Textbooks account for a large proportion
For many years, educational books including textbooks, curricula and reference materials have not only dominated the "market share pie" but also been the main source of revenue for publishers and distributors.
Vietnam Education Publishing House (full name is Vietnam Education Publishing House One Member Limited Liability Company) was once the only unit assigned to publish textbooks. However, from the end of 2017, with the policy of socialization, 7 publishing houses were licensed to publish textbooks to serve the 2018 General Education program.
Statistics from the Education Publishing House show that in 2023, Vietnam printed about over 400 million copies of books, of which the Education Publishing House alone accounted for over 300 million copies. In 2024, according to information from representatives of the Education Publishing House, the publishing market has 57 publishing houses with a total revenue of over 4,000 billion VND for the whole industry, of which Vietnam Education Publishing House accounts for over 3,000 billion VND.
Besides the Education Publishing House, publishing units like Fahasa are also considered a "giant" in the market when investing in educational books and educational equipment with revenue of trillions of VND.
A report from the Publishing, Printing and Distribution Department (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) said that in 2025 - textbooks, textbooks, and reference books accounted for about 32% of the total number of publications in the industry. As of 2025, educational books are still the main economic pillar of the publishing market, far exceeding other book genres.
The types of books accounting for the lowest proportion in the "market share pie" are literature books, foreign literature - dictionaries, science books...
Discussing the fact that textbooks account for a large proportion in the publishing market, author Phong Viet said: "This proves one thing, education books in Vietnam are still a fertile market, so many authors are joining this market. However, this also proves the mismatch between genres of books and education books in schools that should not be too many, especially when we are aiming for learning and practicing in the technology age. Along with that, too many sets of education books and reference books also show that students are under financial pressure. Therefore, the fact that we will soon unify 1 set of education books by grade is a welcome policy.
According to author Phong Viet, other book categories are much more difficult in reaching their readers. The number of printed copies is also more limited. "For authors in other book genres, the money collected from book copyright is really very small with the number printed somewhere around 1,000-2,000 printed copies, with a profit sharing ratio of only about 8-10% on the book cover price" - author Phong Viet analyzed.
Impacts on the publishing market
In a conversation with a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Nguyen Nguyen - Director of the Publishing, Printing and Issuing Department assessed that the fact that textbooks are expected to be free from the 2020-2030 school year nationwide will certainly have an impact on the publishing market, but that will bring many positive signs.
In many other countries around the world, textbooks also account for a high proportion and are the most revenue-generating book genre. In my opinion, that is not a matter of concern, the most concerning thing lies in the book genres that are accounting for a low proportion. Many questions are being raised, and the answers are still open. Why are those types of books selling so slowly? Have we reached the reading needs of readers yet? Are the book genres with a low proportion good enough in terms of quality? How to increase market share for those book genres?... That is what we should be concerned about" - Mr. Nguyen Nguyen analyzed.
According to Mr. Nguyen, textbooks only follow readers for 12 years of study, from the age of 18 onwards, they also need to cultivate, read books, learn, and study throughout their lives with other types of books.
Mr. Nguyen pointed out that when the policy of free textbooks goes into practice, publishing units that are strong in educational books need to research to publish publications for readers over 18 years old, how to activate and promote their reading? How to reach the reading needs of readers over 18 years old, after leaving school.
Many genres of books on science and technology, art, literature, industry skills... are still leaving vacant topics of interest to readers - this problem needs to find a solution in the near future, to balance the market share pie in the publishing market.
