Expats rank HCMC 6th best city to live, work

By Minh Nga   December 1, 2021 | 07:16 pm PT
Expats rank HCMC 6th best city to live, work
An expat gets a Covid-19 vaccine shot in HCMC's Phu Nhuan District, August 27, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran
Vietnam's biggest metropolis HCMC was ranked the sixth best globally for expatriates to live and work in 2021, though poor transport and environmental issues remain a concern.

In the Expat City Ranking by InterNations, the largest global community and information site for expats, HCMC has now fallen to sixth place among cities for foreigners to live and work in.

Hanoi was not included in the survey of 57 cities since it required at least 50 respondents.

The survey polled more than 12,420 respondents representing 174 nationalities.

They were asked about the quality of urban living, getting settled, urban work life, finance and housing, cost of living, and happiness level.

HCMC makes it into the top 10 in four categories and in the bottom 10 in the fifth category.

It ranks second in the Local Cost of Living index, with 84 percent rating the cost of living positively compared to the global rate of 48 percent, and the Finance and Housing Index.

It tops the Finance subcategory, with 75 percent of expats saying their disposable household income is more than enough to cover expenses against 52 percent globally, and 77 percent saying they are satisfied with their financial situation against the global average of 64 percent.

They also find housing affordable (61 percent versus 42 globally) and easy to find (88 percent versus 60 percent).

HCMC does well in the Urban Work Life index where it ranks 10th. It is the best city in terms of overall job satisfaction, with 88 percent of expats satisfied with their job in general versus 68 percent globally.

It also ranks 10th in the Getting Settled index. Expats find it easy to make new friends (77 percent versus 48 percent), are happy with their social life (74 percent versus 57 percent) and describe the local people as generally friendly towards foreign residents (93 percent versus 67 percent).

However, it is in the bottom 10 in the Quality of Urban Living index, where it places 52nd.

It comes second to last in the Transportation subcategory, ranking 56th, just ahead of Johannesburg.

Nearly two in three expats are unhappy with this factor compared to the global rate of 20 percent, and 49 percent rate the urban environment negatively against the global rate of 16 percent.

"The environmental quality can be challenging, such as pollution, lack of recycling, and noise," a Canadian expat said.

Last year the annual survey had found Vietnam’s southern metropolis rated among the world’s worst in terms of environment and public transport infrastructure by expats.

The 2021 ranking put Kuala Lumpur on top. The capital of Malaysia is followed by Spain’s Málaga and the UAE’s Dubai.

Singapore at the 5th position and HCMC are the only other Southeast Asian cities to make the top 10.

The best and worst cities for expat expatsding to the 2021 Expat City Ranking by InterNations.

The best and worst cities for expats according to the 2021 Expat City Ranking by InterNations.

 
 
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