3.9/5
1,319 reviews
Photo by Tran Phu via Unsplash

Cost of Living in Hanoi

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english

friendly

great

food

coffee

beautiful

locals

stay

person

air

street

weeks

long

nightlife

egg

bad

speak

Hanoi draws mixed reactions from visitors. On the plus side, the cost of living is very low, with cheap food, drinks, and accommodation. The city caters well to digital nomads, with plenty of laptop-friendly cafes and solid internet. There’s easy access to key northern tourist spots like Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binh, and Sa Pa. Cafes are everywhere, and local specialties like egg coffee are popular. Tay Ho and Ba Dinh are commonly recommended neighborhoods depending on whether you want a local or expat feel. Overall, it can be a great base for short-term stays or travel in the region.

However, issues like high pollution, dirty streets, and a cash-based economy came up often. Traffic is chaotic, and many found the city hard to navigate, though some locals suggest you need to “go with the flow.” Some travelers commented on unwelcoming or unhelpful locals, with occasional scams reported. English is not widely spoken in many parts of the city, which can make daily logistics more difficult.

Overall, Hanoi might not be ideal for long stays depending on sensitivity to air quality or a need for Western-style conveniences. It remains a good short-term travel stop with strong cultural character and food.

AI-generated summary of reviews
10 months ago

On the one hand it's a digital nomad paradise. The endless amount of laptop friendly cafes, great food, affordable accommodations. On the other hand the pollution is a real thing - if you are sensitive or care about your health, keep this in mind.

10 months ago

Tip from a Hanoian: Hanoi may seem chaotic at first, but slow down and go with the flow
— that’s when you’ll feel its charm and colonial nostalgia.
Skip touristy English spots in Hoan Kiem; ask locals or search in Vietnamese.
Want a business vibe? Try Duy Tan.
For shopping malls, head to Vincom, Lotte, or IPH (like Bangkok’s Siam).
Craving street food or student life? Explore Dong Da.
Stay in Tay Ho for the expat scene,
but Ba Dinh or southern Tran Hung Dao street offer a more authentic Hanoi feel.
Stay open — the city rewards curiosity.

1 year ago

Two weeks in Hanoi. Really enjoyed the city. Besides, the pollution, a nice charming city. Great access to all the tourist destinations in the north Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binh, Sa Pa. WiFi is excellent. Food is excellent. People are friendly. Not a nightlife person or coworking space but it's available. Cafes are everywhere and yes egg coffee is amazing. Definitely recommend.

2 years ago

The most vietnamese city in Vietnam. The Old Quarter and West Lake are the highlights. If you come, try the egg coffee. Be mindful Vietnam has cracked down on visas, and it is not as friendly to foreigners. I was able to relax after I received a 5-year spousal visa.

4 years ago

Hanoi feels more like a "large village" than a proper city. It's also what I call "unapologetically Vietnamese" given the way most places and shops are occupied and used by locals. English penetration isn't bad, but maybe because I speak Vietnamese I never had much of a problem in Hanoi. Prices for coffee, juice, smoothies, and food are insanely affordable. I wouldn't say the locals are "friendly to a fault" and mostly have left me alone.

Yes, the old town city center is dirty, garbage on the sidewalks and streets are a common sight. Traffic is chaotic but I never found it a nightmare, no worse than other SE Asian cities I've been to. I wasn't really prepared nor never liked how "cash only" heavy Hanoi is, even higher end cocktail lounges don't accept cards.

4 years ago

I do not like Hanoi. I would not recommend it. I would rather go to Mexico city (cleaner and easier to get around). The driving situation is bizarre and scary. Gab app only works with cash, and honestly, most things only work with cash. The streets are dirty and disorganized. People barely speak English here (I found more english speakers in Da Nang, Vietnam). I tried to stay in Truc Bach and it was so dirty and loud that i left to West lake (which is supposed to be one of the nice area). It is a bit cleaner but still, the air quality is horrendous in this city. The internet is okay, its functional but not great. I am not a fan of the people either, so far they have scammed me and deceived me. The people in Da Nang, Vietnam are much nicer and friendly. Honestly, i would not waste a ticket or money on a long stay here. If you want to come to go to the famous attractions, cool. But i would not recommend staying here for a long time. Not a place for nomads based on my standards.

5 years ago

Cheep bear and party place. But only have 3-4 beautiful places to visit. I stayed 5 days and thanks! There are more beautiful places in Asia than Hanoi. I don´t think I come back. Good food and cheap but nothing more..

