Retiring in Bangkok
Reviewed by Greg Berryman, 12 September 2026
A different kind of choice
Bangkok has no beach and no mountains, and it's the most congested city in the country by a wide margin.
It's here for people who want a city. The other six on this site suit a quieter, coastal pace.
It sits on the Chao Phraya river, not the coast. Good for floating markets.
Getting around Bangkok
The BTS and MRT changed what Bangkok living actually looks like. Pick a neighbourhood near a station and you rarely need to travel far.
Most expats find a small pocket of the city that covers everything they need and settle into it.
The airport is straightforward too if you're staying near a line that connects to it.
Tuk tuks still exist and they're still an experience. Loud, open-sided, and faster than they look.
What takes time to find in Bangkok
Bangkok has spectacular rooftop bars at one end and good back alleys at the other.
Social media covers a lot of this now, and plenty of these spots turn up in a quick search rather than staying secret.
Locals still know things a phone doesn't. Sometimes a tip from someone who actually lives here beats anything online.
Healthcare in Bangkok
This is the one place healthcare actually sets a city apart.
Bumrungrad, Bangkok Hospital, and Samitivej are world class. People from other Thai cities travel to Bangkok for them when something serious comes up.
Golf in Bangkok
Better than most people expect.
Thailand's two highest ranked courses nationally, Ayodhya Links and Alpine Golf and Sports Club, both sit within about an hour of the city.
The trade-off
Traffic and air quality are the cost of everything else Bangkok offers.
Commutes are long and unpredictable, and air quality drops through the dry season.
Weigh that against the transport network, the healthcare, and the choice of things to do.
What does it cost to live in Bangkok?
Bangkok is expensive by Thai standards, roughly on par with Phuket and well above Chiang Mai, Krabi and Hua Hin.
Rent is where it shows. Reported figures put a one-bedroom in the centre at about 23,000 baht a month, and about 12,000 outside it.
That outside-centre figure is the second cheapest of the six cities compared on the cost of living page, which is what the BTS and MRT buy you.
Something here not covered? Ask me.
Sources
Most of what's on this page comes from living it, not from research. Where a specific claim needed backing beyond personal experience, here's where it came from: