How Much for a Decent Life in Thailand?

[Neeranam]

If you're young and thinking about becoming a teacher in Thailand for life, please think about the following, especially if you want to start a family:-

 

I started teaching here in Thailand in 1995 and want to give some perspective to those younger people wanting to make Thailand a permanent gig. Can you have a good standard of living in this 'vocation'? This means, IMHO, eating out at the best restaurants in town once a week. Kids going to the top schools. A nice foreign holiday once or twice a year. The best medical and car insurance. Psychological well-being, without financial worry like having an old car that breaks down monthly, etc.

 

I'm kind of sick and tired hearing local teachers whine about my wealth as a foreign teacher. "You have a house in farangland, don't you?"(NO), "you'll get money from your government when you're 60"(NO), "you can get 500 baht an hour for teaching privately", etc. little do they realize that I won't get a pension until I'm at least 67 from the UK, which means I have to save at least 5,000 baht a month for a decent pension.

Also, if I want to go 'home' to Scotland once a year, I have to save at least 15,000 a month for flights, hotels, etc. For a half-decent house, a mortgage is 10,000 baht a month+, for a decent car 15,000 + a month, kids' school fees 20,000 a month+. That's 65k a month already and I haven't even mentioned 10k a month at Macro, 10k for petrol, electricity/phone/internet/water bills, and many other extras like 10k a month college funds. It is possible to live a good life here, with foreign holidays, meals out once or twice a week, going to the movies.

 

For my desired standard of life(with 1 wife and 2 kids), I need to earn 120k+, which I can do quite easily by teaching business English online. This would be 150k+ if I lived in Bangkok, not upcountry.

 

Depending on your circumstances, I'd say 60 - 150k is necessary if you want to live a decent expat life. Of course, if you're young and having a year or two out, you can scrape by on 30k. If you're semi-retiring here, after making your money abroad, the same applies. Or if you fancy going native, eating somtam and sticky rice every day, sending your kids to the temple school, etc, 30k might work.

 

There have been hard times, when my kids were young and I could only earn 40-50k, working many hours for 300/400 baht an hour. One piece of advice I'd give is to immediately start learning the Thai language, as this opens many doors, like quality private gigs, translation work etc. Also, Thai citizenship is possible these days without the hassles of 25 years ago. I am now a citizen and this will really help me in my old age(no visas etc). So many long-term teachers I know don't even know what month it is in Thai, absolutely no interest in integrating into society, and hence haven't learned the finer cultural nuances. Don't take the first gig that comes along, unless you have no experience. NEGOTIATE with the schools to get the best pay and conditions. Good luck! I don't know many that have lasted as long as I, mainly due to not being able to survive, and that shoebox that I lived in for 60 baht a night in Khao San Road soon lost it's appeal.

[Swimfan]

Saw the title and thought it was going to be a question on how much do i need ? Like how long is a piece of string ?

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, Neeranam said:

Can you have a good standard of living in this 'vocation'? This means, IMHO, eating out at the best restaurants in town once a week. Kids going to the top schools. A nice foreign holiday once or twice a year. The best medical and car insurance. Psychological well-being, without financial worry like having an old car that breaks down monthly, etc.

 

Of course, if you're young and having a year or two out, you can scrape by on 30k.

 

So many long-term teachers I know don't even know what month it is in Thai,

1) How many people can manage that in any country?

I earned 'loads of money' in the UK, (top 10% of earners) and couldn't have lived that lifestyle.

 

2) I'm living the same lifestyle in Chiang Mai (house, mortgage, woman, 2 kids) on 40kbht a month in 2020, that I lived working in London (1990- 2000) on 5,000 pound/month. The main differences being I no longer have to work 70hrs/week, and the woman is half my age.

 

3) For some reason the only month I can remember is August, if only they named a few more months after beer!

