Anyone Know The Cost Of Living In Vietnam?

[TheExpat]

I am thinking of living in both Thailand and Vietnam (HCNC). Half the year here and the other there. Is the cost of living the same as Thailand? I have looked for a forum about Vietnam and found a couple. They offer houses for US$2500 a month and that seems unreal. I can hardly believe it is more expensive than Thailand.

What is the food, housing and utilities costs to live there?

Thanks for the input..........

Edited August 17, 2007 by TheExpat

[bendix]

I am thinking of living in both Thailand and Vietnam (HCNC). Half the year here and the other there. Is the cost of living the same as Thailand? I have looked for a forum about Vietnam and found a couple. They offer houses for US$2500 a month and that seems unreal. I can hardly believe it is more expensive than Thailand.

What is the food, housing and utilities costs to live there?

Thanks for the input..........

I can't give specifics but I'm pretty sure I read recently that Hanoi was one of the most expensive expat locations in the world, with accomodation costs leading that. I would imagine HCMC wouldnt be far behind? it was on one of those executive recruitment surveys that spring up from now and then.

[Ulysses G.]

I lived in Hanoi for a year and found everything but rent to be much cheaper than Thailand and rents seemed to be dropping quickly at that time.

Vietnamese food is cheaper than Thai food and I like it better although fans of hot and spicy food won't. Beer is MUCH cheaper and farang food in big cities is much cheaper and better.

I was a sorry-ass English teacher, but lived like a King compared to working in Thailand.

Edited August 17, 2007 by Ulysses G.

[Filer]

I can't speak for housing and utilities, but my experience over the years in Hanoi, HCMC and other cities is that food, meals and general costs of living remain distinctly lower than Thailand.

[rak sa_ngop]

I can't speak for housing and utilities, but my experience over the years in Hanoi, HCMC and other cities is that food, meals and general costs of living remain distinctly lower than Thailand.

In Hanoi you can buy draught beer (Bia Tuoi) for 1500 dong a glass - about 10 cents USD. Of course the beer is made from rice and you have to drink it in the street sitting on a plastic stool. The locals call it 'bia co' or grass beer! Lots of foreign English teachers drink it over there (especially around 'beer corner' in the old Quarter.)

[englishoak]

Bia Toui ! , mmmm great beer

[bendix]

I've tried to find the survey I alluded to. Perhaps I was mistaken because the survey I THOUGHT I was referring to - the Mercer Cost of Living survey - doesnt feature Hanoi or any Vietnam city in its top 50 most expensive cities.

Mea culpa.

I'll get my coat . . .

[technocracy]

I lived in Hanoi for a year and found everything but rent to be much cheaper than Thailand and rents seemed to be dropping quickly at that time.

Vietnamese food is cheaper than Thai food and I like it better although fans of hot and spicy food won't. Beer is MUCH cheaper and farang food in big cities is much cheaper and better.

I was a sorry-ass English teacher, but lived like a King compared to working in Thailand.

As above. Everything but rent is cheaper than Thailand in general. In central Hanoi and HCMC the accomodation prices can be approaching London costs - i.e. £1000pm+ ($2000+ for a decent enough 2 bed apartment/townhouse.

I've looked into this quite a bit as work keeps coming up over there for me - although it always seems to disappear before I get given the job!!

Edited August 18, 2007 by technocracy

[hotelier]

I can't speak for housing and utilities, but my experience over the years in Hanoi, HCMC and other cities is that food, meals and general costs of living remain distinctly lower than Thailand.

In Hanoi you can buy draught beer (Bia Tuoi) for 1500 dong a glass - about 10 cents USD. Of course the beer is made from rice and you have to drink it in the street sitting on a plastic stool. The locals call it 'bia co' or grass beer! Lots of foreign English teachers drink it over there (especially around 'beer corner' in the old Quarter.)

trust me when I say you wouldn't want to drink that 1500 dong draught beer, you will have a major headache the next morning because of its low quality. Even the locals don't drink that stuff..okay maybe motorbike taxi and cyclo people. A good vietnamese draught beer starts at around 4000dong. And anyway Tiger or Carlsberg is only around 1-2USD/pint

Food is as cheap as here. Transportation is also as cheap even though not as convenient since there's no sky train. however the bus system in hanoi is better than Bangkok. Nightlife can be a bit more expensive than Bangkok at certain places however if you're not into clubbing then that won't be a problem.

Accommodation varies alot but I'm sure with just 10,000 baht you can rent a private house. My friend paid 500USD and he gets a 3 storeys house near the West Lake

[toptuan]

Keep in mind whether the responders are comparing Vietnam costs to Bangok, or the rest of Thailand. The last poster was very specific, which helps.

I have made two trips to Vietnam from Nha Trang on south, including two weeks in HCMC/Saigon. 2005 and 2006. I lived with families, and talked often about living costs. EVERYTHING there was more expensive than the REST of Thailand (excluding cosmopolitan Bangkok). Food, accommodations, transportation were all about twice the cost.

[tutsiwarrior]

I lived in Hanoi for a year and found everything but rent to be much cheaper than Thailand and rents seemed to be dropping quickly at that time.

Vietnamese food is cheaper than Thai food and I like it better although fans of hot and spicy food won't. Beer is MUCH cheaper and farang food in big cities is much cheaper and better.

I was a sorry-ass English teacher, but lived like a King compared to working in Thailand.

As above. Everything but rent is cheaper than Thailand in general. In central Hanoi and HCMC the accomodation prices can be approaching London costs - i.e. £1000pm+ ($2000+ for a decent enough 2 bed apartment/townhouse.

I've looked into this quite a bit as work keeps coming up over there for me - although it always seems to disappear before I get given the job!!

HCMC is a big place...if you want to live in the lovely district 1 area with tree shaded streets and nice colonial architecture then it'll cost ya...I paid USD1500 per month on Mac Dhin Chi St for a 2 bed serviced flat with nice japanese, malaysian, german (excellent beer brewed on the premises) and VN restaurants within walking distance; best pho bo in town across the street...even had a girl from a shop around the corner deliver my vodka with a phone call!

With my wife with me the weekly supermarket shopping was significantly lower but the selection of goods was about the same as in Tescos in Suphanburi except for a good cheese selection (camembert in HCMC) and baguettes baked fresh every hour on the premises.

plenty of other reasons to prefer HCMC over BKK but I won't go into them...(tutsi ducks as missiles are hurled; 'Oi!...whyn't ye get yer arse back there then an' quit running down Thailand!'...I only wish... )

the wife didn't like the place for some reason and returned to Thailand...when in the street she would look around her warily, I believe in tacit acknowlegement that VN women are more beautiful than Thai...

Edited August 18, 2007 by tutsiwarrior

[calibanjr.]

Not all the info, and not as good as direct experience (as above), but I always find craigslist informative as an research starting point and a place to make connections for questions.

http://vietnam.craigslist.org/

[rak sa_ngop]

I can't speak for housing and utilities, but my experience over the years in Hanoi, HCMC and other cities is that food, meals and general costs of living remain distinctly lower than Thailand.

In Hanoi you can buy draught beer (Bia Tuoi) for 1500 dong a glass - about 10 cents USD. Of course the beer is made from rice and you have to drink it in the street sitting on a plastic stool. The locals call it 'bia co' or grass beer! Lots of foreign English teachers drink it over there (especially around 'beer corner' in the old Quarter.)

trust me when I say you wouldn't want to drink that 1500 dong draught beer, you will have a major headache the next morning because of its low quality.

I drank it nearly everyday for several years with no problems. I preferred it to 4,000 dong stuff.

Up to you!