One of the globe’s leading expat networking and guide websites ranked the Big Mango, Bangkok, as the 9th best city to live and visit for expats in 2023. The ranking is down from last year when Bangkok was ranked 6th.

 

InterNations said it conducted an online survey from February 1 to 28 this year, with 12,065 expats from 172 countries and territories around the world taking part.

 

Bangkok was ranked 9th with overall happiness at 85%, cost of living at 73%, ease of settling in at 54%, overall career satisfaction at 66%, satisfaction with work-life balance at 77% and satisfaction with medical costs at 80%.

 

Bangkok was beaten this year by Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, which was ranked eighth last year. The city had a high score on the quality-of-life index since last year.

 

By Petch Petpailin

Caption: Photo by Hanny Naibaho via Unsplash

 

Full story: The Thaiger 2023-11-23

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

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And it will go down even more as the RD makes their plans real for taxing the money of foreigners

I'll sit it out until Feb 2025 when my UK pension will start.

It will be frozen from date of issue so if Thailand insist on taxing it on top I will be looking for pastures new.

Wait and see the ranking after the 25% tax for saved money into Thailand is applied. The 9:th rank will sink down like a stone in the water.

lets see the ranking from Jan 1st 2024 when the Thai government tries to steal (tax) money from expats/retirees

ha ha, read comments already posted before I make one, does no harm I guess to let them know were our focus is...........................extortion

Yeah, it's gonna keep dropping.  My recent experience at immigration renewing retirement visa only adds to my feeling that falangs are not wanted here.  Grade A tourist, 15 yrs in, plenty of money, never a problem for the authorities and they are giving me the 3rd degree treatment like I'm a common criminal and they are just looking for something, anything to trip me up and give them their "gotcha" moment and out I go.  One can only take so much of the abusive attitude here.

This "survey" appears to be way out of touch....Spain I understand...but the UAE and Oman??

These rankings are always based on expats living expat lifestyles. I don’t (well rarely) eat in western restaurants, buy imported foods or try to emulate the lifestyle I had back home.

Looks like a great place to live.  I think I might move there from KC. 

and for the best air quality

I don’t see Bangkok rating getting any better. Living in Bangkok is getting worse. 

 

Bangkok is getting ridiculous..

- property prices never drops but increase even without demand 

-  fine dining are now as expensive as Singapore or Hong Kong or Europe even when the pool of people eating remains unchanged 

-  they try to eradicate street food n keep prime districts clean 

-  they set up useless road dividers n create needless manholes every 6 metres apart that make driving difficult n senseless 

 

some of my many grievances. 

 

Edited November 24, 20232 yr by NemoH

Is that really the best picture of Bangkok they could come up with on such a news story?

6 hours ago, LALes said:

Yeah, it's gonna keep dropping.  My recent experience at immigration renewing retirement visa only adds to my feeling that falangs are not wanted here.  Grade A tourist, 15 yrs in, plenty of money, never a problem for the authorities and they are giving me the 3rd degree treatment like I'm a common criminal and they are just looking for something, anything to trip me up and give them their "gotcha" moment and out I go.  One can only take so much of the abusive attitude here.

Should have stayed a Snowbird Tourist. 6 months about. Best way 

On 11/24/2023 at 7:03 AM, LALes said:

Yeah, it's gonna keep dropping.  My recent experience at immigration renewing retirement visa only adds to my feeling that falangs are not wanted here.  Grade A tourist, 15 yrs in, plenty of money, never a problem for the authorities and they are giving me the 3rd degree treatment like I'm a common criminal and they are just looking for something, anything to trip me up and give them their "gotcha" moment and out I go.  One can only take so much of the abusive attitude here.

 

13 years of extensions: marriage (1yr), retirement (2y), work permit (9yr), and now back to retirement this year.

All done a Chaeng Watthana. Simple, efficient, never once an attitude or mistreatment. Never felt unwanted.

But, several times over the years, I have noticed periods of increased "scrutiny".