Domestic Help in Vietnam: Cleaners, Nannies, Cooks
Typical wages, hiring channels, contract norms and the cultural etiquette of employing domestic help in Vietnam.
Domestic help in Vietnam is affordable, common in middle-class Vietnamese households, and one of the genuine quality-of-life upgrades of expat life. It also comes with responsibilities you should not skip.
Typical wages (2026)
| Role | Part-time (per hour) | Full-time live-out (per month) | Live-in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleaner | 80–120k VND | 5–8m VND ($200–320) | 7–10m ($280–400) |
| Cleaner + cook | 100–150k VND | 7–10m ($280–400) | 9–13m ($360–520) |
| Nanny (no English) | — | 7–11m ($280–440) | 9–14m ($360–560) |
| Nanny (Filipina or English-speaking) | — | 18–28m ($720–1,120) | 22–35m ($880–1,400) |
| Cook (private) | 150–250k VND | 10–18m ($400–720) | 13–22m ($520–880) |
| Driver (private car) | — | 12–18m ($480–720) | 15–22m ($600–880) |
Hourly cleaners are typically 4-hour minimum bookings. A weekly clean of a 1-bedroom apartment costs 300–500k VND.
These wages are floor; high-end Thảo Điền or Tây Hồ families with multiple kids pay above.
How to find people
| Channel | Notes |
|---|---|
| Word of mouth | Best signal — ask other expat parents in your building |
| bTaskee app | On-demand cleaners, vetted, 150–200k/hr; great for one-off |
| JupViec.vn | Booking platform, similar to bTaskee |
| Facebook groups | Saigon Expat Parents, Hanoi Mums — lots of recommendations |
| Filipina nanny agencies | Manila-based agencies place Filipina caregivers; takes 2–3 months and visa work |
| Local agencies | Lots of small Vietnamese-language agencies; useful but quality varies |
| Direct posting in lane | Older Vietnamese women often available locally |
For first hire, bTaskee for an interim cleaner while you ask around for a recommendation is the safest path.
Filipina nannies specifically
A long-established expat preference for live-in, English-speaking, child-experienced help. Realities:
- Salary: $700–1,400/mo + room + board
- Visa: Filipina needs a work permit — you sponsor it, requires you to register as employer
- Agencies: handle paperwork for $1,500–3,000 placement fee
- Contracts: 2 years standard; airfare to/from Manila often included
- Annual leave: 14 days minimum + flights home every 1–2 years
This is a real HR commitment, not casual hiring.
Contracts
Even for a 4-hour-a-week cleaner, write down:
- Days and hours
- Tasks (cleaning, laundry, ironing, dishes, windows)
- Payment amount and date
- Holiday and sick-day arrangement
- Tết bonus expectation
- Notice period (2 weeks each side standard)
For full-time staff, follow proper labour-code contract — see hiring locally. Most expat households technically should but in practice don't register full-time domestic staff for social insurance; this is a grey-zone risk.
Tết and bonuses
The cultural floor for any year-round domestic worker is a 13th-month bonus at lunar new year (late Jan / early Feb). For full-time staff: one month's salary. For part-time weekly cleaners: 1.5–2 weeks' equivalent + a small gift. Skip this and you will find yourself looking for a new cleaner in February.
Mid-Autumn (Tết Trung Thu) and birthdays get small gifts or cash too — 200–500k VND.
Day-to-day etiquette
- Vietnamese household staff prefer being given a clear list of tasks rather than open-ended instructions
- Cook lunch for them on days they work full hours, or provide rice + eggs / let them eat what's in the fridge
- Don't micromanage. Vietnamese cleaning standards are different from Western — discuss expectations once, then trust
- Pay on time, every time. Cash on the dot of the agreed day; or VietQR transfer
- Stand up for them with your building security and neighbours; they will repay loyalty heavily
- If you travel, pay them for their normal hours even if work isn't required; otherwise they take on a second client and you lose them
Live-in arrangements
Common for nannies in larger villas. Provide:
- Private room with door
- Bathroom (private if possible)
- Wi-Fi and TV
- 1 full day off per week (more is better)
- Sundays off + one evening
- Use of phone, kitchen
- Food
Do not infantilise; she is a professional employee in your home, not "part of the family" except by genuine choice.
What goes wrong
- Theft: extremely rare with vetted hires; common with random street cleaners. Use bTaskee or a recommendation.
- Boundary issues with kids: nannies sometimes spoil children to please the parent. Talk through your discipline approach early.
- Pregnancy / family emergency: have a backup. Your nanny is a person with her own family.
Honest take
The genuine reason expat households thrive in Vietnam is not the food or the weather — it is that someone else handles laundry, cleaning, school pickup and dinner prep at a price that doesn't even register on a Western salary. Treat that person properly. Pay above-market, give holidays generously, remember birthdays. You will get a decade of loyalty.
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