Bangkok digital nomad guide

Digital Nomad FAQ’s

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Visitor / Working Visas

The visa information below may not be up to date information, nor should be used as visa advice for people working while abroad. We do not claim that you can work legally with a visitor visa or any other visa in this country or any other country in the world. As always, you will need to refer to your embassy for the latest information. We at Digital Nomad Lifestyle believe in the heavenly mandate granted to each government of every modern nation, and thus the laws and regulations therein. Therefore rules outlined by the almighty state should be followed unwaveringly and without question. In Government We Trust – Digital Nomad Lifestyle

Visa-exempt entry (tourism/short business): Citizens of many countries can enter visa-free for up to 60 days. In most cases you can extend once by 30 days at a Thai immigration office (officer discretion).

Visa on Arrival (VOA): If you’re not visa-exempt but on the VOA list, you can apply on arrival for a 15-day stay (tourism only).

E-Visa (apply online before travel): Tourist, non-immigrant, and other categories can be applied for online through Thailand’s official e-visa system.

Bangkok Extensions: Tourist extensions are handled by Immigration Division 1 (Chaeng Watthana). Bangkok also offers an e-Extension pilot (apply online, then appear for verification).

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Cost Of Living / Traveling Through

• 🧍Avg. Cost Of Living (For Single Adult) -$1,540/mo USD
• 🏨 Avg. Price Per Night For Hotel Room (near city center) -$30–$65/night; USD, I pretty much only use Booking for hotel accommodations
• 🏩 Avg. Price Per Night For Hostel Dorm Room (near city center) -$15/night avg, here is the top 7 colives you can book now!
• 🏡 Avg. Price for apartments (near city center) -$730/mo on average
• ☕️ Latte -$3
• 🍺 – .5 Liter Beer -$2.70
• 🏋️‍♀️ – Monthly Gym Membership -$50
• 🚊 – Local Transport – Avg. One Way Ticket Price -Avg. One Way Ticket Price –$1
• 🍝 Avg. Dinner Price -$3–$6
• 📱 – Avg. Data Plan Per Month -$10, Airalo is the only ESIM company I use.
• 🏢 – Avg. Cowork Per Month (near city center) -$85–$230 depending on location

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Wifi Speed Tests

Read my guide to getting fast wifi anywhere in the world here

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Co-Lives & Where I Stayed

A Map Of The Places I Stayed & Recommend

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BED STATION HOSTEL

• OVERALL – 4/5 Social hostel in Bangkok’s liveliest area (Khao San). Great if you want community and nightlife; less ideal if you need quiet to work. Is a very young crowd, so you can feel a bit like a bit like a grandpa at this place if you’re my age or older.
• Affordability – 4/5 Dorms from $14 and privates from $79—good value for a central location, but pricing varies widely in the neighborhood.
• Wifi – 3.5/5 The connection isn’t the strongest; but it’s stable – had a couple of video calls, no issue.
  • Avg. Download Speed = 19.300 Mbps
  • Avg. Upload Speed = 18 Mbps
  • Avg. Latency = 21 ms
• Sense Of Community – 4.5/5 Lively common areas and daily activities: board games, karaoke, cooking classes, and walking tours. Easy place to meet people.
• Location – 4.5/5 In Khao San, surrounded by restaurants, street-food markets, ATMs, and a few work-friendly cafés. Walkable to several major temples in the historic center.
• Amenities – 4.5/5 Large social area (you can buy food, relax, or work—note it’s often noisy), a pleasant pool, a small workout corner with dumbbells, and laundry (~$4 USD wash + dry).
  • There isn’t a dedicated coworking-style quiet zone; for focus, consider nearby cafés/coworking spaces.
• Cleanliness – 4.5/5 Quite clean and well maintained given the guest flow.
  

