Cost Of Living In Pattaya

[cedd82]

I'm thinking of staying in Pattaya for a while 3-6 months or longer depending if i can find work

i want an average idea of what the living costs will be, i plan on renting a room for aound 6000 baht, can i get by on 20,000 baht a month?

I don't plan on living lavishly, i plan to eat cheap and laze around on the beach most days

[Thaifan2]

You can get by on B20k a month ,but you will only be getting by .It would help very much if you dont drink and go with women ( if you are male ).

[erre191]

Many people here getting by on 20'000 / mth. These are usually not the happiest looking ones. Plenty written about Pattaya Cheap Charlies, just google it or watch once you get here..

Many others spending much, much more...For a good lifestyle with nice condo, good food, restaurants, entertainment, health insurance, bike and/or car etc. etc. you will probably spend 80-100'000, but I have friends who spend a min. of 200'000 every month, which is not all that much in real money and really gives them a good lifestyle with private driver, maid, parties and more.

[Jebhead]

"i plan on renting a room for aound 6000 baht" - You won't get much close to town for that and if you do it's won't be very nice.....

JH

[chops]

"i plan on renting a room for aound 6000 baht" - You won't get much close to town for that and if you do it's won't be very nice.....

JH

I disagree. 6000 can get you some reasonably good apartments if you stay long term. You would need to rent a motorbike however.

[Jebhead]

"i plan on renting a room for aound 6000 baht" - You won't get much close to town for that and if you do it's won't be very nice.....

JH

I disagree. 6000 can get you some reasonably good apartments if you stay long term. You would need to rent a motorbike however.

Example?

JH

[Guderian]

Does your 20K/month include the 6K rent, or is the 20K just spending money on top of the rent? Assuming the latter, you will have 650-700 Baht/day to play with.

Book a room at the Jomtien Long Stay hotel, near the Machanu Statue on the sharp bend in Thappraya Road just before coming to Dongtan Beach. The rooms costing 6000 Baht/month are OK, the hotel has a rooftop pool, and it's ideally located for a quiet, cheap, beach-oriented holiday. Jomtien Beach and Dongtan Beach are a short stroll away. Find an open area of sand rather than pay the deck chair vendors. Don't feel guilty, many of the Russians do the same thing. Eat a good farang breakfast for around 100 Baht, widely available in the area. In the nights, eat Thai food if you can, it's cheap and good, 30-50 Baht from a street vendor and maybe 100-150 Baht in a restaurant. 150 Baht will also get you a basic burger and chips or fish and chips. Try the new Chokdee restaurant behind Country Road III. They do a special every day, and once a week it's fish and chips and a beer for 180 Baht. If you need lunch, get a snack from a 7-11 or a beach vendor, maybe 50 Baht. So food is sorted for around 200-300 Baht a day. Drink water, the big 5 Baht bottles are good value, but they have the reverse osmosis machines now that cost just 1 Baht/litre, if you can find one working. If you need booze, drink in Lovejoy's (all local beer 50 Baht) or Fantasy Bar (40 Baht), though on your budget you won't be getting plastered. Your hotel is right on the Baht Bus route if you need to go into Pattaya, so transport costs will be negligible. You can buy cans of Diet Coke or whatever from the 7-11s and Family Marts if you get bored with water. I can't remember if the hotel charges you for power, but as long as you don't want to run the aircon, it's not expensive. Lights, TV and a small fridge will cost around 10-15 Baht/day, unless the hotel is ripping you off on the unit cost. Check this before you book. Depending on what you've eaten and drunk, you'll have 100-200 Baht/day left over for luxuries - sun oil, clothing, books, and so on. It will be a basic and quiet life, but you can do it with no problem.

[Jebhead]

Does your 20K/month include the 6K rent, or is the 20K just spending money on top of the rent? Assuming the latter, you will have 650-700 Baht/day to play with.

