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 Guangzhou vs Ho Chi Minh City
Guangzhou 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
๐จ๐ณ Guangzhou
๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh CityHo Chi Minh City is 18% cheaper than Guangzhou
Living on $1,474 a month in Guangzhou 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?
Guangzhou 3tie 2Ho Chi Minh City 15
One day's budget in Guangzhou ($90.9) 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
$90.9 vs $68
Per month
$1,474 vs $1,302
Local meal
ยฅ 30 vs โซ 60,000
$4.23 vs $2.28
Taxi 5 km
ยฅ 18 vs โซ 70,000
$2.54 vs $2.66
At a glance
FoodHo Chi Minh City 25% cheaper
Cafรฉs & drinksHo Chi Minh City 46% cheaper
TransportHo Chi Minh City 35% cheaper
StayHo Chi Minh City 7% cheaper
FunHo Chi Minh City 57% cheaper
- Where Ho Chi Minh City is clearly cheaper: Entry ticket (90%โ), Tuk-tuk / moto taxi (58%โ), Haircut (55%โ)
- Where Guangzhou is clearly cheaper: Scooter rental (63%โ), Bottled water (18%โ)
By category
Salary equivalence
Enter a monthly income in Guangzhou to see what gives the same standard of living in Ho Chi Minh City. Starts at the average Guangzhou salary.
Travel difficulty
Guangzhou
Ho Chi Minh City
Overall
Moderate2.4
Hard3.0
Rip-offs & haggling
2
4
Language
4
3
Getting around
1
2
Payments
3
3
Safety
2
3
Guangzhou is easier to travel (2.4 vs 3.0). Biggest gap: rip-offs & haggling โ Guangzhou 2 vs Ho Chi Minh City 4. Closer to 1 is easier. Difficulty ranking โบ
Item by item
| Item | Guangzhou | Ho Chi Minh City | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local mealper person | ยฅ 30$4.23 | โซ 60,000$2.28 | Ho Chi Minh City โ46% |
| Street food1 item | ยฅ 10$1.41 | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Ho Chi Minh City โ6% |
| Restaurant dinnerper person | ยฅ 100$14.1 | โซ 280,000$10.6 | Ho Chi Minh City โ24% |
| Coffeeone cup | ยฅ 25$3.52 | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ46% |
| Beerone bottle | ยฅ 15$2.11 | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Ho Chi Minh City โ37% |
| Cocktail & wineone cup | ยฅ 70$9.86 | โซ 120,000$4.56 | Ho Chi Minh City โ54% |
| Bottled water | ยฅ 2$0.28 | โซ 9,000$0.34 | Guangzhou โ18% |
| Convenience store1 snack or drink | ยฅ 4$0.56 | โซ 15,000$0.57 | similar |
| Taxi5 km in town | ยฅ 18$2.54 | โซ 70,000$2.66 | similar |
| Tuk-tuk / moto taxishort hop | ยฅ 13$1.83 | โซ 20,000$0.76 | Ho Chi Minh City โ58% |
| Transitone ride | ยฅ 4$0.56 | โซ 7,000$0.27 | Ho Chi Minh City โ53% |
| Scooter rentalper day | ยฅ 15$2.11 | โซ 150,000$5.7 | Guangzhou โ63% |
| Hotel night3-star | ยฅ 350$49.3 | โซ 1,000,000$38 | Ho Chi Minh City โ23% |
| Studio rent (month) | ยฅ 2,500$352 | โซ 10,000,000$380 | Guangzhou โ7% |
| Laundry | ยฅ 15$2.11 | โซ 30,000$1.14 | Ho Chi Minh City โ46% |
| SIM card1 week data | ยฅ 80$11.3 | โซ 200,000$7.6 | Ho Chi Minh City โ33% |
| Haircutcut | ยฅ 60$8.45 | โซ 100,000$3.8 | Ho Chi Minh City โ55% |
| Massage1 hour | ยฅ 130$18.3 | โซ 300,000$11.4 | Ho Chi Minh City โ38% |
| Half-day tourper person | ยฅ 300$42.3 | โซ 650,000$24.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ42% |
| Entry ticketTourist town | ยฅ 140$19.7 | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ90% |
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, Guangzhou or Ho Chi Minh City?
Ho Chi Minh City is 18% cheaper than Guangzhou. Daily budget $90.9 vs $68; a month $1,474 vs $1,302.
Which is easier to travel, Guangzhou or Ho Chi Minh City?
Guangzhou is easier: Guangzhou 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 Guangzhou and Ho Chi Minh City?
With a short-term studio and living costs, Guangzhou is about $1,474 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 Ho Chi Minh City