Earn Here, Spend ThereWhat is this money worth over there?
KOOpen app
Journey will show you around
City pricesDaily travel budget & monthly costPrice mapTap a city, see it in your moneyTrip budgetPlan a multi-city trip budgetTravel difficultyEasiest & hardest cities to travelCompareTwo cities side by sideBlogTravel money stories & rankingsCurrencyQuick conversion tablesExpense trackerLog trip costs from a receiptPopular cities
Compare cities โบ Colombo vs Ho Chi Minh City
Colombo vs Ho Chi Minh City cost of living 2026
Which is cheaper, what exactly is cheaper, and how it feels on your money ยท Updated October 2026
๐ฑ๐ฐ Colombo
๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh CityHo Chi Minh City is 9% cheaper than Colombo
Living on $1,268 a month in Colombo feels like about $1,302 in Ho Chi Minh City โ same standard of living, compared by feel rather than exchange rate.
Cheaper on how many of 20 items?
Colombo 6tie 0Ho Chi Minh City 14
One day's budget in Colombo ($86.7) lasts 1.3 days in Ho Chi Minh City
Compare on YOUR lifestyleSet your rent, eating out, coffee & taxis โ see your real monthly difference ยท free
โบ
Per day
$86.7 vs $68
Per month
$1,268 vs $1,302
Local meal
Rs 1,000 vs โซ 60,000
$3.33 vs $2.28
Taxi 5 km
Rs 600 vs โซ 70,000
$2 vs $2.66
At a glance
FoodHo Chi Minh City 24% cheaper
Cafรฉs & drinksHo Chi Minh City 49% cheaper
TransportColombo 27% cheaper
Staysimilar
FunHo Chi Minh City 45% cheaper
- Where Ho Chi Minh City is clearly cheaper: Entry ticket (85%โ), Beer (60%โ), Cocktail & wine (45%โ)
- Where Colombo is clearly cheaper: Transit (50%โ), Taxi (25%โ), Bottled water (22%โ)
By category
Salary equivalence
Enter a monthly income in Colombo to see what gives the same standard of living in Ho Chi Minh City. Starts at the average Colombo salary.
Travel difficulty
Colombo
Ho Chi Minh City
Overall
Moderate2.4
Hard3.0
Rip-offs & haggling
3
4
Language
2
3
Getting around
2
2
Payments
3
3
Safety
2
3
Colombo is easier to travel (2.4 vs 3.0). Biggest gap: rip-offs & haggling โ Colombo 3 vs Ho Chi Minh City 4. Closer to 1 is easier. Difficulty ranking โบ
Item by item
| Item | Colombo | Ho Chi Minh City | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local mealper person | Rs 1,000$3.33 | โซ 60,000$2.28 | Ho Chi Minh City โ32% |
| Street food1 item | Rs 500$1.67 | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Ho Chi Minh City โ20% |
| Restaurant dinnerper person | Rs 4,000$13.3 | โซ 280,000$10.6 | Ho Chi Minh City โ20% |
| Coffeeone cup | Rs 1,000$3.33 | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ43% |
| Beerone bottle | Rs 1,000$3.33 | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Ho Chi Minh City โ60% |
| Cocktail & wineone cup | Rs 2,500$8.33 | โซ 120,000$4.56 | Ho Chi Minh City โ45% |
| Bottled water | Rs 80$0.27 | โซ 9,000$0.34 | Colombo โ22% |
| Convenience store1 snack or drink | Rs 220$0.73 | โซ 15,000$0.57 | Ho Chi Minh City โ22% |
| Taxi5 km in town | Rs 600$2 | โซ 70,000$2.66 | Colombo โ25% |
| Tuk-tuk / moto taxishort hop | Rs 300$1 | โซ 20,000$0.76 | Ho Chi Minh City โ24% |
| Transitone ride | Rs 40$0.13 | โซ 7,000$0.27 | Colombo โ50% |
| Scooter rentalper day | Rs 3,000$10 | โซ 150,000$5.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ43% |
| Hotel night3-star | Rs 15,000$50 | โซ 1,000,000$38 | Ho Chi Minh City โ24% |
| Studio rent (month) | Rs 90,000$300 | โซ 10,000,000$380 | Colombo โ21% |
| Laundry | Rs 400$1.33 | โซ 30,000$1.14 | Ho Chi Minh City โ14% |
| SIM card1 week data | Rs 2,000$6.67 | โซ 200,000$7.6 | Colombo โ12% |
| Haircutcut | Rs 1,000$3.33 | โซ 100,000$3.8 | Colombo โ12% |
| Massage1 hour | Rs 6,000$20 | โซ 300,000$11.4 | Ho Chi Minh City โ43% |
| Half-day tourper person | Rs 8,000$26.7 | โซ 650,000$24.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ7% |
| Entry ticketTourist town | Rs 3,750$12.5 | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ85% |
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%+.
Compare on your own lifestyle in the appSet your rent, eating out, coffee and taxis โ see your real monthly difference and live traveler prices. No sign-up.
Open free โบ
FAQ
Which is cheaper, Colombo or Ho Chi Minh City?
Ho Chi Minh City is 9% cheaper than Colombo. Daily budget $86.7 vs $68; a month $1,268 vs $1,302.
Which is easier to travel, Colombo or Ho Chi Minh City?
Colombo is easier: Colombo 2.4/5 vs Ho Chi Minh City 3.0/5 (average of rip-offs, language, transport, payments and safety).
How do monthly costs compare between Colombo and Ho Chi Minh City?
With a short-term studio and living costs, Colombo is about $1,268 and Ho Chi Minh City about $1,302 per month.
Where do the numbers come from?
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.
Related comparisons
๐ฌ๐ท Athens vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐ฎ๐ฉ Bali vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐ช๐ธ Barcelona vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐น๐ญ Bangkok vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐ญ๐บ Budapest vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐ฐ๐ท Busan vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐ต๐ญ Cebu vs ๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City๐ฑ๐ฐ Colombo vs ๐ป๐ณ Da Nang