Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Charleston vs. Ho Chi Minh City Cost of Living Summary
North Charleston is 2.7 times more expensive than Ho Chi Minh City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 5.8 times more in North Charleston
- Groceries
-
pay 2.3 times more in North Charleston
- Transportation
-
pay 63.4% more in North Charleston
- Housing
-
pay 3.9 times more in North Charleston
- Childcare
-
pay 28.0% more in North Charleston
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.8 times more in North Charleston
- Clothing
-
pay 28.8% more in North Charleston
North Charleston vs. Ho Chi Minh City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Charleston instead of Ho Chi Minh City, you would:
pay 5.8 times more for restaurants
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$1.92
₫49,427
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.62
₫119K
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.54
₫13,793
|
$3.00
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.33
₫8,520
|
$2.50
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.3 times more for groceries
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.08
₫27,617
|
$3.67
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.05
₫155K
|
$3.58
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.13
₫157K
|
$3.88
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.62
₫41,667
|
$5.00
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.64
₫42,224
|
$6.58
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.36
₫34,975
|
$3.66
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.58
₫14,832
|
$0.82
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.72
₫18,564
|
$2.30
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.58
₫14,797
|
$2.83
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.54
₫13,990
|
$1.95
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.53
₫13,552
|
$1.46
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of groceries
pay 63.4% more for transportation
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.55
₫91,204
|
$3.60
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.55
₫297K
|
$50.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,715.02
₫789M
|
$35,112.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$5.80
₫149K
|
$12.94
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of transportation
pay 3.9 times more for housing
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$10.46
₫269K
|
$84.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$585.86
₫15M
|
$2,033.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$297.81
₫8M
|
$1,500.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$79.24
₫2M
|
$169.89
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of housing
pay 28.0% more for childcare
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$438.36
₫11M
|
$926.88
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,561.82
₫605M
|
$18,263.75
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of childcare
pay 2.8 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.03
₫26,545
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$1.81
₫46,596
|
$6.00
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.23
₫31,633
|
$9.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$25.91
₫665K
|
$17.49
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.46
₫88,969
|
$14.00
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 28.8% more for clothing
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.59
₫1M
|
$65.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$34.61
₫889K
|
$44.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$91.59
₫2M
|
$112.33
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$94.62
₫2M
|
$131.67
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this
Change currency:
Compare further: Ho Chi Minh City vs. North Charleston
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Vietnam vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Vietnam and United States.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
Ask the Elsewhere Community
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about North Charleston or Ho Chi Minh City. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.