Cost of living comparison

compared to

Ho Chi Minh City vs. Hanoi Cost of Living Summary

Ho Chi Minh City is 9.8% more expensive than Hanoi.

Restaurants: pay 5.0% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Groceries: pay 3.1% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Transportation: pay 12.1% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Housing: pay 25.3% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Childcare: pay 15.8% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 5.7% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Clothing: pay 13.2% more in Ho Chi Minh City

The cost of housing, childcare, clothing, transportation, restaurants, and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City are more expensive than in Hanoi.

Ho Chi Minh City vs. Hanoi Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Ho Chi Minh City instead of Hanoi, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 5.0% more for restaurants

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$1.89 ₫49,159	$1.89 ₫49,159
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.32 ₫112K	$3.79 ₫98,318	-12.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.47 ₫12,290	$0.49 ₫12,643	+2.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.25 ₫6,383	$0.31 ₫7,937	+24.4%
Average			+5.0%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of restaurants

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pay 3.1% more for groceries

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Bread 1 loaf	$0.91 ₫23,502	$0.97 ₫25,235	+7.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.95 ₫129K	$5.67 ₫147K	+14.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.27 ₫137K	$5.38 ₫140K	+2.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.51 ₫39,123	$1.42 ₫36,780	-6.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.59 ₫41,234	$1.63 ₫42,259	+2.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.44 ₫37,252	$1.23 ₫31,939	-14.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.47 ₫12,203	$0.52 ₫13,470	+10.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.66 ₫17,152	$0.54 ₫14,129	-17.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.50 ₫12,973	$0.52 ₫13,500	+4.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.44 ₫11,468	$0.50 ₫13,070	+14.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.46 ₫11,967	$0.54 ₫14,028	+17.2%
Average			+3.1%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of groceries

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pay 12.1% more for transportation

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.20 ₫83,173	$3.17 ₫82,279	-1.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$7.58 ₫197K	$11.36 ₫295K	+50.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$37,880.00 ₫983M	$37,122.40 ₫964M	-2.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.61 ₫146K	$5.68 ₫147K	+1.4%
Average			+12.1%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of transportation

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pay 25.3% more for housing

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$8.67 ₫225K	$9.41 ₫244K	+8.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$348.52 ₫9M	$543.38 ₫14M	+55.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$258.44 ₫7M	$306.83 ₫8M	+18.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$56.25 ₫1M	$66.43 ₫2M	+18.1%
Average			+25.3%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of housing

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pay 15.8% more for childcare

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$231.49 ₫6M	$263.06 ₫7M	+13.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$11,784.89 ₫306M	$13,892.02 ₫361M	+17.9%
Average			+15.8%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of childcare

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pay 5.7% less for entertainment and sports

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.95 ₫24,579	$1.06 ₫27,529	+12.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.79 ₫46,517	$1.81 ₫47,091	+1.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.33 ₫34,411	$1.25 ₫32,445	-5.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$27.93 ₫725K	$19.47 ₫505K	-30.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.79 ₫98,318	$3.79 ₫98,318
Average			-5.7%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 13.2% more for clothing

	Hanoi	Ho Chi Minh City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$41.82 ₫1M	$44.83 ₫1M	+7.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$22.94 ₫595K	$29.40 ₫763K	+28.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$86.52 ₫2M	$93.29 ₫2M	+7.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$72.39 ₫2M	$79.23 ₫2M	+9.4%
Average			+13.2%

Hanoi vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: February 2026

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