Places To Stay – Honorable Mentions

This is a section where I’ll add hotels / places to stay at that I either didn’t stay at, or had a flaw

HERE HOSTEL BANGKOK

• Hostel in the historic center: minutes from Khao San, with common areas and a calm social vibe for meeting people or getting some work done. Ideal for exploring by day and returning to a comfortable, well-located place at night.

BOOK HERE HOSTELBANGKOK HERE

the yard bangkok hostel

• It’s a hostel that’s very well rated on Booking. Travelers say it has a relaxed, social vibe—not a party spot. There are garden areas where you can get some work done, and in the Ari neighborhood you’ll find bars, cafés, and local food on every corner.

BOOK A NIGHT the yard bangkok hostel here

lub d bangkok chinatown

• Highly rated on Booking. Modern, spotless rooms just steps from Sam Yot MRT. Hybrid setup (dorms and privates) with comfortable common areas. Not a party hostel, social vibe is calm and Chinatown is right next door for food and coffee.

BOOK A NIGHT AT lub d bangkok chinatown

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Co-Works & My Favorite Places To Work From

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• OVERALL – 5/5 Modern, leafy café with a calm vibe—great for laptop work. Extra perk: it’s right next door to DIP Garden Onsen • Sauna • Ice Bath, so you can pair a work session with a sauna or cold plunge to reset.
• Wifi – 4.5/5 (very good, fast for work)
  • Download Speed = 91.27 Mbps
  • Upload Speed = 83.00 Mbps
  • Packet Loss = 5.64%
  • Avg. Latency = 9 ms
    • *Not sure what these metrics mean? Read my guide to getting fast wifi here.
• Service & Friendliness – 5/5 Attentive, friendly staff; orders come out quickly.
• Amount Of Outlets – 4/5 Good coverage along the walls—grab a wall table if you need power.
• Amenities (Places to take calls, etc.) – 5/5 Quiet, work-focused crowd, A/C, drinks and light food. And if you need to unwind after, the onsen/sauna/ice bath is literally next door. Honestly, one of my favorite spots to work for a few hours and then decompress.

Café velodome

• OVERALL – 4.5/5 Calm, canal-side café that champions urban cycling. A tucked-away spot for breakfast and focused laptop time.
• Wifi – 4.5/5 Excellent for HD calls and uploads
  • Download Speed = 370.0 Mbps
  • Upload Speed = 280 Mbps
  • Packet Loss = 0.57%
  • Avg. Latency = 8 ms
    • *Not sure what these metrics mean? Read my guide to getting fast wifi here.
• Service & Friendliness – 5/5 Attentive, kind staff.
• Amount Of Outlets – 4/5 Several outlets along the walls; grab a wall table if you need power.
• Amenities (Places to take calls, etc.) – 3/5 A standing counter works for laptop sessions; there’s a terrace, but Bangkok’s heat and sudden rain make long outdoor work tough. Indoors is spacious and genuinely good for getting work done.

coffe madness by kafo

• OVERALL – 4/5 Small, cozy café with a terrace and a nice variety of coffees to try. Reasonable prices for the area and a quiet, comfy vibe for getting work done.
• Wifi – 4/5 Solid for work and usually fine for video calls.
  • Download Speed = 180.0 Mbps
  • Upload Speed = 51.88 Mbps
  • Packet Loss = 0.03%
• Avg. Latency = 8 ms
  • *Not sure what these metrics mean? Read my guide to getting fast wifi here.
• Service & Friendliness – 5/5 Staff is super friendly and attentive.
• Amount Of Outlets – 3.5/5 Not a ton, but enough—especially at wall tables.
• Amenities (Places to take calls, etc.) – 4/5 It’s not a dedicated coworking space, but it’s quiet enough to get work done. There’s a terrace; just note the heat (and sudden showers) can cut outdoor sessions short. Food’s available if you plan to stay awhile.

