What’s the cost of living in Thailand? It’s been way too long since we’ve done any sort of budget report so we put together a huge post that covers what the two of us spent during the entire year in 2015. It includes our day-to-day spending on food and general living expenses, but we also divulge how much we spend on expat-related responsibilities, on our well-being, and on travel. Here goes!
Here’s a quick recap of our routine as expats:
We’re a married American couple living in Chiang Mai, a major city in Northern Thailand. We have a small house not far from the city center, which we share with our cat that we brought from the USA.
We spend several hours most days doing blog-related tasks. We go out in the evenings about once a week with friends for drinks and eat at Western Restaurants two or three meals per week.
In our spare time we go to the gym regularly and for half the year we took Thai lessons two times per week.
We also spent about a third of the year traveling throughout Thailand and to several of its neighboring countries in Southeast Asia.
Cost of Living in Thailand Breakdown 2015
We spent an average of 100,338 baht (2,826 USD) per month in 2015. That’s a total of 1,204,052 baht (33,917 USD) for the entire year.
Our cheapest months were January (51,451 baht or 1,449 USD) and April (49,326 baht or 1,389 USD). That’s no surprise to us because those were the two months we didn’t do any traveling. Instead we stayed in Chiang Mai and spent time with friends at our favorite hangout spots, regularly cooked at home, and went to the gym several times per week.
Our most expensive month was July. That’s when we flew halfway across the world and spent four weeks in the US. Talk about prriiicceeeyy! December was our second most expensive month because we spent two weeks island hopping around Koh Samui, Koh Phi Phi, Koh Lanta, and Phuket. We figured out pretty quickly that traveling in southern Thailand is much more expensive than traveling up north!
Monthly Rent
Total Cost: 14,000 baht / 394 USD per month
We still live in the same two bedroom house just outside Chiang Mai’s Old City. It is our second biggest contributor to our cost of living in Thailand but worth every penny. We can’t ask for anything better and love its location, structural integrity, Western furnishings and amenities, and layout.
Even though there are plenty of two bedroom homes in Chiang Mai at half the price we pay, they simply don’t offer the same quality and comfort level at such a great spot near the Old City. We are very happy with the place and it really feels like a home to us. Cable TV and high speed internet (21 mbps download) is included in the cost of our rent.
Utilities: Motorbike and Monthly Bills & Subscriptions
Total Cost: 5,151 baht / 145 USD per month
Just as our electric bill fluctuated with the seasons back in the USA, our electric bill in Chiang Mai does, too. We run the air conditioning pretty steadily during the hottest months, but we admit our bill is unusually expensive because our house gets the most direct sunlight during June, July, and August. It’s hard not to blast the AC during the day because otherwise our house gets over 90⁰F (low 30s ⁰C) inside. No joke!
Other than that we pay roughly the same every month for our water (home use and drinking) and two cellphone bills. Our gas tank, which we use solely to cook on our two gas burners, has been replaced three times.
We also have a VPN subscription to get access to our Pandora and Netflix accounts; all three are monthly subscriptions.
We have a Honda Forza and use it to get around Chiang Mai and to go on short road trips. Other than gas and an oil change, it costs us barely anything (1,410 baht or 40 USD per month) to maintain.
We put new plastics on the Forza this year after we had an incident where a Thai food cart (on it’s way to work) ran straight into the back of our parked motorbike causing it to topple over on its side and get scratched up. It was about time to replace those pieces anyways; sun and rain exposure had dulled out the paint and it was looking pretty tired.
Whenever we use songthaews in the Old City, we pay between 20 and 40 baht per person per trip.
Expat Expenses
Total Cost: 5,048 baht / 142 USD per month
Part of our cost of living in Thailand is the expense associated with being an expat. For us this included what we’ve spent on getting a Thai license and the required medical exam and Thai residence certificate, applying for and maintaining a Thai visa (application fees, supporting documents and professional support, extensions, photos), as well as unexpected costs like getting extra pages added to our passports.
A small portion of our expat expense goes to Thai language lessons. We consider it appropriate to include here because we wouldn’t be taking them if we weren’t living in Thailand.
