The Cost of Living in Koh Samui: A Breakdown for Expats

Koh Samui (aptly given the moniker Coconut Island) is known for its luxury accommodations, lively panoramas, and clean beaches that border on being paradise on earth.

While Thailand’s second-biggest island (Phuket is its largest) has its share of resorts and hotels, the best way to experience it roots from its treasure trove of private and luxury villas.

What’s more, Koh Samui itself is a resource-rich tropical sanctuary that embodies the natural beauty of the Southeast Asian region, making it truly a “Pearl of the Orient”.

With that in mind, you’re probably curious about the cost of living on the island, particularly how cheap or expensive it can get.

How Cheap or Expensive Is It to Live in Koh Samui?

It’s important to know how cheap or expensive it is to live in Thailand’s Coconut Island. After all, even if you are able to get a bargain on a luxury villa, you might have to pay more depending on the cost of living!

• The Retirement Fund Method: Many foreigners want to take advantage of the dollar-to-baht exchange rate to live comfortably for the rest of their days as retirees in Koh Samui instead of struggling with whatever job or business is available for them in Thailand.

  Nevertheless, the ever-changing cost of living in Thailand and Koh Samui remains in the forefront of their mind, just as they would if they’re retiring in Florida or Hawaii.

• Setting Your Koh Samui Budget: The more money (in dollars) you have saved, the more flexibility your daily budget will have to ensure a comfortable lifestyle in Coconut Island paradise while avoiding the expensive stateside prices.

  With that said, you’re also paying a little extra to live in Samui Island, especially if you were to invest in beachfront villas.

  Your luxury investment savings root more from how much cheaper Koh Samui living is compared to, say, Caribbean beaches. You’re getting luxury living but without the high prices of other beachfronts.

• The Budget You Should Expect: On average, expatriates should expect to spend as little as US$1,500 monthly or ฿50,000 in the local currency if you wish to live frugally. You can live comfortably by spending about $2,000 (฿66,000) monthly.

  The sweet spot is $1,950 to $2,400 in U.S. dollars, which in Thai baht translates to ฿64,000 to ฿80,000. Within that range, you can live like a king even though you’re spending half of what you’d spend monthly stateside (without rent).

• Samui Living vs. Mainland Living: Koh Samui is a little more expensive to live in compared to the Thailand mainland, but not by a lot. This is especially true if you invest in property found in gated communities or near resorts.

  Mainland living is complete with amenities, while Samui living has all that and “a bag of chips” (the “chips” being living in the middle of a real-life heavenly paradise).

  The more provincial or secluded areas of Koh Samui, such as Maenam, will get you even lower prices in utilities and amenities. Regardless, it’s recommended that you observe a sustainable lifestyle in light of your budget.

• Making Things a Daily Party: You’ll have no shortage of ways to spend your money in Koh Samui. You can live like a tourist even by partaking in the many goods and services available to vacationers and holiday makers.

  As long as you don’t live beyond your means, you can have occasional island-hopping expeditions or nightlife parties and celebrations along with many locals and expats. Or you can live practically in secluded silence.

• How About the Average Rent? For only $750 or ฿25,000 a month, you can rent out a fully furnished penthouse apartment or condominium in Chaweng Heights with breathtaking ocean views and two bedrooms on a modern two-story building.

  $750 is a good average rental rate for the more metropolitan areas of Koh Samui. This ensures you of modern amenities and accessibility to touristy activities.

  If you avail of a condo instead of an apartment, you’ll also gain access to a communal pool and recreational room and onsite restaurant and 24-hour security. Otherwise, apartments only offer access to the unit itself.

• Metropolitan vs. Provincial Rent: While $700 (฿25,000) makes sense for Chaweng rentals, you can rent a simpler apartment for as low as $450 (฿15,000) a month instead in areas like Maenam or Lamai.

  The frugal $450 rent will have you living away from the action of Chaweng or Chaweng Noi. You’ll feel more like you’re living in a countryside farm or fishing village, but for many retirees, they prefer the seclusion or the quiet life.

• How About Eating and Shopping Like a Local? You should eat and shop more like a local. By that, we mean you should watch your budget more and think more in terms of baht than of U.S. dollars or your home currency.

  This way, you’ll end up budgeting your money better by being mindful of how you spend it. Don’t be a spendthrift and think long term.

  Get huge savings by buying locally grown meat, fruit, and vegetables and seafood. Don’t buy imported goods so much (because it’s ironic for an American to buy imported American goods they’re used to having while in Thailand).

  Authentic Thai restaurants have Thai-friendly prices too, so you can get a drink and a meal for as low as $5 or ฿166.

• Nothing as Hospitable Than an Island Full of Hospitals: Koh Samui has five hospitals available on it. This includes the renowned Bangkok Hospital Samui. The advanced healthcare of Thailand in general and this island in particular also makes it a top retiree and tourist destination.

