Foreigners Working In Thailand How Much They Earn?

[PattayaParent]

I do not believe that 25% are in the '500,000 baht" per month range.. This is totally bull... But i do believe that majority of 'working' expats here in Thailand falls in the 15,000 baht to 30,000 baht range per month. Management expat from 30,000b all the way up till 200,000 baht (very rare, unless Big Multinational corporation sent you here to be based in Thailand)

For the rest of you expats who have a business here in Thailand, ranging from a small bar up to a big Maldives kind of resort to an airport. Well what can i say...

Seems like salaries have increased since I did a similar poll back in 2008 http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/187143-farang-salaries-in-los/ which would be about right.

As for 15k to 30k a month averages I don't know anyone who would get out of bed for that, nor 200k.

[StreetCowboy]

I'd have voted more or less in the top bracket, but after tax and school fees and rent allowances are taken out I'd be taking home about a third of that

[Soutpeel]

As for 15k to 30k a month averages I don't know anyone who would get out of bed for that, nor 200k.

Yeah the 200k quoted as the upper, should be on the lower end...should be 200k up...I know there are people out there who wouldnt work for 200k, but based on the averages quoted here....if someone was on 200k/m they not on a bad screw, but had to start paying for decent schooling etc out of that etc, not a lot of money..certain not a champagne and caviar lifestyle as some our posters suggest it is, who live on 30k/m

[PattayaParent]

I'd have voted more or less in the top bracket, but after tax and school fees and rent allowances are taken out I'd be taking home about a third of that

I wish I could get a job with school fees paid.

[StreetCowboy]

I'd have voted more or less in the top bracket, but after tax and school fees and rent allowances are taken out I'd be taking home about a third of that

I wish I could get a job with school fees paid.

I suppose we're lucky to have any jobs while we're still at school

SC

[yannic]

I do not believe that 25% are in the '500,000 baht" per month range.. This is totally bull... But i do believe that majority of 'working' expats here in Thailand falls in the 15,000 baht to 30,000 baht range per month. Management expat from 30,000b all the way up till 200,000 baht (very rare, unless Big Multinational corporation sent you here to be based in Thailand)

what you believe or not is one thing, what is the reality is another thing. Many expats have packages with housing, school, insurance etc. with the range of 400 - 700k Baht and up. Me, too. heck my condo alone costs 140k a month and I am by far not the only one, I know so many expats which earn much more then I do...

Of course there are also lots of low earning expats here in Thailand as well, but do not underestimate the amount of better earning expats...

Edited July 26, 2012 by yannic

[Soutpeel]

I do not believe that 25% are in the '500,000 baht" per month range.. This is totally bull... But i do believe that majority of 'working' expats here in Thailand falls in the 15,000 baht to 30,000 baht range per month. Management expat from 30,000b all the way up till 200,000 baht (very rare, unless Big Multinational corporation sent you here to be based in Thailand)

what you believe or not is one thing, what is the reality is another thing. Many expats have packages with housing, school, insurance etc. with the range of 400 - 700k Baht and up. Me, too. heck my condo alone costs 140k a month and I am by far not the only one, I know so many expats which earn much more then I do...

Of course there are also lots of low earning expats here in Thailand as well, but do not underestimate the amount of better earning expats...

Oh dear...be prepared for a barrage of posts now basically saying how dare you spend THB 140k/m on a Condo and how their place is 5k a month etc etc...you know the routine and suspect this thread will end up with all the cheap charlies listing their monthly out going and trying to out do each other on who can spend the least

[JurgenG]

An other big advantage to be an expat for a big company is all the stuff you get without having to pay for them.

This morning I was given the tough assignment to chose my new handphone, Galaxy SIII or iPhone 4. Every two years, negotiated with our telephone company, we get a top of the range phone fro free. That made me thinking that I got a lot of things for free : free phone, free car, free holidays (we can use the miles earned when working for our personal use), free internet, free cable tv, free meals in top eateries ... that are not directly work related and not included in our salary package and therefore not taxable I made a rough calculation, altogether that adds an average of 40-50k Baht / month.

Working in big companies have good sides

[Soutpeel]

An other big advantage to be an expat for a big company is all the stuff you get without having to pay for them.

