A Little Expat Living… Cost of Living in Chiang Mai, Thailand (2023)
Last updated on March 5, 2023
So, you’re researching how much your life will cost elsewhere in the world and you’re considering living in Thailand. There’s a lot of information to sort through now. When I moved to Chiang Mai a decade ago, the city was a very different place for expats (digital nomads were scarce but retirees aplenty), and information was nonexistent about what it would actually cost to live there.
This post was essentially the first online Thailand cost of living breakdown, sharing the nitty gritty details of what your money buys in Thailand, what costs more than back home, and how your own goals might align to moving somewhere in the country (digital nomads and retirees tend to choose a handful of key hotspots around the country). Since it’s hard to know what’s hyperbole in these types of guides, and how your mileage will vary, this guide—and all of my guides to the cost of living around the world—thoroughly cover factors that move the needle on helping you decide if Thailand is the right place to call your future home. This post demystifies the cost of living in Thailand, as well as covers a range of opinions on what it costs to live in the different areas.
Let’s talk in general about why Chiang Mai and other Thai cities are among the most popular expat and digital nomad locations. It comes down to the low cost of living paired with incredible culture and amazing food. These three factors alone contribute to the massive number of retirees who have known about Thailand for years—it’s no secret to them that your money goes far here. But when I arrived in 2011, the term “digital nomad” was in its infancy. A handful of travel bloggers decided to hang out in Chiang Mai for a winter/spring season; we loved all three of those factors, and so we came back the next season, and then many just moved to Thailand permanently (yes, it’s possible). Since then, (and really since I wrote this post, which went viral and was featured on the BBC, among other outlets) Chiang Mai lured other digital nomads with a low cost of living, the promise of good wifi, and a community of others who work remotely. Within a couple of years, Chiang Mai and Ho Chi Minh City became the hotspots in Southeast Asia for entrepreneurs interested in low living costs so they could build and launch businesses.
In 2011, my baselinecost of living for Chiang Mai came in at $485—this number excludes visas, visa runs, personal travel, and annual travel insurance). Adjusted for 2023, as you’ll see below, many digital nomads can live on a baseline of $650 a month. Again, excluding expenses that run annually like insurance, or quarterly like visa runs—these add hundreds of dollars to your average costs, but they will also vary depending on your own insurance costs, costs of running a business, and varying visa costs for some people. Retirees live a bit of a different life—they often buy a condo outright and then have baseline costs of $800 to $1200 for retirees, accounting for healthcare and other expenses and an easier visa situation. Any way you slice the budget though, it’s more affordable to live in Thailand if you’re able to make a living online. I’ve paid rent everywhere from Barcelona to Oaxaca to Orlando to Los Angeles, and my Thailand living costs averaged a third of my previous U.S. living expenses (and about a third of my current expenses in Spain).
As with many places, you’ll face a tradeoff living in some areas. Political instability, road conditions, and smog are just a few of the downsides—we’ll cover how those affect where in Thailand you might want to live. Although I’m surely in the “digital nomad” category, I’ve included many links and resources to help those at any stage of their lives. Retirees with a monthly social security check more easily secure long-term visas since they align more with the type of foreigners Thailand prefers living there full time. Note that cities and towns across Thailand not only have different costs of living, but the profile of the communities differs, too. Thailand offers a huge, varied, and vibrant expat community. We’ll cover it all, plus your quality of life, what your money buys, and how to know if moving to Thailand is right for you.
When I moved to Chiang Mai in 2011, I had this suspicion that I could maintain a fun and full life without obsessing about my expenses. To make this travel life work, I needed to lower my cost of living to keep in line with my online income. I was building my SEO consulting work while also paying off student loans and medical debt, so I had prioritized becoming debt-free within two years. Although I could have moved back to my hometown in Florida and likely saved some costs by pinching pennies, living as a poor person in Florida is not an awesome life—I did that for 20+ years. Frankly, the best way for me to not go further into debt was to stay outside of the U.S. If you’re a digital nomad on a tight budget, or a retiree with a fixed social security check, you understand the core desire for a low cost of living even if your circumstances differ.
So I moved to Thailand, talked to others, and discovered everyone’s core motivations for moving there came down to a few key areas. Medical care can be a major motivating factor. Thailand offers among of the top hospitals in Southeast Asia, checkups are affordable, and dental care is on par with the U.S. When you move to Thailand, you don’t live in fear of getting sick and burying yourself under medical debt—Thai health insurance is moderately priced and it works. If you’re looking for a place that can support any of your current or future health issues, it’s a compelling factor.
There’s also the culture. Thai culture is lived out in the open at the markets and in the many celebrations that take place throughout the year (Loy Krathong, Umbrella Festival, and Songkran to name just three). It’s a vibrant culture and a fun one to access as an expat instead of as a passing tourist. So much underneath the culture is impossible to absorb during a two-week trip of the country’s “best of” highlights. That culture extends into the truly exceptional culinary traditions (you will eat your face off!), but also the sheer number of international influences (you can still find sushi and decent Mexican in the bigger cities!).
The expat community is another compelling reason to consider Thailand. More than many places I’ve lived over the years, including Mexico and Spain, Thailand has a truly unique range of expats. The community is huge and varies in each region, which means most expats can find something to love and a place they’ll enjoy calling their new home. In some places, the community is retirees hoping to stretch their nest-egg and enjoy their twilight years, while elsewhere offers concentrated packs of digital nomads looking to bootstrap a business from Southeast Asia. And within both of those communities is any and everything in between—some living there for the culture or the food, and some for shadier reasons that I won’t get into. It’s a mixed bag.
For me, I chose to live in Thailand for two years because it fulfilled many of my long-term goals. I lived a more minimalist life (I am a huge fan of the tiny house movement!), but it was not sparse. I love beauty and spending money on things I value. I lived in a Thai neighborhood, I volunteered locally and I ate locally, I made friends widely in the expat and Thai communities, and I spent my days working when I needed to, but not slavishly tied to my computer in a bid to constantly make more money. Living in Thailand allowed me to enjoy a slower life alongside some of my now closest friends.
Visas: Chiang Mai is a great launching point to other areas in Asia for in-depth explorations of Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and other quick flights and bus rides around Southeast Asia. If you’ve retired in Thailand, you don’t have to run to the border. And some friends have student visas for studying Thai, and they also don’t do visa runs. If you’re doing visa applications and visa runs, your costs are higher and your ability to stay long-term is also precarious (Thailand is cracking down on the number of back-to-back visas it will issue). This situation was made even more precarious and impossible in the wake of 2020’s lockdowns—those not legally living in Thailand on long-term visas faced challenges as many nations across Asia (and the world) closed their borders for months on end. It highlighted the fact that you should find a legal visa option for your situation so you can settle in and enjoy your new life in Thailand.
What Does It Cost to Live in Thailand?
Living in Thailand comes down to two things: your baseline costs (fixed monthly expenses), and your personal lifestyle, which you add onto the top of those costs. Foreigners will have baseline living costs of USD $600 minimum. That’s in a place like Chiang Mai or smaller cities—it will cost more to live in the Thai island, Bangkok, or retiree hotspots. This figure is used as a minimum—these estimates do not include the visa runs you’ll need if you’re on a tourist visa. Even with the double entry visa, border runs are necessary every 60-90-ish days. Retirees will have their own specific minimum social security income they need to prove before they even receive the retiree visa (about $2000 USD per month). This number includes eating a fair amount of Thai food, choosing a smaller apartment, and things like that—it’s about the minimum base average you could reasonably expect to maintain long-term, and I find that it’s mostly digital nomads who are willing to live on this figure. Retired expats report minimum monthly expenses above USD $1,000 when accounting for different modes of transportation, elevated healthcare costs, food, etc.
Minimum Cost Living in Thailand in 2022: USD $650
Your baseline cost of living in Thailand is $600 as a baseline minimum for Chiang Mai expats, and more like $750 to live in Bangkok—layer your Thai visa and lifestyle costs on top of these numbers.
Monthly Expense
Minimum Cost (USD$)
Rent & Internet
$230
Electricity & Water
$30
Maid
$15
Food
$190
Scooter & Gas
$100
Evenings Out
$75
Total
$650
Chiang Mai Cost of Living: $650 to $1800
The table bears out my own minimum expenses to show how I lived on $600 USD each month in Chiang Mai (adjusted to 2023 dollars). Since I was not yet old enough to qualify for the income-based retiree visa, I did the the tourist visas and the border runs mentioned in the quick facts section above. The international flights bracketing my stay in Thailand were roughly $800 each way, so factor that into my “fixed” costs. If you are on a tight budget then you need to consider if and how often you will return to your home country. Another digital nomad detailed exactly what life looks like on $650 a month, with an expense breakdown, too.
When you look at other budgets, understand that everyone includes different things that they prioritize in their lives. I wanted to provide the minimum so others could actually see the baseline they could then stack on top of that cost of living their own priorities, business expenses, etc. I paid more than the $650 if you average in things I pay for annually, like the $600 expense for my annual travel insurance. Really basic medical check-ups are included in my monthly fee because they came to under $100 for women checkups and basic blood work across my many months living there. If you will need to obtain Thai health insurance, this expat breaks down that process.
In Chiang Mai, roughly $230 a month in rent pays for nice but basic digs. I shared a two bedroom house in the heart of Chiang Mai, within the moat of the downtown inner city (our $15 maid service was provided by my landlord and not optional). I shared the house with a roomie and fellow blogger, Jodi of Legal Nomads. We jointly paid 10,000 baht monthly for the house and wifi. The house had tiled floors, one and a half baths, a tiny kitchen (no stove, those are rare in Thai houses), a sturdy dining room table perfect for working, and a comfy living room. It was Thai-style, so note that a Western-style apartment runs a good deal more.
Elsewhere in Chiang Mai, studio apartments run the gamut between 3,500 and 9,000 baht a month. These work well for solo travelers looking for something nice but budget. Nearly all apartments offer wifi. The internet in Chiang Mai is better than many places, but can wildly fluctuate throughout the day (my house had super speedy internet in the am, but not so much in the evening when everyone watched TV and thus slowed the cable internet down to a crawl). That’s when you might need to factor in the price of a monthly co-working space subscription.
Chris and Angela are a 30-something couple living in Chiang Mai long-term. They report a lovely house rental outside of the moat with good amenities—they’ve lived there for several years and averaged $2,624 a month for a couple. I don’t love that they included the cost of running their blog in the expenses as it’s certainly not a universal expense (and my expenses running this blog are half of theirs, so it’s not even accurate to all bloggers), but it’s interesting to note that only $456 of that figure is their rent. Their budget shows that one of the benefits of living in Chiang Mai is that your money stretches far and you can maintain a very nice life with just a bit more luxurious budget.
And if you’re really looking for comfort, you’ll pay USD $1,200 for a huge Western-style house furnished that is well-outfitted. Jubril from the Passport Heavy YouTube channel gives a tour of the house (minute 6:14), as well as what it costs to live that lifestyle in Chiang Mai.
Bangkok Cost of Living: Cost of Living: USD $700 – $3,000
Bangkok has a similar quality of accommodation, but the cost of living is higher in the big city. Karsten shares the most detailed budgets you’ll find for Bangkok, and he’s very open about sharing what it takes to maintain his life in the city. It’s a realistic look at what a 30-something expat can expect when living in Thailand’s capital. He spends on the upper range and he has a wife, but it appears that most of his expenses are solo? Although I am not sure, really, and his breakdown is unclear. He spends $2,600 a month and lives well on that much money. Of that money, about $400 per month goes toward a Western-style apartment. It’s interesting for anyone considering moving there to see how a $600 monthly budget in Chiang Mai compares to a higher budget in Bangkok—Karsten gets a lot for that much money.
On the other end, you can go bare bones in Bangkok and live in the $400 range (My friend Mark was living on less than $300 a month in 2011), but that’s going to be tough as that figure is tough even for Thai people who know the system well. Even for $700 a month, you will make serious sacrifices in your budget that you wouldn’t if you lived in the more affordable cities like Chiang Mai. For $700, you are not living in the expat neighborhoods (you’re certainly not in central Bangkok) and you are eating a ton of street food, probably not splurging on nights out at the expat bars and such, and you’re not using Uber and the like. But, you can definitely enjoy Bangkok still, grab coffees from a favorite vendor, use mototaxis or your feet to get around town, etc. I don’t think this baseline budget is sustainable long-term—you’ll need to plan on increasing your expenditures if you live in Bangkok for longer than a single three-month visa.
What’s the Quality of Life?
This section is a close look at what I get for the price of living in Chiang Mai. The quality of life will be similar in other areas of Thailand, it’s just the costs that will change. And the islands, of course, have beaches nearby and some other perks. The north, on the other hand, has mountains, hill tribe cultures, and different foods than you find elsewhere in the country.
What Do You Get for Your Rent?
Basic and budget accommodation in Thailand means Thai-style furniture and kitchens. This is usually fine for backpackers and those really prioritizing budget over comfort, but Thai furniture is much harder and less cushioned compared to traditional Western styles. So a budget studio apartment will likely feature an incredibly firm mattress and some heavy wooden furniture. Thai accommodation also doesn’t feature kitchens like most Westerners would expect—there is often no stove and it’s pretty sparse. Places boasting a Western style kitchen usually mean it’s a remodeled kitchen with a stove, at least medium sized refrigerator, and a few other amenities.
It’s for these reasons that many expats splurge and spend a bit more for Western style apartments, especially after the first year or two of living in Thailand.
To find long-term Chiang Mai spots, consider using Chiang Mai House if you are looking for help on a long-term house rental. I also collected a list of long and short term accommodation—all places friends have stayed, I have stayed, or I have seen recommended. This is also a good post that can help you imagine what places look like at different price points, as well as some solid recommendations on buildings and areas.
Notably, one ALA reader shared that Huay Kaew Residence is the best wheelchair-friendly accommodation in Chiang Mai (and perhaps the only, in his experience).
In Bangkok, you’ll likely want to find a real estate agent once you arrive; it’s the norm and is affordable. They will help you pick a neighborhood and find something in your price range. You can also start your research using this guide to apartment hunting in Bangkok.
Tasty Local Eats
I regularly chow down on pad thai and pad see ew from the street stalls around town for about 40 baht a meal (a buck!). I add a fresh fruit smoothie to that for a mere 30 baht and call it a meal, totaling out most nights at less than US $3 for fresh, made-to-order Thai food from smiling street food vendors.
The occasional Western meal jacks the weekly food costs up quite a bit; a thin crust pizza from a farang restaurant sets you back at least 250 baht. I mostly eat Thai food, but expect that you will spend more than you anticipate on food from home—you just will. Plus, I confess that coffee is a daily habit and ice cream is a weekly addiction. iBerry, a trendy ice cream shop more fitting on a chic corner of Los Angeles than a side-street in Chiang Mai, shakes things up with tangy tamarind sorbet, a spicy roselle, and a cooler full of other flavors. Always different, always worthy of my undying affection.
Your balance of Western and local foods will greatly impact your bottom line, so consider how often you will cook your own food, eat local, and eat at expat spots.
Transportation
Chiang Mai’s small enough to either walk, push bike, or take localsongthaews around town, but I preferred using a scooter. The rental was cheap enough and zipping around town made me feel that much more like a local. Plus, the local Thais burst into giggles when I rode up to the night markets with my roomie on the back. It was easier for us to take one bike when we were hitting up the same spots, so we’d ride Thai-style, with two farang on one bike. And they loved us for it, especially since my roomie is “Thai-sized” according to locals.
If you’re moving elsewhere in Thailand, consider the different types of transport options. In Bangkok, you definitely won’t have to buy a motorbike. It’s easy to catch a motorcycle across town for a buck or two, and Thailand’s metro system is operates across some of the more important areas of town. When all else fails, you’ll just grab a taxi and head across town. Bangkok transport costs can, for this reason, vary a lot depending on how often you go out and need to use the various forms of transport.
Most expats in the Thai islands use personal motorbikes. Although the small beach communities are walkable, it’s often a bit further to get groceries, and you won’t likely live in the downtown areas since the beach communities have gorgeous, quiet communities spread throughout the islands.
Most expats in Thailand for more than a year buy a bike, but if you want to rent you’ll find the best rates when you rent for six months to a year.