Book a room at the Jomtien Long Stay hotel, near the Machanu Statue on the sharp bend in Thappraya Road just before coming to Dongtan Beach. The rooms costing 6000 Baht/month are OK, the hotel has a rooftop pool, and it's ideally located for a quiet, cheap, beach-oriented holiday. Jomtien Beach and Dongtan Beach are a short stroll away. Find an open area of sand rather than pay the deck chair vendors. Don't feel guilty, many of the Russians do the same thing. Eat a good farang breakfast for around 100 Baht, widely available in the area. In the nights, eat Thai food if you can, it's cheap and good, 30-50 Baht from a street vendor and maybe 100-150 Baht in a restaurant. 150 Baht will also get you a basic burger and chips or fish and chips. Try the new Chokdee restaurant behind Country Road III. They do a special every day, and once a week it's fish and chips and a beer for 180 Baht. If you need lunch, get a snack from a 7-11 or a beach vendor, maybe 50 Baht. So food is sorted for around 200-300 Baht a day. Drink water, the big 5 Baht bottles are good value, but they have the reverse osmosis machines now that cost just 1 Baht/litre, if you can find one working. If you need booze, drink in Lovejoy's (all local beer 50 Baht) or Fantasy Bar (40 Baht), though on your budget you won't be getting plastered. Your hotel is right on the Baht Bus route if you need to go into Pattaya, so transport costs will be negligible. You can buy cans of Diet Coke or whatever from the 7-11s and Family Marts if you get bored with water. I can't remember if the hotel charges you for power, but as long as you don't want to run the aircon, it's not expensive. Lights, TV and a small fridge will cost around 10-15 Baht/day, unless the hotel is ripping you off on the unit cost. Check this before you book. Depending on what you've eaten and drunk, you'll have 100-200 Baht/day left over for luxuries - sun oil, clothing, books, and so on. It will be a basic and quiet life, but you can do it with no problem.

That is existing, not LIVING!!!!

JH

[Patronus]

TAT will be pleased.

Just the sort of quality tourist that Thailand is looking for.

[glanville63]

You won't be able to get a paying job unless you spend a considerable sum of money buying a work permit. Farahgs, that's us, are discouraged from working and thus taking work away from Thais. I believe it's easier and cheaper to get a work permit if you are a teacher. You might be able to exist on 20,000 baht if you eat Thai from street vendors, don't drink alcohol and don't have a Thai girlfriend. Good luck.

[gk10002000]

My "cheapest" longer term stay was in 2008. 52 days. Stayed up off of Soi Yume down a little street near Carre 4. Rented one month next to that pink "Rattakit" place. 7000 baht. had to pay water and electricity. That was another 1800 baht I think. Room was basic. Little furniture. Bed was fine, tv was fine, AC was fine. No kitchenette. Short walk down to Pattaya Klang to catch a baht bus. Most of the time I would just walk down to Beach road unless it was the heat of the day. I was in no hurry. Could walk down to Soi Bukao and catch a baht bus there heading south too, all the way down to pattaya Thai.

I am a lightweight drinker. 3 beers a night would be a lot. I ate the local Thai street food. noodle soup for 35 baht. Pork kabobs for 20 baht were tough to beat! Corn on the cob, some fresh fruit etc. I ate at KISS a lot. I happen to really like their shrimp fried rice. A decent dish with onions and garlic and tomato and 5 or 6 shrimp on it. Add a watermelon shake and you have 85 baht. Tip and over 100 baht. I usually would eat a lot of German food when there. Schnitzel and potatoes at 2 am at the Domicil was kind of nice. Those meals can get you up to 300 baht.

Every other day I hit some attraction, Nong Nooch is a favorite of mine. A movie, or 60 baht on the internet (30 baht/hour) to check up on things in the States, Soapie massage once a week (2000 baht) tip included, foot massage almost daily 200 baht or 150 baht if on the side streets. Oil massage or a Thai massage every now and then (300 baht) plus tip. Baht bus to Jomtien and back, chair rental 100 baht. Add a coconut drink or whatever else you want. Found a nice outdoor swimming pool down on Soi Yume. Behind Nantana Garden. 60 baht a day? Might have been less but I always bought at least a bottle of water there. Nice lounge chairs, and umbrellas and little outdoor thatch roof covered eating areas.

