Which is cheaper, what exactly is cheaper, and how it feels on your money ยท Updated October 2026
Ho Chi Minh City is easier to travel (3.0 vs 3.2). Biggest gap: getting around โ Aswan 3 vs Ho Chi Minh City 2. Closer to 1 is easier. Difficulty ranking โบ
| Item | Aswan | Ho Chi Minh City | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local mealper person | Eยฃ 150$3.06 | โซ 60,000$2.28 | Ho Chi Minh City โ25% |
| Street food1 item | Eยฃ 50$1.02 | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Aswan โ23% |
| Restaurant dinnerper person | Eยฃ 400$8.16 | โซ 280,000$10.6 | Aswan โ23% |
| Coffeeone cup | Eยฃ 60$1.22 | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Aswan โ36% |
| Beerone bottle | Eยฃ 120$2.45 | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Ho Chi Minh City โ46% |
| Cocktail & wineone cup | Eยฃ 250$5.1 | โซ 120,000$4.56 | Ho Chi Minh City โ11% |
| Bottled water | Eยฃ 10$0.2 | โซ 9,000$0.34 | Aswan โ40% |
| Convenience store1 snack or drink | Eยฃ 20$0.41 | โซ 15,000$0.57 | Aswan โ28% |
| Taxi5 km in town | Eยฃ 80$1.63 | โซ 70,000$2.66 | Aswan โ39% |
| Tuk-tuk / moto taxishort hop | Eยฃ 40$0.82 | โซ 20,000$0.76 | Ho Chi Minh City โ7% |
| Transitone ride | Eยฃ 10$0.2 | โซ 7,000$0.27 | Aswan โ23% |
| Scooter rentalper day | Eยฃ 150$3.06 | โซ 150,000$5.7 | Aswan โ46% |
| Hotel night3-star | Eยฃ 2,000$40.8 | โซ 1,000,000$38 | Ho Chi Minh City โ7% |
| Studio rent (month) | Eยฃ 6,000$122 | โซ 10,000,000$380 | Aswan โ68% |
| Laundry | Eยฃ 50$1.02 | โซ 30,000$1.14 | Aswan โ11% |
| SIM card1 week data | Eยฃ 300$6.12 | โซ 200,000$7.6 | Aswan โ19% |
| Haircutcut | Eยฃ 100$2.04 | โซ 100,000$3.8 | Aswan โ46% |
| Massage1 hour | Eยฃ 800$16.3 | โซ 300,000$11.4 | Ho Chi Minh City โ30% |
| Half-day tourper person | Eยฃ 4,400$89.8 | โซ 650,000$24.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ72% |
| Entry ticketTourist town | Eยฃ 550$11.2 | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ83% |
Reference prices start as estimates from published price levels; items with 3+ traveler reports use the median of real reports. Hostels and local eateries cut both by 30%+.
Aswan is 28% cheaper than Ho Chi Minh City. Daily budget $66.2 vs $68; a month $742 vs $1,302.
Ho Chi Minh City is easier: Ho Chi Minh City 3.0/5 vs Aswan 3.2/5 (average of rip-offs, language, transport, payments and safety).
With a short-term studio and living costs, Aswan is about $742 and Ho Chi Minh City about $1,302 per month.
They start as estimates informed by published price levels; any item with 3+ traveler reports switches to the median of real reports. Live reports are in the app.