This morning I was given the tough assignment to chose my new handphone, Galaxy SIII or iPhone 4. Every two years, negotiated with our telephone company, we get a top of the range phone fro free. That made me thinking that I got a lot of things for free : free phone, free car, free holidays (we can use the miles earned when working for our personal use), free internet, free cable tv, free meals in top eateries ... that are not directly work related and not included in our salary package and therefore not taxable I made a rough calculation, altogether that adds an average of 40-50k Baht / month.

Working in big companies have good sides

Dont..... you are making some TV members reach for the razor blades or moving slowly towards the balcony...

[GuestHouse]

Almost, but not quite, the stuff that the perfect TV Pishing Contest is made of.

[flamesfan]

I do not believe that 25% are in the '500,000 baht" per month range.. This is totally bull... But i do believe that majority of 'working' expats here in Thailand falls in the 15,000 baht to 30,000 baht range per month. Management expat from 30,000b all the way up till 200,000 baht (very rare, unless Big Multinational corporation sent you here to be based in Thailand)

For the rest of you expats who have a business here in Thailand, ranging from a small bar up to a big Maldives kind of resort to an airport. Well what can i say...

I totally agree! The posters claiming 500,000B are not being truthful. That translates to approx. 17,000 CDN. Impossibles unless they are selling illegal stuff. The average would be in the general area of 20,000 to 40,000 baht.

[StreetCowboy]

I do not believe that 25% are in the '500,000 baht" per month range.. This is totally bull... But i do believe that majority of 'working' expats here in Thailand falls in the 15,000 baht to 30,000 baht range per month. Management expat from 30,000b all the way up till 200,000 baht (very rare, unless Big Multinational corporation sent you here to be based in Thailand)

For the rest of you expats who have a business here in Thailand, ranging from a small bar up to a big Maldives kind of resort to an airport. Well what can i say...

I totally agree! The posters claiming 500,000B are not being truthful. That translates to approx. 17,000 CDN. Impossibles unless they are selling illegal stuff. The average would be in the general area of 20,000 to 40,000 baht.

I was unsure if you were being sarcastic, lampooning our paedagogical* friends in the boondocks.

There are many things in this life that we did not believe were possible, but with an open mind, we can learn much. A quick look at my wage slip tells me that a top whack of 500K per month, all in, is not beyond the realms of credibility, though as I said, when I was top-lining those sorts of numbers, I was actually getting in my sweaty little hand about a third of that.

SC

* you might be interested to know that wikipedia says that paedagogical is an alternative spelling of pedagogical, while a more appropriate description might be archaic or old-fashioned; to my mind 'alternative' suggests a newer choice, rather than an older version of the spelling that has fallen out of fashion due to its complex spelling, carried over from the Greek; anyway, an irrelevant digression only of interest to pedants and paedagogues.

[samran]

An other big advantage to be an expat for a big company is all the stuff you get without having to pay for them.

This morning I was given the tough assignment to chose my new handphone, Galaxy SIII or iPhone 4. Every two years, negotiated with our telephone company, we get a top of the range phone fro free. That made me thinking that I got a lot of things for free : free phone, free car, free holidays (we can use the miles earned when working for our personal use), free internet, free cable tv, free meals in top eateries ... that are not directly work related and not included in our salary package and therefore not taxable I made a rough calculation, altogether that adds an average of 40-50k Baht / month.

Working in big companies have good sides

Dont..... you are making some TV members reach for the razor blades or moving slowly towards the balcony...

As the song says, might as well...

http://youtu.be/wlq0lYB3iSM

Edited July 26, 2012 by samran

[Soutpeel]

I totally agree! The posters claiming 500,000B are not being truthful. That translates to approx. 17,000 CDN. Impossibles unless they are selling illegal stuff. The average would be in the general area of 20,000 to 40,000 baht.

Believe what you want, and some posters are being very truthful and not impossible, and infact when the OP set up this poll he could have added a few more options higher than 500k, and no they are not selling any illegal stuff, they have decent jobs with companies in Thailand..

but while you are debating this, all me to go and get a bottle of Bolly out the fridge....

[thaicbr]

I totally agree! The posters claiming 500,000B are not being truthful. That translates to approx. 17,000 CDN. Impossibles unless they are selling illegal stuff. The average would be in the general area of 20,000 to 40,000 baht.

