Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zanzibar and Hoi An

For one person, living is cheaper in Zanzibar: $579 a month against $876 in Hoi An, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Hoi An outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

28

Cost of Living Index in Zanzibar
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Zanzibar Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Hoi An
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Hoi An Living Index

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Zanzibar

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$579

/mo nomad

Hoi An

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$876

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Zanzibar and in Hoi An

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Zanzibar and in Hoi An actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $579 per month in Zanzibar vs $876 in Hoi An, rent included.

Zanzibar $579
Hoi An $876

A couple spends around $864 per month in Zanzibar vs $1,279 in Hoi An, rent included.

Zanzibar $864
Hoi An $1,279

A family of three spends $1,148 per month in Zanzibar vs $1,682 in Hoi An, rent included.

Zanzibar $1,148
Hoi An $1,682

Zanzibar is about 34% cheaper than Hoi An, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Zanzibar and Hoi An are more affordable than the global median – Zanzibar 57% lower, Hoi An 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.70 TZS 12.3K

$2.28 ₫59.1K

106.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.08 TZS 57.8K

$18.56 ₫480.5K

18.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.59 TZS 14.6K

$3.77 ₫97.7K

48.28%

Cappuccino

$2.20 TZS 5,769

$1.74 ₫44.9K

26.44%

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

$0.58 TZS 1,520

$0.62 ₫16.0K

-6.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 TZS 776

$0.34 ₫8,896

-11.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 TZS 4,879

$1.36 ₫35.2K

36.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 TZS 6,764

$1.31 ₫34.0K

96.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 TZS 5,521

$1.58 ₫40.8K

33.54%

White Bread (500g)

$0.71 TZS 1,859

$1.20 ₫31.2K

-40.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 TZS 2,058

$1.00 ₫25.9K

-21.00%

Eggs

$2.71 TZS 7,092

$1.49 ₫38.5K

81.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.58 TZS 19.9K

$12.96 ₫335.6K

-41.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.21 TZS 5,776

$4.09 ₫105.8K

-45.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.87 TZS 15.4K

$9.27 ₫239.9K

-36.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 TZS 7,271

$2.63 ₫68.2K

5.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 TZS 3,001

$1.11 ₫28.6K

3.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.78 TZS 2,050

$1.00 ₫26.0K

-22.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.55 TZS 1,428

$1.44 ₫37.4K

-61.81%

Potato (1kg)

$0.90 TZS 2,351

$1.18 ₫30.6K

-23.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 TZS 4,063

$1.09 ₫28.1K

42.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 TZS 2,003

$0.62 ₫16.1K

22.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 TZS 1,274

$0.49 ₫12.8K

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.08 TZS 5,445

$1.50 ₫38.7K

38.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.55 TZS 25.0K

$7.57 ₫196.1K

26.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 TZS 3,921

$0.92 ₫23.9K

63.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 TZS 3,536

$1.52 ₫39.4K

-11.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 TZS 825

$0.22 ₫5,666

40.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$3.82 ₫98.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 TZS 9,672

$0.99 ₫25.6K

272.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.73 TZS 1,920

$0.57 ₫14.7K

28.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.66 TZS 6,964

$3.96 ₫102.6K

-32.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 TZS 3,180

$0.94 ₫24.3K

28.72%

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

$30.9K ₫800.8M

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

$48.9K TZS 128.1M

$28.4K ₫736.2M

72.04%

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

$74.3 TZS 194.6K

$77.8 ₫2.0M

-4.44%

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

$11.29 TZS 29.6K

$6.45 ₫167.1K

75.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.43 TZS 126.8K

$8.03 ₫207.9K

503.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.77 TZS 75.3K

$16.74 ₫433.5K

71.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.74 ₫122.8K

Cinema Ticket

$9.26 TZS 24.3K

$3.06 ₫79.1K

202.61%

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

$116 ₫3.0M

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ₫441.8M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.12 TZS 34.3K

$46.44 ₫1.2M

-71.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.88 TZS 44.2K

$27.51 ₫712.2K

-38.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$15.05 TZS 39.4K

$68.8 ₫1.8M

-78.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$13.05 TZS 34.2K

$80.9 ₫2.1M

-83.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$147 TZS 385.1K

$433 ₫11.2M

-66.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$100 TZS 262.1K

$395 ₫10.2M

-74.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$198 TZS 518.2K

$533 ₫13.8M

-62.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 TZS 388.8K

$626 ₫16.2M

-76.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$37.8K TZS 99.1M

$1,561 ₫40.4M

2323.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.5K TZS 30.1M

$982 ₫25.4M

1071.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$312 TZS 816.7K

$294 ₫7.6M

6.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.34

-3.29%

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

Last update for Zanzibar: October 18, 2026

Last update for Hoi An: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Zanzibar

$164 28.3%

Hoi An

$193 22% 17.5% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zanzibar

$134 23.2%

Hoi An

$92 10.5% 31.2% $42

Accommodation & Living

Zanzibar

$100 17.3%

Hoi An

$395 45.1% 295% $295

Eating Out

Zanzibar

$99 17.1%

Hoi An

$64 7.3% 35.5% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Zanzibar

$47 8.2%

Hoi An

$23 2.6% 51.7% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Zanzibar

$26 4.5%

Hoi An

$101 11.5% 285% $74

Getting Around

Zanzibar

$8.6 * 1.5%

Hoi An

$8.5 1% 1.3% $0.1

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $147 in Zanzibar versus $433 in Hoi An. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 6% higher in Zanzibar, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Zanzibar versus $19.00 in Hoi An. Groceries tell a different story – $164 in Zanzibar vs $193 in Hoi An – so Zanzibar wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇿 Zanzibar

🇻🇳 Hoi An

🕒 Local time

23:30 11:30 PM

03:30 3:30 AM

4 h ahead of Zanzibar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

709,809

120,000

💱 Currency

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇿 Tanzanian Shilling (Sh)

Tanzanian Shilling exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2,619 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD). 1 EUR = 2,944 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.4 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 TZS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Zanzibar Hoi An 7,990 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Zanzibar
Hoi An

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

Zanzibar vs Hoi An: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $579 in Zanzibar, $876 in Hoi An – roughly 51% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $869 per month in Zanzibar and $1,314 in Hoi An. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Zanzibar, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Zanzibar and $19.00 in Hoi An. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $579 in Zanzibar and $876 in Hoi An. That's a gap of about 51%.

$800 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $579 in Zanzibar and $876 in Hoi An, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Hoi An has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $579 in Zanzibar to $876 in Hoi An. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Zanzibar. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Hoi An makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.