Working in Lamphun

Monthly Earnings 230,000

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

I earn 35K a month from my government school job in Lamphun. I also teach on-line for the same Japanese university I worked at in the past. That gets me another 130,000. In addition I get other university bonuses for attracting new students, etc and that makes up the package to around 230K.

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

live a rather simple life, spending only about 15,000 on myself. Through a Christian network, I support some young Thai people to finish school, go to junior college or learn a trade. And I outright sponsor a very poor family of elderly parents with a handicapped son. I spend about 56,000/month on these sponsorship efforts. I save the rest, about 160,000 Baht/month. I don't travel back home or take trips any longer (did all that when I was younger), so the money is in fact saved, not accumulated for later

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

I spend 4,000 / month rent for a pretty large corner, tree-shaded apartment in an older building, with one bedroom, small kitchenette, large bathroom, large open area, security guard; decent enough wi-fi internet included.

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

Transportation

100 Baht. I live less than a kilometer from the school. Still, I go back and forth on a motorcycle I bought new three years ago, mostly so I don't arrive at school already sweaty in the morning. I spend about 100 baht / month on petrol for it. I live within walking distance of two large supermarkets, two morning wet markets, one evening wet market, so I never really use the bike for much else

Utility bills

Average 650/month for water / electricity. Water is set at 80 baht/month, the rest is electricity. I don't use air-con; don't like it. I use several fans, though. I run a load in the washing machine about once a week. I keep the small fridge on a rather low setting. Never watch TV. Probably my laptop is the biggest user of electricity, as I do my Japanese university work on it for about four hours weekdays and eight to ten hours Sat / Sun

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

About 6,000 / month; I buy and prepare basic things like chicken, pork, eggs, rice, oatmeal, fruits and vegetables. I almost never eat packaged foods or import products; just don't have a taste for them. Preparing these gives me a good break from the computer.

Nightlife and drinking

Uh, I use some Melatonin to help fall asleep sometimes! Really, I live in a small town; I get a kick from my work. I may go walk the "walking street" occasionally, but only for the exercise.

Books, computers

About 300 Baht / month on used textbooks that I pick up from a local bookshop. I love reading old high school textbooks in history and sciences. Computer: I use a laptop provided by my Japanese university. I have my own laptop; it's over five years old now. So, really no expense for computers.

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

For a guy like me, who likes it simple and quiet, really quite good. My health is good, I eat the kind of foods I like, I do the work I enjoy, I walk a lot and do some basic exercising, I sleep well, I like my students and my colleagues at the school. Things are a lot slower for me here than they were in Japan, which at this time in my life is just what I want it to be.

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

Housing, food, services.

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

In a small town like mine, you can easily get by on 20,000 baht/month as long as you don't spend the rest on getting out of town on trips and such. I get by on about 15,000/month and I know a guy who spends less, only 12,000/month. If you need to have things and/or adventures, though, these levels are realistic for you.

Phil's analysis and comment

230K a month. Not bad is it? I guess the main question a lot of people will be asking Alan is 'why do you bother with a full-time government school position when your income from the Japanese university is so high?' Alan was good enough to reply.

"Because I truly enjoy being in the classroom and teaching young minds. I teach M1 to M4 Reading. It gets me out of the house. I don't have kids of my own, so it's also rewarding in a latent paternal instinct way"

You are very welcome to submit your own cost of living survey for this section of the ajarn website and I have created an online survey to hopefully make it a little easier.

However, I am getting a number of surveys where the teacher hasn't really taken much time and effort over it - and it shows. Sorry I can't think of another way to put that. As a result, the survey just becomes a list of figures. I think if you look back at the last half a dozen surveys or so, you get an idea of what we're looking for. Cheers.

Michael

17th April 2016

Working in Bangkok

Monthly Earnings 40,000 - 48,000 baht

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

I get 30,000 per month salary at a Thai university. I make roughly 28,500 after taxes. I also get overtime pay ranging from 12,000-20,000 per month. It's always paid late though.

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

I used to save around 6,000 per month. I've moved into a more expensive place now and I will be saving less from my base salary, maybe only 3,000-4,000. My overtime pay goes entirely into my savings account, however. if you include that, I save 15,000-25,000 per month.

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

I live in a one-bedroom condo located near to my job. It has a pool and a fitness center and rent is 12,000 per month

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

Transportation

Transportation is somewhere between 1,000 - 2,000 baht as I use the BTS quite often

Utility bills

I'm not sure about water/electric yet as I haven't paid them but I'm guessing on 100 baht for water and maybe 800 baht for electric. Internet is 1,100 and phone is another 700.