New Friendships & The Thai Expat Scene
Chiang Mai has a vibrant expat scene. This is one of the key reasons I returned again in 2011 with my niece. I loved the mix of expats and locals and how accessible the entire town feels. Chiang Mai doesn’t lack choices for evenings out on the town. The city has a bit of something for any mood: karaoke, dance clubs, quiet rooftop bars, and bowling. In the years since I’ve left, there is also a much more vibrant digital nomad community, which has meant some new trendy bars to cater to them too!
It’s important to note that my entertainment budget for Chiang Mai is conservative. I’m not a party animal, so those who are will definitely find this portion of expenses quite a bit higher if they really like to get their groove on regularly. In fact, add at least $100 per month if you go out 2+ times per week and drink.
For the rest of Thailand, the community really differs. Bangkok has a much larger expat community spread across a much larger area. You can find expats of all ages and styles. There are communities of retirees, a startup and entrepreneurial scene, and a good number of digital nomads who want a big city feel. The Thai islands also have a contingent of expats, though I found this scene to have a much smaller community of long-term young expats. There are older expat families and retirees, and then there is a large number of short-term partiers in the region for just a couple months.
Thailand offers great hospitals and an affordable life. Checkups are affordable and dental care is on par with the U.S. In Thailand, I don’t live in fear of getting sick and being buried under more medical debt. It’s just nice.
I am a traveler. My stories span the globe and I’ve been traveling and expat-ing steadily since 2008. Though I no longer live in Thailand (I moved to Mexico and wrote a cost of living post about it too! And as of 2023, I have lived in Barcelona, Spain for five years. Check out all my Cost of Living Guides here), I return frequently. Since my first visit, I returned to Thailand with my niece for our year of homeschooling and travel.
This page represents my research and experiences over the years. Many of my friend live similar lifestyles in the region. They live and work in the city long-term, and they live simply (and locally) on this budget. It’s about your travel style. I don’t party and I love Thai food, so it’s easy for me to eat cheaply and enjoy the many, many free local festivals that happen monthly around Northern Thailand. It’s a wonderful spot for socially responsible tourism. Thailand has a compelling quality of life and culture. One of my favorite parts about Chiang Mai was the ability to jet off on the weekend for trips around the region (not included in my baseline costs).
As a freelancer, I enjoy knowing that Thailand is a wonderful spot to live, work, and play. Below are the resources I have collected over the years to help with a move, living there, researching, etc.
If you’re still researching various expat spots, check out our other Cost of Living Guides for a look at what it takes to move to the world’s most popular expat spots.
The Basics of Moving to Thailand
Travel insurance
You will need comprehensive worldwide expat insurance and separate property insurance policy once you’re living overseas—I’ve used IMG Global and Clements for many years now with great success and highly recommend both. IMG Global is the perfect for insurance for covering your health and belongings while you’re in the transition phase of moving overseas, or visiting to scope it all out. The company offers travel insurance as well as annual expat plans (I’ve used both with great success over the past decade). Once you’re in the country living there legally, you’ll want local insurance. This expat has a great guide to securing Thai Health insurance. You’ll also want property insurance once you’re living overseas—I’ve used Clements for many years now.
Learn Thai
Thai for Beginners is the most recommended starting point as it’s a bit outdated but does the lessons well. This gives you a good head start and a paper book, which is valuable for studying, but you will need more information beyond that. You may want to hire a tutor when you arrive, or use one of the recommended online courses like ThaiPod 101 or Learn Thai from a White Guy. My niece and I took private lessons from Lah in Chiang Mai—she’s great. If you’re learning Thai for the student visa, however, you have to go through a language school.
Handling Taxes as an Expat
The Tax Book for U.S. Expats is well-priced and unique to expats and retirees filing abroad. It gives a granular look at forms, terms, and sorting out exactly how to file — good for those with complicated tax situations. More recently released, U.S. Taxes for Worldly Americans goes broader and is aimed at younger expats and digital nomads still working and handling how to earn income overseas, pay taxes, and live a nomadic life. It doesn’t explain the terms or niche situations/forms as well as the other book, but instead acts as a guide for younger expats. Depending on your situation, pick up a copy of one of these guides before you leave so that you will have a tax system in place that maximizes the opportunities to easily file.
Making the Move Overseas
There are a lot of general guides for moving or retiring overseas. Getting Out: Your Guide to Leaving America is the better of the “move overseas” books—it covers the practicalities and very hands-on information you need as someone considering living anywhere outside the U.S. If you’re new all the researching, this can kick-start your process. And if you are laser focused on the retirement topic, versus moving overseas at a different state in life, this retirement guide has great advice.
Cost of Living Elsewhere in SEA
In case you’re weighing the thought of Cambodia, it’s a destination that is hard to find covered online, and Move to Cambodia is one of the best resources you will find. If you’re considering Vietnam as well, the Vietnam Cost of Living Guide covers it in depth.
Cultural Readings
Sightseeing is a thoughtful and intriguing look at the two sides of Thailand. The one for tourists and the one plagued with economic and societal issues. If you’re interested in better understanding Thai culture before you move there, start here. The short-story format makes it an easy but compelling read.
If you’re moving to Thailand, it’s best to arrive in and book at least a week in a guesthouse. And definitely consider just doing a reconnaissance trip to scope it all out. Before you book long-term, you’ll want to all the options in person.
In Chiang Mai, consider 9 Hostel or Sabai Hostel on a budget, Kham Phai for midrange, and De Naga for a nice place from which to organize your search.
There’s a heap of accommodation in Bangkok. Consider or Lub d Silom Hostel on a budget, Amara Bangkok for midrange, and Hotel Muse for a nice place from which to organize your search.
Still researching the right spot to live? Our Cost of Living Guides share extensive resources on all the major expat spots around the world. These guides include thorough breakdowns of the culture, quality of life, vibe, and—importantly—budget breakdowns so you can better plan which spot in the world best meets your needs.
322 thoughts on “A Little Expat Living… Cost of Living in Chiang Mai, Thailand (2023)”
Hi Shannon,
Thanks so much for such a comprehensive post. Because I have food intolerances and a very sensitive stomach coupled with being a picky eater (I don’t like fish, pork, or intestines for example), I can’t eat spicy food (even black pepper is spicy for me so their mild would still be too spicy for me) or from the local stalls.
When we were visiting Bangkok on holiday, we only ate at expensive tourist restaurants/hotels which is of course not sustainable when we become digital nomads.
From a budgeting perspective then, would your pizza example of 250 bhat be a good guide for calculating expenses?
Would you also know if it is easy to get local domestic help, e.g. someone coming in once a week to clean and cook? If so, would you have any idea how much that would cost?
How do I get retirement Visa, and how much it cost, i live in Miami and thinking to move to Thailand do I get the visa before I go or do I ge it once there’s am collecting $1100 social security is that enough to live a decent life there single? CM is it a good starting place?
I am not sure that $1100 meets the minimum income required to qualify for a retirement visa, which at last check was 40,000 Baht (about $1300+ USD). I would head to the expat forums and expat groups and read through the very extensive information online about what it takes to qualify for a visa. Once you have the visa, yes, CM is a great budget place to enjoy the lifestyle and culture of Thailand.
Don’t go as a retiree, that ties your money up and no good if you don’t like it, then it is too late, go as a tourist and split your time from several different countries, mix it up, Vietnam, Kathmandu (can be very cheap, with visa for up to 150 days), Thailand, Philippines, just factor in travel cost that are cheap. Go cheap, go light, go now.
Hi, you mention doing volunteering work when you were there. What kind of project was it? That is something I’d be interested in. I am a teacher and qualified translator, though I’d be happy to help with a range of activities. Véro
Hi Vero, I volunteered with We Women! http://wewomenfoundation.org/ – at the time they needed volunteers who could commit 3 months — even though that’s not listed on their site, I would get in touch with them and ask what they have locally in CM, where they do still have an office as far as I know.
Can I recommend our favorite hotels and hostels? =) I think there are not more than 20 of them, but it really is, in our opinion, the best hotels and hostels in Chiang Mai.
These are good (it’s important) hostels and hotels. But they may not seem quite cheap. But I hope that not only those who value the price, but also those who care about quality, come to Chiang Mai. At the same time, one must understand that a high price is not always a high quality, and high quality is not always a high price =)
Best hostel Old City area: Hostel by BED, Sherloft Home, Eden
Night Bazaar area: Plearn Hostel, Tawan Hostel Club, Monkey Toe
Nimman area: Bed Addict Hostel, Bake Room
Best 3 star hotel (swimming pool include) Old City area: iLanna House, BED Phrasingh
Chang Moi area: My Chiangmai Boutique Lodge, Chedi Home
Night Bazaar area: Villa Thapae
Amazing 4 star hotels Old City: Pingviman Hotel (number 1 in my rating), Tapae Gate Villa, 99 The Heritage Hotel
Wat Ket: Rimping Village, Riverside Floral Inn
Arount Thapae Gate: De Chai the Deco Hotel, Tamarind Village
5 star 137 Pillars House and The Dhara Devi (I like their cakes so much, but they also have an excellent hotel)
Also, very good guesthouses in Old city: Green Tiger Vegetarian House, Pissamorn House, Thongran’s House and Baan Siwali
Just searching google for things about Chiang Mai and came across this. I never lived there but I have been there twice and am seriously considering “disappearing” for a year or so and CM is my first choice for living on a budget. Very reassuring to see you have the same experience with the city and the prices. This just inspired me even more. Thanks :)
So glad you found the information useful Stereo, and that we are on the same page with CM. If you’re looking for a place to really just disappear and sink into the local pace of life, I think CM is tops for that. Good food, as many activities as you might want to do, and good expats all over the city! Good luck on making the transition! :)
I think inside the moat can be great if you want a monthly guesthouse rental and to be walkable to a lot of things, or there are a *lot* of apartments off the Northwest corner of the moat, near Kad Suan Keaw mall and the Santitam area. Those all should have places in your price range! :)
I love visiting Chiang Mai. I run my own internet business and I’ve often thought of just packing up and moving there because it’s a great way to live cheap and save on expenses… Only thing is I have a cat and I don’t know what I’d do with him. I’m going to spend 5 weeks in chiang mai next year and working a bit as I travel with my boyfriend. I am very excited. I love finding articles like this and sharing them with my family because they can’t believe how cheap you can live in Thailand. I would probably spend much more than this for a bigger place and kitchen (I write recipe ebooks) but I love how all other expenses are so low. :)
That cat is tough Veronica, I understand that it can be hard to tidy up things up home enough to be able to travel long term. Five weeks is a great length of time to figure out if you like the town. You would definitely need to spend more on rent, but you could get a *beautiful* place with a full kitchen and then still have affordable food for your cookbook work! If there is ever anything I can do to help, please let me know . Happy planning and safe travels :)
I was researching the cost of shipping Thai food to the US and on google I saw my name next to a link for this site(my name is Shannon O’Donnell) I just thought that was funny! Have fun in Thailand :-)
CM Bluehouse is in a great location ) and all of the great party spots are walkable from there, and I think it is clean and safe for your belongings. There are a lot of great guesthouses, but that is the only one I have expereince with really! Also, my post on recs for the city is here: https://alittleadrift.com/2011/08/best-places-in-chiang-mai/
Shannon, thanks for your great blog and good luck on your blogging. Great going so far. I have been living in Thailand now for 10 years and ready to give BKK the push-off. I was thinking Chaing Mai might be a good alternative so planning an exploratory trip. I noticed your very modest price for a motorcycle rental. Where did you find one so cheap? Is it monthly, weekly? I did find Tony Big Bikes rents automatics for 210 baht per day. Your expert advice sought. Terry in BKK
Hi Terry, I rented from a friend of a friend and that surely is why I got a lower price than it looks on the surface. If you rent from Bikey or Tony, the big ones, the prices are harder to negotiate. But even with them, if you are renting for six months to a year you have real room to bargain. A friend found similar rates with a year renting, I managed my rate for five months. Once you are there ask around, see if friends of yours in BKK have family that are keen to rent–that’s how I found a good rate. I know my friend who had the year managed to get it for about 2000b for the 6+ months. Hope that helps and best of luck moving north! :)
I accidentally remembered that I recommended recently good hotels and hostels in Chiang Mai. hahhahaha )))) Therefore, do not hesitate to recommend our rental of motobikes in Chiang Mai! )))) Cat Motors forever! 555 Only I have a big wish – be sure to write that we do not rent motorbikes to travelers who do not know how to ride motorbike. It’s dangerous for life and can be fatality out. And it’s not a joke.
I’ll be going to Cambodia in a few months to teach english and really didn’t even consider Thailand because I only ever hear party stories about peoples visits there and I am not a big party person. But after reading this article I am definitely going to make sure I visit Chiang Mai and maybe I’ll even look for a teaching job there! Thank you for the article.
Thailand has some really wonderful areas! The north is more of the cultural center, and the partying you heard about happens down in the islands mostly (and BKK of course). Good luck finding teaching jobs, there are many in the region and each city can have such a different vibe from another, so be sure to explore! And let me know if I can help in any way :)
Hi Meghan, Just got back from a 6 week solo trip to Thailand. Never had a sip of alcohol, only 2 nights out past 10pm, and I still had a great time. Do the trip that YOU want, not what other’s want. TravelingFirefighter@yahoo.com
Do you still recommend Chiang Mai for older people? I need to quit working. I am 67 and just can’t do my job well anymore. It’s time to leave but I don’t have much income for retirement. Do you think health care is decent? Do you know any older Americans there? I’d be interested in their perspective. thanks
Hi Candace! Your question is great, and yes, I think Chiang Mai is a really wonderful spot for older people–I know many of my expat friends were 50+ and they had a vibrant community and routines they enjoyed. Transportation is such that you can either use the shared open taxi-trucks, or you can buy a bicycle (one friend does this to get around) or even a motorbike–the city is small enough that a bike is a great option if you’re fit enough for it. As for healthcare, they have several US quality/certified hospitals, and I have always found them clean, efficient and to tell the truth, if I was diagnosed with a major illness I would likely go to Thailand for treatment, that’s how good they are. Hope that gives you some new things to look at/think about! ~Shannon ?:)
Hello, thank you for taking time to post some of your know how to live comfortably in Thailand. I am interested in living in Thailand for at least three months (get out of cold in michigan ) and maybe longer. ‘ve l worked and lived in Africa and have done some travel around Europe and Africa and enjoy the international annuities. I’ve heard about Thailand and would like to try it. I don’t need to work but volunteering sounds good.
Thank you,
Bill
Thailand is a great place to go for three months– you can get a feel for the country, see a lot if you are keen to explore, or settle into a three month apartment rental and begin to feel like a local by the time you leave. Work visas are tricky and require some extra obstacles to jump through if you are keen to find work in Thailand, otherwise you could definitely find volunteering to do nearly anywhere in the country! :)
Thanks for all that useful information Shannon. I’m a Canadian teaching in Bangkok since 4 months and fell in love with ChiangMai. I’m looking into ways to break my contract here and move up there with my freelancer boyfriend (who is back at home also looking into ways to take a year off from work). Do you know if there’s a lot of teaching or web design jobs over there? We wonder how much savings we should take with us to cover for the first 2 months of job hunting… Bangkok seems to be more expensive but with more job opportunities. Maybe I’m wrong about the work though. Would be nice to get your opinion on that. I miss rock climbing in Bangkok and know that Chiang Mai got lots of climbing spots so I would be happier there I’m sure. How many hours a week do you need to work to live that lifestyle? Seems like I got the same in Bangkok but things are more expensive.
Hi Isabel! Thanks for commenting and sharing your situation. There are definitely teaching jobs in Chiang Mai, I have several friends who work as teachers, but it is competitive and you should give yourself time and perhaps time your move to when schools hire new teachers (after breaks maybe, not sure when that is). Web design is a lot harder — there may be companies needing that, but at the same time Chiang Mai bussiness-wise is a lot smaller market. Has your boyfriend considered freelancing for any past clients he had so he is making a stronger currency? Rock climbing is available in CM for sure, it’s not a huge community, but I know there is a rock climbing wall and often trips outside of town. Networking is a big part of it all, if you have connections, start asking them about friends and opportunties in CM, it’s a small country and there is a lot of overlap in the businesses and people in many ways. And lastly, consider the non-profit community for opportunitites–CM has MANY more non-profits and organizations like that and you or your boyfriend could look into that route as well.
