Every new arrival wants to know if they can survive or live well in Thailand on X thousand baht a month?
It's a difficult question because each person has different needs. However, the following surveys and figures are from teachers actually working here! How much do they earn and what do they spend their money on?. And after each case study, I've added comments of my own.
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Approximate Thai Baht (฿) conversion rates as of 18th August 2025
฿32 to one US Dollar฿44 to one Pound Sterling
฿38 to one Euro
฿21 to one Australian Dollar
฿0.57 THB to one Philippine Peso
Ed
Working in Bangkok
Monthly Earnings 43,000 baht
Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
My salary from a government high school is 39.000 baht with an extra two lessons on Saturdays. I also make around 4,000 baht from translating documents from my native language to English. So, I would say I make 43.000 a month.
Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
I can save around 10.000 baht every month.
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
With this I believe I'm lucky. I have a good landlord. I live 10 minutes away from a BTS station. (3 minutes with my bike.) My condo has a swimming pool and a gym. I pay 8.000 Baht for this condo because I made a contract for 2 years. I'm very happy here.
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
I spend 800 baht on petrol for my motorbike. Also I spend around 700 baht for BTS and taxis. So total 1,500 Baht a month
Utility bills
Electricity, water and internet at home costs me 2,000 baht
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
That I would say is my biggest expense as I'm not into Thai food or any street food. I try to cook at home most of the time or eat in a restaurants. I also buy lots of imported food. This all costs me 9,000 baht a month.
Nightlife and drinking
I don't drink or smoke. That is my advantage here I believe. I only go out once a month and only have a soft drink. I mostly spend my money on travelling
Books, computers
Honestly, I don't read much. I prefer watching movies when I'm free.
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
I have a very relax and comfortable life for a single person.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
I think transportation and local food are the real bargain. I can easy travel somewhere once a month in Thailand.
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
In Bangkok, the minimum is 30.000 baht but you really need at least 45,000 baht to live comfortably. I believe no native speaker should take job offer below 40,000 baht anyway.
Phil's analysis and comment
Ed earns what I would consider to be the minimum a foreign teacher would need to live in Bangkok, but he seems happy enough with his lot doesn't he? He runs a motorcycle, travels around Thailand, eats Western food and saves 10,000 baht a month. And he manages all of that on a salary of just over 40K. Well done Ed. Think about how much more you could save if you were to develop a taste for Thai food but actually, probably not much at all if you are someone who cooks at home a lot.
Colin
Working in Bangkok
Monthly Earnings 40,000 baht
Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
I've worked at the same Thai secondary school for about five years and my salary recently went up from 35K to 40K. It's the first time teachers have had a raise for many years but the school saw a need to stop the high turnover of teachers. Whether the extra 5,000 a month will put an end to that it's too early to say.
Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
5,000 baht if I'm lucky.
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
I rent a condo just a couple of sky-train stops from the school and it costs 8,000 baht a month. The condition of the building is not the greatest but I love the convenience. It's a large studio apartment but over the years I've divided it up so it feels like a one-bedroom place.
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
No more than about 1,500 a month even with the odd weekend taxi fare. I would love to buy a car but I can never seriously see me driving in Bangkok.
Utility bills
We rarely turn on the air-conditioning so bills are deliberately kept very low. Probably around 800 - 1,000 baht a month for electricity and water. The free wi-fi is a real bonus.
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
I live 100% on Thai food purely because I think Western food is such poor value for money in this city. If we eat street-food and shop for fruit and salads at the local market, I can keep the food bill down to about 6,000 a month. My Thai partner is currently unemployed so I am having to keep her as well. She only has an earning potential of probably 20,000 a month but even that would be a nice extra income.
Nightlife and drinking
We very rarely go out even at the weekend.
Books, computers
I download a couple of books a month from Amazon and buy the odd paperback at a second-hand shop so maybe about 500 baht. My four-year old laptop is still going strong.
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
Not great at all. We have to watch every penny because it's not easy to support two people on a 40,000 baht salary.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
Definitely food if you know where the bargains are.
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
For a single person living in Bangkok, I would say 50,000 to 60,000 would give you a reasonable standard of living. If you have an unemployed Thai partner then add 50% to that.
Phil's analysis and comment
Colin, good to see that your school has finally raised teacher salaries. I think we are definitely beginning to see more and more schools offering something better than that 30,000 baht 'survival package'. Long may the trend continue if indeed it is a trend.
We would love to get your cost of living surveys and you can do so by filling in the on-line form. Tell us about your lifestyle!
Many teachers unfortunately fill in the form and just provide a list of figures and no back story. The survey from Colin above is how I think most readers like things. The figures are there but there are also glimpses into the teacher's actual lifestyle. It's those glimpses that make these surveys interesting. Many thanks for your contributions.
John
Working in Songkhla
Monthly Earnings 35,000
Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
I am employed by an agency to work at a school in Songkhla and my salary is 35,000 baht for 18 contact hours a week.
Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
Almost impossible to save anything.