  On top of that, Samui Island is also full of local clinics operated by English-speaking, internationally trained medical practitioners, from dentists to doctors and specialists.

  In “cost of living” terms, it typically costs no more than $14 (฿465) to visit a doctor for consultation and getting the right medicine prescription. You can also visit outpatient departments at the main private or public hospital.

• Public or Private Hospitals? Like it is stateside, a public hospital is much more affordable than a private one because the former is subsidized by the Thai government. They can also accommodate foreigners or expatriates.

  When entering a clinic or hospital, you should be seen by a specialist within an hour of arrival.

  Remember that public hospitals are usually crowded with people and have less equipment available. However, many of the doctors working in public hospitals are available at private hospitals too.

• The Affordability of Dental and Optical Care: It’s also super affordable to get dental and optical care in Koh Samui (as well as the rest of Thailand). This is why medical tourism exists (where people go to Thailand for a “wellness vacation”).

  Getting an eye test and eyeglasses prescribed to you costs upwards of $60 (฿1,995). You can go all the way to $250 (฿8,300) if you’re getting more specialist frames and lenses.

  A dental checkup and cleanup costs only $50 (฿1,660). Buying crowns will cost upwards of $260 to $550 (฿8,650 to ฿18,300), which is still cheaper than what it costs stateside even when taking travel costs into consideration.

• Private Health Insurance for Expatriates: Instead of availing of a one-time medical, dental, optical, or drug addiction luxury therapy tour in Thailand, more permanent residents like expats and retirees can instead buy insurance.

  Buying private health insurance can save expats quite a lot of money on out-of-pocket expenses for inpatient (in-hospital) or emergency hospital services. Even foreigners can avail of private insurance for as little as $2,600 (฿86,450) yearly.

• Outpatient vs. Inpatient Insurance: There aren’t that many insurance premiums that cover outpatient care. They’re more reserved for inpatient or hospice care (which can cost thousands of dollars out-of-pocket even in Thailand) and a trip to the E.R.

  This is also because local clinics are so inexpensive that it makes more sense to depend on them for outpatient care versus drastically increasing your premium by outpatient care insurance inclusion.

  Couples aged 55 to 60 can use cheaper insurance, but those below it might have to pay for bigger premiums. However, the caveat here is that most medical care is either subsidized or much more affordable than the stateside equivalent anyway.

Breaking Down the Details of the Cost of Living in Koh Samui

The low cost of living of Koh Samui is the reason why many foreigners and expatriates look into retiring in Koh Samui with their life savings instead of needing to work while living there.

Indeed, let’s dive into the prime realty location of Koh Samui and how much of a daily, monthly, or yearly budget you need to live comfortably in paradise with all your basic needs met.

• Renting Out a 1-Bedroom Apartment: A 1-bedroom apartment in Koh Samui at the city center costs about U.S.$690 (฿23,000) or $270 to $1,500 (฿8,900 to ฿50,000). If it’s outside the city center, it costs $370 (฿12,200) or $250 to $600 (฿8,200 to ฿20,000).

  Meanwhile, a 1-bedroom apartment starts at $4,200 monthly in New York, $1,800 monthly in California, and $1,125 in Texas. Or €900 to €1,500 in Paris, France. Or £1,200 to £2,500 in London, Great Britain.

• Renting Out a 3-Bedroom Apartment: Meanwhile, renting a 3-bedroom apartment in your name so that you can accommodate a couple, or a small family can cost you about $1,280 (฿42,500) or $900 to $1,800 (฿30,000 to ฿60,000) if it’s located in the city center.

  If it’s instead outside the city center or within the more secluded or provincial parts of Koh Samui, it costs $1,080 (฿36,000) or $750 to $3,000 (฿25,000 to ฿100,000).

  Yes, you can rent some of the cheapest 3-bedroom apartments in Koh Samui for near or below the cost of the monthly rent of a New York, California, Texas, Paris, or London 1-bedroom studio apartment.

• Buying to Own Your Own Koh Samui Apartment: The price of buying your own apartment or condominium unit is measured by price per square meter. For example, city center apartments cost $1,350 (฿45,000) per square meter.

  This is the starting price and could be higher depending on the view or the unit’s proximity to the beach. For example, a small 1-bedroom apartment that measures 28 square meters would cost somewhere around $37,800 (฿1.26 million) to own.

  As for the price of an apartment outside of the city center, that would cost roughly the same with a starting price of ฿45,000 or above.

• Financing and Salaries: The average monthly net salary of a Thai citizen or non-citizen resident after taxes is $390 (฿13,000) or $4,680 (฿156,000) annually. Meanwhile, the mortgage interest rate in yearly percentages at a 20-years fixed-rate is 4.78 percent.

