Cost of living comparison

compared to

Beijing vs. Ho Chi Minh City Cost of Living Summary

Beijing is 55.3% more expensive than Ho Chi Minh City.

Restaurants
pay 37.6% more in Beijing
Groceries
pay 16.9% more in Beijing
Transportation
pay 35.2% more in Beijing
Housing
pay 33.3% more in Beijing
Childcare
pay 2.2 times more in Beijing
Entertainment and Sports
pay 2.2 times more in Beijing
Clothing
pay 20.9% more in Beijing

The cost of entertainment and sports, childcare, restaurants, transportation, housing, and clothing in Beijing are more expensive than in Ho Chi Minh City. Notably, entertainment and sports and childcare are significantly more expensive in Beijing.

Beijing vs. Ho Chi Minh City Cost Breakdown

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

pay 37.6% more for restaurants

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $1.89
₫49,836
$4.21
CN¥29.96
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$3.79
₫99,671
$4.91
CN¥34.95
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.49
₫12,817
$0.48
CN¥3.42

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pay 16.9% more for groceries

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Bread
1 loaf
$0.97
₫25,582
$1.71
CN¥12.15
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.67
₫149,195
$7.47
CN¥53.19
Milk (1 gallon) $5.38
₫141,658
$6.64
CN¥47.31

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pay 35.2% more for transportation

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.17
₫83,412
$4.21
CN¥30.00
Monthly public transit pass $11.36
₫299,013
$31.54
CN¥224.68
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $37,122.40
₫976,776,757
$18,225.66
CN¥129,814.10

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pay 33.3% more for housing

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$9.41
₫247,547
$12.93
CN¥92.10
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $543.38
₫14,297,558
$935.23
CN¥6,661.29
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $306.83
₫8,073,359
$504.41
CN¥3,592.68

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pay 2.2 times more for childcare

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $263.06
₫6,921,604
$710.76
CN¥5,062.49
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $13,892.02
₫365,531,292
$23,242.73
CN¥165,548.64

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pay 2.2 times more for entertainment and sports

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $1.06
₫27,908
$1.12
CN¥7.99
Cappuccino in mid-range area $1.81
₫47,739
$2.90
CN¥20.67
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$1.25
₫32,891
$4.21
CN¥29.96

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pay 20.9% more for clothing

 
Ho Chi Minh City
Beijing
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$44.83
₫1,179,637
$62.30
CN¥443.73
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$29.40
₫773,640
$36.37
CN¥259.07
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$93.29
₫2,454,683
$81.74
CN¥582.21

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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: November 2025
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