I am an American Expat living in Pattaya. I have lived in Thailand with my Thai partner for 20+ years. I recommend a LENGTHY visit before jumping in with both feet. No two peope have similar tastes, so hence individual cost of living vary. During the past coupe of years there has been a steady rise in inflation. The dollar has fallen in value, and the Thai Baht has gained some strength. Excellent medical services are available at a lesser costs. If can offer any seasoned advice, you can reach me at RPRON@AOL.COM.
Regards, ROBERT
Hi Robert, thanks for weighing in on this, and for providing your email for anyone interested–that’s very valuable to have a seasoned expat on tab! I usually send people to the Thai Visa forum to ask there since I haven’t lived in Thailand long enough to have a lot of the hurdles like taxes, visas, businesses, etc., all figured out. Cheers and thanks for providing yourself as a source of help! :)
hi shannon how are you? i have been to thailand 4 times before and love it. i have always dreamed about living there full time. im from northern ireland. i was always worried about the visa – what type would i have to go for and could i live there permanently just by doing visa runs? by the way im 36 and was considering selling my home and try and live off the monthly interest (whatever that may be now!!) of course i would check it out before i came to any rash decisions! many thanks :)
Living in Thailand for years on end, just on visas, is difficult. You can get away with the double entry visa that gives you roughly six months with a few hoops (you have to renew the visa at 60 days, cross a border at 90, then once you cross back in … can be the same day…repeat for the second “entry” — renew after 60 days, leave at 90 and get a new double-entry from a Thai embassay). It’s not overly difficult, but you couldn’t do it for a decade. The forums at Thai Visa are FULL of useful information http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ on this type of situation. Easy solutions are often simply taking a language class a few times a week. It can be done and you can look around the heaps of advice in the forum for some other ideas :)
Hello Shannon, Thank you for this great blog info on living in Thailand. I’ve been really thinking if i save enough dough while working here in the US i can live there F/T in roughly 10yrs very comfortably, i have a full military pension so based on your blog notes i think it won’t be a problem living stress free there. I have a question about the banks, if you have a short list of good reliable banks there?. Thank you again and TC from Maryland, USA. Best Regards, Brian C.
So glad you found it helpful, it’s important to note that it really depends on what standard of living you want to maintain. In the post I link to a lot of things you should look at — other budgets, rental houses, condos, agents, etc.Fully furnished is tough–nice condos with a full kitchen could run $600-700 in just rent (check out here: http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/the-cost-of-living-luxuriously-in-chiang-mai/ While a one bedroom at Smith Residence http://www.chiangmaismithres.com would be more like $400 perhaps. There is a lot in between as well. And you can rent an entire house for $350 rent (no furniture or utilities).
As for banks, I would head to the expat forums for Thailand: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ and ask around, they are wonderful sources of information for anyone considering the move. I know there are specific banking requirements if you retire there, so best to read through the forums and ask for recs! Best of luck :)
Sorry if you get two responses from me, I responded to the wrong one at first! For banks, I would head to the expat forums for Thailand: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ and ask around, they are wonderful sources of information for anyone considering the move. I know there are specific banking requirements if you retire there (fees, and it has to be a government bank I believe) so best to read through the forums and ask for recs so you know all the nitty-gritty specifics! Best of luck :)
is it dangerous to walk threw town or go into a local place of business & is tai accentual or could u live there with out learning a new language »^+^« Kat from CA
You should always be aware of your surroundings, and any place that is fine during the day could be different at night, but I generally feel very safe in many parts of the country and have walked home with friends from bars in Chiang Mai without a second thought.
The accents in Thai make the language very difficult, but you can learn it, it’s definitely possible to study, you’ll have ample places to practice, and you can be negotiating/using basic Thai at restaurants within a month or two.
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts and costs on living in Chiang Mai. My partner & myself are heading to Thailand in May for at least 8 weeks and I’m thinking very seriously about changing that to indefinite. You only live once – there’s so much more to life than the rat-race of London – I just have this gut feeling that indefinite is the right thing to do.
Eight weeks is a really great starting point, and you may very well fall in love with the city. At the same time, it’s great that you are giving yourself a taste of it, and perhaps another area of Thailand will call to you once you visit. As you said, you only live once, so embrace the adventure, and I wish you so much luck on the trip. If there is ever anything I can do to help, let me know! :)
While I don’t usually respond to inappropriate personal observations, I am nearly 29, not 25. As for the food, luckily you seem to have a misinformed opinion about street food, because it’s really great! There are many more options than just the fried dishes. Lots of delicious soups (khao soi=yum!), somtam is fresh papaya, curries that the vendors make at home and bring to the markets, and I love the grilled/steamed veggie vendors (I am a vegetarian, so I eat really quite healthy most anywhere I go). And if you’re in Chiang Mai, there is a really delicious (one of my favorite in the world) salad restaurants, Salad Concept, on Nimman and their huge fresh salads are only 50b! So, it’s really misinformation that you have to pay a lot to eat well, I prefer fresh or steamed vegetables and can usually eat for 30b Thai (and Burmese, def great Burmese food at that price too) and under 70b Western in Chiang Mai (much more expensive in Bangkok and down south though). Cheers and good luck.
HI Shannon
Can someone from the South USA live all year round in CM. Is it prefereable to leave during the Wet Season or the REALLY Hot Season. Really fantastic BLOG
It’s definitely okay to live there year-round, though I usually bow out during rainy season. My friend Dan and his wife Lindsay ( ) have lived there for a couple of years now (she’s a teacher), and they stay for hot, rainy, and dry and seem to enjoy it :) And, Chais and Shawna, , live in CM year-round too! Though I prefer the cool, dry season, it can be a wonderful place to live year-round.
Thank you so much for the conformation! I have been looking at both Vietnam and Thailand but have been worried about the employment should I decide to stay long term. Can you put me in touch with some of your connections or friends that teach conversational English so that I may properly prepare? My email is hansbergquist@yahoo.com
Hi again! I’ve been chatting with a few people from Thailand and wanted to confirm what I have heard. Is it true that a person from America without a degree can be hired by a language school to teach english with only a EFTOL or TESOL? I’ve been told yes but would have to make a visa run every 60 days…
You don’t need more than that to get hired, and I have friends ( http://noplacetobe.com/ ) who got hired just months after finishing her TOEFL. Now, there are many people who also want to teach, but if you have the qualifications, the time to look and apply, and patience, you can find work in Thailand (and Vietnam, China, etc). Good luck! :) As for visas, if you are hired by a Thai school, they will give you a work visa and that does not typically require you to leave every 60 days.
Hey thanks so much for giving up your time so patiently. Hubby two kids and I are making plans for a move early next year and finding so many positive people who are Expats in Thailand is clearing away a lot of my fears.
You’re welcome, so glad you found it helpful. Thailand has an enormous expat community, and if you are sending your kids to an International School, you will have an even more instant community to tap into. So much good luck with the move, and I hope you enjoy your time over there :)
Once again thank you your site has been very helpful! I think cm may be a great place to start! We are planning on spending 4 years in S.E. Asia. Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines are also on the list before we go to Europe. Where are you going next and will you be doing a similar blog?
That is a fantastic length of time — you will see and experience a lot over four years! I am unsure of my next plans, but they may include South America I think, and I will continue to update this site with stories and photos as I travel. :)
Wow! Thanks for all the info :-) I would prefer 10,000 baht per month because then I would not need to work and don’t really mind if I’m in north cm or even Korat. Is $350 a place that would have a western style bathroom and kitchen with air conditioning? Also any other suggestions as to cheap areas to rent fir 10,000 or less? Thanks again!
Chiang Mai is a great spot because it straddles the traditional culture and Western conveniences. And yes, the bathrooms are most often western, and there is A/C in many, you can easily find one that accommodates that need. But know that electricity in Thailand is really very, very expensive!
That’s a tough one because it would really depend on what area you were in (and that can vary widely depending on what school job you get) but I would plan that a 2-3 bedroom would run you $500 – $1000? I only ever lived in Chiang Mai in the north, and I know Bangkok is more expensive than CM. In CM, you can get a house for as little as 10,000 baht…which is about $350 US, so I am really guestimating. Thai Visa Forum is a great place though to find specific information from other expats: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ :)
I was in Thailand last November and fell in love with the way of life and how cheap everything was! I’ve been working fir banks for the past 13 years. Unfortunately I do not have a college degree but with my professional experience I was told it should be est to get an English teaching position with the tesol. Is that correct? Also what might I expect for a salary?
November is a beautiful time of year in the country (rivaled only by December I think) and I loved the Lantern festival they hold at the beginning of the month, I hope you were able to see it? As for teaching English over there, a TEOFL is the core requirement, so if you take that course there is a good chance that you could easily find a job. The salaries really range on the country/city, but I think they average very roughly about $1000 US per month — I am told this is often higher in Vietnam and/or China, but I’m not sure. Good luck finding work and with the move!
Thanks for posting your experiences and costs for what looks like a wonderful life in Thailand!I love it over there in Thailand, and I am seriously considering flying over, taking a TESOL course, and staying to teach English. It looks like the salary ends up being about $1000 or so USD a month, but it looks like that would be plenty!
$1000 will definitely get you quite far over there, and I have several friends who have done the courses (you can take them online) and then arrived and managed to find work (sometimes in Thailand, though Vietnam and China are also good options). Good luck with the work, teaching English is a great route to go! :)
I have noticed some places will let you pre-book. If someone is planning on staying 3 months during the high season, do you think it’s necessary to pre-book? I found a place for 11,000 tbh (plus electricity and Internet), but after reading your article/ some other research, it seems like that might be the high end. Any thoughts/ or even direction to another article would be awesome.
Thanks!
11,000 may be on the high end, but it really depends on what you get for that amount. You can find it for less, and I generally recommend that you book a week in at a guest house in town and then go look in person at a few of the popular areas. I linked to a couple of accommodation posts from other bloggers, and that’s a good starting place once you’re in town. Even in high season, there is a good deal of housing in the city and you will find a place to stay. The GotPassport link at the end of the post has a lot of spots you can check.
If you’re up for on-the-ground research and don’t mind arriving without all the details locked in place, then I suggest renting a motorbike, riding around town, and looking at the various options, it can vary so greatly between newness, ammenities, and location :)
Good luck, shoot me an email if you need any other help!
Personally the idea of eating Thai street every day sounds
appealing as I hate cooking. I’d love to do something like that but I’ve never
been outside the US so I’ve got a bunch questions that might sound silly. The
visa thing, can you renew that indefinitely i.e. forever or is there a limit? I’m
guessing you would almost have to work online somehow for income (for those of
us not already set for life lol)? With an economy like that I would imagine working
there isn’t an option? Any suggestions? Are many people bilingual there? Can you buy
beer by the case more inexpensively and bring home like you can here lol?
It’s so great to be able to eat affordable street food and in small shops for just a buck or two a meal. As for the visas, you can not review the tourist visa indefinitley, but once you are there, there are few different ways people stay. You can like get nearly two years of double entry tourist visas, or you can pay to go to a language school a few times a week and get a student visa…that tides people over for a couple years as well!
Hi thanks for you post, can’t help but noticed the costs are only for temporary living, otherwise you need to add many additional costs which you didn’t mention:
– Clothes & shoes
– House items (kitchen utensils & appliances, sheets, towels, drapes, etc)
– Computer stuff (assuming your replace you equipment every 3 years or so)
– Mobile phone (buying a new one every 2-3 years)
– Medical costs (it comes out to maybe $50 per month on average, if you don’t need surgery)
– Vacations (assuming you are living permanently, you need a vacation now and then)
All the above can add on average $500 to your monthly costs, perhaps more.
Thanks for weighing in on it Jeff; in the post, I noted those were the baseline, bottom costs, and didn’t include my plane tickets (ie vacations and that sort). But for baseline, the least you are paying with your own lifestyle heaped on top –well, I think my estimate is pretty good. At the end of the day, yes, some of those other ones have to be included for sure if you stay long term, but the amount of clothes/new things you buy vary so much according to age/person — I didn’t want to assume. And for me, I try to make my gadgets last somewhere in the five year range :)
And the big one is the cost of visas. The actual runs and cost to do a border run. I spend 36,000b on it this year. Flights abroad to a con-solute, hotels, tuks tuks, visa fees, cross the border every and buy visas every 90 days, drive there. Most English teachers (no degree) make $35,000 a month and struggle. You are suggesting to be in Thailand with out medical insurance as well.
The costs can add up, particularly if you fly, I have always made a mini trip out of the border runs though, and went overland to Loas, which kept my daily costs down a bit. And you only need the major border run ever 180 days, otherwise the cheap daylong run to Burma and back is a mere 700 at the 90 day mark. I have friends teaching in CM who live on the budget I suggest, but since they are teaching they have year-long visas (that they do not pay for, the schools do), so that is a non-issue for people working there. Most of my friends working in the country have visas handled for them. As for medical, I suggest nothing, I merely pointed out that my costs did not include medical — I carry a year-long travel medical policy that is affordable, though I rarely use it and just pay out of pocket for minor checkups since I can get my lady appt for less than $30 each year in Thailand and that’s about all a twenty-something person in good health needs regularly outside of disaster medical. Best of luck, ~S
Hi! I listed a couple links in the post to friends who had blog posts with links to apartments and that sort of thing. Also, some friends have used agents if they were looking for a nice rental (also linked at the end of the post). And ultimately, if you’re keen to drive around a bit, I like the area across the street from Kad Suan Kaew shopping center (go back into that neighborhood behind there and there are options!).
Whoever you are bkohlh/craig gardner et al – what totally daft questions. Do you want the author of this website to do your washing for you also? There seem to be some people who are asking questions here that live with their mother – it is obvious – before you move somewhere – do a recky and check the place out.
No problem Shannon – I need some help actually – apologies.
As said I am doing my 14 months in CM. Just the visa issue. I saw this website – http://uk.siam-legal.com/1-Year-Thailand-Visa-for-UK-Citizens.php – it basically seems a way of paying to do the 90 days visa thing. I am a UK citizen but don’t want to do the 30 day fly in and out thing. I hope I am making sense here – the link seems like an expensive way around this. I am not near a Thai Embasy so kind of stuck for my options. Any suggestions? Thanks for any help./
Would like more info on the food. I am addicted to my beef and chicken so I would want more American type foods.
How much would that add to my cost of living if I ate different?
Beef is not very popular in SEA (or Asia for that matter) but pork and chicken can be found everywhere! It’ll add quite a bit to your food bill to eat that regularly, perhaps a $1 or 2 per meal with meat, and more like $3-4 for western meaty meals :)
hi,shannon, My name is Randy, is it possible to live comfortable there with budget of 700.00 dollars are less, also are there many if any afro-americans living there. : )
Hi Randy! It’s definitely possible to live there on that much, but know that it’s your baseline costs, if you’re living on that, you already have your visa situation figured out, and you are eating at
local restaurants and markets for many of your meals! If you’re budget-conscious you will get by perfectly! :)
Hi Shannon, I am planning on spending 6 months in Thailand, is US$12,000 doable? I am thinking of working at home (US) for six months then go back to Thailand for the other six on a tourist visa. I plan on doing that for a couple years to travel and enjoy life. Thanks!
Hi Rob! $12,000 is a really good sum and you should be able to stretch that quite far (possibly even beyond the six months if you’re a minimalist). When I am in Southeast Asia, I usually average about US$1000 per month. Your 6 months on, 6 months off sounds like a great plan as a way to see places in the world but still fund your travels! :)
With $2,000 your budget is pretty solid, and you should be fine showing up and looking around. My friends stayed in a really wonderful apartment on the higher end, at nearly $700 per month, could be good for you. I rec that you get an agent to take you around, they’ll drive you to various places, and they take a commission on the other end, so it’s worth it for you!
Then with the rest of your budget you can spend on food, transport, etc, and likely still have some leftover :)
Here’s my friends post on find an apt: http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/the-search-for-an-apartment-in-chiang-mai/
I have to say that your blog is awesome, so full of essential information and really interesting and fun stories about your experiences in CM!
