Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City is a strong lifestyle play but a weak local-compensation play for software engineers. Reddit sentiment is very consistent: do not move expecting Vietnamese tech salaries to resemble US or Western salaries. The common advice is to keep a remote Western job, work for a foreign company, or come only if you are senior enough to command top local pay.

People who love HCMC really love it. They describe it as dynamic, colorful, food-focused, socially active, and full of nightlife and shopping. Several commenters preferred it over Hanoi because it felt easier, warmer socially, less conservative, and more opportunity-rich. Some even joked that they came for a short trip and ended up getting an apartment.

The tradeoffs are serious. HCMC ranks among the most affordable major tech cities, but also near the bottom for local SWE income and purchasing power, and its pollution ranking is the worst in the dataset. Redditors repeatedly mention traffic and pollution as the big city issues you must accept. The visa situation is also a recurring warning: Vietnam is not an easy long-term nomad destination unless you have work sponsorship, marriage/family routes, or are comfortable with unstable visa logistics.

Overall, HCMC is excellent for a remote senior engineer optimizing cost of living, food, travel, and energy, but mediocre for someone trying to build a conventional local software career from scratch.