Household and Gifts
Total Cost: 1,575 baht / 44 USD per month
We’re completely settled in our house in Chiang Mai and live a relatively minimalist lifestyle. We’re happy without a lot of extra stuff like fancy cooking appliances, second or third vehicles, or the latest home accessories. We also can’t be bothered with going through the process of selling our belongings again as we did before moving here. It was hard work! Plus we realize that there are several challenges to selling secondhand items in Chiang Mai that we didn’t have to deal with when living in Northern Virginia.
Since we bought the basics during our first few months in Thailand like linens, rugs, cushions, fans, and pillows, now we only spend money on little things such as trash bags, sponges, dish soap, and laundry detergent.
The only other household expense is our cat. Between food, litter, the occasional new toy and one yearly checkup, he doesn’t cost us much.
We also tracked what we spent on gifts to people for birthdays, get-wells, and in appreciation for watching our cat when we are on travel.
Travel: Vacations and Blogging Trips
Total Cost: 22,251 baht / 627 USD per month
We did a TON of traveling this year! In fact, we totaled it up and we were traveling for 110 out of 365 days. That’s across five countries and twenty cities. Most trips were our own personal vacations while some were partnerships with tourism boards, various travel companies, and hotels.
Transportation costs made up a significant portion of our traveling expenses. These include domestic and international flights, buses, vans, and ferries to get to our destination and then whatever public transportation we used to get around town such as the metro, motorbike rentals, and taxis to and from the airport.
We also spent money on hotels, activities, and entertainment once we arrived. And we can’t forget the costs associated with non-Thai visas and re-entry permits when we traveled internationally.
Although we didn’t include them in this list (they went into the “consumables” category below), we spent a significant amount of money on eating out, bottled water, and alcohol on the days we’re on travel.
Consumables: Groceries, Eating Out, and Drinking
Total Cost: 27,013 baht / 678 USD per month
Purely out of curiosity, we divided our consumption habits into what we spent at cheap Thai markets, pricier Western grocery stores, going out to eat, and consuming alcoholic beverages.
Half of our groceries came from a local open-aired Thai market. We bought fruit, vegetables, condiments, protein, grains, and the occasional Thai snack. We went shopping there about three or four times a week and bought just enough to cook two or three meals.
The other half of our groceries were purchased from an international grocery store to help to add variety to our diet. We bought dairy, choice cut protein, high fiber grains, canned and jarred goods, and sauces and oils. We went shopping there twice a month and stock up.
When we weren’t traveling, we cooked our meals at home. We made our simple meals from scratch using a combination of local produce and imported products. We did this because it’s more affordable than going out to eat but also because we count our macros (protein, carbohydrates, fat) to help us stay in shape.
We ate out probably two, maybe three meals per week while in Chiang Mai. Most of the time it was dinner at mid-range Western restaurants, but sometimes we went to cheap Thai food stalls and mom and pop restaurants, and a handful of times we went to very expensive places.
When we were traveling, we ate out every meal and it was often at touristy Thai and Western restaurants. We don’t go out of our way to hunt down a lone food stall if whatever hotel we are staying at has its own restaurant. We’ve also noticed that Chiang Mai’s food stall scene has spoiled us and we rarely stumble upon such a collection of stalls at the places we’ve been to.
When we go out, we stuck to the local brews (Singha and Leo) or Sangsom and soda water simply because they are a fraction of the cost of imported beers and liquor. We didn’t go out much in Chiang Mai but we do drink most nights while we travel. Occasionally we have a glass or two of wine at home.
Personal Care: Medical Expenses, Grooming, Wardrobe, Healthy Habits
Total Cost: 13,062 baht / 368 USD per month
We went to the doctor a few times for minor ailments and routine checkups, a cosmetologist, a dentist for general teeth cleanings, and spent a little money on first aid items. We didn’t pay for health insurance and instead self-insure.
We spent a good amount of money staying healthy and had a monthly gym membership, dropped in on the occasional yoga class, and bought appropriate workout gear. We also bought health supplements and got several massages every month.
Most of the original clothing we brought over from the US is either worn out or no longer fits right, so we made several purchases this past year time to replenish our wardrobe. I can buy my clothes for cheap from Thai markets because I can fit into them. On the other hand, Chris buys clothes and shoes from malls for his 6’2″ frame at Western prices. We also bought some clothes while we were in the US and brought them back to Thailand with us.
Other than that, throughout the year we got regular haircuts (about 300 baht a pop for Chris but twice as much for me) and several rounds of highlights (expensive!) for me as well. We’ve also spent money on favorite makeup and grooming products (shampoo, face wash, toothpaste, floss, deodorant, razors, hand soap, lotion, body powder). Hey, we like to look and smell nice!