6 years ago

Could never tolerate this city beyond a couple of weeks. Always felt like an alien here because the locals are even more antisocial than southern and central Vietnamese. That is, unless they were trying to hassle me for free English lessons.

6 years ago

I lived in Hanoi for 3 full months and I really loved it.

Hanoi has a big foreigner district called 'Tay Ho'. If what you are looking for is somewhat foreigner(English) friendly, the spot is yours. However I preferred to stay in the Japanese area that was full of good sushi.

The charm of the city comes from the people. Vietnamese are aggressively kind and way too friendly.

I even rented a piano from a local shop, placed it at home and played it. Took private Muythai lesson from a local gym where the instructor speak no single word of English. Had beautifully tasted egg coffee from a local coffee shop and delicious bun-cha, pho and bahn mi. Went to a local market to buy fruits and veggies. Had beers and hookah in the old quarter. Made a best friend with piano teacher and my bf's barber(!).

Hanoi is the city that wonderful things happen :)

7 years ago

Terrible place. Don't go!
I jest. I loved my three weeks in Hanoi. Going to beer street and drinking 50 cent beer while munching on spring rolls with beautiful locals. The interesting architecture which is infinitely more beautiful than Saigon, which is an ugly city in comparison. Hanoi just has this vibe that you're actually in a foreign country. The old town is great, the prices are great, the food is great. It's a wonderful place. The downsides are the air quality and the enforced curfew for bars. The cops come out and shut down all the bars at midnight. But that doesn't mean the party stops. Everyone just goes to the underground parties after that. I think Hanoi is a great place and you all shouldn't go there.

7 years ago

Hanoi is great, it's bursting with culture, tasty food and beautiful people. I lived here for almost 3 months and loved it. Summer is really hot and air quality is bad so check what time of year you go! Make sure you hit up Sapa - get the overnight train, also Ninh Binh is perfect for a weekend trip!

7 years ago

My wife and I have been living in Hanoi now for over five months. After having lived in Japan for nine years, KOREA for four months, Kunming, China for four months and Thailand, Cambodia and Malaysia for two months each we’ve decided that Hanoi is our favorite city of all (when factoring in cost of living—and probably regardless of cost-of-living). I don’t agree with the current traffic safety assessment. I walk everyday all
Over the city—on average, 10 miles a day and in every direction. I’ve personally witnessed six or seven motorcycle accidents and been hit from behind by a motorcycle while walking, sustaining painful injuries requiring months to heal. I have had direct contact with three other people involved in motorcycle accidents. Love the city and still walk every day, but safe...NO.

Meanwhile, I do agree with most of the cost factors I see listed. What amazes me is the assessment that there is “bad nightlife” here???! What?? If all you’re looking for is a place to get drunk and pick up women, maybe. But what I love most about the city is that nightlife is evident in every neighborhood, coffee shop, cafe and on every sidewalk every evening. People are out relaxing, eating, drinking and socializing everywhere I go every night, and in every neighborhood—not just in the “entertainment districts”—which almost always bore me, anyway. So I guess it depends on what kind of traveler you are.

Further, this city is resplendent with interesting architecture, historical buildings and monuments, temples, lakes and the rivers, and has a fantastic international community. I’m Caucasian but have interacted frequently with people of all races, and most frequently with the local Vietnamese community. While unfortunately it does seem that Hanoi is not freer of racism than New York, London, Tokyo, Sao Palo, or any other major city in the world I certainly feel that is less racist than many places—just my personal perception. I’ve only spoken with one person in five months (a beautiful Indian woman) who talked about feeling discriminated against, and that was in reference to getting an English teaching job. Yes, it does seem that a white face, even with non-native English, can get hired as an English teacher far more easily than an Asian or person of other racial heritage, even if that person speaks English almost like a native—as this woman did.

Ultimately I can only go by my own experience. People have been kind, mostly extremely honest, helpful and friendly and it is the Hanoians themselves who have been mostly responsible for my love affair with this city. The delicious coffee and food and interesting places to walk with no fear of being attacked, accosted or robbed have only helped. Now, if they’d just do something about the air pollution—second worst in Asia by many accounts.

