Internet, Phone and Staying Connected in Thailand

The Good News

Thailand has surprisingly good internet infrastructure — particularly in cities. Fibre broadband is widely available in urban areas, 4G mobile coverage is extensive, and costs are very reasonable by Australian standards.

For most retirees, staying connected with family in Australia via video calls, messaging and social media works very well from Thailand.

Home Internet

Fibre broadband is available in most Thai cities through providers AIS Fibre, True Move and 3BB. Speeds of 100–300 Mbps are standard for residential plans.

Cost: ฿500–฿800/month ($23–$36 AUD) for a solid fibre plan. Faster plans up to 1 Gbps are available for ฿1,000–฿1,500/month.

This is dramatically cheaper than Australian NBN plans and generally more reliable in city areas.

Installation: Usually requires a Thai ID or passport, rental contract, and sometimes a deposit. Takes 3–7 days after application.

Mobile Data

Thai mobile plans offer exceptional value. A SIM with unlimited data (throttled after a cap) typically costs ฿300–฿600/month ($14–$27 AUD).

The three main carriers — AIS, True Move and DTAC — all have good 4G coverage in cities and main tourist areas. Coverage in rural areas varies.

Tip: Buy a tourist SIM at the airport when you arrive (costs ฿300–฿500 for 30 days with generous data). Once you have an address and bank account, switch to a monthly residential plan for better value.

Calling Australia

The cheapest ways to call family in Australia:

WhatsApp, FaceTime, Messenger — Free over WiFi or data. The most popular option among expats. Video call quality is good on a decent internet connection.

Line — Hugely popular messaging app in Thailand. Many Thai contacts will use Line rather than WhatsApp.

Google Voice or Skype — Good for calling Australian landlines or mobiles when the person you're calling doesn't have a smartphone app.

Standard international calling rates from a Thai SIM to Australia are around ฿6–฿9 per minute — fine for occasional calls but expensive for long conversations.

Keeping Your Australian Number

Many expats keep an Australian mobile number active for banking, Centrelink, and family contacts. The cheapest way is to port your number to a budget Australian provider (Boost, Aldi Mobile) on a low monthly plan of $10–$15/month and keep the SIM in an old phone or use it as a secondary SIM.

This means your family can still call your Australian number and it forwards or you can roam occasionally.

Streaming and Entertainment

Australian streaming services (Netflix, Stan, Disney+) are accessible in Thailand with some caveats. Netflix works but shows Australian content or Thai content — the library differs from Australia. A VPN can restore access to Australian content, though this is a grey area in terms of terms of service.

The ABC iView app and SBS On Demand generally don't work outside Australia without a VPN.

The Practical Summary

For most retirees, staying connected in Thailand is simple and cheap. The combination of home fibre broadband (฿600/month), a Thai SIM for mobile data (฿400/month), and free video calling apps means you're well connected for under $50 AUD/month — a fraction of Australian telco costs.