Cost of living comparison

Bhutan

compared to

Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City vs. Thimphu Cost of Living Summary

Ho Chi Minh City is 2.0 times more expensive than Thimphu.

Restaurants: pay 8.3% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Groceries: pay 36.8% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Transportation: pay 47.5% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Housing: pay 3.4 times more in Ho Chi Minh City
Childcare: pay 20.1 times more in Ho Chi Minh City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 29.3% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Clothing: pay 90.6% more in Ho Chi Minh City

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

Planning a move to Vietnam? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Ho Chi Minh City vs. Thimphu Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 8.3% less for restaurants

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.58 BTN245.70	$1.92 ₫49,832	-25.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.91 BTN466.83	$4.62 ₫120K	-6.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.50 BTN47.50	$0.54 ₫13,905	+7.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.18 BTN17.20	$0.33 ₫8,590	+83.3%
Average			-8.3%

Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 36.8% more for groceries

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Bread 1 loaf	$1.07 BTN101.96	$1.08 ₫27,843	+0.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$1.88 BTN178.54	$6.05 ₫157K	+222.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$3.03 BTN288.32	$6.13 ₫159K	+102.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.88 BTN178.87	$1.62 ₫42,008	-13.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.79 BTN170.51	$1.64 ₫42,570	-8.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.15 BTN109.22	$1.36 ₫35,261	+18.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.69 BTN65.75	$0.58 ₫14,953	-16.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.73 BTN69.10	$0.72 ₫18,715	-0.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.33 BTN31.76	$0.58 ₫14,918	+72.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.26 BTN24.52	$0.54 ₫14,104	+111.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.31 BTN29.53	$0.53 ₫13,662	+69.8%
Average			+36.8%

Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 47.5% more for transportation

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.79 BTN264.82	$3.55 ₫91,950	+27.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$5.17 BTN491.40	$11.55 ₫299K	+123.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$16,591.53 BTN2M	$30,715.02 ₫795M	+85.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$13.18 BTN1,253.06	$5.80 ₫150K	-56.0%
Average			+47.5%

Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.4 times more for housing

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$24.17 BTN2,297.69	$10.46 ₫271K	-56.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$127.00 BTN12,071.65	$585.86 ₫15M	+361.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$86.02 BTN8,176.19	$297.81 ₫8M	+246.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$25.81 BTN2,452.87	$79.24 ₫2M	+207.1%
Average			+243.7%

Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 20.1 times more for childcare

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$44.98 BTN4,275.09	$438.36 ₫11M	+874.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$568.68 BTN54,053.67	$23,561.82 ₫610M	+4043.2%
Average			+1909.5%

Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 29.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.58 BTN245.70	$1.03 ₫26,762	-60.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.28 BTN121.21	$1.81 ₫46,978	+42.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.88 BTN368.55	$1.23 ₫31,892	-68.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.53 BTN4,422.57	$25.91 ₫671K	-44.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.10 BTN294.84	$3.46 ₫89,697	+11.7%
Average			-29.3%

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

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 90.6% more for clothing

	Thimphu	Ho Chi Minh City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$49.97 BTN4,750.10	$51.59 ₫1M	+3.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$24.99 BTN2,375.05	$34.61 ₫896K	+38.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$67.21 BTN6,388.16	$91.59 ₫2M	+36.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$13.96 BTN1,326.77	$94.62 ₫2M	+577.9%
Average			+90.6%

Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Thimphu vs. Ho Chi Minh City

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Ho Chi Minh City?

More cost comparisons

Thimphu vs.

Reykjavik

Thimphu vs.

Lima

Thimphu vs.

Berlin

Thimphu vs.

Madrid

Thimphu vs.

Quito

Thimphu vs.

Moscow

Thimphu vs.

Toronto

Thimphu vs.

Cairo

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Bhutan vs. Vietnam. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Bhutan and Vietnam.

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

Add prices for Thimphu

Add prices for Ho Chi Minh City

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Ho Chi Minh City or Thimphu. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.