Working in Bangkok

Monthly Earnings 35-55,000 Baht per month

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

I generally earn in the region of 45K per month working for a private language school. Sometimes in a busy month, I can earn in excess of 50K and having been teaching for almost two years I feel confident enough to teach privately which has brought in an additional 7K or so per month recently. Of course, this ebbs and flows. The language school I work in has been relatively quiet these past few months and this is apparently an industry-wide problem at present, though I can see it picking up in April.

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

Realistically, if I earnt 45-50K I could save 10K a month comfortably. However I do like to make the odd purchase with a view to improving my standard of living or satisfying my urges for new electronics.

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

I pay 10K a month for a nice, clean studio apartment with a gym and a pool, a ten minute walk from an MRT station that's neither too near nor too far from the expensive and err...less salubrious ex-pat areas. I am looking to move to a one bedroom apartment even nearer to the MRT before long though. I think, after a while, you can become a little sick of having just the one room. I'd also like to be able to offer private classes in my apartment

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

Transportation

Very little really. A motorcycle taxi to work is 20 Baht with a brisk and sweaty walk home most days. This is because I chose an apartment 'after' securing a job which has, in my mind, been a key decision. Sometimes I'll have to take the MRT and/or the BTS as well as an occasional post-midnight 100 baht taxi home as well. I'd say altogether 2-3K per month.

Utility bills

I rarely use my aircon favouring a fan and a continually open window on the top floor of a low-rise apartment. This keeps my electricity bills down to between 350 and 500 baht per month. In addition to that I pay 600 baht for internet as well as, for reasons that continually escape me, 1600 baht for a True cable television package with which I have access to a load of too oft repeated old films that you saw by downloading them or buying them two years previously for 80 baht and are now gathering dust

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

I can't cook, so, with the very rare exception of the odd tin of beans or microwaveable ready-meal, I eat out. To make this affordable you do, of course, have to forego a 100% diet of western fare which is fine by me and my waistline. If you can find a few local Thai restaurants that are reliable and maintain a good quality in their food and ingredients you're laughing. I have two such cafes/restaurants in my apartment...village....thing...On average a meal will cost me 50-70 baht for a rice or noodle meal.

Nightlife and drinking

It very much depends on what kind of nightlife you're looking for. If you and three of your friends want to head to one of the Thai clubbing areas and are happy to share a bottle of whiskey or two and mixers then an enjoyable and rather civilised evening can be had for 1000-1500K. On the other hand if you want to drink bottled beer in western style pubs followed by trips into the seedy belly of Bangkok's more wanton districts then you can double or even triple that depending on how raucous your inebriation

Books, computers

Pretty much nothing. I'll buy a textbook now and then, but just about everything I need is supplied by my company and I have a good circle of friends with which I can share literature of the recreational variety.

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

Comfortably semi-western and fun.

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

Food and taxis but above all else it's accommodation. In Bangkok there's absolutely no need to scrimp on an apartment. Stick yourself in a 4K sweatbox a couple of kilometres down a soi and you'll spend what you're saving on a decent apa

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

I think someone with a 7K apartment and low bills could subsist quite easily on 25K per month as that would equate to a daily budget of 500 baht. It wouldn't be a great deal of fun though. I think to really make a life here and to be able to save somewhat as a single person you need to 'regularly' earn in excess of 40K per month.

Phil's analysis and comment

I know Gareth from his posts on the ajarn discussion forum and he always comes across as a level-headed kind of guy so his answers don't really surprise me. He appreciates that you need to earn in excess of 40 K for a good lifestyle and what's more - he seems to have well thought out plans and objectives. Definitely a teacher who falls into the pro-active category.  

Barry

17th December 2009

Working in Hua Hin

Monthly Earnings 50,000

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

Just under 50,000 (employer covers all deductions) working as part of the training department in a health resort in Hua Hin. I teach mostly English classes, but also get involved with other resort training.

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

Between 20-25,000.

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

I have a studio style apartment, with maid service (100 metres from the beach) which comes with the job.

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

Transportation

1,000 for Bangkok vans and a few motorbike taxis - I work next door to my apartment!

Utility bills

1,500 for mobile - air-con, hot water, laundry, cable, net and electric covered by company

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

8,000 - eating good food is my weak point after a week of staff canteen food!

Nightlife and drinking

12,000 - I stay in BKK most weekends when I visit my girlfriend and like a few cold ones from time to time.

Books, computers

Nothing

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

I live a very good life, doing what I want, when I want - but know I could be a bit more "frugal"!

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

In general most things are a bargain, but after 5 years in Thailand I have noticed prices are not at all as competitive as they were when I first got here. You can't beat the prices of DVDs, getting around and local food.

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

I would say around 40,000 to live in a reasonable place and enough to enjoy Thailand. Scraping by with notihng left at the end of the month is not the way to do it here!

