What am I really looking at for monthly expenses?

The questions you ask are so dependent upon you personal tastes that it is difficult harden the figures.

A 2-bedroom apartment goes for around $4-500 per month. Add to this $15 for cooking gas every three months. Electricity - no air-con - is around $15.month; water around $6l InterNet around $30-50 unlimited per month; cable at around $3 per month.

Fans are often adequate, I spent a fair amount of time in cold Ontario, Canada, and I don't need air-con. Besides, when you see what you pay for air-con you have an added pressure to use the fan!

You have you cell, again you determine it's cost. If you use the VNPT 365 Plan you only top up when you need to and make one phone call each month to keep the plan activated.

Garbage is around a $1 per month and then, depending on your building, there is the management fee which is around $15-20 depending on your building.

If you want clean, decent restaurant meals a 'diner' style, at the Nhu Lan you will be laying down around $5 daily.

Transit sucks, so you might choose to walk or taxi.

Look at Craigs List VietNam for accommodation prices BUT only to get a feel for the market.

Milk is around a $1, Nescafe around $4.50 a jar. If you want to eat Western style you will pay big time. An average size Cornflakes is around $5 and rising.

10 large eggs are a $1; 3 small pork chops about $1.50, 3 filets of fish or one good sized chicken breast are about $1.50 a pack(Lotte Mart Q1).

Potatoes are around $2/kilo. Beer is reasonable, alcohol, too.

Hope this gives you something to think about. (Please excuse typo's, I dictated this whilst drinking coffee on a noisy street)

To put some price to the beer and smokes:

1 case of Tiger 5% alc (24 Cns) 210050VND

1 Carton of "555's" (10 packs) 200000 VND

It varies a lot, depending where you live and where you work. Cheap living, such places do exist,are commonly only cheap by rent, the reminder, might be well above average.

In Saigon, I (+wife) possible could live on 1200 USD a month quite comfortable, as I am not really in need for travelling. Distances and times for travel might swallow easy USD 20-30 a day, more is also possible, depending on .... and a push bike is not really always the convenient transportation, as local knowledge is needed, do find efficient from A to B.

Especially as a new comer, you will have to pay often more than locals. That can make easy the double/triple and more, as well you have at least at the begin excessive costs in time and travel and moneys, until you are settled.

Easy costs calculating formula for the overall costs: 6 month in holiday mode (like you did before, when not in Vietnam), some people need longer, some less, after that, costs could normalize, wherever you stay.

And remember, Vietnam is not cheap by price, but is has a quite bad price-quality standard.

"...while others insist between 2,000-3,000USD is needed."

That's a good one!  This place makes Las Vegas look like Salt Lake City, so the people saying that may have a bad habit(s).

$800-$1000 a month will provide the proverbial life of Riley.  You can survive on less.

You should have at least 2K available.  Even if you land a job immediately, most schools pay monthly.

Craig's List is a joke, and generally filled with inflated prices.  The Rooms for Rent section is better, however. 

I know a good hotel that would run about $11 a day, or less.  You may want to consider a place like that until you get adjusted.

Hi Xavier Patrick,

It really depends on which lifestyle you choose for yourself. I assume you won't like local food all the time. It is yummy for some days or weeks, but after a while you will like a good cut of meat or something else which is your favourite food from home. And those wishes can cost you a bit. Also when you buy clothes you might pay more than the locals easily before you figure out the "real" prices. But all in all, life is good in HCMC, because you won't miss a thing. It's just sometimes hard to find what you are looking for. We (my husband and me) live here since 6 months now and our average expense is about 2.000 US$ per month (for both of us, without rent, but with travel, gym, leisure activities...)
Hope this helps you.

You can live pretty comfortably off of 1000/month. That's assuming your room is somewhere in the 300-325 range out the door. You can certainly live off of less, but 1000 USD is a good projecting point.

I've talked to quite a few people who moved from the states and they always end up spending more than they think; in some cases a lot more. It adds up. You can't eat street food 3 times a day 7 days a week. You get sick of it after a while. I'm sure you're gonna make friends, so you'll probly go out for coffee and dine with them at times. If you're a social drinker, you might be going out a couple times a week for beers. If you plan on doing any traveling on the weekends while you're here that could add up as well.

You'll save a lot of money if your gonna have a bicycle and take public transportation. Even though taxi's are relatively cheap (compared to NYC and DC), they can add up pretty quickly.