8 years ago

✅ Very affordable

✅ Great food

✅ Good tourist access

✅ Lots of cafes

✅ Laptop-friendly spaces

✅ Affordable to live

✅ Pretty safe

✅ Warm now

✅ Warm all year round

✅ Many Nomads.com members here all year round

✅ Very easy to make friends

✅ Easy to do business

✅ Good hospitals

✅ Very safe for women

✅ Family friendly

❌ High pollution

❌ Dirty streets

❌ Unfriendly locals

❌ Cash-based economy

❌ Chaotic traffic

❌ No freedom of speech

❌ No democracy

❌ Pretty slow internet

❌ Not much to do

❌ Very hot in the summer

❌ Very sweaty and humid now

❌ Feels crowded

❌ Quality of education is low

❌ Roads can be dangerous

❌ People don't speak English well

❌ Hostile towards LGBTQ+

❌ Many people smoke tobacco

❌ High alcohol consumption

❌ Marijuana is illegal

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Feels (median)

1966°
mild

2373°
mild

2882°
warm

3391°
hot

48118°
scorching

52126°
scorching

49120°
scorching

47117°
scorching

40104°
hot

2577°
warm

2373°
mild

2272°
mild

Real (median)

1966°
mild

2374°
warm

2678°
warm

2882°
very warm

3391°
hot

3493°
hot

3391°
hot

3290°
hot

3086°
very warm

2577°
warm

2373°
mild

2272°
mild

Humidity

nice
76%

nice
80%

nice
85%

sweaty
86%

sweaty
85%

sweaty
83%

sweaty
86%

sweaty
88%

sweaty
89%

nice
84%

nice
78%

nice
75%

Most common

☀️ Clear

☔️ Rain

☀️ Clear

Rain

dry
5mm

dry
37mm

dry
38mm

rainy
106mm

rainy
102mm

rainy
221mm

rainy
245mm

rainy
298mm

rainy
259mm

rainy
126mm

dry
23mm

dry
4mm

Cloud

cloudy
76%

cloudy
67%

cloudy
87%

cloudy
88%

cloudy
78%

overcast
91%

cloudy
87%

cloudy
73%

cloudy
64%

cloudy
61%

cloudy
69%

Air quality

bad
129 US AQI

bad
113 US AQI

bad
112 US AQI

okay
97 US AQI

okay
72 US AQI

okay
74 US AQI

okay
64 US AQI

okay
78 US AQI

okay
96 US AQI

bad
110 US AQI

bad
129 US AQI

bad
132 US AQI

Sun

seek shade
4 UVI

seek shade
5 UVI

seek shade
6 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

avoid sun
6 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

seek shade
5 UVI

seek shade
4 UVI

Remote workers

5,929 people

5,859 people

6,167 people

6,686 people

5,657 people

4,929 people

3,067 people

3,063 people

5,215 people

6,300 people

7,320 people

6,882 people

Green is good. Red is bad. Values shown are the medians of all daily highs in a month based on past few years, not necessarily current numbers. Remote worker count is estimated based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members.

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Current weather data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0)

Based on Hanoi's cost of living, here's selected remote jobs that would cover your costs:

Help pick the best photos for Hanoi and improve this page's look by tappingclicking on them and the site saves your feedback Vote photos

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$8,271 / mo

23 Mbps

Thailand

⭐️ OverallAll

Indonesia

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 InternetWiFi 🙂 Good

👍 Liked bad

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 31° 88° 27° 81° Barely AC 🥵 AQI 171 😷

✈️5h

$3,369 / mo

🌇 Also went here446 people

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 🧐 Very expensive

📡 InternetWiFi 🙂 Good

👍 Liked bad

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

☀️ Feels 28° 82° 27° 80° Barely AC AQI 40

✈️14h

$4,757 / mo

🌇 Also went here426 people

6,000 remote workers in Hanoi now, of which 9+ members checked in (some members are set to private)

Members who will be here soon

Members who have been here

Values shown are estimated visits by traveling remote workers based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members. Visits to a place are only counted once per year per user, even if they visit more in that year. Visits are also normalized by overall trips added per month on the site, so if site usage goes up or down it does not affect trends. Not all digital nomads are on Nomads.com, and not all Nomads.com members log their trips. So the data is only indicative.

The chart below shows visitors by nationality normalized for population size. This means we take all trips logged on Nomads.com, check which country of origin the user is from, then divide that total visit count by the country of origin's population. If we didn't, it'd just show the big countries like US, Brazil and India always on top. Instead, this shows which nationalities worldwide proportionally visit more or less, which is more useful.

