Vietnam is divided into 34 first-level subdivisions, comprising 25 provinces and 9 municipalities under the command of the central government.
List and statistics
By the end of 2024, the population of Vietnam was 101,343,800. The most populous top-level administrative unit is Hồ Chí Minh City, one of the nine centrally governed cities, having 14,002,598 people living within its official boundary. The second most populous administrative unit is Hà Nội with 8,807,523 people. The least populous is Lai Châu, a mountainous province in the northwest with 512,601 people. In land area, the largest province is Lâm Đồng with 24,233.09 km2, the smallest is Hưng Yên (2,514.81 km2), located in the Red River Delta region.
The following is a table of Vietnam's provinces broken down by population and area. Municipalities are written in bold.
Province/cityNumberon mapAdministrativecenterArea (in km2)PopulationDensity (/km2)Administrative divisionsRegion Communes Wards SpecialadministrativeregionsCao Bằng province16Thục Phán ward6,700.39573,119855330NortheastLạng Sơn province17Lương Văn Tri ward8,310.18881,3841066140Phú Thọ province20Việt Trì ward9,361.384,022,638429133150Quảng Ninh8Hạ Long ward6,207.951,497,47724122302Thái Nguyên province19Phan Đình Phùng ward8,375.211,799,48921476150Tuyên Quang province18Minh Xuân ward13,795.501,865,27013517770Lào Cai province14Yên Bái ward13,256.921,778,78513489100NorthwestĐiện Biên province12Điện Biên Phủ ward9,539.93673,091704230Lai Châu province13Tân Phong ward9,068.73512,601563620Sơn La province15Chiềng Cơi ward14,108.891,404,587996780Bắc Ninh9Bắc Giang ward3,194.723,619,4331,13266330Red River DeltaHưng Yên province10Phố Hiến ward2,514.813,567,9431,41893110Ninh Bình province11Hoa Lư ward3,942.624,412,4641,11997320Hanoi1Hoàn Kiếm ward3,359.848,807,5232,62175510Haiphong3Thủy Nguyên ward3,194.724,664,1241,45967452Hà Tĩnh province23Thành Sen ward5,994.451,622,9012706090North CentralNghệ An province22Trường Vinh ward16,486.503,831,694232119110Quảng Trị province24Đồng Hới ward12,7001,870,8451476981Thanh Hóa province21Hạc Thành ward11,114.714,324,783389147190Huế6Thuận Hóa ward4,947.111,432,98628919210Đắk Lắk province27Buôn Ma Thuột ward18,096.403,346,85318488140South Central CoastandCentral HighlandsGia Lai province26Quy Nhơn ward21,576.933,583,693166110250Lâm Đồng province29Xuân Hương – Đà Lạt ward24,233.073,872,999159103201Khánh Hòa province28Nha Trang ward8,555.862,243,55426248161Quảng Ngãi province25Cẩm Thành ward14,832.552,161,7551458691Da Nang4Hải Châu ward11,859.593,065,62825870231Đồng Nai7Trấn Biên ward12,737.184,491,40835262330SoutheastTây Ninh province30Long An ward8,536.443,254,17038182140Hồ Chí Minh City2Sài Gòn ward6,772.5914,002,5982,067541131An Giang province32Rạch Giá ward9,888.914,952,23850085143Mekong DeltaCà Mau province34Tân Thành ward7,942.392,606,6723285590Đồng Tháp province31Mỹ Tho ward5,938.644,370,04673582200Vĩnh Long province33Long Châu ward6,296.204,257,581676105190Cần Thơ5Ninh Kiều ward6,360.834,199,82466072310
Regions
The provinces of Vietnam are sometimes divided into seven regions (sometimes Northeast and Northwest regions are merged into Northern midlands and mountainous region), which are grouped into three macro-regions: Northern, Central and Southern. These regions are not always used, and alternative classifications are possible. The regions include:
+ Regions of Vietnam Macro-region Region Provinces / municipalities Area(km2) Population Populationdensity(people /km2)NotesNorthern Vietnam(Bắc Bộ) Northwest(Tây Bắc Bộ) Điện Biên Lai Châu Lào Cai Sơn La45,974.474,369,06495 Contains inland provinces in the west of Vietnam's northern region. Two of them are along Vietnam's border with Laos, and three border China (Điện Biên borders both China and Laos). Northeast(Đông Bắc Bộ) Cao Bằng Lạng Sơn Phú Thọ Quảng Ninh Thái Nguyên Tuyên Quang52,750.6110,639,377201 Contains most of the mountainous provinces that lie to north of the highly populated