Is Thailand Really Cheaper For You ?

[Bangkokhatter]

Do you really need a G/F a nanny and a maid ? It's all these extras that make the costs here as high as the west. Coming from the UK it's a no brainer, just the tax savings alone make this place far cheaper, but then i don't have kids which is a massive saving no matter where i live

[farang000999]

snicker bars are cheaper here and thats one of the reasons im here 20 baht for a big bar.WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT?

I hear you... i go to oz for work sometimes pay nearly $10 for a medium snickers and a 600ml coke. thats 300 baht!

or hows about AU$4.75 for a 1.5 liter bottle of water (150 Baht) cant believe it.. its just water in a bottle.. more expensive than <deleted> petrol

3 big bars for 51bht in Makro.

usa chocolate is super cheap if u r smart and buy the day after the holidays. they sell chocolate designed in xmas, easter, halloween, valentines etc.

i think a 10lb/4.5kilo bag of snickers/reeses/m+m etc is about 250 baht.

[lovelomsak]

I currently live in one of the more expensive areas in the US and I've ran the numbers more then a few times. Living in Thailand would cost about 1/3 - 1/2 of what it costs in the US, the problem is my salary would be about 1/10th of what I make in the US.

To get an idea, I was paying $2000/mo (~60,000 baht) for a 1bd apartment, I moved to a bad area last month and I've lowered my rent to $1200/mo, you get used to the gunshots and so far everyone seems to be good about leaving personal property alone. Buying a house is out of the question because a SFH starts at around $500,000 (15m baht). I could probably get into a small condo for around $300,000.

I pay another $450/mo for my car, add in maybe $400/mo for utilities and $500/mo for food.

All in all if I could get an expat package that pays even 80% of my current salary it wouldn't be a question, I would be on the next flight. However, given my current job options in Thailand are limited to teaching english, math or physics I don't think it's a good career move

If that is the costs for the most expensive area in Us donot move to Canada that is survival costs in Canada No frills. That is cheap living believe me.

[bermondburi]

I rent a two bedroom townhgouse in the suburbs of BKK that costs 5000 a month. We have a nice swimming pool and tennis courts. I'm married with two children and if we were in London then I would be looking at 50,000 a month minimum and no swimming pool or tennis courts. Utilitiy bills are a lot cheaper here too.

Food costs are probabnly about the same. I tend to eat Thai food half the time and foreign food half the time which I would probably do if we lived in England. We don't go uot for food as my wife is a trained chef and it's a nightmare with the kids if we do go out.

I pay about 150,000 baht a year in school fees which I definitely wouldn't do in England as the schools are free.

Overall I probably save about 25-30,000 baht a month which I think is pretty good for someone in my situation . When I speak to people I know back home who are married with kids I don't think they save very much at all. We have a good life here and we're happy .

I earn less money ( not much less ) than I could in the UK but I save more.

I ( my wife )also have a very nice house upcountry that is all paid for . At the time that we built it the exchange rate was a lot better than it is now. All in all we've probably put about 700,000 into it which is extremely cheap.

So in conclusion I save more than I could in the UK and the major ( for me ) things are cheaper so my reply is YES.

[CaptHaddock]

There is too much comparison of apples to oranges in this discussion. The OP compares costs in "Thailand" to "America." But costs in both countries vary enormously depending on the area. Also, it's necessary to make adjustments for differences in quality, what economists call "hedonic" adjustments. In addition, you have to factor in cost of intangibles such as the risks covered by various kinds of insurances. Liabilty and health care risks are much lower in Thailand than anywhere in the US.

I retired from Manhattan to Bangkok expecting my actual costs here to be about 25% less. So far, excluding one-time setup costs here and travel, that is about what we are experiencing. That's comparing our actual expenses for the same three month period in each city. However, at that time we were covered by health insurance provided by my employer which would have cost me $1000/month if I had to provide it for myself as I would have had to do after retirement.

Once you adjust for hedonic factors, our life in Bangkok looks even better. Our apartment here is comparable in quality to our NYC place but is twice the size and costs one third less. Both buildings include staff and a swimming pool. Both are adjacent to public transportation (the Broadway express line in Manhattan and the Silom BTS line here.) In NYC I would occasionally rent a car to drive out of the city. For the same price here I get a van and driver.

