Living the Good Life as an English Teacher in Thailand

Teaching English in Thailand changed my life and it might just change yours too!

I’ve been working in schools in Bangkok for 8 years, have tons of friends who are teachers and I’ve worked at language schools and international schools here so I’ve got a range of experience.

While I always enjoyed teaching at home (in the UK), my experience of teaching in Thailand was such an improvement in terms of lifestyle. I came here and felt adventure, excitement and freedom like I never had before! Part of that was to do with being single for the first time in my adult life (!) but the rest was definitely the magic of Thailand.

If you’re curious what life as an English teacher in Thailand is really like then here I reveal:

• daily life as a teacher
• lifestyle- how it differs so much from the UK
• salary – can be lower, can even be higher than UK!
• cost of living – very affordable
• challenges – what it’s like culturally teaching in a different country
• teaching requirements

What is it like teaching English in Thailand?

Passion

Teaching is a vocation and a passion. To wake up (most days) and feel content to go to work is something I never take for granted. To do that and then pick up fresh mango and a coconut on the way home, swim in the pool condo and go out with friends to a local restaurant for $2/£3 is such a lifestyle change to teaching back home.

Respect

Generally I feel that in the UK (and elsewhere) teaching is not a respected profession. I was shocked when I moved here (the first time age 24), and when I would tell people that I am a teacher, they would say ‘wow’ and look impressed. That was very different from the reactions of people back home!

Thailand puts a lot of respect on the teaching profession which makes you feel like you belong here and are doing something right!

Teaching here means generally minimal behavioural management compared with teaching in the UK or the US. Families encourage their children to learn English and it is seen as a positive and enjoyable thing to do.

Daily life as an English teacher in Thailand

When I taught at a language school here, my daily life was amazing! I had Monday and Tuesday off, taught Wednesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons and evenings but had long full days teaching at the weekend. The weekends were quire brutal with 2/3s of my contact time over just those two days.

However, for travel it was incredible as I would often leave Sunday evening on a flight or night train and come back Wednesday morning in time for work. It almost felt like a long weekend every week! It was great to not have early mornings during the week and I would spend my mornings swimming on the rooftop pool of my condo and exploring Bangkok.

The class sizes were small as I taught for the British Council and I had kid, teen and adult classes. The largest class size was 18 students, most were around 12 students a class and I would also do 1:1 classes occasionally too.

There were a lot of fantastic teaching resources that I could use at work and I never took planning home with me. Paperwork and admin were pretty minimal and I enjoyed the role!

I had adequate holidays to get exploring Thailand which eventually lead to the creation of this Thailand travel blog and expanded as I started to see more of Asia. It was especially great when I made friends with the same weekend pattern as me so we could travel together but I would still go solo travelling if our days didn’t align!

Daily Life as an International School Teacher in Thailand

If you are not an early bird, then be warned, international schools start early in Thailand. We usually have to be in school at around 7am. Lessons start from between 7.30-8am but the school day also finishes early, around 2.30pm or 3pm for most schools. Some schools have extra meetings and activities you can or are obliged contractually to take part in after school but that is usually not every day. These are usually not on every day and often align with a hobby that you love. For example at my school you can be involved in marine conservation (my passion!) or rock climbing or many different sports.

The school day usually has a break and a lunchtime and you may be required to do supervision duty a couple of times a week.

Many schools have extensive holidays with usually 3 weeks for Christmas holidays, breaks in half term such as October and February and a long summer holiday of 7-8 weeks. Additionally Thailand has many public holidays so you can expect several long weekends over the year as well. In my experience schools are really good at releasing the holiday calendar in advance so that you can get planning your next trip!

For a comparison of the different schools that you could teach at in Thailand I have a whole article here on it!

Teaching Salaries in Thailand

I get frequently annoyed by expats who have been in Thailand for two minutes and claim that you can never earn a high salary teaching in Thailand. They are very, very wrong.