Edited November 9, 2020 by BritManToo

[youreavinalaff]

11 hours ago, Neeranam said:

If you're young and thinking about becoming a teacher in Thailand for life, please think about the following, especially if you want to start a family:-

 

I started teaching here in Thailand in 1995 and want to give some perspective to those younger people wanting to make Thailand a permanent gig. Can you have a good standard of living in this 'vocation'? This means, IMHO, eating out at the best restaurants in town once a week. Kids going to the top schools. A nice foreign holiday once or twice a year. The best medical and car insurance. Psychological well-being, without financial worry like having an old car that breaks down monthly, etc.

 

I'm kind of sick and tired hearing local teachers whine about my wealth as a foreign teacher. "You have a house in farangland, don't you?"(NO), "you'll get money from your government when you're 60"(NO), "you can get 500 baht an hour for teaching privately", etc. little do they realize that I won't get a pension until I'm at least 67 from the UK, which means I have to save at least 5,000 baht a month for a decent pension.

Also, if I want to go 'home' to Scotland once a year, I have to save at least 15,000 a month for flights, hotels, etc. For a half-decent house, a mortgage is 10,000 baht a month+, for a decent car 15,000 + a month, kids' school fees 20,000 a month+. That's 65k a month already and I haven't even mentioned 10k a month at Macro, 10k for petrol, electricity/phone/internet/water bills, and many other extras like 10k a month college funds. It is possible to live a good life here, with foreign holidays, meals out once or twice a week, going to the movies.

 

For my desired standard of life(with 1 wife and 2 kids), I need to earn 120k+, which I can do quite easily by teaching business English online. This would be 150k+ if I lived in Bangkok, not upcountry.

 

Depending on your circumstances, I'd say 60 - 150k is necessary if you want to live a decent expat life. Of course, if you're young and having a year or two out, you can scrape by on 30k. If you're semi-retiring here, after making your money abroad, the same applies. Or if you fancy going native, eating somtam and sticky rice every day, sending your kids to the temple school, etc, 30k might work.

 

There have been hard times, when my kids were young and I could only earn 40-50k, working many hours for 300/400 baht an hour. One piece of advice I'd give is to immediately start learning the Thai language, as this opens many doors, like quality private gigs, translation work etc. Also, Thai citizenship is possible these days without the hassles of 25 years ago. I am now a citizen and this will really help me in my old age(no visas etc). So many long-term teachers I know don't even know what month it is in Thai, absolutely no interest in integrating into society, and hence haven't learned the finer cultural nuances. Don't take the first gig that comes along, unless you have no experience. NEGOTIATE with the schools to get the best pay and conditions. Good luck! I don't know many that have lasted as long as I, mainly due to not being able to survive, and that shoebox that I lived in for 60 baht a night in Khao San Road soon lost it's appeal.

Your figures are well off the mark. Try again.

 

Teaching in Thailand for 20+ years. I never had more than 35k. I have a house with no mortgage, a nice car at 7.5k a month, my daughter attended a good government school (no fees). Last holiday in UK cost around 100k baht. 10k in Makro a month would feed the whole village.

[sweetserenity]

53 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

Your figures are well off the mark. Try again.

 

Teaching in Thailand for 20+ years. I never had more than 35k. I have a house with no mortgage, a nice car at 7.5k a month, my daughter attended a good government school (no fees). Last holiday in UK cost around 100k baht. 10k in Makro a month would feed the whole village.

Are you renting a nice car for 7.5k a month? if so please let me know where i can rent one for such price.. 

[ChaiyaTH]

For a young person and being long term in TH nowadays there won't be any retirement if not saving yourself. So actually that means you need to put aside 20-30K baht for that alone already. For general life, at least 50K a month too and then for each child at least another 20K a month. So i'd say pretty spot on by OP.

 

To this day I not really understand it entirely, I mean i know all is financed, but still surprised how many people do that and somehow keep things going too. You would expect them to default and get busted + repo, not seems to happen that much. 

Looking at purchasing a car, at least 8.5K for the bank and like up to 10 years. Then still insurance, maintenance and petrol on top too. So that easily gets you to 10K a month average if not much more over the lifespan of that car.

 

A bit of a decent house will easily be another 2-3M baht which means at least 15K in mortgage payments average or incl. some maintenance too. 

 

Then life in general, just a few days in Bangkok shakes 10K baht out of my pocket if not more when partying for once again too. 

