Bangkok - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability and cost of household help, and what types of help are typically employed by expatriates?
Inexpensive. Most people have a cleaner (at least part-time), many people have nannies, small number have drivers. - Feb 2023
Almost everyone uses house hold help. Maids/nannies range in prices from 15,000 Bhat/month to 24,000 Bhat/month. Many folks hire Burmese, others hirer and pay a little more for Thai citizens (because it saves you the hassle of visa issues). The maid/nanny we hired has been an absolute Godsend. Word to the wise: you get what you pay for. Check the references. Interview several. Note: discipline for Thais/Burmese nannies for your children is always near non-existent. Children learn quickly the nanny will give them just about anything and allow them to do almost anything that isn't hurting them or the house. Set very clear boundaries and expect them to be broken by the nanny. - Jan 2023
Plentiful and widely-used. Nearly every embassy household uses a housecleaner (either once or twice a week for those without kids, or full-time for families, is most common) and/or a nanny. Most household help is either Thai or Burmese. Monthly rates range quite a bit; the Embassy has an internal survey you can refer to if you want to gauge what to pay. We pay our nanny/housekeeper around $800 a month to work five days a week (inclusive of occasional late nights if we're out) and then sometimes hire a second nanny for weekend work, but other families are able to have a housekeeper/nanny who works 5.5 or 6 days a week. Some pay less than we do, some pay more. Word of mouth and the Community Liaison Office (CLO) newsletter are common ways to find household help, but there are also private services that can help match you with someone. - May 2022
Household help costs are low here. Around USD $500 a month for full-time help. This includes cooking, cleaning, and child-care. Some expats employ drivers which is also low-cost. - Aug 2019
Most people hire a nanny/housekeeper. Some families have a nanny for each kid. The average for full time is US$400 and it depends on family size. - Jun 2018
We pay our part time housekeeper about $3 USD per hour and she comes 15 hours a week. Availability is good, many Thais, also Burmese (you need to research visa requirements and be in compliance). Nichada housing has quarters for live in help, some downtown apartments do as well. - Apr 2017
Very available. Our Thai maid comes 3x/week for full days and we pay around $300/month. Some have live-in nannies and work out other deals, most all of which seem reasonable. We've been lucky that ours was recommended by a colleague and speaks English. If you choose to go with non-Thai household help, make sure you understand what the visa and employment rules are. - Nov 2016
Plentiful - about US$400 per month for five days per week. - Aug 2015
Abundant, and prices very. I paid 2500THB (about US$75) every two weeks for twice a week/8 hours each time. My housekeeper was very good, and spoke English relatively well. You can find service for cheaper, but the quality will vary. A full time, live-in is probably about US$300-400 a month. - Aug 2014
It's a bit tricky. There is some wonderful helpers and we have a very good experience personally. That said there are issues. Most helpers are either Thai (often low English skill) or Burmese (higher English skill, but discriminated against in Thai society and you have to ensure they are legal and valid with their visa to live and work here). There are also Filipinas but they are often considered to be the most expensive due to their experience, skill and language. But like Burmese, you have to ensure they have a visa and are legal to work. The Burmese are considered cheaper in rates, though more and more, this seems to not be the case. Costs range from US$400 to US$700 (though I've only heard rumors that costs are as high as US$700). Many people with more than one child will have two helpers - a nanny and a house keeper. There is a lot of demand for quality helpers, so it can be difficult to keep a great helper and / or there will be fierce competition. - May 2014
We pay US$435/month for full-time, 8 hours/day. Lots of help is available, but this is a huge expat community, so if someone is a terrible employee and gets fired, they can easily get hired again. - Oct 2013
A full-time nanny/housekeeper/cook can cost only US$300-500 a month. Most people hire at least part-time help. - Jul 2013
Available, but it might take time to find a good one. I pay $200/month for 20 hours a week. - Jun 2013
Very reasonable and good. - Jul 2012
We have a maid 4 half days a week and its $230 a month. - Oct 2011
$300 - $500 per month for 5 days per week - 12 hours per day - cooking, cleaning, laundry, babysitting. Some people hire Burmese at cheaper rates, but you get what you pay for. - Jul 2011
We pay $425 per month for a live-out maid/cook who comes in 5x a week, cooks 3x weekly, walks our dog, etc. She came to our door the day after we arrived, so we took the decadence plunge and she's become a part of our family. (Our house has separate bed/bath quarters outside for live-ins if you prefer.) Most people do have some kind of domestic help arrangement. - Feb 2011
Easily available. The embassy newsletter advertises available housekeepers. Otherwise, I would ask friends for recommendations. We paid about $300/month for 4 days a week of cleaning, cooking, shopping, and errand running. - May 2010
Cheap. Less than $400 US per month. - Apr 2010
Actually, that depends. But here's the breakdown as we know it: Filipinos - largely because of their familiarity with the english language, command the highest salaries. Live-in and or live-out- right at $400 per month. Burmese - live in/live out: typically have the lower salaries. Many of these workers have little and or no english language ($250-$300). Thais - live-in and or live-out, the average monthly wage is $300-$350. Whether the housekeeper resides with you or not, the typical work week is 5 1/2 days, which includes a half day of work, typically, on Saturdays. - Jul 2009
Cheap and plentiful. - Apr 2009
Very cheap US$450-600/month for a Thai helper. Even less for Burmese help. Some speak English. Some friends have gone through several maids before settling on one they like. Most are great. - Feb 2009