I am planning to move across there in the coming months, i am a full time internet marketer, so the living costs you have highlighted seem easily affordable to me.
Once i have moved out there who would you recommend seeing about rental properties and scooter rental?
Keep up the fantastic work, you are one amazing lady!!!
Thanks Michael! It can really fluctuate if you plan to go out a lot more, and depending on lifestyle, but I find the above is a great baseline budget to use for a lot of the costs in the area.
I’m not sure about rental properties, some friends have listed out some common expat properties
And for rentals, long-term prices at Bikky are pretty decent and they have multiple places throughout the city!
Hope that helps, best of luck on the move and happy planning, and safe travels! :)
Hi there – I am taking a year off work and will be in CM in July – I teach at a Brit school in the Middle East but need to get my skills up. I did love CM
when I was there previously; as a just over 40 year old guy I feel Chiang Mai is the ideal place to study and appreciate life. Totally understand your reluctance to spend all your money in bars – it isn’t that much fun and can prove expensive. Would be nice to catch up with you and just share some views on life. Really appreciate your blog – found very interesting.
Hi Noodles! The city likely hasn’t changed too much since you were last here, still has a great small city vibe :) I won’t be here in July actually, I head back to the States for the summer, but there is a great expat community here (and a couple CM facebook groups if you’re interested) with some great expat friends who spend the summer months here :) Safe travels and let me know if there is anything I can do to help you settle in here! :)
Thanks Shannon. The link to any CM facebook pages and contacts would be great. I have been living in the Middle East for 9 years so can’t express how much looking forward to this. I have been looking at condos – there seems to little competition with regards to costs – I could not afford to take a year off anywhere else and study and have such a good standard of living. Thanks again for your help. oops – noodles is uncovered! :)
One more thing – intend to get parents over next February – how bad was the pollution then? Was reading about evacuation – looked quite serious for a while.
There really are a wide range of affordable options, and even better deals once you’re here and can go look at the places in person (and I highly recommend getting an agent to help you find a place if you’re here for a year or more, commission is very small and they can help set you up with a great deal). As for FB groups, is one of them. And Chiang Mai in February is a tricky question, it was pretty smoggy and gross this year, but last year was rainy, cool and zero smog in Feb…it’d be hit or miss, but if it’s bad you could always just take them south to BKK or the islands :) Cheers and good luck with the move!
I’m right around the same number as you each month, $600 gets a pretty decent standard of living. I recently documented a month at $400 a month on my site, that was hard but doable.
I’m right around the same number as you each month, $600 gets a pretty decent standard of living. I recently documented a month at $400 a month on my site, that was hard but doable.
Thanks Neale, I think the real difference comes down to the food you like, and what you consider a good time. I am living here with my niece this year, and am still well under $1000 for two people! Happy to hear others have found the same here….400 must have been a bit tricky though! :)
Thanks Neale, I think the real difference comes down to the food you like, and what you consider a good time. I am living here with my niece this year, and am still well under $1000 for two people! Happy to hear others have found the same here….400 must have been a bit tricky though! :)
Me and My Son are moving to Thailand in the next 6 months as teachers. We have everything sorted just saving up for visa and flights and stuff. Just wondering what the cost of living is? and what sort of money and things we will need to bring over?
It’s still really close to what I outlined in my post, double or triple the food budget for two people (and particularly if you think you’ll be eating Western food frequently). I haven’t visited where you’ll be staying, but it has the potential to be really affordable since its not BKK or the islands. As for what to bring, don’t worry too much, anything you forget can be bought here, they have huge malls and stores with just about anything you need :) Cheers and safe travels over here!
It’s still really close to what I outlined in my post, double or triple the food budget for two people (and particularly if you think you’ll be eating Western food frequently). I haven’t visited where you’ll be staying, but it has the potential to be really affordable since its not BKK or the islands. As for what to bring, don’t worry too much, anything you forget can be bought here, they have huge malls and stores with just about anything you need :) Cheers and safe travels over here!
Hi Shannon
I am sooo happy for you and your new life. I have been to Thailand (many moons ago) and would like to have some insight on Chiang Mai. I am a massage therapist (and a nurse) who would like to add Thai Massage and study at ITM. I would be interested in topics like accommodations, cheapest flight into which city as an entry point……my plan is to stay 3-4 weeks….not sure if an apartment or guesthouse is the way to go. I am definately on a budget as I have obligations back in the US.
I would appreciate any imput……..and thanks for your blog……so inspired by it.
PS I have a scooter at home, so not a problem for me regarding transportation, although funds favor walking. So a reasonable distance to ITM would be a preferance. Flights seem to be on the high end so any suggestions???????? Thx Cheryl
I have a few tips for you Cheryl, I did a guide to CM post here: https://alittleadrift.com/2011/08/best-places-in-chiang-mai/ with hotel and restaurant recs. Finding a good guesthouse and renting for 3-4 weeks at a discounted rate is your best bet, if you look around once you get here, you can likely find something great. Here is a longer list of accommodation options: .
For flights, flying into Bangkok is often the most budget option, check Skyscanner.com for the discount airlines in the region. Also try Hipmunk.com and Kayak.com to perhaps find more budget options getting here. Once here, flying around Thailand though use the discount ones. If you want to be mostly walking distance for the month, making sure you book something near Thae Pae gate is best :) Good luck!
Thank you Shannon for you information. It coincides with what I have experienced and what four other links have put out. My girl friend, her son (6 years old) and I are considering Thailand for residence. I have been there 5 times for 2 to 4 months. I have done the Myanmar Visa run renewal three times. My girl friend has not been to Thailand.
Your welcome, glad you found it helpful and good luck with the move! There are a lot of expats with children here, particularly if you put her son in an International school, so you will find a great community when you come! :)
I just got back from Thailand a few months ago and did not really get to visit Phuket or CM since most of Bangkok outside of the financial district was flooded. The taxi brought me to Pattaya when I ask to go to the beach lol and stayed waiting for the water to run off in Bangkok. I’m looking into Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to see where my money will go farthest and hope to teach English as well. Do you know if Thailand is the cheaper of the three? Also any other cities I should consider for cheap and good quality of life?
I think it really depends on what you are looking for– a lot of expats choose Thailand because there is so much access to Western amenities. But as far as teaching English, both Thailand and Vietnam are really great options and both have large expat communities. I have friends who have lived in Hanoi and really enjoyed teaching there. Same thing with here in Chaing Mai, if you have your TEOFL certification, then you could likely find a job here (if you came at the right time while they were hiring for the new school year). There are many opportunities and I think Vietnam and Thailand likely sound like the best options for price and ease of finding a job! :)
I would love to save as much as I can for the next 5 years and then go there to retire. (I’ll be 48 then.)
I do love Thailand and the food. It’s a wonderfully strange country, friendly, interesting, exciting…
But…
I’m not interested in going over there to buy a bar girl to be my girlfriend. I’m not interested in meeting someone who just sees me as a wallet and/or a sponsor for her family. I’m sure there are some great girls there but I’ve heard sooooooooooooo many stories of guys going there and getting taken that I would feel like I can never truly trust anybody. I wouldn’t have a problem providing for a girl that I have a real relationship with but I don’t want to be providing for someone who’s going to be working on the side and other nefarious things, if you know what I mean. Plus there’s the language problem that I’m not sure I want to deal with. I’ll learn some, of course, but it would take years to learn enough for real communication and I don’t know if I’m ready to invest that level of effort in the language.
So, I guess what I’m getting at is, are there any western women over there? Obviously there are, since you are there, but aren’t most of them just dropping by for a couple months? Is there a significant number of long-termers there or should I just resign myself to the fact that bar girls are (and if not, girls just looking for a free ride for them and their families) all that is available?
This is a great post, Shannon. And your diligence in answering everyone’s replies is admirable!
I don’t normally post on blogs, but Rachel and others have me wanting to ask some questions…
$200 covers your rent, electricity, water, internet and maid.
$175 for food
$65 for scooter and gas
$50 for evenings out
If this is accurate, I don’t understand why so many others say you’d need $1000 or even $1500 a month to live a “reasonable” lifestyle. What are they doing?!
I’ve been living in Japan for the past 15 years in Osaka, which is apparently the 2nd most expensive city in the world.
This is a rough breakdown of how much I spend (figures in yen, which is currently at about 80yen to the dollar).
Rent and water, 91,000 (for a pretty good sized two-bdrm apt, one room I use as a classroom)
Electricity, about 9,000 on average (high because I teach out of my home and need the air con on all the time – it would normally be closer to about 5000 yen if I had a normal job)
Cell phone bill, 8000 yen
Gas bill, 5000 yen
Phone and internet, 5000 yen
In addition to all this, I budget around 90,000 yen ($1125 US) for all other expenses. That means groceries, eating out, drinking out, meds at the pharmacy when needed, toiletries, public transportation ($5 for a round trip), gas for my motorcycle, AND $300 smoking. (Bad habit I need to quit, I know!)
Remove smoking from the equation because I don’t think most here are including that when they ask how expensive Thailand is and I’m left with around $825 US for the month for all that stuff.
So, this is where I’m a bit confused.
Rachel says around $1000/mo for comfortable. I’ve seen other blogs where guys are saying they wouldn’t recommend less than $1500. This seems very high to me.
I’m spending $825 a month for these expenses, but your list already includes food and at least some going out. If it takes an additional $500/mo to be comfortable, that’s almost as much as I spend here in Osaka!
Is there something I’m missing? Or when people say “have a life” they actually really mean “go drinking a lot”? I don’t really drink much so I can’t imagine spending much more than maybe $100, MAYBE $200 more than your budget to do everything I want to.
As for things not included in your budget, such as clothes, I know that you can get lots of great clothes for cheap enough to almost be negligible. (Jeans for $10, t-shirts for $5 — and these were great quality knock-offs. Lasted me ages!)
Can you (or maybe Rachel and others) show me where the additional $500-$1000 would be needed? Maybe I’m not considering everything properly.
Thanks for including your breakdown for Osaka…I had no idea it could be that affordable! As for prices here, there really is a difference between living a bit more local, and the Western conveniences. I think 1500 per month is awfully high for CM, but you could wrack that much up if you are in a nice apt, eating Western food, and consuming a lot (buying clothes, shopping, etc). Then there are the visa-runs to factor in, which add a bit to the expenses (a quick run to the Burmese border here runs about 700 baht at 30b to the USD, and if you need a Thai visa that could be as much as 2,000 baht or more for the visa alone).
I eat like a local, and live in a pretty small apartment (and when this post was rented lived with a room-mate in a house). $500 was the base cost, I couldn’t spend less than that. Medical expenses, checkups, more Western food, that sort of thing maybe added another couple hundred, but if you are based here long-term, for a year or more, you could DEF find a way to live well under $1000/month.
For another post on CM budgets though, friends of mine wanted a nice apt with a full kitchen, and that made living costs sky-rocket in some ways: http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/the-search-for-an-apartment-in-chiang-mai/
On the other hand, you could have a “kitchen” in the cheaper places if you go Thai style with a propane tank and burner. :)
So yes, there are options, all depending on how long you’re staying. If
you’re here for three months and plan to party a lot, then $1500 could be
right on. The better deals on motorbikes, apts, etc come when you’re here
for a while, and when you find the great local spots to eat and hang out!
1. You’ll need more than $200 to cover your rent/electricity/cable/internet etc. Just running your air conditioner for the hot months (8 months out of the year) will run you $50. For $150 you’ll be living in a room…not an apartment. I’d recommend $300-400/month for rent on the low(ish) end.
2. There is NO way that you can rent a motorbike and gas it up for $65/month. Last year, Jan, the owner of Bikky charged 2000 Baht a month for her cheapest rentals (Honda Wave/Suzuki Shogun) and this year (March) the price was 2500 Baht. Pay the extra 200/month for a better helmet also. Realistically, you can get by for $100-120/month including gas.
3. Western food is more than $3-$4/meal. A double-cheeseburger at McDonalds is 78 Baht and most western meals (not fancy meals btw) will run you at least 180 Baht. Forget eating cheese and other western foods while you are there. Fruit is 10 Baht a serving. A latte (like the ones that Shannon pictured) is 60 Baht. Stay away from the fruit “shakes” it’s just a bunch of simple syrup mixed with some fruit and ice. Sugar overload. Thai meals will cost you 35 baht and it is primarily rice. You’ll probably want an order of vegetables also for nutritions sake (another B35). I’d budget $10/day for food at a minimum including coffee and water. $10 a day does not include western food or beer/soda.
4. Karaoke is one of the more expensive things that you can do in Chiang Mai…unless you are renting a booth at one of the malls (Airport Plaza or Central Kad Suan Kaew).
5. Toiletries aren’t cheap. Especially if you want your western brands.
6. Cell Phone. Use True Money sim cards. 1 Baht/minute for calls to the U.S.
6 You’ll spend much less on Smoking in Thailand than Japan. Marlboros are 78 Baht / L&M are 58 Baht.
7. A movie will cost $4. Bowling is about $1.25/frame
8 Gym membership (you do want to stay in shape don’t you?) will cost $40/month short term (one month) and $33/month for a six month membership at the cheap places (fitness thailand) Cali Wow will cost much more. It’s too hot to exercise outside (not to mention, too polluted). Thais don’t seem to exercise much. The women are thin, but they have no muscle tone.
9 Haircut $5. Massage $5 hour.
So, bottom line, there is NO way that you can live in Chiang Mai on $500/month. I sure can’t and I drink/party less than Shannon.
Thanks for weighing in, I find you right on a lot of fronts, and grossly different than myself as well. Since this is a personal site, I did in fact live on a bare minimum of $500 (which is what I called it and said that visas and medical was not included. And, I stand by the fact that:
1) 10,000 gets you an entire house with many bedrooms, a one bedroom can be around 5,500b if you look around and don’t go to the expat spots. Very cute studios for 2,500b even if outside the moat.
2) I left CM last month and STILL paid 1,500b per month and I rented locally, not from Bikky.
3) Who the hell would go to Thailand to eat at McDonalds? And, simply ask for a shake without sugar (Mrs. Pa at CM gate does great ones and will point you to the naturally sweet fruits so it tastes good!). Also, as I say, I’m vegetarian, enjoy a lot more expenses if you indulge in animal flesh regularly, veggies are cheap and delicious!
4) The mall, exactly what I mention in my CM post as cheap and fun things to do, did it with friends just last month and it was great fun (and cheap!) 5) Agreed, I try to bring deodorant from home since I hate the selection of liquidy gel stuff.
6) True sucks for everything other than calls home (which is free on Google Voice), I use DTac
7) Yep, 4 bucks for a movie, and 2.50 for a popcorn – perfect afternoon! 8) Running is free. Plus, I don’t exercise unless it’s to P90x in my house, so it looks like CM is cheaper for those ppl like me. :) Check out the CM marathon and other monthly races if you want to get involved with the community, a lot of them fundraise for the refugees!
10) yep, and how many haircuts do you need, I certainly don’t get one a
month, which is why it’s ridiculous to put that in a montly budget.
Bottom line, I just left CM after living there for 5 more months with my 11
year old niece, and though a few prices had gone up (smoothies 20b instead
of 15, vegetarian dinner is 5b more too) we BOTH lived for right around 1,000 per
month, so I don’t know what the heck you people are talking about. Get some
local friends, eat with them, rent from them, and life gets cheaper :)
Cheers and thanks for sharing what it costs to live a bit more in CM!
I lived in CM and Bangkok for a total of 2 years. I hope you aren’t running on the busy streets of Thailand. If you are, you are inhaling alot of carbon soot that will never come out of your lungs. Have you noticed any decline in your breathing capacity? If so, you have black soot in your lungs, and it doesn’t come out. Fair warning to everyone reading this.
Thanks for pointing that out Tom, the smog this past year was really intense, and it did have health effects on me at the time, but from most of the research I found, it’s chronic exposure to smog that causes the serious issues. The research studies I found showed that your lungs and immune system can recover from just a season or two in it. It’s most unfortuante for the residents, who are exposed to the smog annually for months at a time. It is something to keep in mind, and I kept a mask on my face when the levels were particularly bad.