But the big difference doesn't show up in out-of-pocket comparisons. Americans know that, even with health insurance, it is quite possible to go bankrupt in America through health care costs. Indeed, medical costs are the leading cause of bankruptcy in the US.

Can't really happen here, even if we self-insure. That's a huge difference. I recently went to an orthopedist at St. Louis Hospital (without waiting and without an appt. Orthos are hard to see in NYC.) and got some X-rays all for a total of about $52 including the prescription drugs. In NYC, without insurance, it would probably have been $500, but could have been more.

Now I realize that if I were willing to live in Atlanta or Minneapolis life would also be much cheaper than in Bangkok, but I find life more interesting here.

[SteveLynch]

I do need a gf ! She is the mother of my child so I'll keep her around ....!

The maid cleans the house ,and the nanny minds the kidsvwhilebthe gf works

I suppose I never look at the gf as home help ..more the person I love

Kinda simple really

[Heng]

My experience, and if your from the USA and live the same lifestyle here in Thailand you will spend more money. I you downsize and live moderately you can spend less. If your from the UK you save lots of money living in LOS...

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect App

Works the other way too. Try to have a couple of full time housekeepers, nannies, driver, etc. in the US compared to here. Try to have a painter slip off your roof here compared to say Texas. Actually I'd had workers injured on our properties both here and in the US without any issue... but it certainly has the potential to be much more expensive stateside.

I don't have a maid, nanny or driver in the US. Why should I need or even want one in Thailand?

The point that has been made by the OP is that yes, labor is cheaper in Thailand, but if you want to export your western lifestyle to Thailand, it will cost you the same or more than in your homeland. This is a sentiment I have professed for eons.

Yeah, you see I wasn't thinking about you when I was posting. My point is that if I were to export certain aspects of my Thai lifestyle to the US, it would cost much more. Incidentally the one incredibly valuable thing that these types of employees do is free their employers from all kinds of 'waste of time' type tasks.

That said, of course there are plenty of things in general back home and here in the Los that are better one way or the other that aren't specifically money related although many people might be able to put a price tag on it. Nice public parks in the Texas hill country, lakes that I can swim in or skin on that we are sure have no run off from any kind of factory or sewage system whatsoever... not cheaper, nor can I import it like most tangible goods.

Edited May 22, 2012 by Heng

[Kananga]

My employers pay all my expenses in Thailand so essentially life here is free - but of course I could argue if I didn't spend the money I would keep it and on that basis I agree with the OP's observations.

To clarify back in the UK I live in a very good area, first class local state schools an excellent medical practice/dentist, a 'desirable' low crime, good public service area. I should also clarify that I pay the same tax and NI in Thailand as if I were in the UK, so no advantages there.

To achieve a comparable standard of living in Thailand as we have back home costs very much more.

I don't think I've ever regarded Thailand as a cheap place to live - though of course it is possible to have a cheap life here.

I like Impulse's response, but I'd add that when families are involved rather than individuals the choices are never going to be the same.

Life really isn't free. You still have to work for your employer in order for them to pay those expenses. Its more like your income has been split into 2 parts. The part the employer pays directly to your landlord, utility company etc and the part you keep as pocket money. Its all taxable income at the end of the day that you have to work for...

[PattayaParent]

Better standard of living here in Thailand and pretty much spend more here than I would back in Uk because of it.

As you say OP, most comparable things here cost the same as back home.

OP, you should also consider that things are comparatively more expensive in Thailand because of the exchange rate, when it was 80 Baht to the GBP things seemed a lot cheaper than compared to UK.

[GarryP]

I like these threads because they show me how out of touch I am. I don't know how much rent is in the UK or how much a meal costs there, nor do I know how much the utility charges are so they are quite educational. But from the perspective of being in the dark, I read such conflicting opinions as to cost of living or money needed, that I remain none the wiser. There is so much variation from county to county, even city to city, in the UK that what is fact for one person is fiction for another.