Believe what you want, and some posters are being very truthful and not impossible, and infact when the OP set up this poll he could have added a few more options higher than 500k, and no they are not selling any illegal stuff, they have decent jobs with companies in Thailand..

but while you are debating this, all me to go and get a bottle of Bolly out the fridge....

I'm sad because the only thing sounding like bolly that I can afford to put in my fridge is a brolly :)

And honestly why would I

sent from my Wellcom A90+

[HardenedSoul]

I can imagine a lot of posters getting very riled up by the descriptions of these fabled "expat packages" but, personally, I can't begin to imagine the scale of the commitment someone would have to make to a company to get all that stuff for free. For me, a company's influence extending into so many areas of my private life would be unacceptable.

Still, it'd be interesting to see what a 140,000 baht/per month condo looks like. Must be fabulous

[StreetCowboy]

I totally agree! The posters claiming 500,000B are not being truthful. That translates to approx. 17,000 CDN. Impossibles unless they are selling illegal stuff. The average would be in the general area of 20,000 to 40,000 baht.

Believe what you want, and some posters are being very truthful and not impossible, and infact when the OP set up this poll he could have added a few more options higher than 500k, and no they are not selling any illegal stuff, they have decent jobs with companies in Thailand..

but while you are debating this, all me to go and get a bottle of Bolly out the fridge....

I'm sad because the only thing sounding like bolly that I can afford to put in my fridge is a brolly

And honestly why would I

sent from my Wellcom A90+

Cool umbrella, man!

Do you not keep your money in the fridge?

(Sorry I cannot find the link to the relevant thread - maybe Naam recalls where it was...)

SC

[thaicbr]

I totally agree! The posters claiming 500,000B are not being truthful. That translates to approx. 17,000 CDN. Impossibles unless they are selling illegal stuff. The average would be in the general area of 20,000 to 40,000 baht.

Believe what you want, and some posters are being very truthful and not impossible, and infact when the OP set up this poll he could have added a few more options higher than 500k, and no they are not selling any illegal stuff, they have decent jobs with companies in Thailand..

but while you are debating this, all me to go and get a bottle of Bolly out the fridge....

I'm sad because the only thing sounding like bolly that I can afford to put in my fridge is a brolly

And honestly why would I

sent from my Wellcom A90+

Cool umbrella, man!

Do you not keep your money in the fridge?

(Sorry I cannot find the link to the relevant thread - maybe Naam recalls where it was...)

SC

What money!!! I'm down in the lower reaches. My money comes in and goes back out so fast it would melt the fridge

sent from my Wellcom A90+

[StreetCowboy]

...

I'm sad because the only thing sounding like bolly that I can afford to put in my fridge is a brolly

And honestly why would I

Cool umbrella, man!

Do you not keep your money in the fridge?

(Sorry I cannot find the link to the relevant thread - maybe Naam recalls where it was...)

SC

What money!!! I'm down in the lower reaches. My money comes in and goes back out so fast it would melt the fridge

Are you paid in chocolate money?

[thaicbr]

...

I'm sad because the only thing sounding like bolly that I can afford to put in my fridge is a brolly

And honestly why would I

Cool umbrella, man!

Do you not keep your money in the fridge?

(Sorry I cannot find the link to the relevant thread - maybe Naam recalls where it was...)

SC

What money!!! I'm down in the lower reaches. My money comes in and goes back out so fast it would melt the fridge

Are you paid in chocolate money?

Noooo. Thai chocolate doesn't melt. Have you not noticed

My money just comes and goes so quickly. But hey money isn't happiness. I got that. So all ok:D

sent from my Wellcom A90+

[Soutpeel]

I can't begin to imagine the scale of the commitment someone would have to make to a company to get all that stuff for free. For me, a company's influence extending into so many areas of my private life would be unacceptable.

Still, it'd be interesting to see what a 140,000 baht/per month condo looks like. Must be fabulous

I disagree having worked for such companies..its just a case of perks, as regards extending influence into a private life, in fact companies like this are generally more respectful of your private life than other companies...certainly been my experience.