I have to argue: a $50 monthly rental for a scooter is pretty common. $100 per month on haircuts and toiletries sounds ridiculous but maybe you have 10 times more hair than I do and need to braid your back hair.
My rent for a private room with bath was $140 per month. I personally visited Shannon and Jodi’s house and it was *sweet* — I was quite envious. A friend had a place for 170US that included wifi, AC, cable and maid service, all within the Old City walls.
Shannon drinks about 1/100 as much as I do so her monthly costs are significantly lower than mine. But your claim of 1500 US per month to be ‘moderately comfortable’ is ridiculous. I partied like a rockstar and still came in under 1100 US per month. (total does not include cost of liver transplant)
I suspect you’re what I call a “Get off my lawn!” — an expat who likes to do nothing but complain about the place they have chosen as a home and how much better it was 10 years ago.
Don’t like it? Go home. And take your neggy peggy horseshit with you.
Thanks for weighing in Wes (and for defending the costs!). And good to know that even with a lot more nights out drinking, it is truly affordable. You definitely are able to include more of the costs if you go out a lot more but still hunt around for a good deal on the apartment. I never made it to your abode, but I know it was near the old city, internet, close to food and reasonably priced. Couple that with you being able to dink regularly for under $1100 a month and you have me convinced all over again that we should move back there and hang out some more! xo
I think while you can live on $500 a month in Thailand (not Bangkok!) temporarily, it’s just not possible full-time.
I’ve been in Thailand for 11 years and can get away with $800-1,000 a month in Bangkok and that’s a comfortable lifestyle. But, if I wanted to do any traveling or go out much at nights, or to nicer restaurants, that would easily rise to $1,300-$1,600.
Plus, the dollar is set to fall even further, making $500 a month just about impossible, unless you have two or three roomates and never eat western food :)
IMO, $1,500 a month is the perfect salary in Thailand. It allows you to have a life, travel and pay for the dreaded visa runs. I wouldn’t recommend much less than that long-term (and btw, I’m female so don’t have a Thai girlfriend to also take care of :))
Agreed, it’s not possible on just $500, but this truly is my base costs for being here in the North (not BKK), without visa runs and without frequent Western food (which I don’t do except for a couple times a month). I’d say that budget wise and as NOT a heavy drinker/partier I *easily* spent less than $1000 per month and still enjoyed my days, that was mostly just working and hanging out with friends though! :)
Glad to see how it can vary if you spend money in different areas (and definitely varies if you have a Thai gf, as you noted! :) Thanks for weighing in on this with your expenses, it helps to have a wide range of people’s experiences here.
If you’re a frequent blog reader you’ll note that I’m not a big partier and preder a night of bowling or karaoke over sinking a lot of money into alcohol, so 50 bucks a month bought me a few beers with friends each week, which is quite enough for me. By all means, factor is a lot more if you have a different lifestyle, my intention was to give baseline costs for consideration. If you like to flush money down the beer-toilet, then by all means quadruple that number for sure. :) Cheers.
i agree with both of you. it depends on how you live. Ive lived in cm for many years and I have thai friends with 30,000,000 baht plots (US 1M) then again i know monks here who own and earn nothing.
Got to agree with $50 a month getting you nothing. That’s only 1,500 baht. So, maybe five or six nights out over the month, and that’s it.
Of course, if you go with a group of friends for dinner to a Thai restaurant you could stretch that to about 10 nights out. But it wouldn’t be anywhere near enough for anybody who likes a drink. One beer is 50-70 baht.
Gotta say, 5-6 nights out is about right, I think I noted in the piece that I go “out” about once a week at the time, and that includes karaoke nights, where beer is the backdrop to simply hanging out :)
Very few people will save money by spending less, it’s just not human nature. You may get more for what you spend, but you will not ‘save money’ or ‘live cheaply’. In fact, you will end up spending as much as you did in the country you immigrated from.
He gets 1ea.-bar girl for 50.00 a month. LOL You need about 4,000.00 a month (Minimum), unless you like sitting in your room alone for 30 days at a time. If you pay cash for a condo and then have 4,000.00 USD a month for spending money, you will have a great time there.
You don’t need much if you don’t party like a rockstar, I’ve been living in Chiang Mai for 3 years and my monthly budget on entertainment is about 10,000 baht.
Obviously if your idea of entertainment is getting wasted and all that goes with that daily … $50 dont get you a lot. 2000b gets me a whole lot of entertainment. My Idea of what is entertaining is probably different to yours though :-)
Obviously if your idea of entertainment is getting wasted and all that goes with that daily … $50 dont get you a lot. 2000b gets me a whole lot of entertainment. My Idea of what is entertaining is probably different to yours though :-)
I couldn’t agree more! It’s gotten so that even a modest income puts you at the poverty level, whereas you can live a really nice life over here in Thailand for that amount. Good luck with the planning! :)
Shannon,
What a generous spirit you are! I have enjoyed reading your blog and it is one of the first ones that piqued my interest in Chiang Mai. Reading about your adventures has been really inspiring. I have a question for you related to visa expenses; my husband is a telecommuter and we have decided to take a “personal development year” in Thailand. My husband will work remotely and I will be finishing a novel and perhaps volunteering. My question: If we want to stay in Thailand for a year or so, is it advisable to sign a year lease on a house or apt? If so, what expenses can we expect to incur over a year to keep a valid Visa? I have been searching online, but haven’t found the answer to the question “What is the least amount of visa related expenses we would incur in order to stay in Chiang Mai for a year?” Thank you in advance for your time.. I know you are busy with your niece. ;-) Would love to meet you and your niece when we get there.
Peace out,
Loree
P.S. I also really resonate to your Joseph Campbell quite..
Hi Loree! Thanks for getting in touch and congrats on the move to Thailand, I am pretty partial to the country :)
As for visas, that is one of the trickier parts of staying for a year. You will have really just a couple options since I don’t think you’re at retirement age yet (totally different visas!).
The double entry visa: Gives you two entries, each on 60 days and each entry can be extended by 30 days…so this is about 6 months. Then you would have to leave and get a second double entry visa. With this visa, you have to leave the country every 90 days and at least cross a border. All told about 6,000 baht to buy it and then cross a nearby border). (Apply for your first double entry from home!)
The second kind is a year visa but it’s multi entry (so you can come in and leave as many times as you want) and you get 90 days each time. I haven’t done this one, but friends have and it’s the ideal between the two. Call your closest Thai consulate and see if they would issue this one…it’s worth the fees.
Also, for some more living here type posts and help: This family has some great resources.
And as for the house, renting a house can be cheaper, but there are allll
kinds of apts here in Chiang Mai, and just a bit outside the moat you can
get a pretty great house for the same as an apt in the city, so it really
depends on what you want (check out the link above, they also have a
housing post!). Consider, if you do a apt and commit to 6 months, then you
can easily get out of it if you decide to try out living elsewhere in
Thailand!
Cheers and good luck on the move, if you’re here in the next few months we
can definitely meet up! :)
Hi Shannon. im actually looking into teaching ESL in Thailand in the next few months. I was wondering about Health insurance there. I have Insurance here till June and then I have nothing, but after that Id have to figure something out. If my job doesnt offer it can i get insurance there?
Hi! Travel insurance is your best bet if you don’t have any offered by your job. I use Patriot ins right now ( http://www.imglobal.com/img-insurance/travel-medical-insurance/patriot-travel-medical-insurance.aspx) and have used World Nomads in the past (both are good/haven’t heard anything bad). Also note that small checkups are incredibly cheap here, so your insurance is for the big stuff :) Safe travels, let me know if there is anything else I can help with!
hi there, ive done homework about working in thialand but ive seen nothing of the legality of an expat working in Thailand. once i start the journey, what is a good staging area, maybe with a cheap pensione or youth hostel?
thank you so much for your help
jim, dallas texas jimskid@hotmail.com
That’s a tough one Jimskid, it is completely illegal to work here in Thailand without a visa, so I can’t really recommend you do that, but yes, some hostels might let you exchange accommodation for work if you ask around. That being said, there are a lot of teaching English jobs here, and you could take a contract and save up money, and then leave, not sure what your travel plans look like, but there is definitely work to be found (both legit and not) all over SEA for backpackers simply asking around :)
I know I’m this is an older post, but I have had it bookmarked for months in preparation for my own move to Chiang Mai! I’ve been here for over a week now and scored a pretty cool apartment on Nimman Road. I was wondering if you could tell me where you rented your scooter. I haven’t found any places with rates lower than 3000B. Did you have a native Thai speaker help you?
Scooter rentals are everywhere, around 200 baht. You give up your passport until return, get insurance please. Good luck you can get hurt and or killed! Thai’s do not stop!
Hi Shannon,
Thanks so much for such a comprehensive post. Because I have food intolerances and a very sensitive stomach coupled with being a picky eater (I don’t like fish, pork, or intestines for example), I can’t eat spicy food (even black pepper is spicy for me so their mild would still be too spicy for me) or from the local stalls.
When we were visiting Bangkok on holiday, we only ate at expensive tourist restaurants/hotels which is of course not sustainable when we become digital nomads.
From a budgeting perspective then, would your pizza example of 250 bhat be a good guide for calculating expenses?
Would you also know if it is easy to get local domestic help, e.g. someone coming in once a week to clean and cook? If so, would you have any idea how much that would cost?
Thank you and have a wonderful day
How do I get retirement Visa, and how much it cost, i live in Miami and thinking to move to Thailand do I get the visa before I go or do I ge it once there’s am collecting $1100 social security is that enough to live a decent life there single? CM is it a good starting place?
I am not sure that $1100 meets the minimum income required to qualify for a retirement visa, which at last check was 40,000 Baht (about $1300+ USD). I would head to the expat forums and expat groups and read through the very extensive information online about what it takes to qualify for a visa. Once you have the visa, yes, CM is a great budget place to enjoy the lifestyle and culture of Thailand.
Don’t go as a retiree, that ties your money up and no good if you don’t like it, then it is too late, go as a tourist and split your time from several different countries, mix it up, Vietnam, Kathmandu (can be very cheap, with visa for up to 150 days), Thailand, Philippines, just factor in travel cost that are cheap. Go cheap, go light, go now.
How to find my “USA” friend, “William Smith”, living in Roi Et Thailand currently, December 25, 2018, USA.
I would try some of the expat forums (Thai Visa Forum is a good one https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ ) as someone local might be able to help you!
The budget is doable; a couple extra hundred a month will go a long way to making things more comfortable.
Thanks for sharing, this is very useful information.
So glad you found it helpful!
Hi, you mention doing volunteering work when you were there. What kind of project was it? That is something I’d be interested in. I am a teacher and qualified translator, though I’d be happy to help with a range of activities. Véro
Hi Vero, I volunteered with We Women! http://wewomenfoundation.org/ – at the time they needed volunteers who could commit 3 months — even though that’s not listed on their site, I would get in touch with them and ask what they have locally in CM, where they do still have an office as far as I know.
Additionally, this page lists out many indie volunteer projects in the area: http://grassrootsvolunteering.org/volunteer_opportunities?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=&countries%5B%5D=thailand&cost_suggestion= — many times once you start reaching out, these organizations can help you find other orgs until you have one that is a good fit for your particular time commitment and skills. Good luck!
Can I recommend our favorite hotels and hostels? =) I think there are not more than 20 of them, but it really is, in our opinion, the best hotels and hostels in Chiang Mai.
Always happy to have additional recommendations!
Ok! Thanks!
These are good (it’s important) hostels and hotels. But they may not seem quite cheap. But I hope that not only those who value the price, but also those who care about quality, come to Chiang Mai. At the same time, one must understand that a high price is not always a high quality, and high quality is not always a high price =)
Best hostel Old City area: Hostel by BED, Sherloft Home, Eden
Night Bazaar area: Plearn Hostel, Tawan Hostel Club, Monkey Toe
Nimman area: Bed Addict Hostel, Bake Room
Best 3 star hotel (swimming pool include) Old City area: iLanna House, BED Phrasingh
Chang Moi area: My Chiangmai Boutique Lodge, Chedi Home
Night Bazaar area: Villa Thapae
Amazing 4 star hotels Old City: Pingviman Hotel (number 1 in my rating), Tapae Gate Villa, 99 The Heritage Hotel
Wat Ket: Rimping Village, Riverside Floral Inn
Arount Thapae Gate: De Chai the Deco Hotel, Tamarind Village
5 star 137 Pillars House and The Dhara Devi (I like their cakes so much, but they also have an excellent hotel)
Also, very good guesthouses in Old city: Green Tiger Vegetarian House, Pissamorn House, Thongran’s House and Baan Siwali
Thank you for sharing Cat! I appreciate all of the really great recs. :)
Thank you Shannon, I have lived in Thailand once before and loved it! Not Chiang Mai though, that would have been an amazing experience!!!
Just searching google for things about Chiang Mai and came across this. I never lived there but I have been there twice and am seriously considering “disappearing” for a year or so and CM is my first choice for living on a budget. Very reassuring to see you have the same experience with the city and the prices. This just inspired me even more. Thanks :)
So glad you found the information useful Stereo, and that we are on the same page with CM. If you’re looking for a place to really just disappear and sink into the local pace of life, I think CM is tops for that. Good food, as many activities as you might want to do, and good expats all over the city! Good luck on making the transition! :)
Great blog. Thank you!!!
Hi! Liked your blog! Can you tell me where you think is the best place to live there, for about $200 or $300? :D
I think inside the moat can be great if you want a monthly guesthouse rental and to be walkable to a lot of things, or there are a *lot* of apartments off the Northwest corner of the moat, near Kad Suan Keaw mall and the Santitam area. Those all should have places in your price range! :)
I love visiting Chiang Mai. I run my own internet business and I’ve often thought of just packing up and moving there because it’s a great way to live cheap and save on expenses… Only thing is I have a cat and I don’t know what I’d do with him. I’m going to spend 5 weeks in chiang mai next year and working a bit as I travel with my boyfriend. I am very excited. I love finding articles like this and sharing them with my family because they can’t believe how cheap you can live in Thailand. I would probably spend much more than this for a bigger place and kitchen (I write recipe ebooks) but I love how all other expenses are so low. :)
That cat is tough Veronica, I understand that it can be hard to tidy up things up home enough to be able to travel long term. Five weeks is a great length of time to figure out if you like the town. You would definitely need to spend more on rent, but you could get a *beautiful* place with a full kitchen and then still have affordable food for your cookbook work! If there is ever anything I can do to help, please let me know . Happy planning and safe travels :)
I was researching the cost of shipping Thai food to the US and on google I saw my name next to a link for this site(my name is Shannon O’Donnell) I just thought that was funny! Have fun in Thailand :-)
Thanks Shannon! I hope you found a way to get yourself shipped some Thai food, it’s delicious!
I’m planning on visiting thailand with my friends in march, where do you suggest we stay if we want to party and have fun..
CM Bluehouse is in a great location ) and all of the great party spots are walkable from there, and I think it is clean and safe for your belongings. There are a lot of great guesthouses, but that is the only one I have expereince with really! Also, my post on recs for the city is here: https://alittleadrift.com/2011/08/best-places-in-chiang-mai/
Shannon, thanks for your great blog and good luck on your blogging. Great going so far. I have been living in Thailand now for 10 years and ready to give BKK the push-off. I was thinking Chaing Mai might be a good alternative so planning an exploratory trip. I noticed your very modest price for a motorcycle rental. Where did you find one so cheap? Is it monthly, weekly? I did find Tony Big Bikes rents automatics for 210 baht per day. Your expert advice sought. Terry in BKK
Hi Terry, I rented from a friend of a friend and that surely is why I got a lower price than it looks on the surface. If you rent from Bikey or Tony, the big ones, the prices are harder to negotiate. But even with them, if you are renting for six months to a year you have real room to bargain. A friend found similar rates with a year renting, I managed my rate for five months. Once you are there ask around, see if friends of yours in BKK have family that are keen to rent–that’s how I found a good rate. I know my friend who had the year managed to get it for about 2000b for the 6+ months. Hope that helps and best of luck moving north! :)
Dear Shannon!