If you rent anything other than a hotel, most but not all  rooms will make you put down a security and up to 2 months deposit. That's something to keep in mind if you're not coming here with a great deal of money.

Hope that helps,
- Jerry

JVo18 wrote:

You can't eat street food 3 times a day 7 days a week. You get sick of it after a while. ...

That's why I recommended Nhu Lan which, like all permanent restaurants, are inspected by the TP HCM Health Department.

hi,
I think $500 is ok for a local man but it must be more for an expat. It may be easy for you to teach English here but you will find it easier if you have English teaching certificates. In my opinion, Vietnam's population is big enough but you are welcome because I wish most of vietnamese can speak english well.
Cheer,

If I have a TESOL certificate from cactus completed in Vietnam, are my chances of finding work within a month pretty good? This is without having a bachelor's degree as well.

Thanks everyone for the responses so far.

In fact, I have no idea of living in HCMC, but I see if you want to save your money as much as possible, 500$ is pretty ok in Hanoi. I see a lot of expatriates here rent a room for 200$( including cable TV, Internet, living water, bed frame, mattress, pillows, AC, TV, fridge, shared washing machine) in a private condo. You can go for street food or cook yourself if you have free time (cooking is better and safer). I have some foreign friends, so I see it would be great if you have a local friend, who can help you everything here (I've helped my friends buy second-hand mattresses, cheap but qualified stove, and negotiate many things). You know, it always get easier with a local one. My friends are teachers also, and they want to save money for their travelling, they live in a shared house, just need 200$ for everything (rent, electricity, water, cable, Internet), and ideally, they can cook.
Of course, everything is up to you! As I said, I just wanna help you cuz I see expatriates here having a lot of difficulties. If you need my help, please feel free to contact me, I'm not sure I can help you cuz I'm living in Hanoi, but thanks to my network of friends, I hope I can help you something ^^

It is up to you but the certificate usually  is a requirement. As I know, you guys usually work with some language centers, not only one.

Xavier Patrick wrote:

If I have a TESOL certificate from cactus completed in Vietnam, are my chances of finding work within a month pretty good? This is without having a bachelor's degree as well.

Thanks everyone for the responses so far.

Kari31 wrote:

Hi Xavier Patrick,

It really depends on which lifestyle you choose for yourself. I assume you won't like local food all the time. It is yummy for some days or weeks, but after a while you will like a good cut of meat or something else which is your favourite food from home. And those wishes can cost you a bit.
Hope this helps you.

This is so true! I enjoyed a costly but oh so tasty steak tonight...

It's more than possible to life a good life cheaply in Saigon, just make sure you have some extra cash in the matress, to treat yourself once in a while.

I think the guys who said that it depends on your lifestyle are spot on. If you are going to eat at nice restaurants most of the time, go out partying alot at expensive places and live in a nice apartment then 2k-3k is probably accurate. If you're going for a comfortable but not extravagant lifestyle then you can easily get by on half of that or maybe even less. It really comes down to what you want, whether you can afford it and how much you plan to save.

Hi friend
I have a suggestion for you, you agree or not okay! We can make friends, okay?
You are living in the city, and you meet some difficulty is of course, especially financial problems.
Come on rural areas now, i think so. I am a lived, study and work there, but the passion and desire to do something to where they live, I have left and returned it to work and contribution.
Countryside will have more opportunities and need the contribution of young people have nice soul and passion.
I am implementing a business plan in the home, community tourism
And I also want to open an English language center in the town area, and you have the desire to do something, go to this place. Please call or email me at hieuliemtravel[at]gmail.com.
I hope that you will visit me, our families, our friends with

Sincerely new friend
Hieu Jungle

Hi
There exists a reality in the minds of young people today
Take come city and then life will be brighter, more chances of life.
Why? Completed in the city. It is true that no one forces you to return to rural areas, people are free in their choice, as long as it's good for you. I also agree.
But there must be other people think, and I was struggling with his own lot, I've returned to where they grew up, I listen, observe and look and I worked and worked. Life is less exciting, but true people, I love this jobs now, althought a bit poor but happy.
And now I'm happy with my choice, my passion
Cheer
Hieu Jungle

I personally budget $1000 and send the rest home to the UK

If you spend $3000 > you will be Prince Xavier of Saigon
If you spend $1500 > you live like most teachers
If you spend $60 > you will live like a local
If you spend $3 > you will live like am ex Nigerian Footballer who has injured himself and got fired from his Vietnamese club. Having no money to fly home and no money to survive... Rock and hard place?