The top international schools in Thailand pay similar salaries to those in your home country. That means you can live in Bangkok and earn the same salary as you would in London. That means a serious amount of disposable income when you know the cost of living in Thailand is low (and that London is insanely expensive).

Even for teachers on lower salaries, many still enjoy being able to afford living alone in a one bedroom apartment with a condo pool, regular international travel and not feeling limited by finances.

When I first moved here my initial salary was 64,000 baht a month and my rent was 14,500 baht a month for a one bedroom condo with a rooftoop swimming pool on the BTS skytrain line. I had great holidays, travelled all around Thailand and South East Asia, stayed in hostels or budget accommodation. I scuba dived often (an expensive hobby of mine!) and flew home every Christmas to the UK which was usually covered by my annual bonus from work.

Nowadays, as an international school teacher my salary is significantly higher. I even get paid with a split salary, some in Thai baht into my Thai bank account and some in pounds into my UK account. My rent is 22,000 for a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo with pool and gym, on the BTS skytrain line.

I receive a housing allowance of 31,000 baht a month but keep what I don’t spend.

I have a return flight home at the end of every two year contract (although as the price of flights has increased a crazy amount to the UK this doesn’t feel any different to my initial benefit in my first job). I enjoy international travel every holiday and stay in affordable, luxury accommodation. I still scuba dive at almost every opportunity!

Teaching Salary Overview

You can earn anything from 30,000 baht a month to 200,000+ baht a month depending on the school and your experience and qualifications.

Some schools may allow negotiation of salary whereas others will not. It really depends on the individual school. Both schools I’ve worked at had a teacher salary scale depending on qualifications and years of experience so it was fixed and not negotiable. Others may be more flexible so doesn’t hurt to ask!

Benefits of Teaching in Thailand

Lovely, lovely students is the first thing that comes to mind. I’ve had amazing connections with my students in Thailand, from Thai nationals to international students. They are sweet, respectful and very polite.

One downside I found at the beginning, especially in the language classroom, is that some students were very reluctant to speak. Some assumed that they would need to be quiet for the whole class! Clearly if we are practising speaking skills that is not what I want so it can take some encouragement to get students chatting in English!

The many many benefits of living in Thailand. Amazing food, travel experiences, nature, people, affordable cost of living and accommodation options! I’ve written a whole list here for more reasons to move to Thailand, in case you needed any persuasion!

Less paperwork and time wasted. In all teaching jobs you are going to experience paperwork that (I especially feel) has nothing to do with your teaching role. I found the additional paperwork in both my jobs in Thailand to be A LOT less than I would be obliged to do when I was working in the UK.

Continuing professional development has been encouraged at both my Thailand schools. Over the last 8 years in Thailand this means that I achieved the following qualifications:

DELTA – one of the top EFL qualifications, equivalent to a Masters degree but practical

iPGCE – an international qualification to teach in British international schools

QTS – qualified teacher status, a UK teaching qualification

Some people think you can’t advance in your teaching career unless you are living in your home country. As I’ve shown above, this is completely untrue and I have been very successful in advancing my teaching career while working in Thailand.

Please note I am British and teach at a British school so my qualifications reflect that. If you are a US teacher then you will be able to gain qualifications that are the equivalent. My American teacher friends have done just that!

Cost of Living in Thailand

A lot of people complain that the cost of living in Thailand has increased, but it’s gone up everywhere all around the world! Thailand is still very affordable. For me the main reason I think this is because the cost of rent is low. In most countries rent will be a significant portion of your salary.

In the UK, in expensive cities like London this can be even half of your salary at times and it is not affordable to live alone. Thailand is a total game changer for this. I had no idea before I moved to Thailand solo the first time that I could afford my own place with a rooftop pool and gym! I would say that most expats I know in Thailand, many of whom are teachers, would

In my book How to Move to Thailand, I’ve shared loads about the cost of living in Thailand with tons of examples from beer and cocktails, to rent in different areas of the country to experiences!

