9:55:28 AM | 7/3/2026
Sun Life’s Financial Resilience Index 2026 reveals that consumers in Vietnam continue to demonstrate resilience compared to regional peers, despite rising cost pressures reshaping household finances. However, increasing living expenses are softening financial confidence and driving more short-term financial trade-offs.
Vietnam remains among the most financially resilient markets in the region
In 2026, 31% of Vietnamese consumers are classified as highly resilient, higher than Singapore (21%), Malaysia (22%), and the Philippines (19%). At the same time, only 9% fall into the low resilience segment, among the lowest in the region.
Vietnam also stands out in terms of perceived financial security, with 22% of consumers feeling very financially secure, significantly above the regional average of 13%.
In addition, the proportion of consumers with low confidence in coping with a financial emergency declined from 21% in 2025 to 14% in 2026, while those with high confidence increased slightly from 51% to 53%. At the same time, the share of consumers who feel financially insecure also narrowed from 14% in 2025 to 10% in 2026.
These findings highlight that Vietnamese consumers continue to maintain relatively strong financial foundations, particularly in their ability to manage day-to-day finances and sustain income stability.
High resilience segment contracts as living costs rise
Notwithstanding these improvements, overall resilience is softening at the top end.
The proportion of highly resilient households declined from 34% in 2025 to 31% in 2026, while the moderate segment increased from 59% to 61%. In parallel, high financial security fell significantly from 71% to 59% .
This shift reflects a clear trend: consumers are not losing control of their finances, but the sense of being ‘very financially secure’ is steadily weakening under rising cost pressures.
Rising living costs are the dominant pressure shaping household finances
84% of Vietnamese consumers say inflation has made it harder to cover monthly expenses, making rising living costs the most significant pressure on household finances. Essential expenses such as groceries, utilities, and transportation fuel affect 96% of consumers, while healthcare costs impact 92%.
This is not only reducing consumers’ ability to build savings, but also forcing them to adopt more defensive financial behaviours
Short-term financial trade-offs are becoming more common
As pressures intensify, consumers are increasingly adopting short-term coping strategies with 33% are drawing down savings, higher than the regional average; 23% are reducing or skipping essential spending and 12% have paused retirement savings.
Notably, Vietnam ranks among the highest markets in terms of drawing down savings, highlighting a clear trade-off between maintaining current financial stability and protecting long-term financial health.
Financial pressure is also affecting long-term planning behavior. 61% of consumers have no financial plan or plan only up to one year ahead, while managing day-to-day expenses has become the top financial priority.
Confidence in managing long-term financial goals also declined, with high confidence falling from 64% in 2025 to 59% in 2026. This suggests that short-term financial pressures are increasingly crowding out longer-term financial planning.
Vietnam leads the region in Gen AI adoption for financial decision-making
Vietnam stands out as a leader in digital financial behavior. 75% of consumers use Gen AI for financial advice, the highest among surveyed markets and 73% expect to increase usage in the next 12 months, also the highest in the region.
This reflects a growing openness among Vietnamese consumers to leverage technology for faster, more accessible financial decision-making.
Financial literacy remains the key resilience divider
Despite strong adoption of digital tools, 59% of consumers rate their financial literacy as basic or low, highlighting persistent gaps in capability.
The research shows that consumers with higher financial literacy are significantly more prepared for rising costs and more confident about their financial future. Strengthening financial knowledge therefore remains critical to improving long-term financial resilience.
Ms. Lay Hoon Tan, CEO of Sun Life Vietnam, said: “The 2026 Financial Resilience Index shows that Vietnamese consumers continue to demonstrate relatively strong financial foundations compared to the region, particularly in their ability to adapt to short-term financial pressures. However, rising cost pressures are increasingly forcing consumers to make short-term financial trade-offs that could weaken their long-term financial security. This underscores the importance of strengthening financial literacy and encouraging long-term financial planning. At Sun Life Vietnam, we are committed to supporting our customers with accessible, comprehensive advice and solutions to help them build and sustain their financial resilience amid an increasingly uncertain environment.”
By Vietnam Business Forum
