Teaching English in Thailand changed my life and it might just change yours too – more fun, freedom, disposable income and adventure! If you’re curious about what teaching English in Thailand is really like, this info is for you!

I’ve been working in schools in Bangkok for 9+ 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.

But I’ll be honest: teaching in Thailand is not a loophole for people who just want to backpack with a paycheck. It works best if you actually enjoy teaching, can handle cultural differences, and want to build a real life here.

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

• Daily life – what a typical teaching day really looks like
• lifestyle- how I live comfortably while saving and exploring
• salary – how variable they can be and where you will get paid more
• cost of living – rent your own place, travel whenever you want
• challenges – what no-one tells you about the students

I taught at the British Council in Bangkok for nearly 4 years, and I genuinely loved it — great resources, small classes, and I rarely took work home.

Questions about teaching? Come and ask them in my free (and private) Facebook community.

What is it like teaching EFL in Thailand, really?

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.

Teaching EFL in Thailand is perfect for newer teachers and experienced TEFL teachers too. You can live a great lifestyle, travel multiple times a year and explore one of the best countries in the world! The timetables can be top heavy so that is one of the downsides that I had to cope with but it meant the other teaching days were very light. Planning and preparation is still there but felt a lot lighter than following UK standards. This is not a job for backpackers just wanting to pass through or for someone who isn’t passionate about teaching.

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Are teachers respected more in Thailand?

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.

Day to Day Realities as an EFL 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 quite 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 led 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!

My typical timetable

Wednesday/Thursday/Friday – Wake up at whatever time I want, swim in my rooftop pool, have a leisurely lunch, work on this blog!, head to work around 4pm. Teaching from 5-9pm. Head out for prosecco with the girls (especially Wednesday nights!). On weekday evenings I would teach Adult and Teen classes, my favourites were the teen ones as Thai teenagers are so polite and lovely!

Saturdays and Sundays – Wake up around 7am, teaching from 8-4/5pm, collapse in the evenings! Except Sunday when I would go for night trains or flights to explore Thailand for the weekend. Weekends were a mix of lessons from young learners in the morning (I learnt I’m not a fan of teaching 8 year olds!) and teen and adult classes too as well as Business English and conversation classes.

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

Your students and classroom culture (the best part… and the tricky part)

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!

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.

How much planning and paperwork do you actually do?

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.

There were a lot of fantastic teaching resources that I could use at work and I never took planning home with me. Report writing was also fairly minimal and we had ample notice so I always started mine early so I wouldn’t get overwhelmed. All parent teacher meetings were also during the usual lesson time so there were no late nights for those!

Can you live well on a teacher salary in Thailand?

I started this job in my early 20s and felt that, while my salary may seem low for the UK, it stretched sooo far and I lived like someone earning 50k in the UK with my own apartment (including gym and rooftop pool and sauna), travelled internationally frequently, did a long haul flight once a year (home to the UK for Christmas), ate what I wanted and in restaurants twice a week. I did avoid imported goods like regular wine and cheese and stuck more to beer and local food.

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 rooftop 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. My salary increased every year by around 2500 baht a month and it jumped after I completed further teaching qualifications too. Building a career here is more than possible.

I received a Christmas bonus at the end of each year and used this to fly home to the UK for the holidays. Unfortunately nowadays, flights have doubled so I doubt this would be enough to cover a return long haul flight now.

Check if your potential salary would suit your budget with our Cost of Living calculator.

What is life like outside school in Thailand?

Amazing food, travel experiences, nature, people, affordable cost of living and accommodation options are all what make up my great expat lifestyle in Thailand. I travelled to over 10 countries during my first 3 years in Thailand! I had my first apartment that I could afford by myself which felt amazing as I had always wanted to live alone but couldn’t afford to in the UK.

I loved seeing wild elephants at the weekend, just a 2 hour drive from Bangkok or flying south to see pink dolphins – if you are a nature lover then Thailand is for you! Here’s 29 more reasons to relocate to Thailand!

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! I share all my best advice for making new friends inside of my How to Move to Thailand guide.

Things I Wish I Knew Before Teaching English in Thailand

Challenges — what it’s like culturally teaching in a different country.

Don’t touch children on the head (this can be flexible especially if they are young children). I was told this is a rule but then saw lots of Thai people touching young children on the head so this is more just one to be aware of than a hard and fast rule.

Don’t point at people, use your whole hand to gesture instead. This can be difficult in the classroom so learn names as soon as possible and use them instead of pointing to students.

Saving face is important, students can be very sensitive to making mistakes in front of others. I taught adult students, including military personnel so it was very important not to criticise a boss in front of their employees….which was a struggle if you are trying to help a student with their pronunciation. Whole class feedback worked best for this, rather than individual on the spot error correction.

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!

So…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 I have a life I am so proud of.

If you are thinking about teaching in Thailand then continue researching.

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.

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