Working in Bangkok

Monthly Earnings 142,000 baht

Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?

My main job at a mid-size international school (with 700 kids) pays about 115,000 baht after tax (there is also a flight allowance and a small bonus but these are only paid annually). On Saturdays I teach 6 hours of IELTS classes for 9,000 per day. Occasionally I miss a Saturday if something important comes up. So, in total an average of 142k a month.

Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?

Between 80k and 100k depending on expenses. I also find school holidays more expensive than term time.

Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?

I live in a relatively large one bed condo near Central Rama 9. It costs about 20,000 baht a month including all utilities. This is shared between my girlfriend and I.

Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?

Transportation

Petrol for the scooter I run is rarely more than 100 baht a week. Including the occasional taxi or MRT ride my transportation bill probably comes to about 1,500 baht. This is not a major expense.

Utility bills

I bundled these in with my rent (earlier question). However, they're itemised on our monthly condo bill and come to about 1.5k - 2.5k for electric, water and internet.

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

Lunch and snacks come free at school and lunch has therefore become the main meal. During term time I'd say 8,000 baht per month, but in the holidays I probably spend 50% more than this

Nightlife and drinking

Taking on weekend work is not only bringing in more money, it's also put an end to big nights out (good for my health, but not great for morale). So, maybe 2-3k

Books, computers

Zero unless something breaks. My school has a great library which I make good use of.

Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?

I feel like I'm saving good money, I like my condo and am in a happy relationship with a local lady (she earns enough to take care of herself and contribute towards rent). My only concern is weekend teaching as I feel that one day off work during term time isn't enough - despite the extra money it brings in. To answer the question I think my salary allows for a good standard of living, but I've always thought that, even 10 years ago when I was earning 30k.

Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?

The water bill. I probably spend more on salt than I do on showering. Transport is cheap too (taxis, buses & internal flights).

Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?

As a foreign teacher with no local support network, I think life would now be tough in Bangkok on 30,000. For teachers looking to spend a significant portion of their life here, it's vital to be able to save for old age. Therefore I'd say at least 60k (30k for living and 30k for saving).

Phil's analysis and comment

Now Mike really does sound like a guy I could go for a pint with. Not because he's one of the teaching 'high rollers' but because he took a lot of time and care in filling in this survey and at no time does it ever come across as 'bragging'. Even though Mike earns good money, this is still a sensible, level-headed guy who knows the value of a dollar.

What I like about Mike's figures is how he's taken advantage of situations (and I don't mean that in a negative way at all) He's found himself a partner who is financially comfortable and pays half the rent. He's made the free lunch at school his main meal of the day (therefore cutting down on food costs) He makes full use of the school library. And of course the Saturday work can bring in an extra 36k a month and keep him out of the bars.

Life has handed him lemons and he's made a great big jug of ice cold lemonade. Nice work Mike!

Ed

14th December 2016

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. 

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Colin

12th December 2016

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.   

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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.

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John

7th December 2016

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.

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