Getting a Teaching Job in Thailand: Requirements

The number one thing to know is that the Thai government require a bachelor degree for every teaching position. This is needed for a work permit and visa for a teaching role. Additionally most schools will require teaching qualifications although there are some agencies that may place foreigners are teaching assistants or language assistants in local schools without any teaching qualification or with a short weekend TEFL course.

Language schools will typically require a CELTA certificate. This is the first teaching qualification that I got after I graduated and is a month long intensive course that trains you to teach English to adults. I really enjoyed my CELTA course and it opened doors for language schools around the world.

The top schools will require a teaching qualification from your home country, related bachelor degree and several years’ of classroom experience.

You cannot legally teach in Thailand with a bachelor degree.

How to Get a Visa to Teach in Thailand

Luckily for expats moving to Thailand to teach, schools will apply and organise your visa for you. You should not need to pay any money upfront for a visa or work permit.

There are usually two options that schools will offer or discuss with you. First is that you can apply for the visa from a Thai embassy in your home country. For example, for me I had to go to the Thai embassy in London with all the paperwork that my school sent me, my passport and passport size photos of me. I then received a physical work permit within the first few months of working in Thailand.

The second option is that you arrive in Thailand and your school will then send you to a nearby Thai embassy in a neighbouring country, like Penang in Malaysia to complete your visa there within the first few months of working.

Visas are renewed every year by the school and will require an annual trip to immigration. If you are a large school immigration may come to your school instead.

Additional information that you may read about online is 90 day reporting. Every 90 days foreigners are required by law to report to immigration, usually online. Schools will do this for you, you just need to let them know your last date of arrival in the country and they keep records of this in the system. They may need your passport to do this.

Disclaimer: Visa information that I share are what applied to me at the time when I got the visa and teaching job. Visa rules and work regulations in Thailand can change, and they may vary based on your nationality and situation. It’s always a good idea to double-check the current requirements with an official Thai embassy or consulate, or to speak with a legal expert before making any big moves. 

Finding Teaching Jobs in Thailand

There are several websites that are great for finding English teaching jobs in Thailand. The below are all ones I recommend to friends and many teachers have found jobs using these resources.

TEFL.com for English language teaching jobs

TES for international schools

Ajarn for Thailand specific teaching positions

Shrole (connected with TES) for international teaching roles

Teaching English Online in Thailand

Another option you may have is to teach English online. This could qualify you for the digital nomad visa in Thailand, known as the DTV visa. My American partner is on the DTV visa as a remote worker but I do not have personal experience of this as I’ve always been on a work permit. The Destination Thailand Visa is a new visa that came out in 2024 and allows for remote workers to stay 6 months at a time in Thailand. You can lease an apartment but currently you are unable to open a Thai bank account (although we hope that changes soon!).

Time zones will be the main thing to consider when teaching online so finding a time zone close to Thailand such as China, South East Asia or Australia would be ideal. Europe is also feasible but US time zone is very tricky and often in the middle of the night here!

Wifi is very fast in Thailand in the big cities so should be fine for online teaching.

Things I Wish I Knew Before Teaching English in Thailand

I think I got some great advice on my arrival in Thailand. Making sure you understand Thai culture and customs is essential so important things like:

Don’t touch children on the head (this can be flexible especially if they are young children)

Don’t point at people, use your whole hand to gesture instead

Saving face is important, students can be very sensitive to making mistakes in front of others

Rote learning may be something students are used to and a communicative classroom can be challenging for some at first

I’ve written a whole post here about all the things you should know before moving to Thailand, for teachers and just in general like culture shock!

Should You Teach English in Thailand?

If you already have a passion for teaching, then absolutely YES. It’s one of the best decisions I ever made and has lead to a life I am so proud of.

If you are thinking about teaching in Thailand then continue researching and my How to Move to Thailand guide could help you with that too!

If you aren’t a teacher yet then my best advice is to ask schools near you to observe some lessons. Get a feel for if teaching is for you.