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 Kandy
Ho Chi Minh City vs Kandy 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
๐ฑ๐ฐ KandyHo Chi Minh City and Kandy cost about the same
Living on $1,302 a month in Ho Chi Minh City feels like about $966 in Kandy โ same standard of living, compared by feel rather than exchange rate.
Cheaper on how many of 20 items?
Ho Chi Minh City 14tie 1Kandy 5
Compare on YOUR lifestyleSet your rent, eating out, coffee & taxis โ see your real monthly difference ยท free
โบ
Per day
$68 vs $83.3
Per month
$1,302 vs $966
Local meal
โซ 60,000 vs Rs 900
$2.28 vs $3
Taxi 5 km
โซ 70,000 vs Rs 600
$2.66 vs $2
At a glance
FoodHo Chi Minh City 23% cheaper
Cafรฉs & drinksHo Chi Minh City 46% cheaper
TransportKandy 7% cheaper
StayKandy 15% cheaper
FunHo Chi Minh City 50% cheaper
- Where Kandy is clearly cheaper: Studio rent (month) (61%โ), Transit (50%โ), Haircut (47%โ)
- Where Ho Chi Minh City is clearly cheaper: Entry ticket (71%โ), Beer (60%โ), Scooter rental (43%โ)
By category
Salary equivalence
Enter a monthly income in Ho Chi Minh City to see what gives the same standard of living in Kandy. Starts at the average Ho Chi Minh City salary.
Travel difficulty
Ho Chi Minh City
Kandy
Overall
Hard3.0
Moderate2.4
Rip-offs & haggling
4
3
Language
3
2
Getting around
2
2
Payments
3
3
Safety
3
2
Kandy is easier to travel (2.4 vs 3.0). Biggest gap: rip-offs & haggling โ Ho Chi Minh City 4 vs Kandy 3. Closer to 1 is easier. Difficulty ranking โบ
Item by item
| Item | Ho Chi Minh City | Kandy | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local mealper person | โซ 60,000$2.28 | Rs 900$3 | Ho Chi Minh City โ24% |
| Street food1 item | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Rs 600$2 | Ho Chi Minh City โ33% |
| Restaurant dinnerper person | โซ 280,000$10.6 | Rs 3,500$11.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ9% |
| Coffeeone cup | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Rs 900$3 | Ho Chi Minh City โ37% |
| Beerone bottle | โซ 35,000$1.33 | Rs 1,000$3.33 | Ho Chi Minh City โ60% |
| Cocktail & wineone cup | โซ 120,000$4.56 | Rs 2,000$6.67 | Ho Chi Minh City โ32% |
| Bottled water | โซ 9,000$0.34 | Rs 80$0.27 | Kandy โ22% |
| Convenience store1 snack or drink | โซ 15,000$0.57 | Rs 180$0.6 | Ho Chi Minh City โ5% |
| Taxi5 km in town | โซ 70,000$2.66 | Rs 600$2 | Kandy โ25% |
| Tuk-tuk / moto taxishort hop | โซ 20,000$0.76 | Rs 350$1.17 | Ho Chi Minh City โ35% |
| Transitone ride | โซ 7,000$0.27 | Rs 40$0.13 | Kandy โ50% |
| Scooter rentalper day | โซ 150,000$5.7 | Rs 3,000$10 | Ho Chi Minh City โ43% |
| Hotel night3-star | โซ 1,000,000$38 | Rs 15,000$50 | Ho Chi Minh City โ24% |
| Studio rent (month) | โซ 10,000,000$380 | Rs 45,000$150 | Kandy โ61% |
| Laundry | โซ 30,000$1.14 | Rs 500$1.67 | Ho Chi Minh City โ32% |
| SIM card1 week data | โซ 200,000$7.6 | Rs 3,500$11.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ35% |
| Haircutcut | โซ 100,000$3.8 | Rs 600$2 | Kandy โ47% |
| Massage1 hour | โซ 300,000$11.4 | Rs 5,000$16.7 | Ho Chi Minh City โ32% |
| Half-day tourper person | โซ 650,000$24.7 | Rs 7,500$25 | similar |
| Entry ticketTourist town | โซ 50,000$1.9 | Rs 2,000$6.67 | Ho Chi Minh City โ71% |
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 Kandy?
Ho Chi Minh City and Kandy cost about the same. Daily budget $68 vs $83.3; a month $1,302 vs $966.
Which is easier to travel, Ho Chi Minh City or Kandy?
Kandy is easier: Kandy 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 Ho Chi Minh City and Kandy?
With a short-term studio and living costs, Ho Chi Minh City is about $1,302 and Kandy about $966 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