Blog Expenses and Electronics
Total Cost: 12,208 baht / 345 USD per month
Running a blog has its price. Now that Tieland to Thailand has grown, we invested in bigger and better services that allow the site to run more smoothly and look more professional. We upgraded to a more reliable and faster hosting platform and invested in a new page theme when we re-launched our blog. We also invested in services that allowed us to handle our emails and manage our social media better.
We’ve also spent a lot on upgraded electronics this year for the blog. We bought a new camera with two lenses along with a dozen extra batteries, some cleaning tools, a small new travel camera case, and a big travel bag to carry all of our gear if needed. Before starting a YouTube channel, we bought several top-of-the-line audio recording devices and extra accessories for our GoPro including a gimbal for super smooth recording. We also invested in a back-up hard drive so that we don’t lose precious photos and videos.
Since starting a Periscope account, we upgraded a phone to a Samsung Galaxy Note 5 with 4G capability and upped our data usage from 2Gb to 10Gb per month (650 baht to 1,500 baht). This makes for better, clearer live streaming.
A More Realistic Thailand Budget
We admit, we don’t represent the typical demographic that lives in Thailand. Sure, we call Chiang Mai our home as many expats do, but we traveled for a third of the year in 2015 and we also run a blog. Most people don’t do either of these and therefore don’t have the subsequent expenses.
If you took away what we spent on the blog (345 USD) and on travel (627 USD) every month, it’s a very rough yet better estimation of what an average Western couple would spend living in Thailand.
The total budget ends up being 2,826 USD – 345 USD – 627 USD = 1,854 USD per month for two people, which isn’t too shabby!
Have you considered moving to Thailand? Do you think this budget is within your means?
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Hi, we will be travelling to Thailand this June together with my colleagues. I’d like to ask how much should I budget for our 5-day trip there that would serve as my allowance for my personal expenses, excluding transportation, meals and hotel accommodation. Hope I can have your feedback. Thank you.
Excluding meals, transportation, and hotel… without knowing anything about your travel style and lifestyle, we suggest anywhere from 300 baht to 1,000 baht for alcoholic drinks and anywhere from 1,000 baht to 3,000 baht per day for entertainment (shows, excursions, massages). Shopping at a local outdoor market or walking street is cheap (1,000 to 2,000ish baht) but expect to pay Western prices as soon as you walk into a mall or ‘proper’ restaurant. So, bring an extra 4,000 baht per day x 5 days = 20,000 baht (580 USD) to spend. Or just another 100 USD if you plan on… Read more »
First, props and kudos for the blog. it’s well put together and informative, even for someone doing basic research. That’s a lot of work and a lot of thought to achieve that. A set of question if I may: you’ve mentioned going to the gym several times. I’m curious about that. what sort of gym is it? what’s it like? is it a western style ‘planet fitness’ type gym? and old style ‘weights and trainers’ type gym? or is it a thai style gym (which I have no idea what would be). are the gyms (I assume plural) there catering… Read more »
Thanks for your praise and acknowledgment – blogging IS a lot of work :) There are Western gyms catering to expats but some of them are outrageously priced. Those are the Planet Fitness or Golds Gym type, which is not where we go to. We go to a gym in a hotel in Chiang Mai – it’s clean, simple, functional, indoors (AC!). They have cardio machines (opticals, stair steppers, treadmills), free weights in good condition (heavy and light) as well as machines. No squat rack or advanced machinery, though unless you pay top dollar. Thai gyms are open air (bleh)… Read more »
Thanks for the great info for CM. I am one day away from completing a 30 day stay in Chiang Rai as a research trip for retirement next year from the US. I rented on Airbnb a one bedroom condo in a new building for $415 and a motorbike for $85 for the month. Cooking for breakfast and dining out for lunch/dinner and some pub visits has given me a total expense for one person of $800. Housing would stay the same but meals would double in cost when my partner comes with me next year. Looking at doing a… Read more »
Edward, thanks for following us and for sharing your cost of living. $800 is realistic for one person with an easygoing lifestyle in Chiang Rai. We like your idea to spend a month in each town and you’re right – Chiang Rai is smaller and sleepier than Chiang Mai. Some people compare it to what Chiang Mai was 20 or 25 years ago, making it easier (less tempting) to blow your budget. Have a great time in town!
