So you read the “Jobs in the Middle East” article and now you got a gig making a couple hundred grand a year, maybe you have a 6-fig internet business or you play poker online and you want to live the big life in Bangkok. Well with a good chunk of cash in your pocket you can live the Expat Rockstar life living in a big serviced apartment with 42’ LCD’s in every room and hang out at clubs surrounded by beautiful women five nights a week.
Below is the Cost of Living for a High budget, this is basically what we spend every month on the ERS HQ here in Bangkok. When you look at the prices you may think “dang dude” but remember; this is for a top floor serviced apartment, going out to clubs regularly, eating out everyday and dating allot… In a Major International City! This is still ¼ what James G spent every month living in Washington D.C. (all figures are in USD).
Rent – 2000 to 5000 a month
For about 2000 a month you can get a nice one bedroom serviced apartment in a central area in Bangkok. If you step the budget up a bit you can get a three bedroom on the top (penthouse) or high floor (over floor eight) for around 3000$ a month. For 5K+ a month you can live in a two to three bedroom international branded serviced apartment.
With a serviced apartment all utilities are included (gas, water, garbage), electivity (usually up to a certain amount), cable, daily or several time a week maid service, fully furnished with TV’s, beds, furniture, all linins (bead sheets, pillows, towels changed daily), dishes and washer and dryer. Basically you just walk in and you have everything you need.
Food – 1000 to 2000+ a month
The amount you spend on food really depends on your tastes, if you eat out at international hotels every night then you will be at the upper end of the budget. If you eat out at the international hotels a few times a week along with regular places then you will be in the 1K a month range. This will also depend on how much you date, if you are going out with a different girl every night then you will easily break the 2K a month budget. But hey, you are an Expat Rockstar, noodle stands are for English teachers.
Shopping at import grocers is pretty pricy, about triple or more than shopping at a “regular” grocer. If you are like the ERS Crew and you have to have Planters honey roasted almonds, smoked salmon and western branded cereals then tack on another 500 to 1000 bucks.
Transportation – 500 to1000 a month.
If you only take taxis (about 3 to and from rides a day) and use a car service a couple times a week then expect to spend about 300 bucks a month. If you use a car service everyday then you are looking at 500+ a month. Expenses if you buy a car is complicated enough that we won’t go over it here, that’s an entire article in itself.
Cellular/Mobile Phone – 100 to 300 a month.
Just making basic “what up” calls 20 or 30 times a day along with SMSing will only run you about 50 to 80 bucks a month, but if you use the internet on your cell phone and make allot of long distance calls then you can easily spend a few hundred bucks or more a month.
Home Phone – Free to 100+ a month
You will get a free phone line for local calls with your serviced apartment, but if you make allot of long distance calls then you will rack up the bill.
Internet – Free to 20 to 100 a month
It will depend on your serviced apartment but most include wireless internet, the ones that don’t usually charge between 20 and 40 bucks a month. But if you are like us and need a very fast connection (like 2 to 6 down) then you will have to upgrade your service or get a separate line put in.
Entertainment – Skys the Limit
This is hard to put a dollar amount to, if you go out clubbing with two to four girls at the top clubs or you are hitting executive hostess clubs/gclubs 5 nights a week in Bangkok then you can easily spend 2 to 3K a week. If you only go out partying three nights a week then you can stay in the under 1K a week mark. Like any major city in the world you can spend a kings ransom clubbing, a few of the ERS guys have spent over 2K partying in just one night in Jakarta.
Laundry – 10 to 100 a month
Your apartment will have a washer drier or laundry room so if you do your own laundry (right) then you can stay under 10 bucks a month. If you get all of your clothing laundered, pressed and your suites dry cleaned then you will be in the 100 buck a month range.
Miscellaneous - 500 to 2000 a month
This is also sort of hard to determine, if you are a big shopper like the ERS guys then you can easily spend a couple grand a month. Stocking your home bar, cigars and nick nacks for your apartment can get expensive. But how much you spend on miscellaneous stuff every night is up to you.
TOTAL: 6000 to 10,000 a month
Now like I said at the beginning of this article you are probably thinking “dang dude”. But if you were living in LA, London, New York, Hong Kong, Tokyo or Seoul living in a big fully furnished three bedroom apartment with daily maid service, going out to clubs and eating out all week living in the center of the city then you can spend that much a week. I have a buddy that lives in Hong Kong and the rent on his high-rise two bedroom is 11K a month alone and hitting a top club with three or four people is a minimum of 1K a night. It may look like allot but take into account that this is for a kick ass Rockstar lifestyle in a major international city.
Read All of our Living Overseas Articles
Staff Article
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Good article but some of these numbers are inflated:
Phone: I talk and SMS a lot and have hardly ever gone over $100 in a month, usually spending around $70 and that was when I was still using pay-as-you-go 1,2 Call sims. If you talk a lot and you’re smart, you’ll get a monthly service plan for like 1500-3000 baht which can also include unlimited 3G data in the few parts of BKK that currently have it.
Transportation: Unless you’re driving the equivalent of a round trip from Suk to the aiport each day, you’d be hard pressed to blow $500 a month. If you live in central BKK you won’t be going far for the majority of what you need and during the rush hours, you’re much better off taking the skytrain or subway.
Laundry: Dry cleaning isn’t super cheap but laundry is. Tons of places will do 70-80 items for 500 baht so even wearing two outfits per day, you’d only be spending 800 baht a month, throw in a dozen dry cleaned items and you’re still under $60.
Home phone: One word… Skype.
Rent: You can easily shave $1500-$2000 of that $5000+ for a nice, 2-3 bedroom apartment by NOT going with an internationally branded serviced apartment. Hiring a maid to do all that stuff for you is super cheap and utilities are not that expensive. Most serviced apartments do charge for utilities and will double or triple their price to squeeze more money out of you. The ones that don’t charge just roll their cost into the inflated rent. Either way, you’re paying for it. Also, by not going with big brand serviced apartments, you’ve got a much wider selection.
Internet: A 4Mb DSL line is like 700 baht a month and you can get an 8Mb one for like 1150 but most decent apartments, serviced or otherwise will have an included WiFi connection.
Food: I agree with your prices but you can stick with mostly mid priced places and actually get better food along with good ambiance. Most of the places in the big hotels are tourist traps and way over priced and the food isn’t always that great (Sirocco is a prime example). Import grocers certainly are expensive. When you’re paying $12 for some flavored Uncle Ben’s instant rice that probably came from Thailand in the first place, you know the import taxes are crazy. And the 200% tax on wine adds to it.
Bottom line, you can live like a king for a lot less than what you’ve noted if you know what’s what. My first 6 months living here I blew through over $45k. Now that I know a thing or two, I can get by for a third of that and I actually live better.