Top 12 Vietnam Hat Manufacturers // How to Find the Right Cap Factory
Vietnam is one of the best countries in the world for manufacturing hats and caps. The country's textile and garment industry exported over $44 billion in 2024, and headwear is a significant piece of that output. Production is concentrated around Ho Chi Minh City and the surrounding provinces, where you'll find everything from small family-run cap workshops to large foreign-invested factories running multiple production lines.
I've been sourcing products from Vietnam since 2012, and our team at Cosmo Sourcing is based in Binh Duong Province, right in the heart of the manufacturing zone. Over the years, I've walked through dozens of hat and cap factories, from 30-person workshops in District 12 to Korean-invested operations with hundreds of workers and full in-house embroidery departments. This guide covers what you actually need to know to find the right factory for your project.
Updated Feb 24, 2026
What Kinds of Hats Are Made in Vietnam?
Vietnam's hat factories cover nearly every category of headwear. That said, not every factory makes every type. Most specialize in one or two categories, and understanding the differences will help you target the right manufacturers. Here's what I see produced most commonly across the factories we work with.
Baseball Caps and Structured Caps
This is Vietnam's strongest category for headwear. Structured caps (baseball caps, trucker hats, snapbacks, dad hats) make up the bulk of production. Factories here work with cotton twill, polyester, nylon, and performance blends. Decoration options include embroidery (flat, 3D puff, and chain stitch), screen printing, heat transfer, woven patches, and sublimation. Most cap factories can handle both OEM and ODM production. When I visit cap factories, the embroidery department is usually the most impressive part of the operation: rows of multi-head machines running simultaneously, with operators monitoring stitch quality in real time.
Beanies and Knit Headwear
Knit beanies, cuffed beanies, pom-pom styles, and earflap hats are widely produced. These typically come from factories with knitting machines rather than sewing lines, so they're often entirely different facilities from cap manufacturers. This is something many first-time buyers don't realize: if you need both baseball caps and beanies, you're almost certainly dealing with two separate factories. Common materials include acrylic, wool blends, and cotton knits.
Bucket Hats and Sun Hats
Bucket hats have surged in popularity, and many cap factories have added them to their lines. Sun hats, wide-brim hats, and outdoor styles are also produced, though straw and woven hats tend to come from specialized workshops (often in different regions than the cap factories).
Performance and Outdoor Headwear
Factories supplying international outdoor brands produce moisture-wicking caps, UV-protective hats, and technical headwear using advanced fabrics. These factories typically have higher certifications and more sophisticated testing capabilities. Several well-known global brands produce their performance headwear in Vietnam for exactly this reason.
Fashion and Specialty Hats
Fedoras, berets, and fashion-forward styles are produced in smaller volumes, often by workshops that prioritize craftsmanship over high-volume output.
Where Hat Manufacturing Is Concentrated
Vietnam's headwear production is heavily centered in the southern part of the country, with a few key clusters. If you're planning a factory visit or sourcing trip, this is where to focus.
Ho Chi Minh City and Surrounding Districts
Districts like Binh Chanh, District 12, and Tan Phu are home to many small- and mid-sized-cap workshops. These are typically Vietnamese-owned operations with 30 to 150 workers that produce promotional caps, branded headwear, and custom orders. They're often flexible on MOQs and can be good partners for smaller brands. I've found that a lot of these workshops are clustered together, sometimes three or four on the same street, which makes factory comparison visits very efficient if you're on the ground.
Binh Duong Province
This is where many of the larger, foreign-invested hat factories operate. Taiwanese, Korean, and Japanese companies set up production here to take advantage of Vietnam's labor costs while maintaining the quality systems their international clients expect. Our main office is in Binh Duong, and we've toured multiple hat factories in the area. These larger factories typically serve major international brands and require higher order volumes. Still, they also tend to have more robust sample rooms, in-house embroidery departments, and established quality control processes that smaller workshops may lack.
Long An and Dong Nai
Some production has expanded into these neighboring provinces as land and labor costs around Ho Chi Minh City have increased. You'll find a mix of Vietnamese-owned and foreign-invested operations here.
The key takeaway is that hat manufacturing in Vietnam is not spread evenly across the country. The greater Ho Chi Minh City area is where the vast majority of headwear production happens. Vietnam produces a huge range of products, but for hats and caps specifically, the south is where the action is.
Top 12 Hat Manufacturers in Vietnam
The following are some of the most well-known hat and cap factories operating in Vietnam's export market. These are the names that come up most often, but Vietnam's headwear manufacturing landscape runs much deeper than this list. Some of the best factories for your specific project may not appear here, particularly smaller specialized operations that don't have a big online presence but produce excellent work. A sourcing company with on-the-ground access can help you find manufacturers that match your exact product, volume, and quality requirements beyond what's publicly visible.
JM Caps (Binh Duong Province)
Originally founded in Taiwan in 1989, JM Caps moved production to Vietnam in 1996. Their 5,400-square-meter facility in Binh Duong houses a cap factory, an embroidery factory, a sample room, and a warehouse. Over 300 workers across seven production lines. They produce baseball caps, snapbacks, and promotional headwear for clients in Asia, Europe, and North America.
