Cost of living comparison

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

compared to

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Summary

Ho Chi Minh City is 9.9% cheaper than Kuala Lumpur.

Restaurants: pay 33.6% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Groceries: pay 12.8% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Transportation: pay 18.7% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Housing: pay 17.5% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Childcare: pay 31.3% more in Ho Chi Minh City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 45.3% less in Ho Chi Minh City
Clothing: pay 10.2% less in Ho Chi Minh City

The cost of childcare and transportation in Ho Chi Minh City are more expensive than in Kuala Lumpur. Expenses including entertainment and sports, restaurants, housing, groceries, and clothing are lower in Ho Chi Minh City.

Ho Chi Minh City vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Ho Chi Minh City instead of Kuala Lumpur, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 33.6% less for restaurants

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.54 MYR19.20	$1.98 ₫51,528	-56.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.54 MYR19.20	$4.85 ₫126,244	+6.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.84 MYR3.56	$0.51 ₫13,294	-39.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.53 MYR2.26	$0.29 ₫7,641	-45.1%
Average			-33.6%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 12.8% less for groceries

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Bread 1 loaf	$0.95 MYR4.00	$1.07 ₫27,934	+13.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$7.58 MYR32.03	$5.90 ₫153,619	-22.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.22 MYR30.51	$5.76 ₫150,045	-20.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.36 MYR9.96	$1.48 ₫38,674	-37.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.94 MYR8.18	$1.70 ₫44,259	-12.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.24 MYR5.24	$1.35 ₫35,161	+8.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.69 MYR2.92	$0.46 ₫12,015	-33.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.25 MYR5.29	$0.55 ₫14,342	-56.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.63 MYR2.65	$0.53 ₫13,898	-14.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.47 MYR1.97	$0.59 ₫15,404	+26.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.51 MYR2.17	$0.54 ₫14,122	+5.8%
Average			-12.8%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 18.7% more for transportation

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.77 MYR7.50	$3.56 ₫92,653	+100.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$11.36 MYR48.01	$13.05 ₫340,086	+14.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$37,478.71 MYR158,441.23	$38,763.85 ₫1,009,953,343	+3.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$10.22 MYR43.21	$5.73 ₫149,174	-44.0%
Average			+18.7%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 17.5% less for housing

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$25.27 MYR106.81	$9.69 ₫252,449	-61.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$536.30 MYR2,267.19	$476.20 ₫12,407,026	-11.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$371.69 MYR1,571.32	$305.20 ₫7,951,658	-17.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$50.02 MYR211.47	$60.34 ₫1,572,215	+20.6%
Average			-17.5%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 31.3% more for childcare

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$250.80 MYR1,060.28	$252.71 ₫6,584,163	+0.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$8,920.55 MYR37,711.63	$14,438.55 ₫376,181,856	+61.9%
Average			+31.3%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 45.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.09 MYR17.28	$1.19 ₫30,917	-71.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.92 MYR12.34	$1.94 ₫50,601	-33.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.09 MYR17.28	$1.38 ₫36,070	-66.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$44.75 MYR189.17	$23.61 ₫615,032	-47.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.77 MYR20.17	$4.35 ₫113,362	-8.8%
Average			-45.3%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 10.2% less for clothing

	Kuala Lumpur	Ho Chi Minh City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$57.74 MYR244.09	$30.06 ₫783,229	-47.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$35.00 MYR147.97	$25.09 ₫653,595	-28.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$76.75 MYR324.47	$98.26 ₫2,560,140	+28.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$73.25 MYR309.68	$78.85 ₫2,054,259	+7.6%
Average			-10.2%

Kuala Lumpur vs. Ho Chi Minh City - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: June 2025

More cost comparisons

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Mexico City

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Berlin

Kuala Lumpur vs.

London

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Phnom Penh

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Canberra

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Nairobi

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Wellington

Kuala Lumpur vs.

Ottawa

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Malaysia vs. Vietnam. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Malaysia and Vietnam.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Kuala Lumpur

Add prices for Ho Chi Minh City

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Ho Chi Minh City or Kuala Lumpur. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.

Ask a question about Kuala Lumpur

Ask a question about Ho Chi Minh City