Red River lowlands. Four of them are along Vietnam's border with China. Red River Delta(Đồng bằng sông Hồng) Bắc Ninh Hanoi Haiphong Hưng Yên Ninh Bình16,206.7125,071,4871,546 Contains the small but populous provinces along the mouth of the Red River. The Red River Delta has the smallest area but highest population and population density of all regions. It is also the only region without any land borders with neighbouring countries.Central Vietnam(Trung Bộ)North Central(Bắc Trung Bộ) Hà Tĩnh Nghệ An Quảng Trị Thanh Hóa Huế 51,242.7711,212,364218 Contains the coastal provinces in the northern half of Vietnam's narrow central part. They all stretch from the coast in the east to Laos in the west. South Central Coastand Central Highlands(Duyên Hải Nam Trung Bộ và Tây Nguyên) Da Nang Đắk Lắk Gia Lai Khánh Hòa Lâm Đồng Quảng Ngãi99,154.418,274,482184 Contains the coastal and mountainous provinces in the southern half of Vietnam's central part. There are a significant number of ethnic minorities in the region. Two provinces are along Vietnam's border with Laos, and four border Cambodia (Quảng Ngãi borders both Laos and Cambodia).Southern Vietnam(Nam Bộ) Southeast(Đông Nam Bộ) Đồng Nai Ho Chi Minh City Tây Ninh28,046.2121,748,176775 Contains those parts of lowland southern Vietnam which are north of the Mekong delta. Two provinces border Cambodia.Mekong River Delta(Đồng bằng sông Cửu Long) An Giang Cà Mau Cần Thơ Đồng Tháp Vĩnh Long36,426.9720,386,361559 Vietnam's southernmost region, mostly containing small but populous provinces in the delta of the Mekong. It is sometimes referred to as the Southwest region (Tây Nam Bộ). Two provinces border Cambodia. Indicates a municipality (thành phố trực thuộc trung ương)
Historical provinces
Ái Châu – existed during the third Chinese domination. An Xuyên – existed from 1956 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu – existed from 1991 until merged with Ho Chi Minh City in 2025. Bạc Liêu – existed from 1997 until merged with Cà Mau province in 2025. Bắc Giang – existed from 1997 until merged with Bắc Ninh province in 2025. Bắc Kạn – existed from 1997 until merged with Thái Nguyên province in 2025. Bắc Thái – administrative grouping of Bắc Kạn and Thái Nguyên provinces between 1965 and 1996. Bến Tre – existed from 1976 until merged with Vĩnh Long province in 2025. Biên Hòa – existed from 1832 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Bình Dương – existed from 1997 until merged with Hồ Chí Minh City province in 2025. Bình Định – existed from 1989 until merged with Gia Lai province in 2025. Bình Phước – existed from 1997 until merged with Đồng Nai province in 2025. Bình Thuận – existed from 1991 until merged with Lâm Đồng province in 2025. Bình Trị Thiên – administrative grouping of Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên – Huế provinces between 1976 and 1992. Bình Tuy – existed from 1956 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Chợ Lớn – existed from 1900 until 1957. Chương Thiện – existed from 1961 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Cửu Long – administrative grouping of Vĩnh Long and Vĩnh Bình provinces between 1976 and 1992. Đắk Nông – existed from 2004 until merged with Lâm Đồng province in 2025. Định Tường – existed from 1832 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Gia Định – existed from 1832, became Hồ Chí Minh City following the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Gia Lai – Kon Tum – administrative grouping of Gia Lai and Kon Tum provinces between 1975 and 1991. Gò Công – existed from 1900 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Hà Bắc – administrative grouping of Bắc Giang and Bắc Ninh provinces between 1962 and 1996. Hà Đông – existed from 1904 until 1965. Hà Giang – existed from 1991 until merged with Tuyên Quang province in 2025. Hà Nam – existed from 1991 until merged with Ninh Bình province in 2025. Hà Nam Ninh – administrative