  It’s actually more practical to have a retirement fund or savings on hand when retiring in Thailand in light of the average wage of a Thai worker. Or you could get a higher salary as a foreign specialist worker in Thailand’s competitive industries.

• The Cost of Restaurant Meals: It’s more practical to do home-cooking at your kitchen with fresh food items and ingredients instead of paying for restaurant meals every day.

  However, if you can afford it, an inexpensive restaurant can cost you $3 (฿100) a meal. To be more specific, meals can range from $2 to $9 (฿55 to ฿300).

  In contrast, a regular value meal at McDonald costs upwards of $10 to $12 stateside. Speaking of which, a combo meal in Koh Samui costs $8 (฿250) or $6 to $12 (฿200 to ฿400).

  Meanwhile, a mid-range restaurant can give you a three-course meal for two people at $24 (฿800) or $18 to $90 (฿600 to ฿3,000).

• The Cost of Alcoholic or Non-Alcoholic Drinks: Domestic beer (half a liter draught) costs about $2 (฿80) or $1.80 to $3.90 (฿60 to ฿130). Imported beer (0.33-liter bottle), on the other hand costs about $2.60 (฿85) or $2.10 to $6 (฿70 to ฿200).

  As for a regular cappuccino, that costs $2.10 (฿70) or $0.90 to $3.60 (฿30 to ฿120). A Coke or Pepsi (0.33-liter bottle) is $0.78 (฿26) or $0.50 to $ 1.20 (฿18 to ฿40) depending on the restaurant. Finally, a bottle of mineral water (0.33-liter bottle) is $0.40 (฿14) or $0.30 to $1.20 (฿10 to ฿40).

• Common Market Commodities and Groceries: Let’s now talk about your average everyday commodities you buy at farmers’ markets, wet markets, or grocery stores. A liter of milk in Koh Samui costs $1.74 (฿57.70) or $1.36 to $3 (฿45 to ฿100). A kilo of local cheese is $20 (฿666) or $11 to $60 (฿350 to ฿2,000).

  A loaf of white wheat bread (500 grams) costs only $1.40 (฿46.50) or $0.81 to $6 (฿26.80 to ฿200). Meanwhile, a kilo of white rice is only $0.70 (฿23.33) or $0.60 to $4.50 (฿20 to ฿150). A dozen eggs is only $2.21 (฿73.29) or $1.28 to $3.60 (฿42.40 to ฿120).

• Cuts of Meat, Fruits, and Vegetables: A kilogram of chicken fillets cost $2.28 (฿75.75) or $1.80 to $7.50 (฿60 to ฿250). As for a kilo round steak or beef (or equivalent back leg red meat), that’s $10 (฿333.33) or $6 to $13.60 (฿200 to ฿450). You can get even cheaper fish and seafood at the Fisherman’s Village.

  As for fruits and vegetables, you can get a kilo of apples for $3.11 (฿103.17), bananas for $1.15 (฿38.12), oranges for $1.80 (฿59), tomatoes for $1.50 (฿49.50) potatoes for $1.54 (฿51), onions for $1.20 (฿39.33), and lettuces (or heads of lettuce) for $0.90 (฿30).

• Water, Liquor, and Cigarettes: Water only costs $0.46 (฿15.20) in Coconut Island, and that’s for a 1.5-liter bottle of mineral water. As for a bottle of wine, that will cost a pretty penny of $16.88 (฿560).

  As for domestic beer (0.5-liter bottle), that’s on average about $1.65 (฿54.64). Imported beer (0.33-liter bottle), on the other hand, costs about $1.96 (฿65). Finally, a 20 pack of Marlboro cigarettes costs a total of $4.22 (฿140).

  Experience the true essence of luxury by booking a vacation villa, condominium unit, apartment for rental or buying your own for lavish holidays or for permanent residence as a retiree or expatriate that’s staying for the long-term.

  At gorgeous Coconut Island, you’ll get to enjoy quality service, top-rated amenities, and unrivaled privacy that ensures your every day is a gift (your “present”, if you will).

  Why not? The cost of living in Thailand will ensure you’ll have more buying power or value for your dollar or euro. Paradise lost is now found again, and it’s quite affordable to boot!

Luxury Redefined with Koh Samui Villas

Koh Samui is not only the Pearl of the Orient; it’s also the hidden gem of the Gulf of Thailand that gives Phuket a run for its money when it comes to giving residents an authentic worry-free lifestyle. It’s a touristy treasure trove, especially when you think about the affordable cost of living in this area.

Many expatriates, retirees, and investors prefer Samui Island over Phuket because it’s the newer development (relatively) and it has a lot of upsides or benefits to it as far as asset value growth is concerned.

Browse the Conrad Properties website today to access our extensive portfolio of villas and be on your way to finding the Koh Samui property of your dreams!