I worked for one company many years ago (not Thailand) the company wasnt yet an MNC, tis now, but at the time a very powerful and influentional company and my first day I was staggered at the amount of extras and perks I was entitled to when I walked in the door just because I worked for them, you have to bear in mind at the time I was a "junior manager" grade type job.

All these years later I still consider the company the best I had ever worked for.

[crazykopite]

15 people who have time to read this OP earn 500,000 per month WOW that is over £10,000 or $16,000 per month where did I go wrong if I was earning that type of money per month I can think of much better places than Thailand. My nephew who lives in Sydney earns AU$ 20,000 per month after tax and has an exceptional lifestyle so he tells me !!!

[JurgenG]

15 people who have time to read this OP earn 500,000 per month WOW that is over £10,000 or $16,000 per month where did I go wrong if I was earning that type of money per month I can think of much better places than Thailand. My nephew who lives in Sydney earns AU$ 20,000 per month after tax and has an exceptional lifestyle so he tells me !!!

You have a point here. Thailand is not the dream destination for everybody. So companies have to compensate, which means for some people, paying them more than what they would be paid in their home country.

[JurgenG]

Also, there was a discussion earlier in this forum on the meaning of the word "expat". For me, it is related to the terms of your contract, are you hired on "local" terms or on "expats" terms.

On local terms, the company check what is the average local salary for the position they want to fill, and that's what they are going to offer, usually without much extra advantages. On "expat" terms, the salary is often based on the salary for similar position at head quarter PLUS advantages linked to expatriation : housing, relocation program, education for the kids, annual air ticket to go home .... plus everything that previous colleagues were able to negotiate. And that can make a huge difference with people on expats terms being paid 2, 3, 5 ...times more than their colleagues hired on local terms.

[BookMan]

I see 500 000 baht a month continues to lead the pack

[Soutpeel]

I see 500 000 baht a month continues to lead the pack

Yes I didnt realise English teachers earned so much in Thailand...

[HardenedSoul]

I see 500 000 baht a month continues to lead the pack

It's not beyond the realms of possibility that those responding to the poll are being truthful but either there are a lot more non-retirees on Thaivisa than we thought or stock dividends and payment rates on annuities must have skyrocketed.

[StreetCowboy]

I see 500 000 baht a month continues to lead the pack

It's not beyond the realms of possibility that those responding to the poll are being truthful but either there are a lot more non-retirees on Thaivisa than we thought or stock dividends and payment rates on annuities must have skyrocketed.

I suspect a few people are quoting their gross remuneration, while the OP requested the amount after deduction of tax and excluding housing, school fees, car (if provided) etc.

He didn't respond regarding the on-shore and off-shore elements.

SC

[JurgenG]

I suspect a few people are quoting their gross remuneration, while the OP requested the amount after deduction of tax and excluding housing, school fees, car (if provided) etc.

He didn't respond regarding the on-shore and off-shore elements.

SC

Here is a problem that a number of people overlook when they negotiate their salary. They are happy that their "official" salary is so small so they can evade a lot of tax but when they go to the bank to negotiate a loan to buy their flat, they realize banks have more and more strict regulation and with such a low salary they can't qualify for a loan. Which in some way plays in the employer hand because they want to keep their expats mobile and they don't like when employees start making such long term commitment

[PattayaParent]

Also, there was a discussion earlier in this forum on the meaning of the word "expat". For me, it is related to the terms of your contract, are you hired on "local" terms or on "expats" terms.

On local terms, the company check what is the average local salary for the position they want to fill, and that's what they are going to offer, usually without much extra advantages. On "expat" terms, the salary is often based on the salary for similar position at head quarter PLUS advantages linked to expatriation : housing, relocation program, education for the kids, annual air ticket to go home .... plus everything that previous colleagues were able to negotiate. And that can make a huge difference with people on expats terms being paid 2, 3, 5 ...times more than their colleagues hired on local terms.

The times I've been working here 'local' hire the only difference between me and the 'expats' of the company have been airfares and paid leave. The companies provided salary at the same level as their expats, accomodation, car and medical, except for 1 which didn't provide accomodation.

Edit: this reminds me of the thread about average Thai salaries where most posters had no idea what a Thai can really earn here. Not all working expats here are teachers, same as not all Thais are farmers.

Edited July 26, 2012 by PattayaParent