Is living in Thailand really as cheap as everyone says? I have seen articles online that claim you can live in a condo on the beach in Thailand for only $300 per month. There is also a web site that states you can live in Chiang Mai for $550 per month.
You might be able to get by for $550 per month in Chiang Mai if all of your meals come from the local street vendors, you don’t drink any beer or alcohol, and you live like a hermit.
There are many things that do cost less in Thailand – electricity, water, fresh fruits and vegetables, and local food. There are other items that cost more – gasoline, vehicles, some electronics, and imported items.
You can also get many bootleg or pirated items over here that are cheap – but are also – illegal. These are mainly clothes, DVDs, and software.
If you want to have some of the items you are now used to having daily – mainly food items – you will find your favorite cereal, lunch meat, canned goods, and other imported food items can cost 2 – 3 times as much as you are currently paying.
Here are some scans of the latest Tesco-Lotus advertisement. For those unfamiliar, this is a store similar to Walmart. Prices are all in Thai baht – so divide by about 32 to get approximate US dollars.
It can be cheap to live in Thailand, but not as cheap as you may think.