I accidentally remembered that I recommended recently good hotels and hostels in Chiang Mai. hahhahaha )))) Therefore, do not hesitate to recommend our rental of motobikes in Chiang Mai! )))) Cat Motors forever! 555 Only I have a big wish – be sure to write that we do not rent motorbikes to travelers who do not know how to ride motorbike. It’s dangerous for life and can be fatality out. And it’s not a joke.
See you next time when you will come to our city!
I’ll be going to Cambodia in a few months to teach english and really didn’t even consider Thailand because I only ever hear party stories about peoples visits there and I am not a big party person. But after reading this article I am definitely going to make sure I visit Chiang Mai and maybe I’ll even look for a teaching job there! Thank you for the article.
Best regards,
Meghan
Thailand has some really wonderful areas! The north is more of the cultural center, and the partying you heard about happens down in the islands mostly (and BKK of course). Good luck finding teaching jobs, there are many in the region and each city can have such a different vibe from another, so be sure to explore! And let me know if I can help in any way :)
Hi Meghan, Just got back from a 6 week solo trip to Thailand. Never had a sip of alcohol, only 2 nights out past 10pm, and I still had a great time. Do the trip that YOU want, not what other’s want. TravelingFirefighter@yahoo.com
Do you still recommend Chiang Mai for older people? I need to quit working. I am 67 and just can’t do my job well anymore. It’s time to leave but I don’t have much income for retirement. Do you think health care is decent? Do you know any older Americans there? I’d be interested in their perspective. thanks
Hi Candace! Your question is great, and yes, I think Chiang Mai is a really wonderful spot for older people–I know many of my expat friends were 50+ and they had a vibrant community and routines they enjoyed. Transportation is such that you can either use the shared open taxi-trucks, or you can buy a bicycle (one friend does this to get around) or even a motorbike–the city is small enough that a bike is a great option if you’re fit enough for it. As for healthcare, they have several US quality/certified hospitals, and I have always found them clean, efficient and to tell the truth, if I was diagnosed with a major illness I would likely go to Thailand for treatment, that’s how good they are. Hope that gives you some new things to look at/think about! ~Shannon ?:)
Shannon, I would like to hire you to get me settled in Thailand for three months and thereafter I’ll handle it. How do we do this?
Hello, thank you for taking time to post some of your know how to live comfortably in Thailand. I am interested in living in Thailand for at least three months (get out of cold in michigan ) and maybe longer. ‘ve l worked and lived in Africa and have done some travel around Europe and Africa and enjoy the international annuities. I’ve heard about Thailand and would like to try it. I don’t need to work but volunteering sounds good.
Thank you,
Bill
Thailand is a great place to go for three months– you can get a feel for the country, see a lot if you are keen to explore, or settle into a three month apartment rental and begin to feel like a local by the time you leave. Work visas are tricky and require some extra obstacles to jump through if you are keen to find work in Thailand, otherwise you could definitely find volunteering to do nearly anywhere in the country! :)
Thanks for all that useful information Shannon. I’m a Canadian teaching in Bangkok since 4 months and fell in love with ChiangMai. I’m looking into ways to break my contract here and move up there with my freelancer boyfriend (who is back at home also looking into ways to take a year off from work). Do you know if there’s a lot of teaching or web design jobs over there? We wonder how much savings we should take with us to cover for the first 2 months of job hunting… Bangkok seems to be more expensive but with more job opportunities. Maybe I’m wrong about the work though. Would be nice to get your opinion on that. I miss rock climbing in Bangkok and know that Chiang Mai got lots of climbing spots so I would be happier there I’m sure. How many hours a week do you need to work to live that lifestyle? Seems like I got the same in Bangkok but things are more expensive.
Hi Isabel! Thanks for commenting and sharing your situation. There are definitely teaching jobs in Chiang Mai, I have several friends who work as teachers, but it is competitive and you should give yourself time and perhaps time your move to when schools hire new teachers (after breaks maybe, not sure when that is). Web design is a lot harder — there may be companies needing that, but at the same time Chiang Mai bussiness-wise is a lot smaller market. Has your boyfriend considered freelancing for any past clients he had so he is making a stronger currency? Rock climbing is available in CM for sure, it’s not a huge community, but I know there is a rock climbing wall and often trips outside of town. Networking is a big part of it all, if you have connections, start asking them about friends and opportunties in CM, it’s a small country and there is a lot of overlap in the businesses and people in many ways. And lastly, consider the non-profit community for opportunitites–CM has MANY more non-profits and organizations like that and you or your boyfriend could look into that route as well.
Thanks for taking the time to write this up !!….I see you are “building up your on-line Income ” I am also doing this.
I am an American Expat living in Pattaya. I have lived in Thailand with my Thai partner for 20+ years. I recommend a LENGTHY visit before jumping in with both feet. No two peope have similar tastes, so hence individual cost of living vary. During the past coupe of years there has been a steady rise in inflation. The dollar has fallen in value, and the Thai Baht has gained some strength. Excellent medical services are available at a lesser costs. If can offer any seasoned advice, you can reach me at RPRON@AOL.COM.
Regards, ROBERT
Hi Robert, thanks for weighing in on this, and for providing your email for anyone interested–that’s very valuable to have a seasoned expat on tab! I usually send people to the Thai Visa forum to ask there since I haven’t lived in Thailand long enough to have a lot of the hurdles like taxes, visas, businesses, etc., all figured out. Cheers and thanks for providing yourself as a source of help! :)
hi shannon how are you? i have been to thailand 4 times before and love it. i have always dreamed about living there full time. im from northern ireland. i was always worried about the visa – what type would i have to go for and could i live there permanently just by doing visa runs? by the way im 36 and was considering selling my home and try and live off the monthly interest (whatever that may be now!!) of course i would check it out before i came to any rash decisions! many thanks :)
Living in Thailand for years on end, just on visas, is difficult. You can get away with the double entry visa that gives you roughly six months with a few hoops (you have to renew the visa at 60 days, cross a border at 90, then once you cross back in … can be the same day…repeat for the second “entry” — renew after 60 days, leave at 90 and get a new double-entry from a Thai embassay). It’s not overly difficult, but you couldn’t do it for a decade. The forums at Thai Visa are FULL of useful information http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ on this type of situation. Easy solutions are often simply taking a language class a few times a week. It can be done and you can look around the heaps of advice in the forum for some other ideas :)
Hello Shannon, Thank you for this great blog info on living in Thailand. I’ve been really thinking if i save enough dough while working here in the US i can live there F/T in roughly 10yrs very comfortably, i have a full military pension so based on your blog notes i think it won’t be a problem living stress free there. I have a question about the banks, if you have a short list of good reliable banks there?. Thank you again and TC from Maryland, USA. Best Regards, Brian C.
So glad you found it helpful, it’s important to note that it really depends on what standard of living you want to maintain. In the post I link to a lot of things you should look at — other budgets, rental houses, condos, agents, etc.Fully furnished is tough–nice condos with a full kitchen could run $600-700 in just rent (check out here: http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/the-cost-of-living-luxuriously-in-chiang-mai/ While a one bedroom at Smith Residence http://www.chiangmaismithres.com would be more like $400 perhaps. There is a lot in between as well. And you can rent an entire house for $350 rent (no furniture or utilities).
Full service and condos here: http://www.chiangmailocator.com/
As for banks, I would head to the expat forums for Thailand: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ and ask around, they are wonderful sources of information for anyone considering the move. I know there are specific banking requirements if you retire there, so best to read through the forums and ask for recs! Best of luck :)
Sorry if you get two responses from me, I responded to the wrong one at first! For banks, I would head to the expat forums for Thailand: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ and ask around, they are wonderful sources of information for anyone considering the move. I know there are specific banking requirements if you retire there (fees, and it has to be a government bank I believe) so best to read through the forums and ask for recs so you know all the nitty-gritty specifics! Best of luck :)
is it dangerous to walk threw town or go into a local place of business & is tai accentual or could u live there with out learning a new language »^+^« Kat from CA
You should always be aware of your surroundings, and any place that is fine during the day could be different at night, but I generally feel very safe in many parts of the country and have walked home with friends from bars in Chiang Mai without a second thought.
The accents in Thai make the language very difficult, but you can learn it, it’s definitely possible to study, you’ll have ample places to practice, and you can be negotiating/using basic Thai at restaurants within a month or two.
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts and costs on living in Chiang Mai. My partner & myself are heading to Thailand in May for at least 8 weeks and I’m thinking very seriously about changing that to indefinite. You only live once – there’s so much more to life than the rat-race of London – I just have this gut feeling that indefinite is the right thing to do.
Eight weeks is a really great starting point, and you may very well fall in love with the city. At the same time, it’s great that you are giving yourself a taste of it, and perhaps another area of Thailand will call to you once you visit. As you said, you only live once, so embrace the adventure, and I wish you so much luck on the trip. If there is ever anything I can do to help, let me know! :)
Thank you for the information. Much appreciated!!!
Do you think your health has suffered from such a poor diet of 30b fried food? YOu dont look 25.
Cluzeo
While I don’t usually respond to inappropriate personal observations, I am nearly 29, not 25. As for the food, luckily you seem to have a misinformed opinion about street food, because it’s really great! There are many more options than just the fried dishes. Lots of delicious soups (khao soi=yum!), somtam is fresh papaya, curries that the vendors make at home and bring to the markets, and I love the grilled/steamed veggie vendors (I am a vegetarian, so I eat really quite healthy most anywhere I go). And if you’re in Chiang Mai, there is a really delicious (one of my favorite in the world) salad restaurants, Salad Concept, on Nimman and their huge fresh salads are only 50b! So, it’s really misinformation that you have to pay a lot to eat well, I prefer fresh or steamed vegetables and can usually eat for 30b Thai (and Burmese, def great Burmese food at that price too) and under 70b Western in Chiang Mai (much more expensive in Bangkok and down south though). Cheers and good luck.
Do you think your health has suffered from being stupid?
HI Shannon
Can someone from the South USA live all year round in CM. Is it prefereable to leave during the Wet Season or the REALLY Hot Season. Really fantastic BLOG
It’s definitely okay to live there year-round, though I usually bow out during rainy season. My friend Dan and his wife Lindsay ( ) have lived there for a couple of years now (she’s a teacher), and they stay for hot, rainy, and dry and seem to enjoy it :) And, Chais and Shawna, , live in CM year-round too! Though I prefer the cool, dry season, it can be a wonderful place to live year-round.
Thank you so much for the conformation! I have been looking at both Vietnam and Thailand but have been worried about the employment should I decide to stay long term. Can you put me in touch with some of your connections or friends that teach conversational English so that I may properly prepare? My email is hansbergquist@yahoo.com
Hi again! I’ve been chatting with a few people from Thailand and wanted to confirm what I have heard. Is it true that a person from America without a degree can be hired by a language school to teach english with only a EFTOL or TESOL? I’ve been told yes but would have to make a visa run every 60 days…
You don’t need more than that to get hired, and I have friends ( http://noplacetobe.com/ ) who got hired just months after finishing her TOEFL. Now, there are many people who also want to teach, but if you have the qualifications, the time to look and apply, and patience, you can find work in Thailand (and Vietnam, China, etc). Good luck! :) As for visas, if you are hired by a Thai school, they will give you a work visa and that does not typically require you to leave every 60 days.
Hey thanks so much for giving up your time so patiently. Hubby two kids and I are making plans for a move early next year and finding so many positive people who are Expats in Thailand is clearing away a lot of my fears.
You’re welcome, so glad you found it helpful. Thailand has an enormous expat community, and if you are sending your kids to an International School, you will have an even more instant community to tap into. So much good luck with the move, and I hope you enjoy your time over there :)
Once again thank you your site has been very helpful! I think cm may be a great place to start! We are planning on spending 4 years in S.E. Asia. Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines are also on the list before we go to Europe. Where are you going next and will you be doing a similar blog?
That is a fantastic length of time — you will see and experience a lot over four years! I am unsure of my next plans, but they may include South America I think, and I will continue to update this site with stories and photos as I travel. :)
Wow! Thanks for all the info :-) I would prefer 10,000 baht per month because then I would not need to work and don’t really mind if I’m in north cm or even Korat. Is $350 a place that would have a western style bathroom and kitchen with air conditioning? Also any other suggestions as to cheap areas to rent fir 10,000 or less? Thanks again!
Chiang Mai is a great spot because it straddles the traditional culture and Western conveniences. And yes, the bathrooms are most often western, and there is A/C in many, you can easily find one that accommodates that need. But know that electricity in Thailand is really very, very expensive!
Do you know what the average monthly rent is in bkk and cm for 2-3 bedroom with AC? House or apartment would both be fine.
That’s a tough one because it would really depend on what area you were in (and that can vary widely depending on what school job you get) but I would plan that a 2-3 bedroom would run you $500 – $1000? I only ever lived in Chiang Mai in the north, and I know Bangkok is more expensive than CM. In CM, you can get a house for as little as 10,000 baht…which is about $350 US, so I am really guestimating. Thai Visa Forum is a great place though to find specific information from other expats: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/ :)
I was in Thailand last November and fell in love with the way of life and how cheap everything was! I’ve been working fir banks for the past 13 years. Unfortunately I do not have a college degree but with my professional experience I was told it should be est to get an English teaching position with the tesol. Is that correct? Also what might I expect for a salary?
November is a beautiful time of year in the country (rivaled only by December I think) and I loved the Lantern festival they hold at the beginning of the month, I hope you were able to see it? As for teaching English over there, a TEOFL is the core requirement, so if you take that course there is a good chance that you could easily find a job. The salaries really range on the country/city, but I think they average very roughly about $1000 US per month — I am told this is often higher in Vietnam and/or China, but I’m not sure. Good luck finding work and with the move!
Thanks for posting your experiences and costs for what looks like a wonderful life in Thailand!I love it over there in Thailand, and I am seriously considering flying over, taking a TESOL course, and staying to teach English. It looks like the salary ends up being about $1000 or so USD a month, but it looks like that would be plenty!
$1000 will definitely get you quite far over there, and I have several friends who have done the courses (you can take them online) and then arrived and managed to find work (sometimes in Thailand, though Vietnam and China are also good options). Good luck with the work, teaching English is a great route to go! :)
I have noticed some places will let you pre-book. If someone is planning on staying 3 months during the high season, do you think it’s necessary to pre-book? I found a place for 11,000 tbh (plus electricity and Internet), but after reading your article/ some other research, it seems like that might be the high end. Any thoughts/ or even direction to another article would be awesome.
Thanks!
11,000 may be on the high end, but it really depends on what you get for that amount. You can find it for less, and I generally recommend that you book a week in at a guest house in town and then go look in person at a few of the popular areas. I linked to a couple of accommodation posts from other bloggers, and that’s a good starting place once you’re in town. Even in high season, there is a good deal of housing in the city and you will find a place to stay. The GotPassport link at the end of the post has a lot of spots you can check.
If you’re up for on-the-ground research and don’t mind arriving without all the details locked in place, then I suggest renting a motorbike, riding around town, and looking at the various options, it can vary so greatly between newness, ammenities, and location :)
Good luck, shoot me an email if you need any other help!
Personally the idea of eating Thai street every day sounds
appealing as I hate cooking. I’d love to do something like that but I’ve never
been outside the US so I’ve got a bunch questions that might sound silly. The
visa thing, can you renew that indefinitely i.e. forever or is there a limit? I’m
guessing you would almost have to work online somehow for income (for those of
us not already set for life lol)? With an economy like that I would imagine working
there isn’t an option? Any suggestions? Are many people bilingual there? Can you buy
beer by the case more inexpensively and bring home like you can here lol?
It’s so great to be able to eat affordable street food and in small shops for just a buck or two a meal. As for the visas, you can not review the tourist visa indefinitley, but once you are there, there are few different ways people stay. You can like get nearly two years of double entry tourist visas, or you can pay to go to a language school a few times a week and get a student visa…that tides people over for a couple years as well!
