The Vietnamese government often groups the various provinces and municipalities into three regions: Northern Vietnam, Central Vietnam, and Southern Vietnam. These regions can be further subdivided into eight subregions: Northeast Vietnam, Northwest Vietnam, the Red River Delta, the North Central Coast, the South Central Coast, the Central Highlands, Southeast Vietnam, and the Mekong River Delta. These regions are not always used, and alternative classifications are possible. Other classifications used can be: Northern, Central, Southern, and Mekong.
| Region | Subregion | Provinces | Area (km2)[1][2] | Population (2022)[1] | Density (people per km2) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Vietnam (Bắc Bộ, Miền Bắc) | Northeast (Đông Bắc Bộ) | 50,826.38 | 9,474,710 | 186.41 | It contains most of the mountainous provinces that lie to north of the Red River lowlands. | |
| Northwest (Tây Bắc Bộ) | 50,565.71 | 4,911,370 | 97.13 | It contains inland provinces in the west of Vietnam's northern part. Two provinces border Laos, and three border China. | ||
| Red River Delta (Đồng Bằng Sông Hồng) | 15,070.70 | 22,091,250 | 1,465.84 | It contains small but populous provinces in the Thái Bình river system and Red River system. The Red River Delta has the smallest area but highest population and population density of all regions. | ||
| Central Vietnam (Trung Bộ, Miền Trung) | North Central Coast (Bắc Trung Bộ) | 51,242.75 | 11,190,830 | 218.39 | It 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 Coast (Duyên hải Nam Trung Bộ) | 44,605.12 | 9,470,840 | 212.33 | It contains the coastal provinces in the southern half of Vietnam's central part. | ||
| Central Highlands (Tây Nguyên) | 54,548.31 | 6,092,420 | 111.69 | It contains mountainous inland provinces of south-central Vietnam. The region has a high concentration of ethnic minorities. | ||
| Southern Vietnam (Nam Bộ, Miền Nam) | Southeast (Đông Nam Bộ, Miền Đông) | 23,551.42 | 18,810,780 | 798.71 | It contains the lowland parts of southern Vietnam north of the Mekong delta. | |
| Mekong River Delta (Đồng Bằng Sông Cửu Long) orSouthwest (Tây Nam Bộ, Miền Tây) |
40,922.58 | 17,432,120 | 425.98 | It is Vietnam's southernmost region, mostly containing small but populous provinces in the Mekong delta. It is sometimes referred to as the Southwest region (Tây Nam Bộ, Miền Tây). |
| Name | Capital | Population (2022)[1] |
Area (km2)[1][2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Vietnam (Bắc Bộ) | |||
| Northeast Vietnam (Đông Bắc Bộ) | |||
| Bắc Giang | Bắc Giang | 1,890,930 | 3,895.89 |
| Bắc Kạn | Bắc Kạn | 324,350 | 4,859.96 |
| Cao Bằng | Cao Bằng | 543,050 | 6,700.39 |
| Hà Giang | Hà Giang | 892,720 | 7,927.55 |
| Lạng Sơn | Lạng Sơn | 802,090 | 8,310.18 |
| Phú Thọ | Việt Trì | 1,516,920 | 3,534.56 |
| Quảng Ninh | Hạ Long | 1,362,880 | 6,207.93 |
| Thái Nguyên | Thái Nguyên | 1,335,990 | 3,521.97 |
| Tuyên Quang | Tuyên Quang | 805,780 | 5,867.95 |
| Northwest Vietnam (Tây Bắc Bộ) | |||
