Foreigners flee Hanoi’s choking air pollution

"This was a difficult decision after eight years in the city," said the 38-year-old Briton says about his family’s move to Hoi An at the end of 2024.

The idea of moving came when one time he spent half an hour stuck in traffic on a bridge in Ha Dong Ward, and the air made him gag and feel suffocated. "Life in Hanoi would be perfect if not for the pollution," he says wistfully.

William Gray at his apartment in Tay Ho Ward, Hanoi, Dec. 2024. Photo courtesy of William Gray

He commuted to work daily across Long Bien Bridge through the smell of plastic from trash being burned near construction sites. Rush hour traffic also trapped him in exhaust fumes.

His wife, a Hanoi native, constantly suffered from a respiratory infection and cough.

The family tried moving to a new urban area in Gia Lam, hoping for cleaner air away from the city center, but the pollution stayed the same, and their health worsened when the air quality index (AQI) reached unhealthy levels.

They decided to leave Hanoi after much consideration. He now flies to the city several times a month for work, but in Hoi An he wakes up to fresh air and the scent of pine and straw. On weekends they take their children to the beach. "I think the trade-off is worth it," he says.

Hanoi was ranked 10th in the list of world’s most polluted cities in January. Its PM2.5, an indicator of air pollution, is often at unhealthy levels.

Over 40% of the city’s population is exposed to PM2.5 concentrations that are twice the levels designated safe. Deaths linked to PM2.5 in Vietnam rose from over 26,000 in 1990 to 42,000 in 2015, according to data from research program Global Burden of Disease.

Sumeet Saksena, a senior researcher at the East-West Center in Honolulu, the U.S., who has studied Hanoi’s air pollution for 16 years, says air pollution in Vietnam cuts life expectancy by about 1.4 years.

Air pollution poses the highest risk to children, the elderly and people with chronic illnesses, he explains.

"Some people have moved because of poor air quality. Many others want to but cannot due to financial and social barriers."

A VnExpress survey found 27% of readers had moved to avoid Hanoi’s pollution, while 58% wanted to but lacked the means.

"If pollution persists, migration will increase and hurt foreign investment and the city’s economic development," Saksena warns.

Hanoians wear masks outdoors to avoid the city’s polluted air. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh

Tamara Hoffman, a South African, says leaving Hanoi was difficult as her friends and nearly a decade of memories were in the city.

She made the decision after being diagnosed with pneumonia twice last year and doctors said it was due to pollution.

She says: "I moved from China to Vietnam in 2017 to get cleaner air. But again I had to leave for the same reason."

Nine of her closest friends, also foreigners, had left Hanoi to protect their children from pollution.

It took Tamara more than a year to make the move to HCMC.

Since early 2025, she has enjoyed basking in the sun, swimming and playing outdoor sports.

She sold her air purifiers and deleted pollution-tracking apps. "My health has improved a lot," she says.

But not all foreigners flee the pollution; many install air filtration systems, stay indoors when AQI reaches hazardous levels or move to greener neighborhoods on the outskirts.

Saksena says Hanoi must act quickly to curb pollution, and banning gasoline motorbikes in the city center from 2026, expanding affordable electric vehicle options and improving public transport are steps in the right direction.

Strict waste management is necessary to stop illegal trash burning, he says.

He suggests supplementing real-time air quality monitoring with public alerts and citizen science programs to help residents track exposure.

"Hanoi needs more green spaces and ventilation corridors, along with policies to help people switch to clean transport. That is the only way to retain both foreigners and locals."