Writing this because I'm so tired of the "I make 10k, is that enough to live here" posts
Don't be fooled by people asking "I make $10k a month, is that enough to live here?" They're just humble-bragging. Anyone making $10k a month already knows the answer.
The truth is, the average expat here doesn't come anywhere near that. Most foreigners you'll meet in the Philippines are retirees living on Social Security, sometimes with a small pension on top. We're talking $1,000–$2,500 a month. I was part of that crowd for a long time myself. When I first started my business, I was netting $800–$1,300 a month. Golf was out of the question back then! LOL!
Digital nomads here tend to be at the lower end of that range, and the visa rules explain a lot of it. Mexico, Portugal, Greece and Costa Rica all require nomads to prove $3,000 to $4,400 a month in income before they can stay long term. Mexico also no longer gives 180-day tourist stays by default, so living there on back-to-back tourist permits isn't an option anymore. Thailand's nomad visa requires about $14,000 in the bank, and Thailand has been cutting back its visa-free stays too.
The Philippines is one of the few countries with no proof of income or financial requirement for a long-term stay. So think about it. If the Philippines is so bad, why don't the people who keep ranting about it go somewhere with better infrastructure, like Thailand? The answer is that most of them can't. And another thing: why would someone making $10k a month want to live 7,000 miles away from their family and friends? A vacation or a short stint is one thing, and so is moving to be with a spouse, but otherwise, permanently?
So can I live here on 9k then?
As a local, with respect: isn't $10k a month more than enough to live in most places in the States (other than NY, LA or the Bay)? That's $120k a year.
I'd say quite a lot of us live here half the year, or one year on, one year off. I do hitch work, and here in Subic Bay there are tons of people like me. Australian mine workers, Alaska maritime guys, Gulf of Mexico offshore platform guys, military contractors, so many hitch workers. I think this is the real hack for expat life. Earn where the money is, spend it where it goes a long way. I can't imagine sitting up all night at a computer. I'd rather blow my head off.
That's true. This misinformation comes from YouTubers, some who say you can live on $500 and others who say $1k means squatting in an outhouse with no running water, so people get confused.
"Based on my anecdotal evidence from K-1 visa filings" Well, that's the problem. Nobody under 50 is filing for a K-1, so your sample is heavily skewed. I know many, many foreigners under 50, and exactly zero of them have filed or plan to file a K-1. "If the Philippines is so bad, why don't the people who keep ranting about it go somewhere with better infrastructure, like Thailand? The answer is that most of them can't." There's no perfect country. Thailand does have better infrastructure, but life is much harder if you only speak English, especially outside tourist areas and central business districts. And if you stay in those areas, you're one of a million white guys, and your dating prospects will reflect that
Mexico is easy. I've been living there on 6-month visas for years. Cross at Tijuana (TJ) and they don't bat an eye at giving you 6 months. If you live in a non-tourist city like Puebla like I do, they don't check when you leave, so I just fly back to TJ and cross on foot. I overstay my 6 months all the time. Worst case is a 1,200 peso fine. It's true it limits how much you can move around, since buses get boarded for checks, but in Puebla they don't check. I've lived in Mexico for 5 years and never once had my visa checked, inside the country or when leaving.
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