A Digital Nomad's Guide to Bangkok: Where to Live, Work and Connect
I often get asked about living in BKK so here’s a summary of what I know:
Where to live
Thoughts on where to live:
Siam / Chit Lom (City-city). That would be like living in the center of town around all the sky rises and traffic congestion. Lively, but busy, noisy and dirty.
Ekkamai / Thong Lor (Trendy inner-city). Less built up than Siam and Chit Lom areas, there are a lot of cafes and restaurants in this area. It’s also considered to be Bangkok’s Japantown, so you’ll get your fill of Japanese restaurants here. Quieter, but still busy.
On Nut / Ari (Trendy outer-city). Even less built up than Ekkamai and Thong Lor. These places are up and coming. Ari has lots of cafes and restaurants, but On Nut has more of a living vibe with easy access to a regular shopping mall, cinema and BTS station all in one.
You can check out detailed notes on each neighborhood on Hoodmaps (link). Some of the notes are pretty funny (and true).
You can also read a review post by local startup guy, Oliver Eidel breaking down the costs, pros, cons and views of 3 different condos in BKK here (link).
Other tips
Stay away from Nana. And probably North-East Asoke also known as Soi Cowboy territory. Unless you love 24-7 red light districts.
Avoid Airbnb for long stays, unless for a 1-month stay. Rentals are cheaper but with fewer scams. Airbnbs are notorious for overcharging for their own bills, with crazy ‘house rules’ etc.
Please, walk to the station. Traffic super sucks in Bangkok. I’m not joking when I say you could be caught in a taxi during a traffic jam for 1 to 1.5 hours to cover what could be a 20-minute walking distance. Traffic jams are common and almost every day. Stay within a 10-minute walk of a BTS or MRT (same thing as BTS but a different company) train line and walk.
Where to work
True Digital Park has a Thai startup vibe with younger folks, but it’s a bit far out, about 35 minutes from Asoke. (link)
Fabbit Global Gateway. Quiet and low key like a library. Just the way I like it. A lot of Japanese people work here too. It has a cafeteria with a fridge so you can bring your own food. (link)
The Hive, Thonglor. Hot but lively, more like Chiang Mai digital nomad experience. I haven’t been there more than once. (link)
Justco, WeWork. I had a great experience with JustCo in Korea. WeWork is pretty similar everywhere, but here it has that corporate startup vibe. I don’t think you’ll find any boot strappers, freelancers, indiehackers etc.
Where to connect
Here are some things to keep in mind about the Bangkok community vs other digital nomad locations:
Everyone is spread out. Unlike Chiang Mai, Bangkok digital nomads are really spread out and work in all kinds of places. Probably most people work from home, rather than a coworking space.
Social investment is required to build a network. The people I know who have established friendship groups here tend to have built up the connections slowly. Try to initiate hangouts yourself with other people new to the city because breaking into an existing circle is much harder. I notice even at my own events, it’s basically a bunch of different people’s friendships groups coming together rather than a proper mixing of people.
With that said, here are the most common ways to network with the community out here:
Meetup.com. t’s the classic. Not scientific, but I think the events here are a bit broader in scope, with more fun outings like hikes or bike-riding trips. But less good for finding professional interest based groups like an SEO meetup (there’s a group for that).
Facebook groups / events. Digital Nomads Thailand (link), Bangkok Expats (link) and Bangkok Digital Nomads (link).
WhatsApp groups. The big one is BKK Expats & Digital Nomads (link). But there are niche specific ones floating around. You can ask in the main group and someone will share them with you.
Newsletters. There’s a free local newsletter, Bangkok Newsletter, which does a great roundup of local events and news (link). Also more generally, check out The Digital Nomad Newsletter (link) which shares info more generally relevant to nomading in Thailand too.
Budgeting
The upper ends on these ranges are based on trying to live an outwardly fancy life:
Rent 10,000 - 30,000+ THB, for a one-bedroom condo. You’ll pay more in fancier areas like Siam, Ekkamai and Thong Lor. These condos typically have glitzy amenities (literally) like rooftop pools and marble-clad reception areas. On Nut and outer-city areas can be around the 10k-25k mark for a single bed condo. Keep in mind that young university graduates may spend around 6-8k per month in comparison. 3k-ish for a single room.