 

I'd guess the only way you can make it cheap is by living a very very simple lifestyle, cooking at home, no car etc. but that is actually called survival.

 

Conclusion for me personally: earning at least 80K a month for a good life really, excl. pension savings. In Europe this would actually be the same by costs however the life in Thailand with that budget is way better. 

One seems to be better off in Europe with a tiny budget but as soon it gets a bit decent, better of in Thailand with that.

Edited November 9, 2020 by ChaiyaTH

[ChaiyaTH]

I tried keeping things cheap for a year or so and would still get to 16.5K for housing alone already. Then average visa costs, insurance and child costs and we would be near 35K a month. Then comes general life and food. Transportation.

Easily hits the 50K mark and that doesn't include any partying or alcohol, neither eating out western food or stuff like that. I think it is a pipe dream to move to TH for the long run as a teacher. Unless you can live a very sober life and save up big time.

Edited November 9, 2020 by ChaiyaTH

[jastheace]

37 minutes ago, sweetserenity said:

Are you renting a nice car for 7.5k a month? if so please let me know where i can rent one for such price.. 

on the never never, obviously. 

never never, as that's when the payments end...

 

[ChaiyaTH]

4 minutes ago, jastheace said:

on the never never, obviously. 

never never, as that's when the payments end...

Actually most of the yellow tents will do horrible financing from as little as 3.5K a month, so a rental of 7.5K is certainly possible. He just did not mention what kind of car, year and condition.  That also explains why almost everyone has a car nowadays.

 

Thais only care about the monthly amount to pay, do not care or understand the interest and overall pay at the end.

Edited November 9, 2020 by ChaiyaTH

[Neeranam]

2 hours ago, youreavinalaff said:

Your figures are well off the mark. Try again.

 

Teaching in Thailand for 20+ years. I never had more than 35k. I have a house with no mortgage, a nice car at 7.5k a month, my daughter attended a good government school (no fees). Last holiday in UK cost around 100k baht. 10k in Makro a month would feed the whole village.

These figures are accurate for me. What kind of car? My average car is 17,500 a month, and that was with a 265k down payment. 

So you rent a house? 

I take it you're not thinking of a foreign uni for your kids. Next year, one of mine is going to UK, £13k a year fees. 

 

Like I said, if you go native, send your kids to <deleted> schools, live on sticky rice, etc you can scrape by but it's not for everyone. 

 

My flights for UK this year were 100k.

 

 £250 a month in makro is not a lot. That's only one trolley. 

[Neeranam]

45 minutes ago, ChaiyaTH said:

I'd guess the only way you can make it cheap is by living a very very simple lifestyle, cooking at home, no car etc. but that is actually called survival.

Exactly! 

[Meat Pie 47]

Well guys I live in the west  (what you call a granny state )

I could laugh at you. I have no money in the bank (thanks to Thailand)

Just live on me pension,no house, pay rent and every thing else.

I cook at home every day and still can come to Thailand twice a year.

[mstevens]

To the OP,  your number seems to be how much you need to live a "middle-class Western lifestyle in Thailand". Most of us are happy to compromise and do some things the Thai way. After all, surely that is part of the reason we moved to Thailand in the first place.

 

For me, living a decent lifestyle in Bangkok required around 80,000 baht a month. It helped that I was not a drinker. I know some people need more and plenty can get my on much less.

[CorpusChristie]

13 hours ago, BritManToo said:

 

 

 

2) I'm living the same lifestyle in Chiang Mai (house, mortgage, woman, 2 kids)

 

 

   Errrm , isnt the 23 year old mother of your eight year old kid , your step daughter,  ?

  Married to her mother ?

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

As stated in the other thread, which I reckon got this one going, I scraped by for several years out in the provinces for around 35k, then worked my way up to just under 70k on the outskirts of BKK. It’s still not quite enough to be comfortable. I’ve had to dip into savings, relied on some passive income, and occasionally bust out the Visa. I’d recommend anyone coming here to have such backups, and not expect the “shirt on my back” thing to fly. Yes, the wife and I do love to go out. We love burgers, buffets, and beer. ???? I didn’t come here to live like a monk. I could’ve done that under a bridge back home.