grouping of Hà Nam, Nam Định and Ninh Bình provinces between 1975 and 1991. Hà Sơn Bình – administrative grouping of Hà Tây (old) and Hòa Bình provinces between 1975 and 1991. Hà Tây – existed from 1965 to 1975 and 1991 until 2008, when it was merged into Hà Nội. Hà Tuyên – administrative grouping of Hà Giang and Tuyên Quang provinces between 1975 and 1991. Hải Hưng – administrative grouping of Hải Dương and Hưng Yên provinces between 1968 and 1996. Hải Dương – existed from 1997 until merged with Haiphong city in 2025. Hậu Giang – existed from 2004 until merged with Cần Thơ city in 2025. Hậu Nghĩa – existed from 1963 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Hòa Bình – existed from 1991 until merged with Phú Thọ province in 2025. Hoàng Liên Sơn – administrative grouping of Lào Cai and Yên Bái provinces between 1975 and 1991. Hưng Hóa – existed from 1831 until 1903. Kiên Giang – existed from 1976 until merged with An Giang province in 2025. Kiến An – existed from 1888 until merged with Hải Phòng City in 1962. Kon Tum – existed from 1991 until merged with Quảng Ngãi province in 2025. Long An – existed from 1976 until merged with Tây Ninh province in 2025. Long Khánh – existed from 1956, became Đồng Nai province following the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Minh Hải – administrative grouping of Cà Mau and Bạc Liêu provinces between 1976 and 1996. Nam Định – existed from 1991 until merged with Ninh Bình province in 2025. Nghệ Tĩnh – administrative grouping of Nghệ An and Hà Tĩnh provinces between 1976 and 1991. Nghĩa Bình – administrative grouping of Quảng Ngãi and Bình Định provinces between 1975 and 1989. Ninh Thuận – existed from 1992 until merged with Khánh Hòa province in 2025. Phú Bổn – in 1962 split from Pleiku province until 1976. Phú Khánh – administrative grouping of Phú Yên and Khánh Hòa provinces between 1975 and 1989. Phú Yên – existed from 1989 until merged with Đắk Lắk province in 2025. Phúc Yên – existed from 1904 until merged with Vĩnh Yên in 1950. Phước Long – existed from 1956 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Phước Thành – existed from 1959 until 1965. Phước Tuy – existed from 1956 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Quảng Bình – existed from 1989 until merged with Quảng Trị province in 2025. Quảng Đức – existed from 1959 until 1976. Quảng Nam – existed from 1997 until merged with Đà Nẵng city in 2025. Quảng Nam–Đà Nẵng/Quảng Đà – administrative grouping of Quảng Nam provinces and Đà Nẵng city, between 1975 and 1996. Quảng Tín – existed from 1962 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Sa Đéc – existed from 1900 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Sóc Trăng – existed from 1991 until merged with Cần Thơ city in 2025. Sông Bé – administrative grouping of Bình Dương and Bình Phước provinces between 1976 and 1997. Tân An – existed from 1900 until 1956. Thái Bình – existed from 1890 until merged with Hưng Yên province in 2025. Thừa Thiên Huế, the southernmost province of Vietnam's North Central Coast region, existed until 2025 of which the whole province is now direct-controlled as a municipality. Thuận Hải – administrative grouping of Ninh Thuận and Bình Thuận provinces between 1975 and 1991. Tiền Giang – existed from 1976 until merged with Đồng Tháp province in 2025. Trà Vinh – existed from 1992 until merged with Vĩnh Long province in 2025. Tuyên Đức – existed from 1958 until 1976. Vĩnh Bình – existed from 1956 until the Vietnamese reunification of 1976. Vĩnh Phú – administrative grouping of Vĩnh Phúc and Phú Thọ provinces between 1968 and 1996. Vĩnh Phúc – existed from 1997 until merged with Phú Thọ province in 2025. Yên Bái – existed from 1991 until merged with Lào Cai province in 2025.
See also ISO 3166-2:VN Plan for arrangement and merger of administrative units in Vietnam 2024–2025
References
External links CityMayors.com article Comprehensive map of Vietnam's provinces c. 1890