Grab, Be and Xanh SM: Ride-Hailing Apps in Vietnam

Three apps cover the overwhelming majority of taxi and motorbike-taxi rides in Vietnam. You should install all three before you arrive. None of them require a Vietnamese phone number to sign up; foreign mobile numbers work fine.

Grab

The Singapore-based giant. Largest fleet, biggest geographic coverage, best app, English-language interface. Available in every city you'd visit and most of the smaller towns. Pays drivers more reliably than the others, which is why most drivers also accept Grab if they're on Be or Xanh SM.

Options that matter:

• GrabCar — standard 4-seat car.
• GrabCar 7 — 7-seat SUV/MPV. Worth it for two couples with luggage.
• GrabBike — motorbike with a helmet for the passenger. The fastest way to move through Hanoi or Saigon traffic. Pillion only, no luggage beyond a small backpack.
• GrabFood — food delivery, useful when you can't read a menu.
• GrabExpress — courier between two addresses.

Pay with cash, a card linked to the app, or Momo (Vietnam's main e-wallet). Foreign cards work but get declined intermittently — keep cash on you as a fallback. See money and banking.

Be

Vietnamese-owned, smaller fleet, slightly cheaper on average. Patchier outside the big cities. The app is in English. Useful as a price comparison — if Grab is surging, Be often isn't. beCar and beBike are the equivalents.

Xanh SM

The newcomer. Launched by VinFast in 2023, all-electric fleet — both the green taxis you see everywhere and the green motorbikes. Run by salaried drivers rather than gig workers, which means consistent service and almost no cancellation games. Slightly more expensive than Grab but the cars are new, quiet and clean. Coverage now spans every major city and is expanding into provincial capitals.

Two ways to use Xanh SM: via the app (best price), or by waving one down on the street — they run as metered taxis with a published fixed tariff. The meter is honest. Recommended over the random metered-taxi pool, which still has problems: see taxi meter scams.

Pricing reality

Indicative city fares for a 5 km trip in Hanoi or HCMC:

Fares display upfront in the app. The driver cannot change the price. If a driver asks for "a bit more for traffic" the answer is no — file it via the app's complaint form and the fare you booked is what you pay.

Tipping

Not expected. Rounding up to the next 10,000 VND is appreciated. If a driver helps with luggage, 20,000–50,000 VND is generous.

Lost items

Open the trip in the app, tap the driver's contact, call. Drivers almost always return items if you reach them within an hour, often for the price of the return trip. After a few hours the phone may be off and the item is gone. For valuables, Grab's in-app "Lost item" support actually works but takes 24–48 hours.

Motorbike taxi vs car: when to pick which

• Motorbike if you're alone, travelling light, and the trip is under 10 km in city traffic. Saves both time and money.
• Car for two or more people, anything with luggage, after dark, in heavy rain, and any time you don't feel up to navigating Vietnamese traffic from the back of a bike.

If you're sceptical about the bike option, do one short daytime trip with GrabBike to a destination you know. The drivers are professional, the helmets are mandatory, and once you've done it once the city opens up. For renting your own bike instead, see motorbike rental.

Quick app-install checklist

Before your first day in country: Grab, Xanh SM, Be, Momo, Google Maps. With a working SIM (sim cards and mobile data) you have everything you need to move around.

Overview

Grab, Be and Xanh SM are the three ride-hailing platforms that dominate urban mobility across Vietnam in 2026. Grab offers the widest coverage and most English-friendly interface; Be provides competitive pricing as a Vietnamese alternative; Xanh SM brings reliability and modern vehicles through its all-electric, salaried-driver model. Use Grab as your primary app, check Be during surge pricing, and prefer Xanh SM if you want guaranteed vehicle quality and consistent service.

Operators and costs

Surge multipliers apply during rush hours (6–9 am, 5–8 pm) and rain; typical 1.3–2x. Prices reflect mid-2026 rates for peak and off-peak trips; shorter trips cost proportionally more. Payment accepted via app wallet, foreign credit card (intermittent block risk), or Momo e-wallet. Grab has the largest driver pool, reducing wait times; Xanh SM offers the newest, quietest vehicles; Be is best as a price-comparison tool when Grab surges.

Booking and logistics

All three apps accept foreign phone numbers and work in English (or Vietnamese language settings). Download before arrival. Grab has the fastest pickup response in major cities (2–5 min off-peak); Be and Xanh SM average 3–8 min. For Xanh SM taxis, hail on the street without the app — metered tariff is honest and fixed. Book 5–10 min ahead for express pickup or ride-sharing during off-peak; during rush hour expect 10–15 min. Payment is upfront; no cash required if you load your app wallet with Momo or a foreign card. Bring a passport photocopy (not original ID) if asked; drivers rarely request it. Cancellation within 30 sec is free; after that, 3,000–5,000 VND penalty.

Tips and gotchas

• Avoid decline loops: Foreign cards often block; load Momo balance (50,000–100,000 VND minimum) as a fallback and link a Vietnamese SIM-based bank account if staying >1 week.
• Bait-and-switch cancellation: If a driver cancels after 10 sec (rare but happens), rebook immediately — you aren't charged and the next driver is usually 1–2 min away.
• Surge in rain: Downpours trigger 1.5–2x multipliers; book 5 min before the rain, or use Xanh SM (fixed metered rate) as an escape hatch.
• Motorbike luggage myth: GrabBike officially allows a small backpack only, but drivers often accept a medium daypack; anything larger requires a car or cargo bike service.