Where to Start in Vietnam

As a country, Vietnam is shaped like the elongated “S” with long coastal line of 3,260 kilometers and with multiple metro cities. Hanoi is the main city in the north, Da Nang in the middle, and Ho Chi Minh City (its another name is Saigon) in the South.

Vietnam has total population of around 100 million. Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam with population of around 8 million people, while Ho Chi Minh City is the port city with population of around 9 million, the largest city in Vietnam. And Da Nang has population of around 1 million people. As of 2024, majority of Vietnamese lives outside the metro cities. However, more people would soon migrate into the metro cities as there are more jobs and more incomes in the cities.

Hanoi, as a capital, is the center for government and administrative functions. Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), as known as Saigon, is the port city with vibrant international communities including significant number of Chinese, Korean, Japanese residents. In general, people in Saigon are more open to idea while people in Hanoi, due to proximity to government authority, tend to have a relatively more conservative view.

To get started, new comer will find it easier to start a business in Saigon and then later expand to other parts of the Vietnam.

Nonetheless, Vietnam government also encourages foreign investors to start in other cities such as Hai Phong near Hanoi and Da Nang in the central.