Lots of English is spoken, and depending on your trade, there is a whole lot of expat work in the NGOs if you were really keen to work locally as an expat: https://alittleadrift.com/2012/06/how-to-travel-and-work-abroad/
Hi thanks for you post, can’t help but noticed the costs are only for temporary living, otherwise you need to add many additional costs which you didn’t mention:
– Clothes & shoes
– House items (kitchen utensils & appliances, sheets, towels, drapes, etc)
– Computer stuff (assuming your replace you equipment every 3 years or so)
– Mobile phone (buying a new one every 2-3 years)
– Medical costs (it comes out to maybe $50 per month on average, if you don’t need surgery)
– Vacations (assuming you are living permanently, you need a vacation now and then)
All the above can add on average $500 to your monthly costs, perhaps more.
Thanks for weighing in on it Jeff; in the post, I noted those were the baseline, bottom costs, and didn’t include my plane tickets (ie vacations and that sort). But for baseline, the least you are paying with your own lifestyle heaped on top –well, I think my estimate is pretty good. At the end of the day, yes, some of those other ones have to be included for sure if you stay long term, but the amount of clothes/new things you buy vary so much according to age/person — I didn’t want to assume. And for me, I try to make my gadgets last somewhere in the five year range :)
And the big one is the cost of visas. The actual runs and cost to do a border run. I spend 36,000b on it this year. Flights abroad to a con-solute, hotels, tuks tuks, visa fees, cross the border every and buy visas every 90 days, drive there. Most English teachers (no degree) make $35,000 a month and struggle. You are suggesting to be in Thailand with out medical insurance as well.
The costs can add up, particularly if you fly, I have always made a mini trip out of the border runs though, and went overland to Loas, which kept my daily costs down a bit. And you only need the major border run ever 180 days, otherwise the cheap daylong run to Burma and back is a mere 700 at the 90 day mark. I have friends teaching in CM who live on the budget I suggest, but since they are teaching they have year-long visas (that they do not pay for, the schools do), so that is a non-issue for people working there. Most of my friends working in the country have visas handled for them. As for medical, I suggest nothing, I merely pointed out that my costs did not include medical — I carry a year-long travel medical policy that is affordable, though I rarely use it and just pay out of pocket for minor checkups since I can get my lady appt for less than $30 each year in Thailand and that’s about all a twenty-something person in good health needs regularly outside of disaster medical. Best of luck, ~S
I have just moved to chiang mai, and we are looking for nice / cheap apartments… any suggestions on what part of town to look in?
Hi! I listed a couple links in the post to friends who had blog posts with links to apartments and that sort of thing. Also, some friends have used agents if they were looking for a nice rental (also linked at the end of the post). And ultimately, if you’re keen to drive around a bit, I like the area across the street from Kad Suan Kaew shopping center (go back into that neighborhood behind there and there are options!).
Good luck!
Nice one. Finally somebody who doesn’t “have to” spend crazy amounts on rent just to feel comfortable in Thailand. :)
apologies Shannon – just scrolled down – all is fine – no need to publish :)
Whoever you are bkohlh/craig gardner et al – what totally daft questions. Do you want the author of this website to do your washing for you also? There seem to be some people who are asking questions here that live with their mother – it is obvious – before you move somewhere – do a recky and check the place out.
Heh, thanks Noodles, it’s true that a lot of these questions could be answered with a Google query sometimes! :)
No problem Shannon – I need some help actually – apologies.
As said I am doing my 14 months in CM. Just the visa issue. I saw this website – http://uk.siam-legal.com/1-Year-Thailand-Visa-for-UK-Citizens.php – it basically seems a way of paying to do the 90 days visa thing. I am a UK citizen but don’t want to do the 30 day fly in and out thing. I hope I am making sense here – the link seems like an expensive way around this. I am not near a Thai Embasy so kind of stuck for my options. Any suggestions? Thanks for any help./
Would like more info on the food. I am addicted to my beef and chicken so I would want more American type foods.
How much would that add to my cost of living if I ate different?
Beef is not very popular in SEA (or Asia for that matter) but pork and chicken can be found everywhere! It’ll add quite a bit to your food bill to eat that regularly, perhaps a $1 or 2 per meal with meat, and more like $3-4 for western meaty meals :)
what about crime.can i bring my own vehicle?would it get stolen?
Crime is not a big issue, motorbikes get stolen, but it’ll likely be cheaper to buy a car over there :)
hi,shannon, My name is Randy, is it possible to live comfortable there with budget of 700.00 dollars are less, also are there many if any afro-americans living there. : )
Hi Randy! It’s definitely possible to live there on that much, but know that it’s your baseline costs, if you’re living on that, you already have your visa situation figured out, and you are eating at
local restaurants and markets for many of your meals! If you’re budget-conscious you will get by perfectly! :)
thanks for that info, are there some afro americans living there as well
Um, not really. There may be a small community I am not aware of, but I only ever saw a handful at most :-/
Hi Shannon, I am planning on spending 6 months in Thailand, is US$12,000 doable? I am thinking of working at home (US) for six months then go back to Thailand for the other six on a tourist visa. I plan on doing that for a couple years to travel and enjoy life. Thanks!
Hi Rob! $12,000 is a really good sum and you should be able to stretch that quite far (possibly even beyond the six months if you’re a minimalist). When I am in Southeast Asia, I usually average about US$1000 per month. Your 6 months on, 6 months off sounds like a great plan as a way to see places in the world but still fund your travels! :)
Awesome, thanks for the info! Be safe out there!
Sounds good , I would like to try it next winter. Any suggestions I will have 2000 a month to use on expenses
With $2,000 your budget is pretty solid, and you should be fine showing up and looking around. My friends stayed in a really wonderful apartment on the higher end, at nearly $700 per month, could be good for you. I rec that you get an agent to take you around, they’ll drive you to various places, and they take a commission on the other end, so it’s worth it for you!
Then with the rest of your budget you can spend on food, transport, etc, and likely still have some leftover :)
Here’s my friends post on find an apt: http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/the-search-for-an-apartment-in-chiang-mai/
Cheers and good luck!
Thanks for this.
Hey Shannon,
I have to say that your blog is awesome, so full of essential information and really interesting and fun stories about your experiences in CM!
I am planning to move across there in the coming months, i am a full time internet marketer, so the living costs you have highlighted seem easily affordable to me.
Once i have moved out there who would you recommend seeing about rental properties and scooter rental?
Keep up the fantastic work, you are one amazing lady!!!
All my best,
Michael
Thanks Michael! It can really fluctuate if you plan to go out a lot more, and depending on lifestyle, but I find the above is a great baseline budget to use for a lot of the costs in the area.
I’m not sure about rental properties, some friends have listed out some common expat properties
And for rentals, long-term prices at Bikky are pretty decent and they have multiple places throughout the city!
Hope that helps, best of luck on the move and happy planning, and safe travels! :)
Hi there – I am taking a year off work and will be in CM in July – I teach at a Brit school in the Middle East but need to get my skills up. I did love CM
when I was there previously; as a just over 40 year old guy I feel Chiang Mai is the ideal place to study and appreciate life. Totally understand your reluctance to spend all your money in bars – it isn’t that much fun and can prove expensive. Would be nice to catch up with you and just share some views on life. Really appreciate your blog – found very interesting.
Hi Noodles! The city likely hasn’t changed too much since you were last here, still has a great small city vibe :) I won’t be here in July actually, I head back to the States for the summer, but there is a great expat community here (and a couple CM facebook groups if you’re interested) with some great expat friends who spend the summer months here :) Safe travels and let me know if there is anything I can do to help you settle in here! :)
Thanks Shannon. The link to any CM facebook pages and contacts would be great. I have been living in the Middle East for 9 years so can’t express how much looking forward to this. I have been looking at condos – there seems to little competition with regards to costs – I could not afford to take a year off anywhere else and study and have such a good standard of living. Thanks again for your help. oops – noodles is uncovered! :)
One more thing – intend to get parents over next February – how bad was the pollution then? Was reading about evacuation – looked quite serious for a while.
There really are a wide range of affordable options, and even better deals once you’re here and can go look at the places in person (and I highly recommend getting an agent to help you find a place if you’re here for a year or more, commission is very small and they can help set you up with a great deal). As for FB groups, is one of them. And Chiang Mai in February is a tricky question, it was pretty smoggy and gross this year, but last year was rainy, cool and zero smog in Feb…it’d be hit or miss, but if it’s bad you could always just take them south to BKK or the islands :) Cheers and good luck with the move!
I’m right around the same number as you each month, $600 gets a pretty decent standard of living. I recently documented a month at $400 a month on my site, that was hard but doable.
I’m right around the same number as you each month, $600 gets a pretty decent standard of living. I recently documented a month at $400 a month on my site, that was hard but doable.
Thanks Neale, I think the real difference comes down to the food you like, and what you consider a good time. I am living here with my niece this year, and am still well under $1000 for two people! Happy to hear others have found the same here….400 must have been a bit tricky though! :)
Thanks Neale, I think the real difference comes down to the food you like, and what you consider a good time. I am living here with my niece this year, and am still well under $1000 for two people! Happy to hear others have found the same here….400 must have been a bit tricky though! :)
hello. just want to ask if i am a tourist there in thailand, im i allowed to find a job or make a small business? thanks.
pls. rply in this email address: rule_0709@yahoo.com
HI Erick, if you are a tourist, you are forbidden from working. You have to have a special work visa to do that!
We are moving to Sara Buri are there good schools to teach at there?
Me and My Son are moving to Thailand in the next 6 months as teachers. We have everything sorted just saving up for visa and flights and stuff. Just wondering what the cost of living is? and what sort of money and things we will need to bring over?
It’s still really close to what I outlined in my post, double or triple the food budget for two people (and particularly if you think you’ll be eating Western food frequently). I haven’t visited where you’ll be staying, but it has the potential to be really affordable since its not BKK or the islands. As for what to bring, don’t worry too much, anything you forget can be bought here, they have huge malls and stores with just about anything you need :) Cheers and safe travels over here!
It’s still really close to what I outlined in my post, double or triple the food budget for two people (and particularly if you think you’ll be eating Western food frequently). I haven’t visited where you’ll be staying, but it has the potential to be really affordable since its not BKK or the islands. As for what to bring, don’t worry too much, anything you forget can be bought here, they have huge malls and stores with just about anything you need :) Cheers and safe travels over here!
Hi Shannon
I am sooo happy for you and your new life. I have been to Thailand (many moons ago) and would like to have some insight on Chiang Mai. I am a massage therapist (and a nurse) who would like to add Thai Massage and study at ITM. I would be interested in topics like accommodations, cheapest flight into which city as an entry point……my plan is to stay 3-4 weeks….not sure if an apartment or guesthouse is the way to go. I am definately on a budget as I have obligations back in the US.
I would appreciate any imput……..and thanks for your blog……so inspired by it.
PS I have a scooter at home, so not a problem for me regarding transportation, although funds favor walking. So a reasonable distance to ITM would be a preferance. Flights seem to be on the high end so any suggestions???????? Thx Cheryl
I have a few tips for you Cheryl, I did a guide to CM post here: https://alittleadrift.com/2011/08/best-places-in-chiang-mai/ with hotel and restaurant recs. Finding a good guesthouse and renting for 3-4 weeks at a discounted rate is your best bet, if you look around once you get here, you can likely find something great. Here is a longer list of accommodation options: .
For flights, flying into Bangkok is often the most budget option, check Skyscanner.com for the discount airlines in the region. Also try Hipmunk.com and Kayak.com to perhaps find more budget options getting here. Once here, flying around Thailand though use the discount ones. If you want to be mostly walking distance for the month, making sure you book something near Thae Pae gate is best :) Good luck!
Thank you Shannon for you information. It coincides with what I have experienced and what four other links have put out. My girl friend, her son (6 years old) and I are considering Thailand for residence. I have been there 5 times for 2 to 4 months. I have done the Myanmar Visa run renewal three times. My girl friend has not been to Thailand.
Your welcome, glad you found it helpful and good luck with the move! There are a lot of expats with children here, particularly if you put her son in an International school, so you will find a great community when you come! :)
I just got back from Thailand a few months ago and did not really get to visit Phuket or CM since most of Bangkok outside of the financial district was flooded. The taxi brought me to Pattaya when I ask to go to the beach lol and stayed waiting for the water to run off in Bangkok. I’m looking into Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to see where my money will go farthest and hope to teach English as well. Do you know if Thailand is the cheaper of the three? Also any other cities I should consider for cheap and good quality of life?
I think it really depends on what you are looking for– a lot of expats choose Thailand because there is so much access to Western amenities. But as far as teaching English, both Thailand and Vietnam are really great options and both have large expat communities. I have friends who have lived in Hanoi and really enjoyed teaching there. Same thing with here in Chaing Mai, if you have your TEOFL certification, then you could likely find a job here (if you came at the right time while they were hiring for the new school year). There are many opportunities and I think Vietnam and Thailand likely sound like the best options for price and ease of finding a job! :)
Oh, one more question. Sorry.
I would love to save as much as I can for the next 5 years and then go there to retire. (I’ll be 48 then.)
I do love Thailand and the food. It’s a wonderfully strange country, friendly, interesting, exciting…
But…
I’m not interested in going over there to buy a bar girl to be my girlfriend. I’m not interested in meeting someone who just sees me as a wallet and/or a sponsor for her family. I’m sure there are some great girls there but I’ve heard sooooooooooooo many stories of guys going there and getting taken that I would feel like I can never truly trust anybody. I wouldn’t have a problem providing for a girl that I have a real relationship with but I don’t want to be providing for someone who’s going to be working on the side and other nefarious things, if you know what I mean. Plus there’s the language problem that I’m not sure I want to deal with. I’ll learn some, of course, but it would take years to learn enough for real communication and I don’t know if I’m ready to invest that level of effort in the language.
So, I guess what I’m getting at is, are there any western women over there? Obviously there are, since you are there, but aren’t most of them just dropping by for a couple months? Is there a significant number of long-termers there or should I just resign myself to the fact that bar girls are (and if not, girls just looking for a free ride for them and their families) all that is available?
This is a great post, Shannon. And your diligence in answering everyone’s replies is admirable!
I don’t normally post on blogs, but Rachel and others have me wanting to ask some questions…
$200 covers your rent, electricity, water, internet and maid.
$175 for food
$65 for scooter and gas
$50 for evenings out
If this is accurate, I don’t understand why so many others say you’d need $1000 or even $1500 a month to live a “reasonable” lifestyle. What are they doing?!
I’ve been living in Japan for the past 15 years in Osaka, which is apparently the 2nd most expensive city in the world.
This is a rough breakdown of how much I spend (figures in yen, which is currently at about 80yen to the dollar).
Rent and water, 91,000 (for a pretty good sized two-bdrm apt, one room I use as a classroom)
Electricity, about 9,000 on average (high because I teach out of my home and need the air con on all the time – it would normally be closer to about 5000 yen if I had a normal job)
Cell phone bill, 8000 yen
Gas bill, 5000 yen
Phone and internet, 5000 yen
In addition to all this, I budget around 90,000 yen ($1125 US) for all other expenses. That means groceries, eating out, drinking out, meds at the pharmacy when needed, toiletries, public transportation ($5 for a round trip), gas for my motorcycle, AND $300 smoking. (Bad habit I need to quit, I know!)
Remove smoking from the equation because I don’t think most here are including that when they ask how expensive Thailand is and I’m left with around $825 US for the month for all that stuff.
So, this is where I’m a bit confused.
Rachel says around $1000/mo for comfortable. I’ve seen other blogs where guys are saying they wouldn’t recommend less than $1500. This seems very high to me.
I’m spending $825 a month for these expenses, but your list already includes food and at least some going out. If it takes an additional $500/mo to be comfortable, that’s almost as much as I spend here in Osaka!
Is there something I’m missing? Or when people say “have a life” they actually really mean “go drinking a lot”? I don’t really drink much so I can’t imagine spending much more than maybe $100, MAYBE $200 more than your budget to do everything I want to.
As for things not included in your budget, such as clothes, I know that you can get lots of great clothes for cheap enough to almost be negligible. (Jeans for $10, t-shirts for $5 — and these were great quality knock-offs. Lasted me ages!)
Can you (or maybe Rachel and others) show me where the additional $500-$1000 would be needed? Maybe I’m not considering everything properly.
Thanks for reading!
