How much does a beer cost in Thailand?
(Editorial Credit: Jes2u.photo / Shutterstock.com)
What does one cost beere in Thailand? The average price for a bottle of beer in Thailand's most popular beer brands, such as Singha, Chang, and Leo, is about 45 Baht ($1,25) in supermarkets and 70 Baht ($1,96) in bars and restaurants.
Beer plays an important role in Thailand's nightlife. Whether you walk the streets of Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket or Chiang Mai, you will find a wide variety of bars, pubs and clubs where beer flows freely. Most bars and pubs in Thailand serve a selection of local and international beers. The local Thai beers such as Singha, Chang, Leo and other lesser known brands such as Archa and Cheers are particularly popular. These beers are usually light lagers, ideal for Thailand's warm climate.
There are also several “beer bars” scattered throughout the tourist areas. These establishments are often open-fronted and allow customers to sit and people watch while enjoying their drink. During "happy hour", which usually takes place in the early evening, many of these bars offer discounts on drinks, including beer.
In addition to traditional bars and pubs, Thailand also has a growing craft beer culture. In cities like Bangkok and Chiang Mai, there are several microbreweries and craft beer bars where you can sample unique and flavorful brews.
In Thai nightlife, it is also common to see street vendors selling chilled beer, especially in areas with a lot of nighttime activity. This adds to the vibrant and energetic atmosphere of Thai nightlife.
Sizes of beer in bottles
Beer in Thailand is usually sold in two bottle sizes:
- Small bottles: These are 330ml bottles, similar to the standard beer bottle size found in many other countries. These are usually available in supermarkets, convenience stores and some bars and restaurants.
- Large bottles: These are significantly larger, usually 620ml or 640ml depending on the brand. This format is very popular in bars, pubs and restaurants. It is not uncommon for a group of friends to share a large bottle.
Next to bottled beer beer is also available in cans, usually in 330ml or 500ml sizes. Craft breweries and beer bars can also be found in some urban areas and tourist hotspots where you can get beer straight from the tap.
Although serving beer with ice may be unusual for some foreigners, this is a common practice in Thailand, mainly due to its warm climate. Large bottles of beer are often served with a bucket of ice and small glasses for sharing.
Draft beer in Thailand
Many bars, pubs and restaurants, especially in larger towns and tourist areas, offer a selection of both local and imported beer on tap. The most common Thai beers on tap are Singha and Chang, but some places also have Leo and other Thai brands available. In addition, imported beers, especially popular brands from Europe and the United States, are also often available on tap.
Besides the traditional beer bars and pubs, there is also a growing scene of craft breweries and craft beer bars in Thailand, especially in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. These breweries often make a wide variety of styles, from IPAs to stouts to Belgian ales, and serve their beer straight from tap in their own bars.
It is important to note that the price of draft beer is usually higher than bottled beer, especially for imported and craft beers.
(Editorial Credit: Applepy / Shutterstock.com)
Most popular beer brands in Thailand
The most popular beer brands in Thailand include:
- Singha: This is one of the oldest and most famous beer brands in Thailand. Singha is a lager brewed by Boon Rawd Brewery. It has a slightly bitter taste and an alcohol percentage of about 5%.
- Chang: This beer is perhaps the most famous Thai beer outside of Thailand. Chang means "elephant" in Thai, which is an important symbol in Thai culture. The beer has a relatively high alcohol percentage (usually around 6%) and is often seen as stronger and heavier than other Thai beers.
- Leo: This is another popular local brand often found in bars and restaurants in Thailand. Leo is a light lager with a slightly sweeter taste than Singha or Chang.
- Phuket Bear: This is Thailand's first craft beer brand. It is a lager brewed with only natural ingredients. It has a unique taste and is often served in tourist areas.
- Ark: Archa is a lager known for its light taste and low price. It is less known outside of Thailand but is very popular with locals due to its affordability.
- Cheers: Cheers is another affordable Thai beer. It has a light and refreshing taste and is often served in cans or bottles.
International and Western beer brands in Thailand
In addition to the local Thai beers, many international and western beer brands are also available in Thailand. However, availability may vary depending on location and type of establishment. Here are some of the most common international beer brands you can find in Thailand:
- Heineken: The well-known Dutch beer brand is very popular in Thailand and is available in many bars, restaurants and shops.
- Corona: This Mexican beer is also quite common in Thailand, especially in tourist areas.
- Hoegaarden: Belgian wheat beer is popular among craft beer enthusiasts and is available in many bars and restaurants.
- Asahi: This Japanese brand of beer is also quite easy to find in Thailand.
- Guinness: This Irish stout beer is available in many Irish pubs and other Western establishments in Thailand.
- Budweiser: Also this American brand is available in many places, although it may not be as popular as some of the other brands mentioned here.
- Carlsberg: This Danish beer is also quite easy to find in Thailand.
