The world's most affordable destination

In the Top 10, the number 1 position is Vietnam, followed by Cambodia, Indonesia, Panama, Philippines, India, Mexico, Thailand, Brazil and China.

Vietnam has many famous tourist destinations, with beautiful natural landscapes and rich cultural cuisine. (Source: TITC)

According to the latest report Expat Insider - one of the world's largest expat surveys conducted by InterNations, has revealed a list of ideal destinations for foreigners with the most affordable costs in the world, including Vietnam.

InterNations' Expat Insider 2024 Report, which polled more than 12,500 expats in 174 countries and territories around the world, assessed criteria including the best and worst places to live as an expat, quality of life, working conditions abroad and personal finances.

In terms of the best destinations for expats globally, the Expat Insider 2024 report assesses expats' perceptions of aspects of living abroad, based on five indicators: quality of life, working abroad, ease of applying for permanent residency, expat essentials and personal finances.

Vietnam ranked 8th out of 53 points globally, alongside 3 other Asian countries: Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and ranked 13th out of 53 points globally in terms of general happiness index.

Vietnam ranked first out of 53 destinations in terms of personal finance, marking the fourth consecutive year that Vietnam has ranked first in this category. In addition, Vietnam is ranked 14th in terms of working abroad (such as career prospects, salary and job security, workplace culture and satisfaction, work and leisure); 29th in terms of expat essentials such as digital lifestyle, housing and language; 40th in terms of quality of life (including travel, transportation, environment and climate, entertainment options, healthcare as well as security and safety); and 13th in terms of ease of applying for permanent residence (including friendliness of people, making friends, and culture and warmth).

Vietnamese cuisine always has a strong traditional flavor, suitable for tourists' taste. (Photo: Phong Vinh)

For the Personal Finance Index, respondents were asked to rank three different criteria on a scale of one (very bad) to seven (very good): the overall cost of living, satisfaction with their financial situation, and whether their household’s disposable income is enough to live comfortably. In the top 10, Vietnam ranked first, followed by Cambodia, Indonesia, Panama, the Philippines, India, Mexico, Thailand, Brazil, and China.

Accordingly, 86% of foreigners living in Vietnam rated the cost of living here as good, 40% higher than the average of countries surveyed in the world. 65% said they were satisfied with the current financial situation in Vietnam, 54% higher than the average of countries surveyed in the world.

Notably, 68% said their disposable income was more than enough to provide them with a comfortable life, much higher than the average of 41% in other countries surveyed. Not only that, 19% of foreigners living in Vietnam who participated in the survey said they received an annual income of 150,000 USD or more, while this rate in other countries was only about 10%.

With most expats working in Vietnam satisfied with their situation, Vietnam ranks a respectable 14th in the expat working index – up 15 places since 2022, according to comments from Expat Insider .

Vietnam ranked 8th in the work and leisure component index. Expats are particularly satisfied with their work-life balance while living in Vietnam: nearly three-quarters (73%) rate this positively (compared to 60% globally).

Da Lat City (Lam Dong Province) is located on Lam Vien Plateau with pleasant weather all year round. (Source: TITC)

Overall, “work-life balance is more important than career advancement” in Vietnam, with less than half (46%) of expats working full-time, compared to the global average of 57%. About one in five expats in Vietnam (21%) work part-time, and about 18% of expats are retired.

“Life here is not stressful for me, it is a great change from my previous busy and resource-consuming working life,” said a British man working and living in Vietnam.

Vietnam also made significant progress in the housing component index, from 7th place in 2023 to 2nd place in 2024. The biggest improvement was in the administrative procedures component index (from 48th to 38th), especially in visa issuance.

In 2024, only a quarter of respondents (25%) said it was difficult to get a visa to visit Vietnam (compared to 26% globally). In 2023, two in five (40%) said the same. On August 15, 2023, Vietnam implemented a new e-visa policy, granting e-visas to citizens of all countries and territories and exempting visas for citizens of some countries with a temporary stay of 45 days from the date of entry, regardless of passport type or purpose of entry, on the basis of meeting all entry conditions as prescribed by Vietnamese law.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/viet-nam-diem-den-ly-tuong-co-gia-ca-phai-chang-nhat-the-gioi-278310.html