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

I spend most of my monthly salary on food. If I only eat Thai food, then I spend about 2,000 per week, if I eat Western food then I can spend a lot more - about 500 per meal. I try to only eat Western food a handful of times per month

Nightlife and drinking

I spend very little on nightlife, almost nothing

Books, computers

I don't spend money on books or computers, but I do spend it on camera gear. This is where my savings tend to go, toward lenses and camera equipment. Approximately 5,000 per month, if I averaged it out.

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

Comfortable, but not without sacrifices.

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

Thai food. You can get delicious meals for $1-2 dollars each. If you eat strictly Thai food you can get by with only spending about 5,000 per month on food.

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

I am used to living on a small budget and I could live off 22,000 before I moved into my new place. For most people though, I would say 30,000 is the bare minimum. But you won't be having much fun, if any, on that salary. 40,000+ if you want to save money while still having some semblance of a life.

Phil's analysis and comment

One of the scurges of the teaching profession - salary or a sizeable chunk of your salary that's always or often paid late. I wonder if Michael sometimes relies on that second income in order to pay rent and has to go cap in hand to the landlord to explain things. Perhaps he doesn't but the only reason I mention it is because I saw many teachers I worked with in the past get in that same pickle from time to time. There are few things worse than an employer who can't pay its teachers on time.

A word about fitness centers in condo buildings. I was talking to a pal at the gym a few weeks ago and asked him why he paid the 16,000 baht a year membership fee when he had a fitness center at his condo. After he had stopped laughing, he offered to take me there one day. "When I work out on those cheap quality machines, the whole building shakes"

True enough, I've never been that impressed with the fitness centers I've seen. A token treadmill or two and a rack of decent weights if you're lucky. I think fitness centers are often installed just as something to add to the amenities section of the brochure. I'm not saying the one at Michael's condo building is like that but from experience, the vast majority are.   

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T.J.

17th April 2016

Working in Petchaburi

Monthly Earnings 28,000

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

I earn a 28K baht salary from a Thai public school in Petchburi

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

About 3,000 baht.

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

I rent a studio apartment that costs 3,500 a month.

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

Transportation

I bought my own motorbike for 15,000 baht and I spend 100 to 300 baht a month on fuel

Utility bills

I pay 1,000 to 2,000 baht for my electricity, 100 baht for the water and 1,000 for my internet

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

I seldom cook in my room so I buy my food most of the time at the local market. I spend around 2,000 to 4,000 for everything - including drinks

Nightlife and drinking

This is Petchaburi. We don't have nightlife. So that's a big fat zero.

Books, computers

I read free books on my phone and accept used books from colleagues.

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

My standard of living is very simple but it's comfortable. I have what I need.

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

The real bargain for me is the room rental. I have got everything I need - good water pressure with hot water, free wi-fi, queen-size bed, air-con, TV, refridgerator, and a huge room with a balcony for only 3,500 baht!

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

I could survive well enough here on 20,000 without any difficulty but 30,000 would get you a much nicer lifestyle.

Phil's analysis and comment

I've been through Petchaburi many times on the way to Hua Hin or Cha'am and it always seems like a pleasant, well-kept little town. J.T obviously enjoys life there but on a relatively average teacher's salary (by rural Thailand standards) I just wonder if I was in his position whether I would be able to resist the bright lights of Hua Hin just down the road, where there are so many Western attractions. 

2,000 baht a month on food must take some doing J.T. That's not even 70 baht a day. Are those Petchaburi markets really that cheap?

We also have a region guide to Petchaburi in our region guides section. It hasn't been updated for a few years but much of the info should still be applicable.

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Patrick

30th March 2016

Working in Bangkok

Monthly Earnings 70,000-80,000

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

70,000 – 80,000 baht a month at a good Thai university. My wife earns another 70,000 – 120,000 baht a month at the same university

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

Until last year, around 120,000 – 150,000 a month. We have been saving for more than 10 years, so at this point compound interest is definitely our friend, and accounts for some of the savings. We just started building a new house though, so we are drawing down on our savings now.

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

We bought a very small 2-bedroom Chinese row-house in the suburbs, and renovated it (new bathroom, modern kitchen, aircon, and high speed internet), all for a bit more than 1 million baht – 12 years ago. Since then, nothing. Though again we just started building a new house, and once we run out of cash, we will take a loan for the rest. That will be 35,000 a month or so.

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

Transportation

We bought a basic car back in 2008, it is paid for now. We bought a second, nicer car (used) a couple of months ago, we pay 24,000 a month for it, with a year and half of payments to go. We also take taxis a fair amount, to avoid driving/parking hassles when necessary, and use the expressway to cut down on commute times. So 24,000 + gas/tolls + taxis is around 30,000-35,000

Utility bills

5,000 a month or so, for 2 phones, A/C, internet, true, etc. I don’t skimp on A/C.