Ferry to Ko larn off shore. Baht bus or long walk down to the pier then ferry fee. 100 baht. Worth the adventure. Prefer speed boat for sure but that costs 1500 baht.

Just the simple things can add up to 20,000 baht a month pretty quickly.

Girlfriend? Barfines? Up to you.

I took a three day sidetrip to Sukhothai and it was heaven. Room was 200 baht a night! Ruins were fantastic and peaceful. Roundtrip bus was 800 baht? Can't remember exactly. Nice bus ride from Mo Chit in bangkok. Wonderful country scenery.

Stayed 3 days in Bangkok at Suan Dusit hotel run by university student interns. 700 baht/night. Darn quiet. I actually slept with the windows open to the pool area. Right near the Dusit zoo. Hit up Wat Po, Grand Palace etc. And one night at Nana Plaza. Yes, I confess I went there again. Day pass on the BTS for a ride around the city. 200 baht? I forget.

I have found on all my trips that throwing in some adult entertainment and some other perks, or side trips I spend about $50 USD a day on average. Some days I spend less as I just hit the pool or the beach, other days a bit more. That comes out to 1500 USD a month. At 30 baht to 1 USD, that's 45,000 baht. That really is the least amount you can expect to spend unless you really are doing very very little. I don't go there to run around and try to do everything all the time, but I also don't go and just sleep.

Happy trails

[Phil Conners]

As everybody say, you could live on 20,000/month but it probably wouldn't be much fun.

As for a room, you can rent a room in Nirun for about 4-5,000. There are already plenty of discussions about Nirun on this forum, just search for it. It is not luxury but neither nearly as bad as some people suggest.

As for work, it is very difficult to find a job in Thailand due to the work permit situation and all the conditions around that.

[PattayaParent]

You won't be able to get a paying job unless you spend a considerable sum of money buying a work permit. Farahgs, that's us, are discouraged from working and thus taking work away from Thais. I believe it's easier and cheaper to get a work permit if you are a teacher. You might be able to exist on 20,000 baht if you eat Thai from street vendors, don't drink alcohol and don't have a Thai girlfriend. Good luck.

The company will pay the costs of getting the work permit.

[ThaiBob]

OP,

As others have noted there is a difference between living and existing. Nothing personal, but you are exactly the kind of tourist Thailand discourages. Just for perspective, an expat retiree living in Thailand must show an income of 65,000 baht per month or have 800,000 in a Thai bank account to qualify for a retirement visa. What if you were to become seriously ill? Do you have health insurance or travel insurance? There are hidden costs beyond food and lodging.

[jombom]

OP,

As others have noted there is a difference between living and existing. Nothing personal, but you are exactly the kind of tourist Thailand discourages. Just for perspective, an expat retiree living in Thailand must show an income of 65,000 baht per month or have 800,000 in a Thai bank account to qualify for a retirement visa. What if you were to become seriously ill? Do you have health insurance or travel insurance? There are hidden costs beyond food and lodging.

I agree with this.

The strange part is that Immigration seems to think that people need 65,000 baht per month, and yet teachers in schools often get paid about 30,000 per month, with university lecturers about 60,000. Obviously there are exceptions, but these rates appear to be normal.

[PattayaParent]

OP,

As others have noted there is a difference between living and existing. Nothing personal, but you are exactly the kind of tourist Thailand discourages. Just for perspective, an expat retiree living in Thailand must show an income of 65,000 baht per month or have 800,000 in a Thai bank account to qualify for a retirement visa. What if you were to become seriously ill? Do you have health insurance or travel insurance? There are hidden costs beyond food and lodging.

I agree with this.

The strange part is that Immigration seems to think that people need 65,000 baht per month, and yet teachers in schools often get paid about 30,000 per month, with university lecturers about 60,000. Obviously there are exceptions, but these rates appear to be normal.

Yet a married person is deemed to only need 40,000 Baht (or is it 45k?) a month to support himself, his wife and his 4 children.

