City guide
Teach English in Hanoi, Vietnam
Cultural capital with a tighter expat community and four seasons.
Hanoi has fewer teaching jobs than Saigon and correspondingly less competition for them. The city is older, more administrative and less commercial, and it has a real winter: unheated buildings and a damp cold from December to February that surprises people who came to Southeast Asia expecting year-round heat. Public school and university work makes up a larger share of the market here than in the south, which shifts hiring towards the academic calendar.
Moving to Vietnam? Visa and cost guide →
Neighborhoods
Tay Ho, the West Lake area, for the established expat base and most of the international schools. Ba Dinh for embassies, quiet streets and a central commute. Hoan Kiem for the Old Quarter, which is wonderful to visit and loud to live in. Cau Giay for university work and student-priced rent.
Cost of living
Roughly 7 to 15 million VND a month for a one-bedroom, a little under Saigon for equivalent space. Budget for heating you will not find and air purifiers you will want, because winter air quality is the city's real drawback.
Best for
Teachers preferring history, a slower pace and four actual seasons over Saigon's heat and commercial bustle.
Vietnam at a glance
Salary: Language centers: 1,400 to 2,200 USD per month. International schools: 2,500 to 4,500 USD. Pay is hourly for most center jobs, in the 18 to 25 USD per hour range. Cost of living is low enough that most teachers save 600 to 1,000 USD per month.
Visa: Work permit and temporary residence card. Requires bachelor's, 120-hour TEFL, criminal record check, and a health check. Native speaker preference but non-native teachers with a bachelor's in English or education are increasingly hired.
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What you need to teach in Hanoi
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