| Điện Biên | Điện Biên Phủ | 635,920 | 9,539.93 |
| Hòa Bình | Hòa Bình | 875,380 | 4,590.30 |
| Lai Châu | Lai Châu | 482,100 | 9,068.73 |
| Lào Cai | Lào Cai | 770,590 | 6,364.25 |
| Sơn La | Sơn La | 1,300,130 | 14,109.83 |
| Yên Bái | Yên Bái | 847,250 | 6,892.67 |
| Red River Delta (Đồng bằng sông Hồng) | |||
| Bắc Ninh | Bắc Ninh | 1,488,200 | 822.71 |
| Hà Nam | Phủ Lý | 878,000 | 861.93 |
| Hải Dương | Hải Dương | 1,946,820 | 1,668.28 |
| Hưng Yên | Hưng Yên | 1,290,850 | 930.20 |
| Nam Định | Nam Định | 1,876,850 | 1,668.83 |
| Ninh Bình | Ninh Bình | 1,010,700 | 1,411.78 |
| Thái Bình | Thái Bình | 1,878,540 | 1,584.61 |
| Vĩnh Phúc | Vĩnh Yên | 1,197,620 | 1,236.00 |
| Hà Nội (municipality) | 8,435,650 | 3,359.84 | |
| Hải Phòng (municipality) | 2,088,020 | 1,526.52 | |
| Central Vietnam (Trung Bộ) | |||
| North Central Coastal Vietnam (Bắc Trung Bộ) | |||
| Hà Tĩnh | Hà Tĩnh | 1,323,750 | 5,994.45 |
| Nghệ An | Vinh | 3,419,990 | 16,486.49 |
| Quảng Bình | Đồng Hới | 913,860 | 7,998.76 |
| Quảng Trị | Đông Hà | 650,950 | 4,701.23 |
| Thanh Hóa | Thanh Hóa | 3,722,060 | 11,114.71 |
| Thừa Thiên Huế | Huế | 1,160,220 | 4,947.11 |
| South Central Coastal Vietnam (Duyên hải Nam Trung Bộ) | |||
| Bình Định | Qui Nhơn | 1,504,290 | 6,066.40 |
| Bình Thuận | Phan Thiết | 1,252,060 | 7,942.60 |
| Khánh Hòa | Nha Trang | 1,253,970 | 5,199.62 |
| Ninh Thuận | Phan Rang–Tháp Chàm | 598,680 | 3,355.70 |
| Phú Yên | Tuy Hòa | 876,620 | 5,025.96 |
| Quảng Nam | Tam Kỳ | 1,519,380 | 10,574.86 |
| Quảng Ngãi | Quảng Ngãi | 1,245,650 | 5,155.25 |
| Đà Nẵng (municipality) | 1,220,190 | 1,284.73 | |
| Central Highlands (Tây Nguyên) | |||
| Đắk Lắk | Buôn Ma Thuột | 1,918,440 | 13,070.41 |
| Đắk Nông | Gia Nghĩa | 670,560 | 6,509.27 |
| Gia Lai | Pleiku | 1,590,980 | 15,510.13 |
| Kon Tum | Kon Tum | 579,910 | 9,677.30 |
| Lâm Đồng | Da Lat | 1,332,530 | 9,781.20 |
| Southern Vietnam (Nam Bộ) | |||
| Southeast Vietnam (Đông Nam Bộ) | |||
| Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu | Vũng Tàu | 1,178,700 | 1,982.56 |
| Bình Dương | Thủ Dầu Một | 2,763,120 | 2,694.64 |
| Bình Phước | Đồng Xoài | 1,034,670 | 6,873.56 |
| Đồng Nai | Biên Hòa | 3,255,810 | 5,863.62 |
| Tây Ninh | Tây Ninh | 1,188,760 | 4,041.65 |
| Hồ Chí Minh City (municipality) | 9,389,720 | 2,095.39 | |
| Mekong River Delta (Đồng bằng sông Cửu Long)1 | |||
| An Giang | Long Xuyên | 1,905,520 | 3,536.82 |
| Bạc Liêu | Bạc Liêu | 921,810 | 2,667.88 |
| Bến Tre | Bến Tre | 1,298,010 | 2,379.70 |
| Cà Mau | Cà Mau | 1,207,630 | 5,274.51 |
| Đồng Tháp | Cao Lãnh | 1,600,170 | 3,382.28 |
| Hậu Giang | Vị Thanh | 729,470 | 1,622.23 |
| Kiên Giang | Rạch Giá | 1,751,760 | 6,352.92 |
| Long An | Tân An | 1,734,260 | 4,494.78 |
| Sóc Trăng | Sóc Trăng | 1,197,820 | 3,298.20 |
| Tiền Giang | Mỹ Tho | 1,785,240 | 2,556.36 |
| Trà Vinh | Trà Vinh | 1,019,260 | 2,390.77 |
| Vĩnh Long | Vĩnh Long | 1,028,820 | 1,525.73 |
| Cần Thơ (municipality) | 1,252,350 | 1,440.40 | |
1 – a.k.a. Southwest Vietnam (Tây Nam Bộ)