 

As someone stated, the income’s about the same as it might be back home, but it certainly goes a lot further. Condo with amenities, new motorbike, weekends out, trips on holidays, and an appreciative, lovely lady. Back home there’d be none of that, paycheck to paycheck, with of course no lady.

 

The plan is not to stay in Thailand indefinitely. We’re giving it a few more years. She’s got a great personality and experience being wasted on the meager wages here. I spent many years in retail, and can totally see my former managers falling in love with her after a five min interview. Years ago I was making around $10/hr, it’s since gone up to $15, a lot of Thai baht. Top tip mates, get a wife who likes to work. Don’t get the ones she watched in the villages, drinking and gambling their monthly farang sponsorships away.

 

Speaking of village, when we’re back visiting the folks, we can fill the Talad Lotus trolley for under 2500 baht. ????

[JeffersLos]

20 hours ago, Neeranam said:

For my desired standard of life(with 1 wife and 2 kids), I need to earn 120k+

 

60k each.

 

That's very easy for both a Western man in Thailand and an educated Thai woman to earn.

 

By 40 years old both of you should be earning 100k+ per month each.

 

It's quite easy for a family with 2 kids to have a good life on 200-250k per month. 

[Neeranam]

2 hours ago, JeffersLos said:

 

60k each.

 

That's very easy for both a Western man in Thailand and an educated Thai woman to earn.

 

By 40 years old both of you should be earning 100k+ per month each.

 

It's quite easy for a family with 2 kids to have a good life on 200-250k per month. 

No, I earn all the dough in my household; my wife in not educated. She offered to work but I wasn't for it as she could only earn in a month what I could earn in 2 days. 

One thing I've noticed is a huge increase in the amount of money needed for teenage kids- iPhones, iPads, school trips, acne cream/make up, books, etc

 

 

[Neeranam]

22 hours ago, Swimfan said:

Saw the title and thought it was going to be a question on how much do i need ? Like how long is a piece of string ?

It is in a sense. Those earning 40k a month will say that is enough for a good life here. In my experience it certainly is not. Those earning 200k will say they need that. 

I've experienced both limits and could get by on 40-50k but it wouldn't be much fun when kids got older. Also, I couldn't have a decent pension. I just cashed out my SS payment, only 180,000 for 15 years payments. I have to wait for 12 years until I get a state pension of 28,000 a month. I should be set, as I've been putting some away for a few year,s including Bitcoin and other cryptos. Bought Bitcoin at $1000($15,500 now). 

[Neeranam]

Over the years, I've known many guys with families who just couldn't survive here teaching. Some go to Korea/Japan; others go to the Middle East; some go back to their home country. 

Just something to think about if you're young and thinking if making a family here; it's not a bed of roses on a govt school wage. 

[Neeranam]

3 hours ago, CrunchWrapSupreme said:

As stated in the other thread, which I reckon got this one going, I scraped by for several years out in the provinces for around 35k, then worked my way up to just under 70k on the outskirts of BKK.

I'll have a look for that.

 

Another thing I can't stress enough -  learn Thai!!

 

As soon as you start working here learn the language. many, if not most don't and find after 10 years they are still illiterate. 

 

The advantages of this are you can learn the finer nuances of Thai culture. After 5-10 years of study, you should be fluent and this opens many doors. I've taught culture courses to other teachers, teach intercultural classes to global companies, and translated many things.  

[youreavinalaff]

13 hours ago, sweetserenity said:

Are you renting a nice car for 7.5k a month? if so please let me know where i can rent one for such price.. 

No. Buying.

[youreavinalaff]

13 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

 

Then life in general, just a few days in Bangkok shakes 10K baht out of my pocket if not more when partying for once again too

You should read the OP again.

 

He said "Thailand". Not "Bangkok".

[youreavinalaff]

13 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

Actually most of the yellow tents will do horrible financing from as little as 3.5K a month, so a rental of 7.5K is certainly possible. He just did not mention what kind of car, year and condition.  That also explains why almost everyone has a car nowadays.