Also, this fixation on having the same stuff as you had back home (wherever that may be) seems quite strange. Of course if you want the same food as you had back home you are going to pay through the nose for it. Luckily I left the UK before any of that stuff got so embedded in my mind that I could not live without it.

I will be visiting the UK in a couple of years for what will be the first time in 20 years so am getting ready to be shocked (or pleasantly surprised ).

[Jake829]

I'm with all that Impulse .... Pretty much what I guess I already knew .... Just depends where you come from and where you go to. I am from an inexpensive place unlike the guy from London so I suppose we see it differently for the same thing ! ..... But yeah it's mostly just different not better or worse for me to.

Not all of us from London go pissing it up at movida and living like johnny big potatoes and brag about it either like some issan bird does, but getting back on topic Phuket is def cheaper than London that's for sure all day long!

[Berkshire]

I think it's pretty well documented that cost of labor is cheaper here, but items that are imported may be more expensive. So things like dental work, car repair (especially body work), home construction, car wash, massages, housekeeping, taxis, haircuts, female company (oops), and any number of services will be cheaper. But I also find things like going to the movies, Japanese food, apartment rental, etc., also cheaper. Japanese import cars are reasonably priced, but Euro cars for some reason are overpriced. I like the local beer and do eat Thai food, mixed in with western food, so that's not a problem. Medical care--relative to the US--is dirt cheap and actually affordable even if you don't have insurance. Kids education up to K-12 varies quite a bit, but uni's are much cheaper than the west.

So bottom-line is things that I use day-in and day-out, yes, they are cheaper in Thailand than the USA. And this even though the value of the dollar has declined 25% in the past five or so years.

[bendix]

Thailand is considerably cheaper for me, for the sort of life I want and the things I spend my money on which are:

Accommodation - both rented and purchased

Food - 90% Thai, 10% non-thai

Books - considerably cheaper in Thailand than in the UK or HK

A few beers now and again - no comparison with either

Hotels and trips - no comparison

Golf - No comparison

[brit1984]

We moved recently from London to Bangkok. While most things seem to be a bit cheaper here, the big difference is accommodation costs (for us that means rent).

We spend about the same overall here but have a nicer place to live, and have outsourced all the household chores so I have more time for doing nothing.

Sent from iPhone; please forgive any typos or violations of forum rules

[dazk]

A higher standard of living can be achieved for the same cost… I spend a similar amount but have much more enjoyable time doing so.

So, are things cheaper ? Most are, but it depends how and where you spread your costs with regards to luxuries vs essentials…

Cars here – ouch !!! but running costs are generally cheaper

Eating out – Generally cheaper

Supermarket shopping – Generally cheaper unless going for Luxury imported foods

Clothes Shopping – Possibly more expensive

Electronics – Generally Cheaper here (except phones)

Transport – Generally Cheaper here

Accommodation – Generally Cheaper here

Beer – Similar to the UK (Countryside, not London!)

Nights out – Significantly cheaper here (Whiskey on the table !)

TV – Similar to the UK for a poorer service

Phone – Cheaper than the UK for a poorer service

Education – More expensive (but International school vs UK comprehensive is not an even playing field)

Beach Holidays – Much cheaper !!

Skiing holidays – A lot more expensive !

Good list but don't agree about the clothes buying.

I need a lot less clothes (one season instead of 4) here than in my home country.

And I guess that it all depends what your home country is and your personal preferences.

One thing for sure, I lead a very different life compared to the live I would have in my home country.

Yermanee

Clothes cheaper here for sure

when was the last time you was in uk 9 months ago a pint of lager was near £4 in a pub in kent and bottle beer about the same price

[arthurwait]

I think it's pretty well documented that cost of labor is cheaper here, but items that are imported may be more expensive. So things like dental work, car repair (especially body work), home construction, car wash, massages, housekeeping, taxis, haircuts, female company (oops), and any number of services will be cheaper. But I also find things like going to the movies, Japanese food, apartment rental, etc., also cheaper. Japanese import cars are reasonably priced, but Euro cars for some reason are overpriced. I like the local beer and do eat Thai food, mixed in with western food, so that's not a problem. Medical care--relative to the US--is dirt cheap and actually affordable even if you don't have insurance. Kids education up to K-12 varies quite a bit, but uni's are much cheaper than the west.