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
6,500 baht a month for a two-room house with a western kitchen
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
The car itself is paid for and gasoline and insurance run to about 40,000 baht a year.
Utility bills
The bills for water, electricity, internet and health insurance are about 3,000 baht a month.
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
Markets near Songhla offer cheap fresh seafood, the most middle class restaurants charge 80 - 150 Baht for one dish. (John did not offer a monthly figure)
Nightlife and drinking
Nightlife in Songkhla is very expensive if you take part in the Western bar scene. 80 Baht for a small Leo is normal, but there are much better offers in the local pubs and beach restaurants and in the Chinese old town
Books, computers
John did not answer this question.
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
The fantastic atmosphere in town, the beautiful nature and isolated beaches and the friendly people don't pay my bills.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
Fresh seafood from local fishermen.
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
Considering the future and payments for pension: a single person needs 60,000 baht and a family mother/father needs 100,000. A backpacker in search of experience and no worries about his retirement would be able to survive on 30,000 baht.
Phil's analysis and comment
I would agree with John's assessment in the last answer. So it sounds as if John clearly knows that what he is earning just isn't enough - not to secure a future anyway.
Eating fresh locally caught seafood and walking along isolated beaches all sounds very nice but time is sure to catch up with you eventually if you are living a month to month existence. Perhaps John doesn't plan to stay here long term anyway.
Lou
Working in Bangkok
Monthly Earnings 44,000
Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
My full-time salary is 44,000 baht a month
Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
Usually around 14,000 baht
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
I pay 5,000 baht a month for a 31sqm apartment 650 metres from the MRT. It's in the city centre and convenient for five shopping malls.
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
1,200 baht
Utility bills
800 - 1,600 baht
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
MI spend about 5,000 baht on food plus another 1,200 for my wife's food.
Nightlife and drinking
This usually consists of just dinners out for 1,500 baht a month.
Books, computers
600 baht a month
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
We live very simply yet comfortably. We go to a restaurant once a week. I really like the flat, we've been here six years. I've no need for nightlife. All our disposable income goes for travel. Wife pays 50 baht a day. I pay much of everything else. She pitches in with many travel expenses.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
Having just returned from US, everything is a bargain save for quality clothes, shoes and electronics.
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
Survive? I could survive on about 25,000 if I wasn't working. That would include everything down to visas, runs, booze, even dental.
Phil's analysis and comment
This is a survey from someone who lives 'as well as he possibly can' on 30,000 baht a month (he saves 14,000 of that 44,000 salary remember) I just don't think it's enough for Bangkok these days.
Steve
Working in Bangkok
Monthly Earnings 140,000
Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
I work as a director at an international school and my salary is 140,000 after tax.
Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
Realistically, I could save 100,000 baht a month, but I save around 80,000. About half of that goes to retirement and the other half goes to savings, from which some will be taken for vacations. If I wanted to live more frugally I certainly could, but I am trying to strike a balance.
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
I live in a two-bedroom apartment, and pay 20,000 a month, which also covers utilities (power, water, internet).
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
I take the taxi to work, and that runs about 1,000 per month. There's the occasional BTS ride. Call it 2,000 all in.
Utility bills
My utilities are about 5,000 a month, as I like to keep my apartment cool (I also think that my rate is too high, but I am moving soon).
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
Food is easy. I give myself 500 baht a day to spend on food and other items. Anything that I don't spend gets rolled over, and often at the end of the week I can treat myself to a meal at the French restaurant down the street and still be within this range
Nightlife and drinking
I go downtown about once a month, so that's another 2,000 for a fun night out. Counting this, and after I have paid student loans and funded my accounts, generally I am left with 10,000 or so extra, some of which I spend at Foodland and some of which goes to the occasional weekend getaway. Either that or it gets rolled over into the next month.
Books, computers
As far as books and computers I own a Kindle and a laptop, so that works for entertainment. I'll be buying a new computer soon, so video games will be coming back into my life...
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
I live comfortably. I could live extravagantly, but got used to simpler things when I was in the Peace Corps. I have enough to eat, enough to do, and am able to save a lot. Things are good here.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
The street food. There are days when I spend less than 200 baht, all in, and do just fine. Taxi rides are also inexpensive. I also get a massage every week. An hour for 300 baht (including tip) is an incredible bargain.
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
Honestly, if you want to enjoy Bangkok, 50,000-60,000 is a minimum.
Phil's analysis and comment
Even though Steve earns a great salary, he's clearly very sensible with his money. He's looking after his future and making hay while the sun shines. A very commendable set of figures there!
If anyone fancies doing a cost of living survey, I've now put the questions on-line to make it easier and quicker for you. Please spare half an hour if you can.
A number of teachers complete the surveys with just a list of figures. I don't wish to sound ungrateful but that's not really what we're looking for. There needs to be some sort of 'story' behind the figures as it were (it certainly makes the surveys more interesting to read) Many thanks!
Showing 5 Cost of Living surveys out of 449 total
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