[thaimate]

20k a month,well thats 3 weeks rent sorted God knows how anyone can exist on that amount ,even when i was single and lived here 20 years ago i spent far more than that ,best of celibate luck,and hope you enjoy a lot of reading

[chops]

20k a month,well thats 3 weeks rent sorted God knows how anyone can exist on that amount ,even when i was single and lived here 20 years ago i spent far more than that ,best of celibate luck,and hope you enjoy a lot of reading

If I had to live on that, I could do it but it would be hell. No bars, no girls, pretty much couldn't do anything that required any money.

You'd need to stock up wholesale on noodle cups, maybe rent a bicycle(can't afford a motorbike ), and find a low end Thai apartment. Sounds miserable.

Bring some more cash is my advice to the OP.

[tropo]

Does your 20K/month include the 6K rent, or is the 20K just spending money on top of the rent? Assuming the latter, you will have 650-700 Baht/day to play with.

Book a room at the Jomtien Long Stay hotel, near the Machanu Statue on the sharp bend in Thappraya Road just before coming to Dongtan Beach. The rooms costing 6000 Baht/month are OK, the hotel has a rooftop pool, and it's ideally located for a quiet, cheap, beach-oriented holiday. Jomtien Beach and Dongtan Beach are a short stroll away. Find an open area of sand rather than pay the deck chair vendors. Don't feel guilty, many of the Russians do the same thing. Eat a good farang breakfast for around 100 Baht, widely available in the area. In the nights, eat Thai food if you can, it's cheap and good, 30-50 Baht from a street vendor and maybe 100-150 Baht in a restaurant. 150 Baht will also get you a basic burger and chips or fish and chips. Try the new Chokdee restaurant behind Country Road III. They do a special every day, and once a week it's fish and chips and a beer for 180 Baht. If you need lunch, get a snack from a 7-11 or a beach vendor, maybe 50 Baht. So food is sorted for around 200-300 Baht a day. Drink water, the big 5 Baht bottles are good value, but they have the reverse osmosis machines now that cost just 1 Baht/litre, if you can find one working. If you need booze, drink in Lovejoy's (all local beer 50 Baht) or Fantasy Bar (40 Baht), though on your budget you won't be getting plastered. Your hotel is right on the Baht Bus route if you need to go into Pattaya, so transport costs will be negligible. You can buy cans of Diet Coke or whatever from the 7-11s and Family Marts if you get bored with water. I can't remember if the hotel charges you for power, but as long as you don't want to run the aircon, it's not expensive. Lights, TV and a small fridge will cost around 10-15 Baht/day, unless the hotel is ripping you off on the unit cost. Check this before you book. Depending on what you've eaten and drunk, you'll have 100-200 Baht/day left over for luxuries - sun oil, clothing, books, and so on. It will be a basic and quiet life, but you can do it with no problem.

That is existing, not LIVING!!!!

JH

It depends on where he is coming from. A tropical vacation near the beach could be a wonderful vacation for many.

[tropo]

, but I have friends who spend a min. of 200'000 every month, which is not all that much in real money and really gives them a good lifestyle with private driver, maid, parties and more.

Minimum 200,000 per month for a 6 month vacation is quite a lot of money actually. That's USD $40,000 (minimum) for a 6 month vacation.

[luckyluke]

You need to show you have a monthly income of 40.000 or 65.000 ThB, no mention of the amount you have to spend here, this can be less or more depending on your lifestyle.

[Jebhead]

, but I have friends who spend a min. of 200'000 every month, which is not all that much in real money and really gives them a good lifestyle with private driver, maid, parties and more.

Minimum 200,000 per month for a 6 month vacation is quite a lot of money actually. That's USD $40,000 (minimum) for a 6 month vacation.

It depends what you're doing but not that outrageous.... all relevant to what you have!

JH

[Godolphin]

, but I have friends who spend a min. of 200'000 every month, which is not all that much in real money and really gives them a good lifestyle with private driver, maid, parties and more.