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

Both restaurants and supermarket shopping, around 25,000 a month. We often bring market food back home, which is very cheap, but sometimes I cook, or we go to a nice restaurant by suburb standards. Basically, we are price-indifferent at this point – convenience is our only concern.

Nightlife and drinking

Part of the restaurant expenses. My wife doesn’t drink but I do.

Books, computers

We spend 15,000 baht a month on a live-in nurse for my wife’s parents. We buy phones, computers, books, stuff as we need it (and we will soon be buying more furniture) – it totals around 25,000 a month.

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

One sentence, hell I can do it in one word - blessed. O.K. seriously, I have a very good standard of living. I have a career (not a job or a “gig”, a career – they are different) that I enjoy, which pays me reasonably well. I have a wife who often earns more than me - and plenty of savings. Things are not perfect but they are as close as any reasonable person could want or expect.

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

Anything involving labor, be it cleaning, gardening, laundry, handymen, etc. Also taxis, street food, mid-level suburban restaurants, some clothing, taxes, and nice wood furniture if you shop smart. Cars are very expensive, electronics a bit so, housing is cheap to rent but not to buy. You can get twice the house if you build it yourself instead of getting one in a development, but it is a lot of work in its own way if you do that, and you better know your contractor.

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

Well, I said 30,000 baht a month when I first did the survey 10 years ago. I am not sure I could do it on less than 40,000 baht a month and I would not want to try. If my wife and I no longer worked, a lot of our expenses would go down, but still.

Phil's analysis and comment

Here we have two very good wage-earners living in the same household and with 160-200K baht a month coming in, you are always going to enjoy a nice lifestyle, especially if there are no children to look after. I think this is the first survey where we've featured costs for looking after elderly parents, which is interesting. I also think that's the highest transportation bill that we've ever had :)

You are very welcome to submit your own cost of living survey for this section of the ajarn website and I have created an online survey to hopefully make it a little easier.

However, I am getting a number of surveys where the teacher hasn't really taken much time and effort over it - and it shows. Sorry I can't think of another way to put that. As a result, the survey just becomes a list of figures. I think if you look back at the last half a dozen surveys or so, you get an idea of what we're looking for. Cheers.

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John

27th March 2016

Working in Nonthaburi

Monthly Earnings 81,000

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

I work at a small international school and my salary is 81,000 baht after tax. This also includes a small housing allowance.

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

50,000 baht a month. If I do any travelling, the money comes from that 50,000. I have a strict budget so save well

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

I pay 10,000 baht a month for a one-bedroom condo. There is a pool and small gym and it's very secure.

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

Transportation

Almost nothing as the school is walking distance from home and I only go into Bangkok once a week by taxi.

Utility bills

I spend around 2,800 baht for my phone, internet and cable TV and then probably another 1,000 baht on electricity and water.

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

The first year I was here I spent about 8,000 baht a month on food and supermarket shopping as I ate like a local. But this second year, I order western food through a delivery service so now spend around 12,000 baht per month on this. it's worth the extra cost though. I couldn't handle eating like a local anymore, it's a nice luxury to have.

Nightlife and drinking

I rarely go out, maybe once a month if I'm lucky. If I do go out I wouldn't spend any more than 2,000 baht per month

Books, computers

Nothing.

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

Very comfortable. I set a budget which helps me save nearly 70% of my salary but I never feel like I'm missing out. I get my weekly massage, eat well and go out drinking when I like. I have been able to travel a lot using some of the money I have saved. Living in Thailand is great.

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

Any service that the local people provide is an absolute bargain. I can get a massage for 150 baht (it would be at least 10 times more expensive back home in Australia). I can get my condo cleaned by two people for 500 baht (it would be triple that back home). Taxis are so cheap as well and I really like that. Plus if you buy food from the local markets or off the street, it is incredibly cheap. Flying in Thailand and going to surrounding countries is relatively cheap as well.

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

Hmm, well I budget 30,000 for the month but that leaves no money for travel or extra fun, but you could survive off that. Truthfully though, I think you have to earn at least 50,000 per month (if you are living in and around Bangkok) to live a comfortable life with some travel thrown in.

Phil's analysis and comment

John is a saver, no doubt about that. But he saves for a purpose and that usually seems to be travel.

81,000 baht in Nonthaburi is always going to leave you with plenty of cash to spare because Nonthaburi certainly doesn't have the temptations of Central Bangkok. John is obviously not a 'bright lights' person anyway.

I was only ever lucky enough to have one job where I was able to walk to work each day - but what a godsend that is! It's not really about how much you are saving on transportation (although that should be factored in) but you know you can leave your digs at exactly the same time each morning and not give a fiddler's about how bad the traffic is. I'm sure John would agree.

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