TTD Caps / Tan Thanh Dat (Ho Chi Minh City)
One of Vietnam's longest-operating hat manufacturers, founded in 1980. TTD Caps exports to Japan, Korea, Australia, North America, and Western Europe. They produce a wide range of casual caps, fashion hats, and promotional headwear and are known for blending traditional craftsmanship with modern production.
Dong Tam Caps (Binh Chanh District, HCMC)
A family-owned cap factory established in 1997, located on National Road 50 in Binh Chanh. Dong Tam produces caps, bags, aprons, and raincoats, but its core strength is manufacturing promotional caps with embroidered or printed logos. They emphasize hands-on quality control with factory leadership directly guiding production.
Sunshine Viet (District 12, HCMC)
Established in 1983, Sunshine Viet started as a family workshop and has grown into an exporter serving the US, Canada, Europe, Africa, Australia, and Japan. They produce fashion caps, baseball caps, bucket hats, golf caps, and sun visors, with capabilities in both embroidery and printing.
Ho Chang Cap (near HCMC)
Established in 2001, Ho Chang collaborates with over 30 brands across 12 countries. They're known as a reliable mid-size operation in the greater Ho Chi Minh City area.
Yupoong / Flexfit (Vietnam operations)
Headquartered in South Korea, Yupoong is the company behind the Flexfit brand and its signature stretchable headband technology. They have a significant manufacturing presence in Vietnam, leveraging the country's skilled workforce to produce large volumes of their proprietary cap designs.
DONY Garment (Binh Chanh District, HCMC)
DONY has over 30 years of experience in Vietnam's garment industry and is one of the more visible hat manufacturers in the export market. They produce a wide range of headwear, including baseball caps, bucket hats, elastic hats, and promotional caps. Their factory handles embroidery and printing in-house and exports to multiple international markets.
Hai Anh Hats (District 12, HCMC)
With nearly 20 years of experience, Hai Anh Hats has built a reputation as a diverse headwear processing operation in the Ho Chi Minh City area. They produce fashion hats, baseball caps, wide-brimmed hats, advertising hats, embroidered hats, and children's headwear. A solid mid-size option for buyers looking at the District 12 manufacturing cluster.
Long Van Caps (Hoc Mon District, HCMC)
Established in 2002, Long Van specializes in manufacturing and exporting hats, caps, bags, and umbrellas. Their factory is equipped with Japanese and Taiwanese machinery, employs about 120 people, and has a monthly capacity of approximately 150,000 pieces. They export to the EU, the US, and Singapore.
Wavu (HCMC)
Wavu is a well-established Vietnamese manufacturer known for custom-made snapbacks, baseball caps, bucket hats, and tennis caps. They handle everything in-house, from sewing to embroidery, cutting out intermediaries. They're notable for their flexibility on order quantities, making them a potential option for brands that need smaller runs.
Cap's Vietnam / CAPVN (HCMC)
A professional headwear manufacturer based in Ho Chi Minh City specializing in custom caps and hats. They produce baseball caps, golf caps, mesh caps, bucket hats, and fashion headwear, with capabilities in embroidery and modern printing technology. They export to the US, Canada, Europe, Africa, Australia, and Japan.
INJAE VINA (Vietnam)
A Korean-invested headwear manufacturer established in 2008 that has grown into a reputable name in the industry. They offer fast OEM/ODM customization, work with diverse materials, and are known for responsive customer service. A good example of the foreign-invested operations that have strengthened Vietnam's headwear manufacturing capabilities.
Beyond these well-known names, there are hundreds of smaller workshops and mid-size factories producing quality headwear across southern Vietnam. The challenge isn't finding a factory; it's finding the right one for your specific product and volume. That's where working with a sourcing company with local factory relationships makes a real difference.
How to Find and Evaluate Hat Manufacturers
This is where most buyers struggle. Finding a factory name is easy. Finding a factory that's actually right for your product, volume, and quality requirements takes more work.
Define Your Specs Before You Search
Before you contact any factory, clarify what you need: hat style and construction (structured vs. unstructured, panel count, closure type), target materials, decoration method (embroidery, printing, patches, or a combination), approximate order quantity, and packaging requirements. I can't stress this enough: the more specific your brief, the more accurate the quotes you'll receive, and the faster you'll filter out factories that aren't a fit. Vague inquiries get vague responses.
Where to Find Factories
B2B Platforms
Alibaba and Global Sources list Vietnamese hat factories, but be cautious. Many listings are from trading companies rather than actual manufacturers. Verify that you're dealing with a real factory before investing time in samples.
Trade Shows
One of the best ways to meet factories directly. SaigonTex (Ho Chi Minh City) is the most relevant for textiles and garments. Nothing replaces shaking hands with a factory owner and seeing their sample collection in person.
Sourcing Companies
Companies like Cosmo Sourcing maintain networks of vetted factories and can match you with manufacturers based on your specific requirements. This is especially useful if you don't have existing contacts in Vietnam or the time to vet factories yourself. Learn more about what sourcing companies do and how they work.