Hi Chris and Angela. I had already joined you on Periscope which sent me here. Really enjoyed Periscopes so far Chris.Very valid for me as I am moving over in April 2018.I will get my retirement visa a few months later on reaching 50..I like Chiang Mai, nisited for a few days and night near the old city last February. I will be settling in Prachinburi where my lady has land.( She also has land near her home city of Buriram). I am finding your posts very informative. I am retiring from the police service in the UK having served… Read more »
Thanks for your comment, Tom. We appreciate you following us on Periscope – what a great way to see Thailand in the raw. It sounds like you have a plan to come here and live a good life. We’ll keep the content coming – blog, Periscope, and eventually the membership site that we’re launching soon. See you around!
I love the graphics and the breakdown of costs. Having this kind of thing be so easy to read and pleasing to the eye is something you rarely see! Thanks for that!
As for me, I’d love to live the kind of lifestyle you guys do, but it’d only be me. Possibly a friend, if I can convince him to take the plunge. Unfortunately, our online incomes don’t approach even a modest standard of living. Neither of us party or drink, so at least we have that going for us. Haha.
Thanks for noticing the graphics :) Hard work definitely went into creating them.
Yeah, we recommend going no lower than 750 USD per person per month. Hopefully you can get a few projects going and reach that goal. Good luck!
I can’t wait for your 2016 cost breakdown. On average what would you say is the yearly increase overall for your spending over the time you have lived in Ching Mai. Cheers Nick
We love cost breakdowns, too! Hm, considering that we 1) changed our mentality from trying to live off $500 per person 2) invested a lot of money in the blog 3) traveled a lot more now that Angela isn’t teaching, we’d say our spending has doubled since coming here in 2013.
Thank you guys for such a long and informative post! My boyfriend and I are planning on relocating to Thailand, so it was very helpful! Love your blog!
Wow, congrats on making that big decision! Glad we could help with the planning :)
what will you recommend or suggest for someone who come live chiang mai for a month to put up in a budget accomodation ? aside from staying in shared domitary ? will it be cheaper to rent a house/room/space for a month ?
We see reports of people spending 4,000 or 5,000 baht a month on rooms. Look for serviced apartments – they will over one room deals that often include amenities, linens, and internet for the month. It’s not worth trying to rent a house for such a short stay.
What did you have to go through to get your cat in country… I have two..thanks. Bill
Check out our post about shipping a cat to Thailand :)
sorry if you’ve covered this already… but how much do you spend on border runs? how often do you make border runs?
Our border runs vary in price – from lengthier out of country trips (wildly ranging from several hundred dollars to over $1,000) to a quick run to the nearest land border ($100). Depending on our visa we either go once a year or every three months.
Wow, well done with the very detailed bookkeeping. One or both of you must have been an accountant in your earlier life, and great with graphics. Very interesting article. Enjoyed reading it. you really should buy your home in CH. As you know, property is not expensive. Stop paying someone else’s mortgage. I recently bought property in BKK and so glad I did. Nice to stay in my own place when in this part of the world. Keep up the great posts!
Thanks! The engineer of the team kept track of the expenses and made the graphs. Fun stuff!
We don’t want to buy a home because we don’t want the responsibility (maintenance, taxes, legalities, inflexibility to move, etc), which was the same mentality we had back in the US. Since the visa situation is always questionable, it’s best not to have such a huge investment and risk losing it if something were to prevent us from living here! We’re glad to hear you like your place in BKK, though.
Thanks so much for the detailed info. I’ve only been here a couple of months, with 6 months worth of visas, and costs vary wildly, so it’s hard to tell friends who ask what it costs to live here. I see places to rent for 30,000 baht a month (about $826 US), and those, like my current abode, for 5600 baht a month (about $154 US), and everything in between. To me, it appears that eating out Thai is actually cheaper than buying Western groceries. I can easily eat out 3 meals a day for $11 US. (and with only… Read more »
I have been here for 2 years and I spent around 25K, including accommodation. People argue with me that it’s not possible, but it is. Although, I don’t really need much. I eat out all the time cause I’m too lazy for cooking. I also don’t really shop at supermarkets as I really dislike them (not only in Thailand, just everywhere really). I also don’t like shopping. Most of my money goes on trips and going out (bars, cinemas etc.). I have never felt like I’m living a frugal life. I calculated that you spent 36K per month per person.… Read more »
We read your recent interview on Nomad Wallet :) We know thousands of expats live on what you do (25k) every month and that’s almost exactly what we were spending the first two years per person (so 50k total for the both of us). We didn’t think it was frugal living either and were comfortable with our daily habits and activities. This year we did a ton of long distance traveling which nearly doubled our yearly expenses. Time to take it easy and get back down to 25k per person. Totally doable.
depends on the kind of lifestyle you pick
Wow, Great post Chris and Angela.