So bottom-line is things that I use day-in and day-out, yes, they are cheaper in Thailand than the USA. And this even though the value of the dollar has declined 25% in the past five or so years.

Are they not Thai made Japanese manufacturer cars ?

[HardenedSoul]

Not all of us from London go pissing it up at movida and living like johnny big potatoes and brag about it either like some issan bird does, but getting back on topic Phuket is def cheaper than London that's for sure all day long!

You sound slightly bitter; like someone who was turfed (refused admission) at the door cos if you'd actually been there rather than just having read about it in the tabloid press, you'd know - without any doubt, whatsoever - that Movida is hardly worth "bragging" about.

[tinfoilhat]

A higher standard of living can be achieved for the same cost… I spend a similar amount but have much more enjoyable time doing so.

So, are things cheaper ? Most are, but it depends how and where you spread your costs with regards to luxuries vs essentials…

Cars here – ouch !!! but running costs are generally cheaper

Eating out – Generally cheaper

Supermarket shopping – Generally cheaper unless going for Luxury imported foods

Clothes Shopping – Possibly more expensive

Electronics – Generally Cheaper here (except phones)

Transport – Generally Cheaper here

Accommodation – Generally Cheaper here

Beer – Similar to the UK (Countryside, not London!)

Nights out – Significantly cheaper here (Whiskey on the table !)

TV – Similar to the UK for a poorer service

Phone – Cheaper than the UK for a poorer service

Education – More expensive (but International school vs UK comprehensive is not an even playing field)

Beach Holidays – Much cheaper !!

Skiing holidays – A lot more expensive !

Good list but don't agree about the clothes buying.

I need a lot less clothes (one season instead of 4) here than in my home country.

And I guess that it all depends what your home country is and your personal preferences.

One thing for sure, I lead a very different life compared to the live I would have in my home country.

Yermanee

this may be so in your experience, but i dont think he was talking about camel trophy.

[meand]

The savings can really be magnified too. If you have a family of 4, and save X amount per person living here on food vs home then you have 4X the savings. it starts looking almost astronomical when you see the big picture..... health, transport, clothes etc all multiplied out.

[tinfoilhat]

if you want to export your western lifestyle to Thailand, it will cost you the same or more than in your homeland. This is a sentiment I have professed for eons.

But I don't want the western lifestyle at all, I want the one I have here, and that isn't available over there at any price, even Tiger Woods had to settle for old skanky ho's I wouldn't touch with a barge pole.

Ah, the "full service deal" raises its head again.

[transam]

@transam

Well I am one of those

So what type of life would you suggest ,close to the breadline?

Your close to ''the'' or ''your'' breadline ?

[seasia]

It seems cheaper living here than back in UK, accommodation and transport in particular.

[TheCure]

Car.. here is not more expensive as at home.. but then again fuel is real cheap in the US but not in Europe.

Which planet are you from ? Mars ?

[transam]

Car.. here is not more expensive as at home.. but then again fuel is real cheap in the US but not in Europe.

Which planet are you from ? Mars ?

No, he's from Earth. Explain your post.

[SteveLynch]

Transam ,maybe u might explain yours to me !

[transam]

Transam ,maybe u might explain yours to me !

Which post. ?

[SteveLynch]

The bread line one

[Spoonman]

but if you want to export your western lifestyle to Thailand, it will cost you the same or more than in your homeland. This is a sentiment I have professed for eons.

I disagree, My salary here is the same as back in my homeland, there I literally lived from pay packet to packet with very little "indulgence's" allowed with little to no chance of any savings, Here I live like a king and am saving money as well.. I live a 100% "western" lifestyle.