Food 300-2000 THB p/day. You can get by cheaply eating low quality street food or cooking a few basics at home. Or, you can eat out at nice restaurants often and get everything by delivery apps.
Electricity 1,000 - 2,500. If you keep the aircon on all the time in an average one-bedroom condo, it’ll probably cost around 2,000 THB per month.
Transportation 1,000 - 2,000 THB. One trip via the BTS is about 35 THB. And taking a taxi could average around 250 THB. So you can calculate from there.
Internet 1,000 - 2,000. There are multiple companies to choose from. 3BB is the cheapest, AFAIK, and offers the best quality for the price.
Phone credit 350 - 500 THB. You pay more for roaming and bigger data packages, but honestly, I find the minimum already provides an excessive amount of data and minutes.
These will be the most common expenses.
Language Learning
I tried learning with a language school (which I won’t name), but my experience wasn’t great, so I ended up learning with tutors and a course.
Duke Language School is probably the most famous here and the one I see most recommended on Facebook groups. They seem the most legit, too. (link)
RapidThai is a course to teach you Thai quickly with a pre-made mnemonic system. I took their course on learning to read it is great. (link)
The textbooks here don’t seem to be that good when I compare them to Korean language learning textbooks. But I have found one reasonable one which is COMPLETE THAI by Teach Yourself. Apparently it will take you to B1 (mid) level by completion.
Transportation
I’d say you’ll end up using the BTS/MRT 75% of the time and taxis 25%.
BTS/MRT. You need to bring your passport to the station and request a BTS card. The MRT is just another BTS-type service, but run by a different company, so you’ll need a separate card for it. If you want to get points for all transactions so you can use them for free stuff or discounts, you can download the Rabbit points app and attach it with your BTS card.
Taxis. Get Grab! And Bolt, and Robinhood and LINEMAN apps. These are the local Uber and delivery providers, with Grab being the main one. You’ll need multiple because sometimes Grab is too busy so you can use another to book a ride or delivery instead.
Tuktuks. Honestly these things just seem to be tourist traps. Avoid unless you’re looking for a tourist experience.
Motorbike taxis. Dangerous but convenient, so be wary. The problem is that often you aren’t provided a helmet, and if you get one it’s going to be nasty inside. Sometimes you can see the riders themselves are a bit drunk late at night, so you’re rolling the dice with those guys.
Eating and going out
I’m not a foodie and don’t drink so my suggestions are almost useless. This is the best I’ve got:
Emquartier Starbucks has an awesome view.
Icon Siam is a super flashy mall and impresses visitors.
The Grand Palace is very nice. Definitely worth going to as a tourist.
Banking
There’s mixed info about whether you need a work permit and certain visas to get a local bank account. I did mine with a study visa with the help of a school. Honestly, seems like it depends on the branch as some people have done it with tourist visas. You’ll need to try by yourself.
Typical scams
Thais are great, and honestly, I’ve had little trouble with scams or low-integrity people, so I wouldn’t say you need to be overly cautious. But unfortunately, scams are more prevalent around tourist areas.
Airport taxi. Sometimes the taxis quote you a crazy amount to drive back from the airport, over 400 THB+ (obviously depends on how far you live away). Be wary. And the meter can sometimes be switched to night mode, so you get extra charged.
Tuktuk drivers saying “it’s closed dawg.” They’ll tell you a main attraction is closed and offer instead to take you on a ride to see their friends’ places instead.
Bus-friend scams. Someone at the ticket sales booth will sell you a ticket for a bus operated by their friend, which does not go directly to the destination. Instead, you’ll get on a smaller van bus and stop everywhere on the way so that the driver can collect more fees from random passengers along the way.
Tailors. Some tailors show you one fabric but deliver you another once it’s done.
Fake watches. Someone will come up to you in the street around Nana and try to hustle you a watch (it’s fake). (link)
Other tips
Suggestions that didn’t fit anywhere else.
PM 2.5 filter + mask. Essential. The air is bad around March-April at the start of the year and again at the beginning of winter.
You don’t have to wai everybody. It seems Thais don’t wai a waiter or waitress, for example, but I see some foreigners do it when they first arrive. You can wai elders/important people, though it’s not expected of foreigners. I save it for when dealing with formal occasions.
Thanks man! My husband and I are getting ready to fly to Bangkok for at least a month or two! We’ve been before but not as digital nomads / for that long so this was super helpful!