So much information. I just felt that cost of living in Chiang Mai isn’t that cheap as mentioned by some other writers. Btw, I saw a news regarding Netflix. They’re allowing their service to more countries recently.
Living in Thailand can be cheap, but we like to be realistic and show how much it costs to be (really) comfortable and entertained every once in awhile for a Western couple :)
Great breakdown of all the expenses!
I discovered your blog a few weeks ago and I’ve been reading all through it ;)
Going to South-East Asia with my girlfriend from February until May this year and the info on your site has been of huge help.
Would also love to meet you for an interview (for my Entrepreneurship blog).
– Alex
Don’t understand why you don’t have your clothes made its cheap as hell, they do great jobs, you show them what you want from some magazine. have done this many times in Bangkok i assume Chang Mai would be even cheaper
Because it’s more convenient to shop at a store with an existing selection, try things on, and know immediately if it’s good quality and fits properly. But getting our clothes made is an alternative worth trying out since it’s a popular and affordable option in Thailand. Maybe we’ll try it out this year.
Great update! My wife and I are 22 days from our journey to Thailand, and your blog has been really helpful to us while we plan our adventure. It’s really interesting to see where your expenses lie, and how ours might differ. We already have a lot of the blogging upgrades that you guys had to purchase, and I think that our living and eating budgets will be a little more modest. I’m sure there’s lots of things that you just can’t account for ahead of time. Thanks!
It’s cool to compare. We were a bit surprised about our eating out budget, so hopefully that will be reduced these next few months. It adds up so quickly. At least this ballpark is helping you plan. You’ll be here before you know it! :)
This is incredibly interesting! My husband and I have been here for almost 6 months, and our expenses are about in line with what you spent for half of 2015. It’s good to know we weren’t going super crazy with our budget. Thanks for sharing.
Join the club! It’s good to know that another couple out there has our mid-range spending habits. Hope you’re having fun!
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Wow really great post! I only stayed in Chiang Mai for a month, but I did really enjoy it. I could definitely see myself moving back there one day. Thanks for all the info! Hope all is well, and safe travels in 2016!
Thanks, glad you liked it! Happy 2016!
So interesting, I love the statistics!
Who says math can’t be fun? Statistics like these are always interesting :)
Thank you for sharing this info, very useful. Do you use an app to keep track of your spending and produce those great graphs? If so, which one? By the way, love your blog, keep up the good work.
We use the Trial Wallet app to track our spending. And we used good ol’ fashioned MS Excel to make the graphs.
Interesting, thanks! Just one question, where does your medical insurance fit in, and how are you insured, accident and long dta hospital?
We mentioned that we self-insure in the post, which is just a fancy way of saying the we put a big chunk of money in savings and will use that to pay our medical bills.
Thanks for sharing such detailed information! I really appreciate that you track this information so precisely and share it with us. Too many expat posts share rough info which really does not allow others to understand what their costs might be. My Thai wife and I are planning on retiring in Thailand but it will be 5 or more years before we can do so… Have you been able to form any idea of how inflation is affecting your your spending? I am planning on 5% average inflation, which is high but seems to be in line with historical averages… Read more »
Ah, we have not considered adjusting for inflation over the years. For some expenses, such as rent, it is insignificant as we continue to hear that rent prices have hardly increased in the past decade in Chiang Mai (and our own personal rent has not increased); that is to say the existing housing is roughly the same price as before although the new condos that have been thrown up are much more expensive. We have seen prices of street stall food go up (up 17% or 5 baht on a 30 baht meal) and massages (up 20% or 30 baht… Read more »
Thank you for the cost of living update! Nice to see a realistic true cost for a westerner to live in Chiang Mai.
It’s a lot different than a Thai couple or a Thai-Western couple, right? At least we live comfortably and travel tons on much less than we would have in the USA.