🎒 Nomad Score™	3.9/5 (Rank #53) 1319 reviews
❤️ Liked by members	👍12 liked it 👎4 disliked it
👍 Quality of life score	Okay
👶 Family score	Okay
🎒 Community score	Okay
🤯 Overcrowding score	0% is nomad here
💵 Cost	😙 Affordable: $1,277 / mo
📡 Internet	😡 Slow: 8 Mbps (avg)
😝 Fun	Bad
⛅️ Temperature (now)	🥵 Too hot: 30°C86°F (feels 37°C99°F)
💦 Humidity (now)	🥵 Sweaty: 77%
❄️ % of buildings with AC	😍 Very high: 90%
💨 Air quality (now)	😷 Unhealthy for some: 134 US AQI
💨 Air quality (annual)	😐 Moderate: 95 US AQI
👌 Safety	Good
👩 Safe for women	Good
🌈 Safe for LGBTQ+	Bad
🤮 Food safety*	Good
👮‍♀️ Lack of crime*	Good
🤝 Lack of racism*	Bad
🎓 Education level*	Low
⚡️ Power grid	Great
💰 Income level*	Very poor: $422 / mo
🙊 English speaking*	Bad
😤 People density	🧘‍♀️ Low density: 9k ppl/km² (1 per 11x11m)
🚶 Walkability	Great
🚦 Traffic safety*	Bad
✈️ Airline scores*	Great
🧳 Lost luggage*	Great
🏥 Hospitals	Good
😄 Happiness*	Good
🍸 Nightlife	Okay
📶 Free WiFi in city	Bad
🖥 Places to work from	Great
❄️ A/C or heating	Okay
😁 Friendly to foreigners	Okay
🗯 Freedom of speech*	Bad
🎅 Startup Score	Bad

🌍 Continent	Asia
🚩 Country	Vietnam
🗓️ Average trip length	7 days
📡 Internet speed (avg)	8 Mbps
⛅️ Weather (now)	🌥 30°C 86°F + 🥵 Sweaty (77%) = feels 37°C 99°F
💨 Air quality (now)	👎😷 134 US AQI = 🚬 🚬 / day
💨 Air quality (annual avg)	👎😷 96 US AQI = 🚬 / day
🔌 Power	230V 50Hz
🧔 Best neighborhood to stay	Long Bien District: Ngoc Thuy Ward
🚀 Upcoming neighborhood	Long Bien District: Bo De Ward
🚕 Best taxi app*	Grab
🚑 Travel medical insurance	Safetywing
💸 100,000 VND in USD	USD 3.87
🏧 Suggested ATM take out:	VND 10,000,000 = USD 387
💸 Tipping	No
💳 Cashless	💳 Yes, cards OK almost everywhere
☕️ Best coffee place	Moca Cafe
🏪 Best 24/7 coffee place	Puku Cafe & Bar
🚰 Tap water	🚫 No, not drinkable
🦷 Fluoride added	🚫 No fluoride added
♻️ Return rate	👍13% of visitors return
📸 Visitors per year	4,300,000 visitors
📸 Tourists now	82,409 tourists
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Population	5,100,000 people
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 GDP per capita*	$5,066 / year
😤 Population density	🤨 busy: 11x11m (121m²) per person
👫 Gender ratio (nomads)	👨 84% 👱‍♀️ 16%
⛪️ Religious government	Non-religious
💻 Online electronics shop	Nguyen Kim
🏠 Apartment listings	Airbnb
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier	Air Asia
✈️ Best int'l air carrier	Etihad

💵 Cost of living for nomad	$1,277 / month
💵 Cost of living for expat	$967 / month
💵 Cost of living for family	$1,831 / month
💵 Cost of living for local	$523 / month
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$564 / month
🏡 Airbnb (median price)	$1,869 / month
🏠 1br studio rent in center	$410 / month
🏠 Median home price	$115,950
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$26 / night
🏠 Airbnb (median price)	$61 / night
🏢 Coworking hot desk	$125 / month
🍛 Dinner	$2
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L)	$0
🍺 Beer in cafe (0.5L)	$1
☕️ Coffee in cafe	$2
👩‍🏫 International school	$27,790 / year
🚕 Taxi price (avg trip ~3km/2mi)	$2 / trip

Cost of Living in Hanoi

6,000 remote workers in Hanoi now, of which 9+ members checked in (some members are set to private)

Members who will be here soon

Members who have been here

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