press rank #87 · ~$900/mo

Can you live unwatched in Thailand?

Easy to live quietly, strict lèse-majesté speech limits.

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The privacy scorecard

State surveillance2/5
Facial recognition3/5
No national ID2/5
Data-protection law3/5
Encryption4/5
VPN freedom4/5
Democracy2/5
Free expression2/5
Cash still works5/5
Financial privacy3/5
Crypto freedom3/5
Easy to stay4/5
Off-grid living5/5
10 cameras / 1,000 people press rank #87 ~$900/mo national average

Childhood vaccines: recommended, never required

Twelve vaccines are recommended and free, no law requires them, and coverage is still above 90 per cent.

If you skip them: Nothing. Some schools ask to see the record.

Exemptions: Not needed.

Source: Georgetown AMP EID, survey of national legislation, 2024

Legal & financial exposure

Facts about the law, not a privacy score: whether each one helps or hurts depends on what you are trying to do.

Reports your account balances abroad (CRS)

Extradition treaty with the US

ID required to buy a SIM card

Crypto capital gains are taxed

Capital gains from crypto trading are subject to income tax, with some exchange-level exemptions.

3 of 7 signals are unverified for this country: not shown, rather than guessed.

67 real places in Thailand

Facial recognition, Bitcoin friendliness and cost vary by city even inside the same country.

Bangkok

~$1,050/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Nakhon Ratchasima

~$1,100/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Chiang Mai

~$1,150/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Udon Thani

~$1,050/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Khon Kaen

~$1,000/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Pattaya

~$1,150/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Chiang Rai (town)

~$850/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Phuket (Old Town)

~$1,400/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Chiang Rai

~$1,050/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Koh Samui

~$1,350/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Hua Hin

~$1,250/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Trang

~$1,050/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 3/5

Weigh Thailand against your own threat model

Surveillance, speech, money: filter thousands of real places across every country and see where Thailand actually ranks.

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Not just privacy?

Arcadia matches the same real places against how you actually want to live: weather, cost, healthcare, schools, internet.

Find where to live on Arcadia

Country-level estimates for orientation, not legal advice. Surveillance law changes fast: verify anything you would act on.