How Cheaply Can You Live in Thailand?

This is a very common question that you hear from people who are considering moving to Thailand; how cheaply can you live in Thailand? It is a tough one to answer. The following is just my opinion and likely there will be many who would disagree with me.

If you could live like an average Thai person, located outside of Bangkok, then you should be able to manage on about 10,000 THB a month; this is about 200 Euro, £180, or $300. This is not an amount of money that most westerners would be able to live on for very long though, and it is likely not possible at all due to the extra costs that being a foreigner in Thailand often entails. Thai nationals have family to rely on and don't have visa worries to contend with. If you are not eligible for long-term visas then you will need to spend quite a bit of money on obtaining short-term visas.

A more realistic minimum amount for how cheaply can you live in Thailand would be 20,000 THB outside of Bangkok and 30,000 THB inside Bangkok. I lived on this budget for quite a long time and, while life was far from lavish, it wasn't too much of a struggle. Mind you, I did have more money in the bank in case things went wrong. If you like a drink and socialise then you are going to need a lot more money than this.

Outside of Bangkok it is often possible to get some very reasonably priced accommodation. I currently live in a townhouse in a city north of Bangkok for which I only pay 2,000THB a month (40 euro or $69). We previously paid even less than this for a house in a village in Phitsanulok province. It is often possible to find reasonably priced accommodation on the outskirts of Bangkok as well. For those who are concerned with how cheaply can you live in Thailand then cheap accommodation should not be too much of a problem.

Monthly bills don't tend to be too much money when compared to the west. We only have air-con in the bed-room so only use it at night. We end up paying about 1,500THB a month on electricity. My biggest utility bill is for the internet which costs me 2,700 THB a month for an IPSTAR satellite connection. In the area where we live running water is free, and we only pay a tiny amount for garbage collection. We have a cheap television cable package which only costs 300THB a month, but only has a couple of English channels.

If you eat Thai food all the time it is easy enough to live on 200 THB a day or even less, but if you prefer western food then your food bill will sky-rocket. If you want your own transportation then this will of course will add to your bills. I pay almost 9,000 THB on car repayments alone.

It is possible to live relatively cheaply in Thailand, but to really enjoy life here you should be aiming to budget for at least 40,000 THB a month (800 euro, $1,190); more in Bangkok or one of the tourist areas. It is also important to have some savings behind you and good medical insurance. You can live on less, but life might become a struggle after a while. At the end of the day, how cheaply can you live in Thailand will depend on what you expect from life.