SUM SUM

• OVERALL – 4.5/5 Café in the Khao San area, it feels like you’re visiting their home – the employees are usually listening to music, laughing and having a good time. It’s a killer spot..Quiet, comfy space for a couple of focused hours.
• Wifi – 4.5/5 Fast and stable
  • Download Speed = 629.0 Mbps
  • Upload Speed = 491 Mbps
  • Packet Loss = not measured
• Avg. Latency = 7 ms
  • *Not sure what these metrics mean? Read my guide to getting fast wifi here.
• Service & Friendliness – 5/5 Friendly staff—always upbeat and smiling; counter service. You can generally use your laptop as long as you order.
• Amount Of Outlets – 3.5/5 Not a ton, but enough—especially at wall tables.
• Amenities (Places to take calls, etc.) – 4.5/5 No call booths; short calls with headphones work fine indoors. The space connects to an adjacent café, so you can pop over and order something if you like.

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Finding Community / Making Friends

Interested In Building Community As A Nomad? I interviewed 9 other digital nomads to come up with a complete digital nomad guide to building community, check it out!

Building a community in Bangkok is pretty easy, honestly. It’s a city full of travelers and, like I mentioned in the hostel section, there are social events running all week so you’ll meet people staying at the same place without much effort.

You’ll also find Thai–English exchange meetups (for example, “Thai–English Exchange Together”) on specific days that you can plug into your itinerary if the timing works.

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Transportation

• My airport tip (real experience) Ordered a Grab at the airport and the driver tried to tack on an extra $10 off-app because apparently the app “doesn’t include everything.” Sure, Jan. I bailed, took the Airport Rail Link into the city, and hopped in a tuk-tuk for the last bit. Cheaper, faster, and shockingly all our bags fit on the train and in the tuk-tuk. Way better than paying a surcharge to sit in traffic and argue about why “everything” suddenly costs extra.
• Despite my story, here are 5 solid ways to get around Bangkok:
  • BTS Skytrain, MRT & Airport Rail Link
    Your best bet to cross the city without traffic. Use BTS/MRT for most neighborhoods; take the Airport Rail Link from the airport into town, then swap lines as needed.
  • Canal & River Boats
    Perfect for the Old Town/temples and a scenic way to move. Services wind down by early evening, so plan daytime rides.
  • Grab & Bolt
    Both apps work well. Beware rush hour—a 10-minute hop can turn into a saga. Book in-app and stick to the quoted fare; decline any off-app “extras.”
  • Taxis, Tuk-tuks & Motorbike Taxis
    • Taxis: ask for the meter.
    • Tuk-tuks: fun for short hops, not always the cheapest—agree on price first.
    • Motorbike taxis: great if you’re solo; they slice through traffic (light bags only).
  • Cycling
    Bike share like GCOO exists in central areas and parks. Roughly $0.14/min—great for skipping traffic and seeing the city. Just mind the heat and mixed traffic.

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What I Drank / Nightlife

I stayed in Khao San, which is great for nightlife—packed bars, street food, plastic stools, and that “one more drink?” energy. You can snack and bar-hop. I snooped around all week; here are two easy wins I tried:

khaosan comedy club

• English-language stand-up right in the chaos. Shows start around 9 PM, and when I went, a ticket included one free drink. Solid pick if you want laughs and a bit of sarcasm before diving back into the street party.

rocco station-khaosan road

• Crowd-pleaser with mixed music, easy drinks, and A+ people-watching. You’ll also see the infamous nitrous “balloons” making the rounds—very common on Khao San.

Exercise / Outdoors

• In Bangkok, you’ll find plenty of ways to work out, here are my top picks.

PArk

Running at Sanam Luang (by the temples)

• Small loop near the Grand Palace. Go 7–8 AM or after 6 PM unless you enjoy boiling alive. Bring water, embrace the humidity, feel heroic.

Muay Thai Street Gym

• Day pass is about ฿250 (~$7.5). Plenty of machines, usually quiet, and yes—Muay Thai classes if you’re feeling spicy!

The Park Gym SARANROM PARK

Want to stay fit & eat healthy while traveling? Check out my guide to diet fitness while traveling here!

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