Thanks for including your breakdown for Osaka…I had no idea it could be that affordable! As for prices here, there really is a difference between living a bit more local, and the Western conveniences. I think 1500 per month is awfully high for CM, but you could wrack that much up if you are in a nice apt, eating Western food, and consuming a lot (buying clothes, shopping, etc). Then there are the visa-runs to factor in, which add a bit to the expenses (a quick run to the Burmese border here runs about 700 baht at 30b to the USD, and if you need a Thai visa that could be as much as 2,000 baht or more for the visa alone).
I eat like a local, and live in a pretty small apartment (and when this post was rented lived with a room-mate in a house). $500 was the base cost, I couldn’t spend less than that. Medical expenses, checkups, more Western food, that sort of thing maybe added another couple hundred, but if you are based here long-term, for a year or more, you could DEF find a way to live well under $1000/month.
For another post on CM budgets though, friends of mine wanted a nice apt with a full kitchen, and that made living costs sky-rocket in some ways: http://www.neverendingvoyage.com/the-search-for-an-apartment-in-chiang-mai/
On the other hand, you could have a “kitchen” in the cheaper places if you go Thai style with a propane tank and burner. :)
So yes, there are options, all depending on how long you’re staying. If
you’re here for three months and plan to party a lot, then $1500 could be
right on. The better deals on motorbikes, apts, etc come when you’re here
for a while, and when you find the great local spots to eat and hang out!
1. You’ll need more than $200 to cover your rent/electricity/cable/internet etc. Just running your air conditioner for the hot months (8 months out of the year) will run you $50. For $150 you’ll be living in a room…not an apartment. I’d recommend $300-400/month for rent on the low(ish) end.
2. There is NO way that you can rent a motorbike and gas it up for $65/month. Last year, Jan, the owner of Bikky charged 2000 Baht a month for her cheapest rentals (Honda Wave/Suzuki Shogun) and this year (March) the price was 2500 Baht. Pay the extra 200/month for a better helmet also. Realistically, you can get by for $100-120/month including gas.
3. Western food is more than $3-$4/meal. A double-cheeseburger at McDonalds is 78 Baht and most western meals (not fancy meals btw) will run you at least 180 Baht. Forget eating cheese and other western foods while you are there. Fruit is 10 Baht a serving. A latte (like the ones that Shannon pictured) is 60 Baht. Stay away from the fruit “shakes” it’s just a bunch of simple syrup mixed with some fruit and ice. Sugar overload. Thai meals will cost you 35 baht and it is primarily rice. You’ll probably want an order of vegetables also for nutritions sake (another B35). I’d budget $10/day for food at a minimum including coffee and water. $10 a day does not include western food or beer/soda.
4. Karaoke is one of the more expensive things that you can do in Chiang Mai…unless you are renting a booth at one of the malls (Airport Plaza or Central Kad Suan Kaew).
5. Toiletries aren’t cheap. Especially if you want your western brands.
6. Cell Phone. Use True Money sim cards. 1 Baht/minute for calls to the U.S.
6 You’ll spend much less on Smoking in Thailand than Japan. Marlboros are 78 Baht / L&M are 58 Baht.
7. A movie will cost $4. Bowling is about $1.25/frame
8 Gym membership (you do want to stay in shape don’t you?) will cost $40/month short term (one month) and $33/month for a six month membership at the cheap places (fitness thailand) Cali Wow will cost much more. It’s too hot to exercise outside (not to mention, too polluted). Thais don’t seem to exercise much. The women are thin, but they have no muscle tone.
9 Haircut $5. Massage $5 hour.
So, bottom line, there is NO way that you can live in Chiang Mai on $500/month. I sure can’t and I drink/party less than Shannon.
Here is my breakdown to live cheaply…
$400 rent/utilities
$300 food
$100 motorbike
$100 incidentals (toiletries, vitamins, haircuts, phone etc etc etc)
$100 entertainment
$1000/month bare minimum… $1500/modestly comfortable
And we haven’t even touched on medical, visa costs, longer distance travel (or are you just going to stay in Chiang Mai?)
Source…been there done that.
Everybody likes to brag about how *cheaply* they can exist in Thailand.
Thanks for weighing in, I find you right on a lot of fronts, and grossly different than myself as well. Since this is a personal site, I did in fact live on a bare minimum of $500 (which is what I called it and said that visas and medical was not included. And, I stand by the fact that:
1) 10,000 gets you an entire house with many bedrooms, a one bedroom can be around 5,500b if you look around and don’t go to the expat spots. Very cute studios for 2,500b even if outside the moat.
2) I left CM last month and STILL paid 1,500b per month and I rented locally, not from Bikky.
3) Who the hell would go to Thailand to eat at McDonalds? And, simply ask for a shake without sugar (Mrs. Pa at CM gate does great ones and will point you to the naturally sweet fruits so it tastes good!). Also, as I say, I’m vegetarian, enjoy a lot more expenses if you indulge in animal flesh regularly, veggies are cheap and delicious!
4) The mall, exactly what I mention in my CM post as cheap and fun things to do, did it with friends just last month and it was great fun (and cheap!) 5) Agreed, I try to bring deodorant from home since I hate the selection of liquidy gel stuff.
6) True sucks for everything other than calls home (which is free on Google Voice), I use DTac
7) Yep, 4 bucks for a movie, and 2.50 for a popcorn – perfect afternoon! 8) Running is free. Plus, I don’t exercise unless it’s to P90x in my house, so it looks like CM is cheaper for those ppl like me. :) Check out the CM marathon and other monthly races if you want to get involved with the community, a lot of them fundraise for the refugees!
10) yep, and how many haircuts do you need, I certainly don’t get one a
month, which is why it’s ridiculous to put that in a montly budget.
Bottom line, I just left CM after living there for 5 more months with my 11
year old niece, and though a few prices had gone up (smoothies 20b instead
of 15, vegetarian dinner is 5b more too) we BOTH lived for right around 1,000 per
month, so I don’t know what the heck you people are talking about. Get some
local friends, eat with them, rent from them, and life gets cheaper :)
Cheers and thanks for sharing what it costs to live a bit more in CM!
~S
Shannon
I lived in CM and Bangkok for a total of 2 years. I hope you aren’t running on the busy streets of Thailand. If you are, you are inhaling alot of carbon soot that will never come out of your lungs. Have you noticed any decline in your breathing capacity? If so, you have black soot in your lungs, and it doesn’t come out. Fair warning to everyone reading this.
Thanks for pointing that out Tom, the smog this past year was really intense, and it did have health effects on me at the time, but from most of the research I found, it’s chronic exposure to smog that causes the serious issues. The research studies I found showed that your lungs and immune system can recover from just a season or two in it. It’s most unfortuante for the residents, who are exposed to the smog annually for months at a time. It is something to keep in mind, and I kept a mask on my face when the levels were particularly bad.
I have to argue: a $50 monthly rental for a scooter is pretty common. $100 per month on haircuts and toiletries sounds ridiculous but maybe you have 10 times more hair than I do and need to braid your back hair.
My rent for a private room with bath was $140 per month. I personally visited Shannon and Jodi’s house and it was *sweet* — I was quite envious. A friend had a place for 170US that included wifi, AC, cable and maid service, all within the Old City walls.
Shannon drinks about 1/100 as much as I do so her monthly costs are significantly lower than mine. But your claim of 1500 US per month to be ‘moderately comfortable’ is ridiculous. I partied like a rockstar and still came in under 1100 US per month. (total does not include cost of liver transplant)
I suspect you’re what I call a “Get off my lawn!” — an expat who likes to do nothing but complain about the place they have chosen as a home and how much better it was 10 years ago.
Don’t like it? Go home. And take your neggy peggy horseshit with you.
Thanks for weighing in Wes (and for defending the costs!). And good to know that even with a lot more nights out drinking, it is truly affordable. You definitely are able to include more of the costs if you go out a lot more but still hunt around for a good deal on the apartment. I never made it to your abode, but I know it was near the old city, internet, close to food and reasonably priced. Couple that with you being able to dink regularly for under $1100 a month and you have me convinced all over again that we should move back there and hang out some more! xo
I think while you can live on $500 a month in Thailand (not Bangkok!) temporarily, it’s just not possible full-time.
I’ve been in Thailand for 11 years and can get away with $800-1,000 a month in Bangkok and that’s a comfortable lifestyle. But, if I wanted to do any traveling or go out much at nights, or to nicer restaurants, that would easily rise to $1,300-$1,600.
Plus, the dollar is set to fall even further, making $500 a month just about impossible, unless you have two or three roomates and never eat western food :)
IMO, $1,500 a month is the perfect salary in Thailand. It allows you to have a life, travel and pay for the dreaded visa runs. I wouldn’t recommend much less than that long-term (and btw, I’m female so don’t have a Thai girlfriend to also take care of :))
Agreed, it’s not possible on just $500, but this truly is my base costs for being here in the North (not BKK), without visa runs and without frequent Western food (which I don’t do except for a couple times a month). I’d say that budget wise and as NOT a heavy drinker/partier I *easily* spent less than $1000 per month and still enjoyed my days, that was mostly just working and hanging out with friends though! :)
Glad to see how it can vary if you spend money in different areas (and definitely varies if you have a Thai gf, as you noted! :) Thanks for weighing in on this with your expenses, it helps to have a wide range of people’s experiences here.
well living story
Im not from US but I wanna living in Thailand. Nice nature, girls, good costs of living, great nightlife :)
No worries, there are expats from all over here, with all kinds of interests :)
50 bucks per month entertainment?? what do you do?? put 50 bucks down the toilet and see which way it spin’s?? 50 buck’s get’s jack sh’t in Thailand …
If you’re a frequent blog reader you’ll note that I’m not a big partier and preder a night of bowling or karaoke over sinking a lot of money into alcohol, so 50 bucks a month bought me a few beers with friends each week, which is quite enough for me. By all means, factor is a lot more if you have a different lifestyle, my intention was to give baseline costs for consideration. If you like to flush money down the beer-toilet, then by all means quadruple that number for sure. :) Cheers.
i agree with both of you. it depends on how you live. Ive lived in cm for many years and I have thai friends with 30,000,000 baht plots (US 1M) then again i know monks here who own and earn nothing.
Got to agree with $50 a month getting you nothing. That’s only 1,500 baht. So, maybe five or six nights out over the month, and that’s it.
Of course, if you go with a group of friends for dinner to a Thai restaurant you could stretch that to about 10 nights out. But it wouldn’t be anywhere near enough for anybody who likes a drink. One beer is 50-70 baht.
Gotta say, 5-6 nights out is about right, I think I noted in the piece that I go “out” about once a week at the time, and that includes karaoke nights, where beer is the backdrop to simply hanging out :)
Very few people will save money by spending less, it’s just not human nature. You may get more for what you spend, but you will not ‘save money’ or ‘live cheaply’. In fact, you will end up spending as much as you did in the country you immigrated from.
He gets 1ea.-bar girl for 50.00 a month. LOL You need about 4,000.00 a month (Minimum), unless you like sitting in your room alone for 30 days at a time. If you pay cash for a condo and then have 4,000.00 USD a month for spending money, you will have a great time there.
You don’t need much if you don’t party like a rockstar, I’ve been living in Chiang Mai for 3 years and my monthly budget on entertainment is about 10,000 baht.
Thanks for weighing in on that Chris, I was taking a bit of flack on that one :) Cheers and good luck living here!
Obviously if your idea of entertainment is getting wasted and all that goes with that daily … $50 dont get you a lot. 2000b gets me a whole lot of entertainment. My Idea of what is entertaining is probably different to yours though :-)
Obviously if your idea of entertainment is getting wasted and all that goes with that daily … $50 dont get you a lot. 2000b gets me a whole lot of entertainment. My Idea of what is entertaining is probably different to yours though :-)
Hope someday, I can visit thailand.
wow is cheap to live in thailand, and still have money saving.
“The best way for me to not go further into debt is, frankly, to stay outside of the US.”
Sad, but true! I’m seriously thinking to live there with my 2 little girls and My wife!
Thanks for sharing!
I couldn’t agree more! It’s gotten so that even a modest income puts you at the poverty level, whereas you can live a really nice life over here in Thailand for that amount. Good luck with the planning! :)
Shannon,
What a generous spirit you are! I have enjoyed reading your blog and it is one of the first ones that piqued my interest in Chiang Mai. Reading about your adventures has been really inspiring. I have a question for you related to visa expenses; my husband is a telecommuter and we have decided to take a “personal development year” in Thailand. My husband will work remotely and I will be finishing a novel and perhaps volunteering. My question: If we want to stay in Thailand for a year or so, is it advisable to sign a year lease on a house or apt? If so, what expenses can we expect to incur over a year to keep a valid Visa? I have been searching online, but haven’t found the answer to the question “What is the least amount of visa related expenses we would incur in order to stay in Chiang Mai for a year?” Thank you in advance for your time.. I know you are busy with your niece. ;-) Would love to meet you and your niece when we get there.
Peace out,
Loree
P.S. I also really resonate to your Joseph Campbell quite..
Hi Loree! Thanks for getting in touch and congrats on the move to Thailand, I am pretty partial to the country :)
As for visas, that is one of the trickier parts of staying for a year. You will have really just a couple options since I don’t think you’re at retirement age yet (totally different visas!).
The double entry visa: Gives you two entries, each on 60 days and each entry can be extended by 30 days…so this is about 6 months. Then you would have to leave and get a second double entry visa. With this visa, you have to leave the country every 90 days and at least cross a border. All told about 6,000 baht to buy it and then cross a nearby border). (Apply for your first double entry from home!)
The second kind is a year visa but it’s multi entry (so you can come in and leave as many times as you want) and you get 90 days each time. I haven’t done this one, but friends have and it’s the ideal between the two. Call your closest Thai consulate and see if they would issue this one…it’s worth the fees.
Also, for some more living here type posts and help: This family has some great resources.
And as for the house, renting a house can be cheaper, but there are allll
kinds of apts here in Chiang Mai, and just a bit outside the moat you can
get a pretty great house for the same as an apt in the city, so it really
depends on what you want (check out the link above, they also have a
housing post!). Consider, if you do a apt and commit to 6 months, then you
can easily get out of it if you decide to try out living elsewhere in
Thailand!
Cheers and good luck on the move, if you’re here in the next few months we
can definitely meet up! :)
THANK YOU Shannon! Soooo helpful!! I look forward to reading about your latest adventures.
Cheers,
Loree
Hi Shannon. im actually looking into teaching ESL in Thailand in the next few months. I was wondering about Health insurance there. I have Insurance here till June and then I have nothing, but after that Id have to figure something out. If my job doesnt offer it can i get insurance there?
Hi! Travel insurance is your best bet if you don’t have any offered by your job. I use Patriot ins right now ( http://www.imglobal.com/img-insurance/travel-medical-insurance/patriot-travel-medical-insurance.aspx) and have used World Nomads in the past (both are good/haven’t heard anything bad). Also note that small checkups are incredibly cheap here, so your insurance is for the big stuff :) Safe travels, let me know if there is anything else I can help with!
hi there, ive done homework about working in thialand but ive seen nothing of the legality of an expat working in Thailand. once i start the journey, what is a good staging area, maybe with a cheap pensione or youth hostel?
thank you so much for your help
jim, dallas texas
jimskid@hotmail.com
That’s a tough one Jimskid, it is completely illegal to work here in Thailand without a visa, so I can’t really recommend you do that, but yes, some hostels might let you exchange accommodation for work if you ask around. That being said, there are a lot of teaching English jobs here, and you could take a contract and save up money, and then leave, not sure what your travel plans look like, but there is definitely work to be found (both legit and not) all over SEA for backpackers simply asking around :)
it was so nice to get a fast response, thank you
Hi Shannon!
I know I’m this is an older post, but I have had it bookmarked for months in preparation for my own move to Chiang Mai! I’ve been here for over a week now and scored a pretty cool apartment on Nimman Road. I was wondering if you could tell me where you rented your scooter. I haven’t found any places with rates lower than 3000B. Did you have a native Thai speaker help you?
Thanks so much,
Susan
Nimman is such a great area, very lively and some of my favorite restaurants are over there! Will send you a message about the bikes :)
Scooter rentals are everywhere, around 200 baht. You give up your passport until return, get insurance please. Good luck you can get hurt and or killed! Thai’s do not stop!