Minimum 200,000 per month for a 6 month vacation is quite a lot of money actually. That's USD $40,000 (minimum) for a 6 month vacation.

Too true. I mean, what is the average salary for an American/European/Aus worker?

Most westerners wouldn't spend that much in their own countries let alone Thailand.

I think the OP, as has been pointed out, is a little too economical in his reckonings but I know guys who live a pretty good life on between 30k and 60k baht a month. Some are pensioners who would hate to go back to their home countries and have to live on that amount.

If you stay at home a few nights a week, cook for yourself a bit or buy Thai street food and don't get out on the piss and whoreize a lot you can have a better standard of living on a budget than in western countries.

In Australian big cities, for example, rent for a one-bedroom apartment will cost you a minimum of $800 a month in the sticks. Food is unbelievably expensive, running a car is prohibitive, alcohol and tobacco prices through the roof and a basic pub meal will be at least $20.

200,000k baht a month? There's a bridge in Brooklyn I'd like you to have a look at with a view to purchase.

[Spoonman]

You need to show you have a monthly income of 40.000 or 65.000 ThB, no mention of the amount you have to spend here, this can be less or more depending on your lifestyle.

The OP is here for 3 to 6 months, he needs to show <deleted> all.

[tropo]

, but I have friends who spend a min. of 200'000 every month, which is not all that much in real money and really gives them a good lifestyle with private driver, maid, parties and more.

Minimum 200,000 per month for a 6 month vacation is quite a lot of money actually. That's USD $40,000 (minimum) for a 6 month vacation.

It depends what you're doing but not that outrageous.... all relevant to what you have!

JH

Of course there are certain professions where people have too much money and don't know what to do with it. Plenty of that type of money in Pattaya. IMO those would be the only type spending 200,000 per month on long vacations in Pattaya.

Edited March 23, 2011 by tropo

[banglay]

you'll also have to budget around 20% of your monies for Visa runs. ........Good luck and at least try itand see for yourself

[chops]

"i plan on renting a room for aound 6000 baht" - You won't get much close to town for that and if you do it's won't be very nice.....

JH

I disagree. 6000 can get you some reasonably good apartments if you stay long term. You would need to rent a motorbike however.

Example?

JH

I stayed at this place for a number of months. http://www.tawanaapartment.com/

There's many places like this.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

You won't be able to get a paying job unless you spend a considerable sum of money buying a work permit. Farahgs, that's us, are discouraged from working and thus taking work away from Thais. I believe it's easier and cheaper to get a work permit if you are a teacher. You might be able to exist on 20,000 baht if you eat Thai from street vendors, don't drink alcohol and don't have a Thai girlfriend. Good luck.

The company will pay the costs of getting the work permit.

Yes. And these costs aren't even high. Glanville's post was complete rubbish.

To the OP: If you're going to eat local food and laze on the beach, then why Pattaya? Go a bit further down the coast and your costs may be cut in half. (Chanthaburi or whatever.)

[pauljones]

Some people just want to live as cheaply as possible.

I have a friend that comes here and really watches his spending. Counts every baht.

Last year, he came into some money and he was just as frugal...only he stayed longer.

[Thailaw]

To the OP: If you're going to eat local food and laze on the beach, then why Pattaya? Go a bit further down the coast and your costs may be cut in half. (Chanthaburi or whatever.)

Winnie raises a very good point: If you are not going to take advantage of what Pattaya has to offer (primarily "night life" and entertainment), which you cannot afford to do on a budget of B20,000 per month, why not hang out in a cheaper place down the coast? Chantaburi sound like a place worth checking out (Sichon is also great and pretty cheap), or perhaps even going further to Sihanoukville in Cambodia, where you will be able to do a lot more with B20,000 (or the equivalent) than you will be able to do in Pattaya. Also, visas, etc. present, I think, much less difficulty for a 6 month stay than in Thailand. Pattaya is a great place to "hang out" on B80,000+ per month, but if you are limited to B20,000, there are far better places to enjoy yourself than Pattaya.