[commande]

Lets see - if we compare most of the United States which is what the OP is talking about than the cost can be the same if not a little more if the same standard of living and your at least middle class wages or above applies. If you lower your standard of living it can be cheaper. If your from Europe, England, Australia or another higher cost of living place than living in Thailand on a pension is a no brainer as those pensions are generally much higher than what most people receive in the United States because of the cost of living being higher in other countries and the currency exchange rate - especially the UK which is why I think a lot of people from the UK retire here. Social Security retirement funds (pensions) in the USA average 1400.00 US dollars a month for the average citizen and don't start paying till age 62). This is one reason in my opinion why you don't see a lot of American's retiring in Thailand, there is no point because you can live better in the US on the same money. Of course you won't have the same lifestyle but after being in Thailand for a couple years everything becomes routine anyway, even the bar girls if that is part of your lifestyle.

Cars in Thailand compared to the USA generally cost about 2 times as much, trucks and SUV's about the same price, motorcycles (motorbikes) 2 times as much for larger CC models and the selection is ridiculously limited. Taxes are cheaper, pretty much non-existent in Thailand if you don't maintain owning anything in the USA and you don't disclose any owned foreign assets you own in Thailand, Unfortunately American law requires that all US Citizens pay tax on foreign owned assets and income, not that everyone reports it; in fact it's a crime not to disclose them but that is another topic not for this discussion.

I am from the USA, I have completely slimmed down my lifestyle. Live in a 2 bedroom house that I rent for 5k baht a month plus utilities in Pattaya (used to live in Bangkok but it got expensive and boring to include the traffic is horrible). I don't own a car because I have no need for one in Pattaya or even in Thailand for that matter, I need a car I rent one which is much less than owning one regardless of how much money you get back on the sale after several years of owning and burning fuel in it. I eat out maybe 1 to 2 times a week and cook the rest of the time at my home. I don't go out and party all the time, maybe once a month or when I have friends visiting for vacation, other weekdays or weekends simple social outings but I am not a heavy drinker either socially or other.

Bottom line is there are ways to retire in Thailand if your from America but it's my opinion and experience that you have to lower your standards to a retirement thought process. Most people spend more money when they retire because they get bored and spend to entertain themselves. Pick the right hobbies and you won't spend that much money. Downsize your living arrangements and you have more money to spend on entertainment. This would go pretty much for anywhere you live though. Unless your rich or have a great pension (maybe both for some here) I don't see how one being from the USA could maintain for long the same lifestyle in Thailand that they have/had in the USA without running out of money at the same rate or slightly faster as living in the USA. (Let's exclude NY, NJ, Delaware, and California within this example as they are very high cost of living places in the states.

Now of course you could be one of the lucky ones and have a job in Thailand with an international company or as a lot of Australians maybe employed with an oil company rotating from offshore work into Thailand living the dream till the money runs out. Either way, that is not retirement nor does it represent the majority of EXPATS living in Thailand retired.

Just my opinion and experience.

P.S. Maybe another thing that helps me considerably is that I don't have a Thai wife with kids and a family to support like a lot of people tend to end up having. I consider girlfriends as close as I will ever get and better than a wife, my current 2 year running girlfriend that moved with me from Bangkok is okay with this arrangement and has a job and pays 50% of everything - a real decent and proper Thai girl or should I just say proper educated and realistic woman willing to do her fair share and not wait for a handout every week.

Edited May 22, 2012 by commande

[commande]

I don't think I save money by living in Thailand ,I spend not including drinking money approx 5000 aus a month ,stick another 1000 on top of that for my social life

The beauty of life in Thailand is the options it allows me ,I could live in a much cheaper place,I could clean my own house ,I could change my babies nappys ,I can get all these things in Thailand and still live to the max

Back in Australia (I'm not from there just the last country I lived in prior to Thailand ) I had none of the things I have in Thailand ,didn't save a whole lot either , then I had a pretty crap life and I left to find something better

You choose to spank a load of money on a life here but you could do it much much cheaper ,you will be folding your own underpants

A$6000 a month! You must be living pretty high on the hog, and either have a pretty decent salary or return on investments. Even in Australia ($1500 a week) would be considered to be a fairly high outgoing. I live very comfortably here on around $300 a week, but I own my house and car so only have food, utilities and beer money to find.

Sounds to me you are still employed - if I was to guess working offshore for an oil company like many Australians that I know. I know several multi-millionaires that don't throw that kind of money around in Thailand and they live really good.

Edited May 22, 2012 by commande