Prices of a beer in Thailand
In Thailand, beer prices are quite reasonable, especially compared to many Western countries. Thai beer brands such as Singha, Chang and Leo are usually the cheapest. In supermarkets, the average price for these brands is around 45 Baht, which is equivalent to about 1,44 US dollars, 1,25 euros or 1,10 British pounds. In bars and restaurants, the average price for these Thai beers is about 70 Baht, which is roughly equivalent to 2,24 US dollars, 1,96 euros or 1,71 British pounds.
Prices of international and Western beers in Thailand are generally higher than local beers. This higher price is partly due to import costs and taxes. Brands such as Heineken, Corona, Budweiser and Guinness can all be found in Thailand, but they tend to be more expensive than local options. The exact price may vary depending on the brand and location, but you can expect to pay more for these beers than you would for a local brand.
During happy hours, which usually take place in the early evening, many bars and restaurants offer discounts on drinks, including beer. In Pattaya, for example, prices for drinks, including beer, start around 60 to 80 Baht during happy hour.
But make no mistake, sometimes the main price is also asked for a bottle of beer, for example in Hillary 2 in Bangkok where a live band plays. Prices of 160 baht or more then occur. And often you are required to buy a beer before you can enter. It is mainly the tourist hotspots where people ask the main price, such as in Walking Street in Pattaya, where in clubs and discotheques sometimes 180 baht is asked for a small bottle of beer.
So if you go to a popular club or bar with live music in the tourist areas, the price could be double or more what you pay for your beer a few blocks away.
What do you pay for your beer in Thailand?
About this blogger
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Known as Khun Peter (62), lives alternately in Apeldoorn and Pattaya. In a relationship with Kanchana for 14 years. Not yet retired, have my own company, something with insurance. Crazy about animals, especially dogs and music.
Enough hobbies, but unfortunately little time: writing for Thailandblog, fitness, health and nutrition, shooting sports, chatting with friends and some other oddities.
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Well our family is in the tourist hotspot in Pattaya and on the water. I don't care much about it myself. Nor is it necessary.
A tip of the veil. Beer is only sold in cans on the boat. Leo costs purchase at Makro 30 Baht.
Goes out for 100 Baht and everyone is happy with it.
I miss Tiger beer in the list, available in both bottles on Phuket at most supers, the large costs on the terrace around 100 Baht
Quite a few places have this beer on tap and it costs between 60 and 80 Baht
Sante
Recommended: try a Beer Lao, made partly from rice, is less heavy. Delicious fresh beer.
very interesting site!
thanks to
Robert
i would like to know where beer still costs 70 baht in pattaya. Only in soi baukow there are still a few bars with that price, the rest are all much more expensive, at least 80 to 90 baht.
Well Dick, there are still many bars where a bottle of Leo costs 70 baht or less. Sat at the TIME bar in LK METRO yesterday and the Thai beers were 50 baht. Friendship bar soi Buakaw 60 baht. And there are still many bars where the price is 70 baht or less.
Look, if you think 80 baht is too expensive for a pint of beer and really want to look for places where you can save 10 baht, then I have only one piece of advice: get your drink in the supermarket and drink it at home.
If it's nice somewhere, I'll just pay 90 baht, but Dick's statement was that you can hardly get beer for 70 baht anywhere and that's definitely not true.
Wunderbar second road during happy hour 55 bath.
Soi Chaiyapoon several places, ridiculously low price of THB 39 at Buzzin Bar in Treetown – admittedly happy hour price, but good.
Have a look in Jom Tien, there the beer is 10,20 bt cheaper than in Pattaya.
Billabong soi metro 60 baht
Mayfair in soi boikouw 70 baht
And there are many more like this
Based on the above article, we can conclude that in Thailand a beer from the supermarket is much more expensive than in the Netherlands. But that the same beer in a catering establishment in Thailand is cheaper than in the Netherlands. Bad luck for those who want to drink a beer at home, advantageous for the foreign tourist.
Price for a nice cold beer whether it costs 70 or 90 baht as a tourist, what does it matter, you are on holiday all the way from the Netherlands or Belgium.
Then I would say don't go on vacation and sit on your balcony or in your garden.
For the people who live there, I can understand that they prefer to pay 20 b less..
Heineken is often listed as “local” in Thailand. It is also brewed in Thailand. A bottle of local costs in the entertainment area in Bangkok with live music between 120 and 160 baht.
One of the most popular beers in Thailand is missing in the story... San Miguel light!
Let's be honest, Beer is just extemely expensive compared to the Netherlands and Germany, even the local consumer beer (Singha, Chang) is many times more expensive. In that respect you don't have to go to Thailand for the beer, luckily the food in Thailand compensates the beer price 🙂
In a popular club or bar with live music in the tourist areas you don't pay for consumption, but for entertainment. So that the price is much higher, seems logical to me.
A nice Hoegaarden in along the mouth and a Heineken out at the bottom 🙂
Cheers…enjoy!
In many places in Pattaya you can still get a big bottle for 70 or 80 Baht. Such a big bottle is 2 normal beers. So your Chang beer actually costs only 35 or 40 Baht.