Direct Outreach
If you already have factory names, many Vietnamese hat factories have basic websites or Facebook pages (Facebook is widely used for business in Vietnam). Expect slower response times and be prepared to follow up.
How to Vet a Hat Factory
Once you have a shortlist, evaluate each factory on these points:
Production Capability
Does the factory specialize in your hat type? A structured cap factory and a knit beanie factory are very different operations. Ask what percentage of their output is the style you need. In my experience, the best results come from factories where your product type represents their core business, not a sideline.
Capacity and Current Clients
Factories serving major international brands often have robust quality systems but may require larger orders. Smaller workshops may be more flexible but might lack certifications. Ask for a client list or references.
Certifications
For international buyers, look for ISO 9001 (quality management), BSCI or WRAP (social compliance), and OEKO-TEX (material safety). Not every factory will have all of these, but they signal professionalism.
Sample Quality
Never commit to a production order without evaluating samples first. Request a pre-production sample in your exact specs, not a showroom sample. Pay attention to stitching consistency, embroidery quality, material feel, and overall construction.
Requesting and Evaluating Samples
Expect to pay for samples. Most hat factories charge $30 to $100+ per sample, depending on complexity, plus shipping. Sample lead time is typically 10 to 20 days. When you receive samples, check the bill of materials against your specs, test the closure mechanism, examine the decoration quality under good lighting, and wash-test if colorfastness is important for your product. I always tell clients: the sample stage is where you invest time, not where you cut corners.
What to Expect: MOQs, Pricing, and Lead Times
These vary significantly by hat type, factory size, and decoration complexity. Here are the general ranges we typically see when working with hat factories in Vietnam.
Minimum Order Quantities
Structured caps typically start at 300 to 500 pieces per style and color at smaller factories, and 1,000 to 3,000+ at larger operations. Knit beanies often have slightly lower minimums. Some factories will negotiate lower MOQs for a first order if they see potential for repeat business. For a deeper dive, see our guide on what MOQ means and how to negotiate it.
Pricing Ranges
A basic embroidered baseball cap might run $2 to $5 per unit at volume, depending on materials, decoration, and order size. Complex designs with multiple decoration methods, premium materials, or specialty construction will cost more. Knit beanies tend to sit in a similar range, though the economics shift depending on yarn weight and knitting complexity. Always request a detailed quote that breaks out material, decoration, and packaging costs so you can compare apples to apples across factories.
Production and Shipping Timelines
After sample approval, expect 30 to 60 days for production, depending on the order size and the factory's workload. Add 2-4 weeks for ocean freight to North America, Europe, or Australia. Holiday periods (especially Tet, Vietnamese New Year, which falls in January or February) can add significant delays, so plan accordingly.
Tariffs and Trade Agreements
Duty rates on hats imported from Vietnam vary by destination country and are subject to change. Check the latest rates with your customs broker or freight forwarder before finalizing your landed cost calculations. Vietnam's participation in trade agreements like the CPTPP, EVFTA, and RCEP can provide preferential rates depending on where you're importing to.
Common Mistakes When Sourcing Hats from Vietnam
After helping thousands of clients source products from Vietnam across every product category, here are the headwear-specific pitfalls we see come up again and again.
Underspecifying Embroidery
"Logo embroidered on front" is not a spec. You need to provide stitch count, thread colors (Pantone references), embroidery dimensions, placement coordinates, and whether you want flat, 3D puff, or another technique. Vague specs lead to samples that don't match your expectations, and then everyone wastes time going back and forth.
Assuming All Hat Factories Do All Hat Types
A factory that's excellent at structured baseball caps may not be set up for knit beanies at all. These require different machinery and entirely different skill sets. Match your product to the factory's core capability. I've seen buyers waste months trying to get a cap factory to produce a quality beanie when they should have been talking to a knitting factory from the start.
Skipping Material Testing
Colorfastness, shrinkage, and pilling are real issues with headwear. If your hats will be exposed to sun, sweat, or washing, request test reports or conduct your own testing on samples before committing to production.
Ignoring Decoration Compatibility
Not every decoration method works on every material. Sublimation requires polyester-heavy fabrics. 3D puff embroidery doesn't work well on unstructured panels. Discuss the feasibility of the decoration with the factory before finalizing your design.
Not Accounting for Tet
Most Vietnamese factories shut down for 1 to 3 weeks around Tet (January/February). If you need the product by spring, plan your timeline around this. Factories also get backed up with rush orders in the weeks before the holiday. We remind every client about this, and it still catches people off guard.
Cosmo Sourcing // Your Partner for Headwear Sourcing in Vietnam
Finding the right hat factory in Vietnam doesn't have to be a guessing game. At Cosmo Sourcing, we've been on the ground in Vietnam since 2012, helping thousands of clients source over 10,000 products, including custom headwear of all types.
We work on a transparent flat-fee model (no commissions on your order value), and we handle the entire sourcing process: factory matching, sample coordination, quality control, and shipping logistics. We typically get you quotes from 2 to 6 vetted factories so you can compare options with confidence, and we provide direct introductions to the manufacturers we recommend.
If you're ready to start sourcing hats from Vietnam, reach out to us at info@cosmosourcing.com or visit our contact page to get started.