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 Ho Chi Minh City vs Kampala
Ho Chi Minh City vs Kampala cost of living 2026
Which is cheaper, what exactly is cheaper, and how it feels on your money ยท Updated October 2026
๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City
๐บ๐ฌ KampalaHo Chi Minh City is 10% cheaper than Kampala
Living on $1,302 a month in Ho Chi Minh City feels like about $1,181 in Kampala โ same standard of living, compared by feel rather than exchange rate.
Cheaper on how many of 20 items?
Ho Chi Minh City 14tie 1Kampala 5
One day's budget in Kampala ($90.1) 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
$68 vs $90.1
Per month
$1,302 vs $1,181
Local meal
โซ 60,000 vs USh 10,000
$2.28 vs $2.56
Taxi 5 km
โซ 70,000 vs USh 14,000
$2.66 vs $3.59
At a glance
Foodsimilar
Cafรฉs & drinksHo Chi Minh City 20% cheaper
TransportHo Chi Minh City 35% cheaper
StayHo Chi Minh City 13% cheaper
FunHo Chi Minh City 47% cheaper
- Where Kampala is clearly cheaper: Haircut (33%โ), SIM card (26%โ), Street food (23%โ)
- Where Ho Chi Minh City is clearly cheaper: Scooter rental (68%โ), Entry ticket (63%โ), Transit (48%โ)
By category
Salary equivalence
Enter a monthly income in Ho Chi Minh City to see what gives the same standard of living in Kampala. Starts at the average Ho Chi Minh City salary.
Travel difficulty
Ho Chi Minh City
Kampala
Overall
Hard3.0
Hard3.4
Rip-offs & haggling
4
3
Language
3
2
Getting around
2
3
Payments
3
4
Safety
3
5
Ho Chi Minh City is easier to travel (3.0 vs 3.4). Biggest gap: safety โ Ho Chi Minh City 3 vs Kampala 5. Closer to 1 is easier. Difficulty ranking โบ
Item by item
| Item | Ho Chi Minh City | Kampala | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local mealper person | โซ 60,000$2.28 | USh 10,000$2.56 | Ho Chi Minh City โ11% |
| Street food1 item | โซ 35,000$1.33 | USh 4,000$1.03 | Kampala โ23% |
| Restaurant dinnerper person | โซ 280,000$10.6 | USh 40,000$10.3 | similar |
| Coffeeone cup | โซ 50,000$1.9 | USh 9,000$2.31 | Ho Chi Minh City โ18% |
| Beerone bottle | โซ 35,000$1.33 | USh 6,000$1.54 | Ho Chi Minh City โ13% |
| Cocktail & wineone cup | โซ 120,000$4.56 | USh 25,000$6.41 | Ho Chi Minh City โ29% |
| Bottled water | โซ 9,000$0.34 | USh 1,500$0.38 | Ho Chi Minh City โ11% |
| Convenience store1 snack or drink | โซ 15,000$0.57 | USh 2,000$0.51 | Kampala โ10% |
| Taxi5 km in town | โซ 70,000$2.66 | USh 14,000$3.59 | Ho Chi Minh City โ26% |
| Tuk-tuk / moto taxishort hop | โซ 20,000$0.76 | USh 4,000$1.03 | Ho Chi Minh City โ26% |
| Transitone ride | โซ 7,000$0.27 | USh 2,000$0.51 | Ho Chi Minh City โ48% |
| Scooter rentalper day | โซ 150,000$5.7 | USh 70,000$17.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ68% |
| Hotel night3-star | โซ 1,000,000$38 | USh 220,000$56.4 | Ho Chi Minh City โ33% |
| Studio rent (month) | โซ 10,000,000$380 | USh 1,200,000$308 | Kampala โ19% |
| Laundry | โซ 30,000$1.14 | USh 5,000$1.28 | Ho Chi Minh City โ11% |
| SIM card1 week data | โซ 200,000$7.6 | USh 22,000$5.64 | Kampala โ26% |
| Haircutcut | โซ 100,000$3.8 | USh 10,000$2.56 | Kampala โ33% |
| Massage1 hour | โซ 300,000$11.4 | USh 70,000$17.9 | Ho Chi Minh City โ36% |
| Half-day tourper person | โซ 650,000$24.7 | USh 130,000$33.3 | Ho Chi Minh City โ26% |
| Entry ticketTourist town | โซ 50,000$1.9 | USh 20,000$5.13 | Ho Chi Minh City โ63% |
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, Ho Chi Minh City or Kampala?
Ho Chi Minh City is 10% cheaper than Kampala. Daily budget $68 vs $90.1; a month $1,302 vs $1,181.
Which is easier to travel, Ho Chi Minh City or Kampala?
Ho Chi Minh City is easier: Ho Chi Minh City 3.0/5 vs Kampala 3.4/5 (average of rip-offs, language, transport, payments and safety).
How do monthly costs compare between Ho Chi Minh City and Kampala?
With a short-term studio and living costs, Ho Chi Minh City is about $1,302 and Kampala about $1,181 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