

$1.05 ₫27.2K

-16.19%

Eggs

$1.55 ¥10.36

$1.64 ₫42.6K

-5.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.62 ¥84.4

$12.33 ₫319.2K

2.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.13 ¥20.93

$3.58 ₫92.6K

-12.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.12 ¥67.7

$10.56 ₫273.3K

-4.17%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 ¥12.62

$2.97 ₫76.9K

-36.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 ¥8.09

$1.26 ₫32.7K

-3.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.48 ¥9.91

$1.62 ₫42.0K

-8.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 ¥7.66

$1.31 ₫33.8K

-12.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.95

$1.19 ₫30.8K

-37.82%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.04

$1.14 ₫29.6K

-21.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 ¥3.96

$0.73 ₫18.8K

-19.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ¥3.41

$0.56 ₫14.6K

-8.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.19 ¥21.32

$1.28 ₫33.0K

149.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.72 ¥71.7

$12.46 ₫322.5K

-13.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 ¥4.90

$0.96 ₫24.9K

-23.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 ¥10.64

$1.48 ₫38.3K

7.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.96

$0.26 ₫6,704

11.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.85 ¥113

$11.43 ₫296.0K

47.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.43 ¥9.55

$0.68 ₫17.7K

110.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 ¥2.38

$0.62 ₫16.1K

-41.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.52 ¥43.57

$3.00 ₫77.7K

117.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 ¥7.49

$0.91 ₫23.5K

23.08%

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

$19.2K ¥128.2K

$30.6K ₫791.4M

-37.30%

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

$17.2K ¥114.8K

$29.4K ₫760.1M

-41.55%

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

$45.40 ¥304

$104 ₫2.7M

-56.25%

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

$9.83 ¥65.7

$5.79 ₫149.9K

69.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.69 ¥78.1

$10.48 ₫271.3K

11.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.00 ¥274

$26.08 ₫675.1K

57.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.80 ¥92.3

$11.90 ₫308.1K

15.97%

Cinema Ticket

$5.81 ¥38.84

$3.89 ₫100.7K

49.36%

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

$335 ¥2,241

$440 ₫11.4M

-23.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K ¥114.7K

$24.1K ₫622.7M

-28.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.84 ¥293

$50.9 ₫1.3M

-13.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.02 ¥201

$35.18 ₫910.8K

-14.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.8 ¥487

$92.1 ₫2.4M

-20.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.0 ¥475

$96.5 ₫2.5M

-26.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$281 ¥1,879

$582 ₫15.1M

-51.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$191 ¥1,275

$297 ₫7.7M

-35.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$601 ¥4,021

$1,298 ₫33.6M

-53.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 ¥2,447

$727 ₫18.8M

-49.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,061 ¥20.5K

$4,782 ₫123.8M

-36.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,057 ¥13.8K

$1,853 ₫48.0M

10.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$490 ₫12.7M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

8.64

-54.98%

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

Last update for Yichang: October 20, 2026

Last update for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Yichang

$197 27.7%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$208 24.1% 5.6% $11

Accommodation & Living

Yichang

$191 26.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$297 34.4% 55.6% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Yichang

$98 13.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$124 14.3% 26.2% $26

Eating Out

Yichang

$84 11.8%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$64 7.5% 23.5% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yichang

$67 9.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$120 13.9% 79.4% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Yichang

$53 7.4%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$34 3.9% 35.6% $19

Getting Around

Yichang

$21 3%

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

$16 1.9% 23.4% $5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $281 in Yichang and $589 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $22.00 in Yichang vs $23.00 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $197 vs $207 per month, with Yichang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Yichang

🇻🇳 Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🕒 Local time

17:58 5:58 PM

16:58 4:58 PM

1 h behind Yichang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,059,686

9,456,700

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 20, 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 CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Yichang Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 2,260 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Yichang
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

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

Yichang wins on cost – living expenses run 21% lower than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Yichang the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,065 in Yichang 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: $281 in Yichang 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 $710 per month in Yichang versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) – a 21% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Yichang runs roughly 46% 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 $710 in Yichang versus $859 in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), a $1,500 budget is realistic in Yichang but tight or insufficient in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). The gap between the two cities makes Yichang the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Yichang delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $710 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Yichang hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Yichang 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 Yichang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.