Monthly Cost of Living in Thailand December 2016

Monthly Cost of Living in Thailand December 2016

Welcome to the December 2016 report on my monthly spend in Thailand. To start with check out the about me page to learn a little about me and my circumstances. It will also explain the high accommodation prices below.

Total Income:   117,000 THB

Total Spend:    68,000 THB

Saved:      49,000 THB

Breakdown

Accommodation – 30,000 THB

I bought my 2 bedroom Bangkok condo in April 2015 and I pay 30,000 Baht a month in repayments. Most people I know rent places for around 10,000 Baht a month so I am paying a lot more than average but I’ll be living rent free in a couple of years.

Utility Bills – 3,900 THB

My utility bills include water, electricity, internet, 365 Sport TV subscription , condo maintenance fee, Netflix and mobile phone package.

I think this amount is higher than a lot of people but I spend a lot of time at home and the cost of electricity, a decent internet connection and TV packages are low compared to the usage I get from them.

Transport –   2,100 THB

Many people are negative towards Thai public transport which I think is unfair. The buses, trains and songthaews get me around in a safe and timely manner. They are also cheap to use and in rare cases I can use a taxi for a small cost to get somewhere even faster.

I usually take a bus to and from work and it costs around 20 baht a day return.I went into the city a couple of times and took the van at 35 baht a time. Also as I went away on a short trip I took a taxi to and from the train station which cost just over 400 Baht in total.

Food –  10,950 THB

I always seem to spend around 10,000 Baht a month on food, drinks and snacks. I don’t think it is a crazy amount although I could reduce it by cutting back on snacks and not eating in restaurants so often.

I never really limit myself when it comes to food as I enjoy going out and it is very rare that my bill is more than 750 for two of us to eat out.

On a normal day I get fruit or toast for breakfast and follow that up with friend rice or an omelette for lunch. For dinner I’ll get some Thai food or will cook something like pasta at home.

General Shopping –   2,950 THB

After buying a 4K TV last month I decided to get a soundbar to go with it. Powerbuy had a Samsung model on offer for 2,950 so I snapped it up and it is doing a good job. Whilst it isn’t the top of the line model it provides a good sound and if I want to upgrade in the future I’ll use it in the bedroom for the other TV.

Entertainment –    3,200 THB

December is Christmas and this year we held a party at our condo for around 20 of our friends. We decorated the place and got in some beers and food, in total we spent around 3,000 Baht.

On top of this I play badminton every week which works out at about 50 baht a time.

Travel –   7,900 THB

I went away for New Year with my girlfriend for 4 nights in Chumphon. I already paid for 3 out of 4 nights accommodation and the transport last month which meant I spent just under 8,000 on eating, trips and general holiday stuff.

Chumphon was a bit of an unknown but we had a great time and I would recommend it to you if you want somewhere a bit different.

Others –     7,000 THB

As it was Christmas I bought some gifts for family and my girlfriend. I normally go for an Amazon eGift Card as they can be sent anywhere and people can chose what to buy.

Saved –   49,000 THB

I got my end of contract bonus this month which meant I almost doubled my normal work salary, but I end up getting taxed a hell of a lot more than normal.

I worked on average 35 hours a week and started a new project which should bring in some extra money next month.

I will be putting these savings towards a 2 week holiday to Dubai and Italy in September and plan to book the flights (27,000 Baht) sometime in January.

Overview – Monthly Cost of Living in Thailand December 2016

After 3 months of not saving anything it is nice to get back into the black and have a healthy amount put aside.

I was away for 4 night over new years and celebrated Christmas so I did a lot in December but my overall costs were quite low.

I am changing jobs in January so have to do a visa run and which I’ll turn into a mini break in Penang. I expect this will cost me in the region of 15-20,000 Baht as I will take my girlfriend with me. My new job might lead to me making more money each month so I am looking forward to seeing my figures over the next 3 months to see what happens.