 

Thais only care about the monthly amount to pay, do not care or understand the interest and overall pay at the end.

Brand new pick up. Promotion of free down payment. 7.5k for 72 months. Only 12 to go then paid for. 

 

The deals are out there. You just need to open your eyes.

[youreavinalaff]

12 hours ago, Neeranam said:

These figures are accurate for me. What kind of car? My average car is 17,500 a month, and that was with a 265k down payment. 

So you rent a house? 

I take it you're not thinking of a foreign uni for your kids. Next year, one of mine is going to UK, £13k a year fees. 

 

Like I said, if you go native, send your kids to <deleted> schools, live on sticky rice, etc you can scrape by but it's not for everyone. 

 

My flights for UK this year were 100k.

 

 £250 a month in makro is not a lot. That's only one trolley. 

Our car was bought brand new. Promotion was that down payment was met by the dealer. 

 

My daughter went to a good government school. 

 

Not living on sticky rice. I don't understand one thing here....when one buys products in Makro( meat, vegetables etc) at what point does the difference in price occur? What I mean to say is, there are comments on here about western food and how it will be expensive. If I buy a kilo of pork form Makro, for example, it will cost the same to make Larb as it would to make a pork steak. 

 

As for Universities, if my daughter chooses to go to a UK university then we will change our circumstances for that to occur. 

[youreavinalaff]

26 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

Our car was bought brand new. Promotion was that down payment was met by the dealer. 

 

My daughter went to a good government school. 

 

Not living on sticky rice. I don't understand one thing here....when one buys products in Makro( meat, vegetables etc) at what point does the difference in price occur? What I mean to say is, there are comments on here about western food and how it will be expensive. If I buy a kilo of pork form Makro, for example, it will cost the same to make Larb as it would to make a pork steak. 

 

As for Universities, if my daughter chooses to go to a UK university then we will change our circumstances for that to occur. 

I forgot to add. Home built and paid for.

[1FinickyOne]

On 11/9/2020 at 12:08 PM, Neeranam said:

a good standard of living in this 'vocation'? This means, IMHO, eating out at the best restaurants in town once a week. Kids going to the top schools. A nice foreign holiday once or twice a year. The best medical and car insurance. Psychological well-being, without financial worry like having an old car that breaks down monthly, etc.

This sounds like upper middle class at least in USA... kids going to top schools means affording to live in a top neighborhood or going private, which isn't cheap...

 

The teachers I have met here seem to be mostly gap year people or older retired - - how many come here to pursue a lifetime job teaching here? Just curious - 

[sweetserenity]

2 hours ago, youreavinalaff said:

No. Buying.

So insurance and plate, and maintanence cost 7.5k per month?

[youreavinalaff]

2 minutes ago, sweetserenity said:

So insurance and plate, and maintanence cost 7.5k per month?

Not sure what you mean by "Plate". 

 

Costs per month, that I quoted, are for payments. Insurance is about another 12k a year and maintenance probably the same, on average. So a total of 9.5k a month. That will obviously decline a great deal in 12 months when the car is paid for.

[sweetserenity]

2 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

Not sure what you mean by "Plate". 

 

Costs per month, that I quoted, are for payments. Insurance is about another 12k a year and maintenance probably the same, on average. So a total of 9.5k a month. That will obviously decline a great deal in 12 months when the car is paid for.

I am planning to buy a car myself, but only in the 60-100k baht range and was wondering how much the maintenance + insurance cost would be on such a car, 15years+ old. And 9.5k a month is with benzin included i assume since 12k a year for maintenance + insurance is 24k right?

[youreavinalaff]

12 minutes ago, sweetserenity said:

I am planning to buy a car myself, but only in the 60-100k baht range and was wondering how much the maintenance + insurance cost would be on such a car, 15years+ old. And 9.5k a month is with benzin included i assume since 12k a year for maintenance + insurance is 24k right?

Your figures are correct but fuel is not included.

 

An older car would likely cost more on maintenance due to the aging process on the vehicle and it's components.