Phil's analysis and comment

I like the sound of Barry's lifestyle. He earns a decent salary and he saves a good part of it. And I can't think of a nicer place in Thailand to earn a living as a teacher than Hua Hin. Being a beach resort, there are plenty of temptations though. It doesn't surprise me one bit that Barry spends 20,000 baht a month on food and nightlife. Hua Hin certainly isn't Pattaya but there is plenty to spend your cash on. Just to clear things up, 'Bangkok vans' refers to the shuttle buses that ply the route from Hua Hin to Bangkok and back again. It's probably the fastest and most economical way to get from one to the other.

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Harry

26th November 2009

Working in Bangkok

Monthly Earnings 65,000

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

My basic salary is 58,000 but on top of that I make around 5,000 in overtime (teaching IELTS/TOEFL exam preparation) plus I have a few corporate classes every week. On average I take home between 65,000 & 75,000 (occasionally more).

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

Not as much as I should, but maybe around 10,000. I tend to blow this on annual trips back to the UK and the odd weekend in Pattaya, Phuket etc and 25,000 a year for health insurance.

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

I bought a one bedroom condo in Phra Khanong, so I only have to pay around 2,000 a month to cover the pool, gym, security, insurance etc

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

Transportation

Transportation - about 2,500 for the BTS and occasional taxis

Utility bills

1,200 for electricity, 2,155 for Truevisions Platinum, 80 for water

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

both restaurants and supermarket shopping - 6,000. I like to cook so buy plenty of expensive ingredients. Eating out is far cheaper.

Nightlife and drinking

20,000. Being a single guy, I enjoy a weekly night out drinking in the expat bars with my mates and then finding some company for the night. These things don't come cheap!

Books, computers

1,000 for broadband. I don't need to buy books.

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

I live well and enjoy my life - my lifestyle was much quieter in my first two years here as I had a lower salary and a girlfriend (my life now is less quiet and I'm spending about the same amount of money without having to use my UK savings).

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

Taxis and company (if you use your "big" head wisely).

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

At least 30,000 - but it needs to be spent wisely.

Phil's analysis and comment

Harry admits that he has savings in the UK but we don't know how much and it's none of our business anyway. If those savings are left untouched and increasing year by year, then why shouldn't a man party most nights, bring a new friend home now and again and also enjoy a bit of cooking. I picked up on the cooking part because as Harry says - cooking at home can be more expensive than eating out if you buy good ingedients. But as an ex-colleague of mine once said - you don't save money by eating at home, but you do eat better. Yes, I agree with that.

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Steve

18th November 2009

Working in Trang

Monthly Earnings 30,000

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

30,000bt. 1 job. Maths Teacher, Government School, Trang. Could do more but too lazy, I value my free time too much.

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

10,000bt saved every month

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

2,000bt small fan room with a shower/toilet, TV (8 Thai channels) and a nice jungle view.

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

Transportation

1000bt on fuel for the 'chopper' I bought last month for 57,000bt (from savings from this job). (1000bt = 1000km enough for big cruises)

Utility bills

100bt (water + elec) only

Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping

3000-5000bt

Nightlife and drinking

12,000-14,000bt for all my entertainment.

Books, computers

Nowt, swap books. School has internet.

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

My standard of living is excellent - way better than it was in the NE of England. I read a lot during school nights when I'm not chilling out in Trang's bars. I do what I like at weekends/holidays. I often go on long motorbike cruises through the beautiful countryside so rural Thais can stare at me. I like to chill out in Krabi (beaches) and Phuket (birds) now and then since Trang has no "Hellllooooooo hansum man" phenomena.

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

Food, Beer and cigarettes. You can sit in a Mama n Papa shop with your mates and drink big bottles of Archa beer @ 33bt. 300bt will give you a 2 day hangover (that's the cheapest way unless you like LaoCao). Regular bars are about 70bt big Leo. However, spending a lot of time in Samui/Phuket etc will blow your 30K/month within minutes (Ao Nang, Krabi = small Tiger 100bt WTF?).

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

15000bt and you would lead an OK life here although you probably would wind up a single dude even if you looked like Tom Cruise.

Phil's analysis and comment

Steve seems happy enough. I bet when he's out on the open road on his chopper, with the wind in his hair, looking for the next watering hole, he must think he's died and gone to Heaven. Can you keep that kind of lifestyle going forever? I doubt it. The small fan room for 2,000 baht a month sends shivers down my spine. I don't care how glorious your view of the jungle is, surely you can't live like that for more than a year or two. I think eventually you'll crave more in the way of creature comforts. But for the time being, Steve's probably a young man on one big adventure. Why not go for it? I always appreciate a man who values his spare time above work.

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Showing 5 Cost of Living surveys out of 426 total

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