Hi Xavier,
I've only been here a little while but I echo what people say. Some things are cheap but HCMC is a city and it's not that cheap to live. Buses really are a problem here and cycling is tricky.It depends where you live as well. I'm in An Phu and cycling from there is a nightmare down the highway. But if youive centrally, rent is higher. Vegetables and fruit in the markets are cheap, but you've got to get there and you  will get ripped off for a while.

Make sure you budget for health insurance. Doctors are expensive and there are a lot of things to catch. You also want to think about the jabs you need before you come. I don't know what people are normally immunized for  in the USA, but I had quite a few coming from the UK. And you will need to set yourself up with quite a bit when you get here like furniture so you have to allow for that. I spent at least $1000 my first month and I get accommodation with my job That included. Few social events but it's all the extra things you need like towels and a water cooler.  (You can't drink the water.) things like gum memberships are expensive.

It's a fun city though.



It's a great city though.

If you have a room to rent in a home for $200 a month already in HCMC would you be able to live on about $400 a month?  200 for rent and 200 for food and everything else? 

Thanks.

As others have said, it depends on the lifestyle you want to have, and where you want to live - even as far as the cost of utilities alone is concerned. (Many areas have higher-than-average utilities rates, such as where I live.)

Regarding the other costs, I'll throw another example out for you: my wife and I live on $300-$400 per month, which includes all expenses not related to rent and utilities. She buys the food at the local stores and markets (most have been recommended here on this blog) and cooks at home. We eat a mix of Chinese, Vietnamese, and western food. We go out for entertainment (mainly just for drinks during happy hours) only on weekends, and unless it's a very special occasion, we never eat out at the high-end "tourist" restaurants located mainly in district 1. Those places could easily top $50 for just one meal for two.

I will qualify, however, that I'm not sure this budget would be possible without the assistance of the wife, who is a very good negotiator, and also very good at passing herself off as Vietnamese in the local markets in order to get better prices for produce.

BritViet wrote:

I personally budget $1000 and send the rest home to the UK

If you spend $3000 > you will be Prince Xavier of Saigon
If you spend $1500 > you live like most teachers
If you spend $60 > you will live like a local
If you spend $3 > you will live like am ex Nigerian Footballer who has injured himself and got fired from his Vietnamese club. Having no money to fly home and no money to survive... Rock and hard place?

hi mate, I like to read your comments. it's interesting

we need $1300 to  survive. we have been living here for nearly two years

BritViet wrote:

If you spend $3 > you will live like am ex Nigerian Footballer who has injured himself and got fired from his Vietnamese club. Having no money to fly home and no money to survive... Rock and hard place?

that made me lol. LOL.
if you ever decide to go to HCMC pm me.

have a good one.

Hi , could you send me a link or give me the name of this hotel you spoke of?

Kind regards
A.

I live on about 500usd a month, that includes rent,food,utilities and going out a few times. I eat at home most of the time, when I do go out I eat where locals eat and not expat places, I dont drink a lot so that can make a big difference. Anymore then 1000 a month means your out partying and hanging out at expat places.

To whom this request? 
This is an old post. Why don't you start a new thread?

Aris Van Calster wrote:

Hi , could you send me a link or give me the name of this hotel you spoke of?

Kind regards
A.

Teacher Mark wrote:

I know a good hotel that would run about $11 a day, or less.  You may want to consider a place like that until you get adjusted.

She's referring to this^. I'm kind of curious myself about what the cheapest hotels in D1 run (how about guesthouses?) as I may stay in Saigon on the weekends.

[Moderated: No free ad on the forum]

Hana, $2000 for a place to live is very expensive, expats make good salaries, but not many of them are able to afford, or even willing to pay that much

Oh, wow, some real estate agents need to get a grip. $2000 for an apartment in HCMC? You could easily rent a swanky pad in a world-class city for that amount of cash.

Yeah this is Vietnam, not New York city

Yeah, realtors think expats are gold coin tree 
So they can pay any amount without a pain!

mikeymyke wrote:

Yeah this is Vietnam, not New York city

mikeymyke wrote:

Hana, $2000 for a place to live is very expensive, expats make good salaries, but not many of them are able to afford, or even willing to pay that much

2,000 for apartment 150sqm and 3 bedrooms. Free internet, free cable TV, Free water usage, free cleaning, free changing your bed, 24 hours security , 24 hours technician....so, if you rent a house, you can guess how much you haveto pay.

