Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. Ho Chi Minh City Cost of Living Summary
United States is 3.6 times more expensive than Ho Chi Minh City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 6.3 times more in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 2.6 times more in United States
- Transportation
-
pay 2.7 times more in United States
- Housing
-
pay 4.3 times more in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 3.5 times more in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.5 times more in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 22.9% more in United States
The cost of restaurants, entertainment and sports, housing, childcare, transportation, and groceries in United States are more expensive than in Ho Chi Minh City. Notably, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and housing are significantly more expensive in United States.
United States vs. Ho Chi Minh City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of Ho Chi Minh City, you would:
pay 6.3 times more for restaurants
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$1.89
₫49,824
|
$19.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$3.79
₫99,647
|
$11.12
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.49
₫12,814
|
$2.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.31
₫8,045
|
$2.00
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
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pay 2.6 times more for groceries
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.97
₫25,576
|
$3.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.67
₫149,159
|
$6.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.38
₫141,624
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.42
₫37,278
|
$4.27
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.63
₫42,831
|
$5.41
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.23
₫32,371
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.52
₫13,652
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.54
₫14,320
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.52
₫13,683
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.50
₫13,247
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.54
₫14,217
|
$1.38
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - Cost of groceries
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pay 2.7 times more for transportation
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.17
₫83,392
|
$3.41
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.36
₫298,941
|
$65.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$37,122.40
₫976,541,854
|
$32,336.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$5.68
₫149,471
|
$17.61
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - Cost of transportation
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pay 4.3 times more for housing
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$9.41
₫247,487
|
$68.97
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$543.38
₫14,294,119
|
$1,664.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$306.83
₫8,071,417
|
$1,416.15
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$66.43
₫1,747,626
|
$150.19
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - Cost of housing
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pay 3.5 times more for childcare
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$263.06
₫6,919,939
|
$1,387.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,892.02
₫365,443,386
|
$23,196.46
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - Cost of childcare
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pay 4.5 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.06
₫27,901
|
$5.84
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$1.81
₫47,728
|
$5.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$1.25
₫32,884
|
$9.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$19.47
₫512,230
|
$51.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$3.79
₫99,647
|
$13.64
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 22.9% more for clothing
|
Ho Chi Minh City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$44.83
₫1,179,354
|
$51.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$29.40
₫773,454
|
$41.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$93.29
₫2,454,093
|
$87.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$79.23
₫2,084,291
|
$112.04
|
|
Ho Chi Minh City vs. United States - 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: December 2025
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