800 dollars.

Saigon or HCMC is a very large city and there are houses or apartments for nearly every budget.  I live in Vung Tau where I am paying 6.5 million a month for a 4 room, 3 story house.  a few streets over I have a friend living in a house much the same as mine and he is paying 14 million a month.

Hi Xavier,

How much you spend depends entirely on the lifestyle you choose to lead. If you go out every night and eat at fancy restaurants you'll be able to do so on $1500-$2000 a month.

If you're not afraid of eating street food and don't need to go out every night you'll spend significantly less.

I live on 18A Nguyen Thi Minh Khai street at the moment. The street is full of expats and has a lot of large private rooms that cost $250-300 a month. This includes cleaning, laundry, water & cable TV. The rooms have aircon but electricity isn't included (about $25 more per month). That may be a pretty good starting point for you.

There are a lot of hotels in the Pham Ngu Lao (backpacker area) that charge just $10 per night and have all the same amenities, you may want to spend a few nights there before committing to something more permanent.

Apartments cost slightly more, people have already posted quite a few accurate figures. Things in Vietnam are generally very affordable and of relatively high quality, except for the local meat which isn't that great.

You'll have lots of fun here. The country has many more good features than it does bad.

Brother, I've read many of your posts... and I liked the detailed break down of expenses. You are the man to ask. I see you live in Buon Ma Thout, Dak lak. (Think I got that right) I hope to meet you some day, for some time I thought of moving to your city. For now I will be in the other side of the highlands, Dalat, Lam Dong.

I will use your list as a guide for the future. At this time I have only stayed temporarily in Hanoi, Nha Trang, Saigon and Dalat. I plan to stay for longer periods and this list will help... Thanks.

saigonmonkey wrote:

As others have said, it depends on the lifestyle you want to have, and where you want to live - even as far as the cost of utilities alone is concerned. (Many areas have higher-than-average utilities rates, such as where I live.)

Regarding the other costs, I'll throw another example out for you: my wife and I live on $300-$400 per month, which includes all expenses not related to rent and utilities. She buys the food at the local stores and markets (most have been recommended here on this blog) and cooks at home. We eat a mix of Chinese, Vietnamese, and western food. We go out for entertainment (mainly just for drinks during happy hours) only on weekends, and unless it's a very special occasion, we never eat out at the high-end "tourist" restaurants located mainly in district 1. Those places could easily top $50 for just one meal for two.

I will qualify, however, that I'm not sure this budget would be possible without the assistance of the wife, who is a very good negotiator, and also very good at passing herself off as Vietnamese in the local markets in order to get better prices for produce.

As usual, Jaitch (the mosquito) has a good handle on things.

Several years ago we (my g/f and I) bought a small 2 bed apartment in a new apartment block in dist 8. With no rent to pay I reckon that we could live on 50USD/month excluding food but including the cost of fibre optic internet.

If you get married to a Vietnamese, she will qualify for a reduction in your water bill as long as you are registered with the police at your residence.

As a foreigner you can expect prices to magically increase as soon as the local shop keepers sees you (not so in supermarkets such as Big C and METRO though). For that reason my wife (we are married now) always does the shopping when we buy from locals shops and markets.

If I want to buy anything electrical or consumable from local shops and stores, I go and find what I want, but don't buy. my wife then goes and buys whatever it is a couple of days later and pays up to 50% less - she is a ferocious negotiator anyway.

The meter price on taxis can vary enormously (it isn't supposed to but it does). For example, the true cost of a metered taxi ride from An Phu Metro to Tau Dien is 46KD, however some taxi's try to charge 85/90 kD for exactly the same journey. We got to know one taxi driver whose meter was correct and got his phone number and called him whenever we needed a taxi.

Anyway, from my perspective, you can live very well on 1000 USD/month (including paying rent of, say, 300 USD a month) provided you don,t want to eat out western style every night.

In relation to water,it costs different from Provence to Provence, in Saigon in 2011 our water was around 140,000, in Bà Rịa Vung Tau that came all the way down to 45 000 a month in 2014.

My average living costs per month is around 15 million vnd, that includes rent and utilities of 8.5 million. It's not hard,just don't eat at western style restaurants and drink 100k beers at nightclubs.