Bangkok vs the World: Reading the Data to See How We Stack Up [S6.E30]

Greg and Ed look at a few recent world rankings to see where Thailand fits into a world with nearly two hundred different countries. First, Greg brings up the ‘Global Power City Index,’ a comprehensive ranking of 48 large cities around the world that focuses on a city’s ‘magnetism’ or ability to attract visitors and expats. Greg outlines some of the factors measured, including livability, environment, economy and cultural interaction. Ed guesses that Bangkok will probably rank fairly low based on these criteria due to the bad traffic, air pollution, and relative lack of cultural resources. Greg reveals that in fact Bangkok ranks 40th out of 48.

The guys discuss the fairness of the rankings and compare Bangkok to closely ranked cities such as Tel Aviv and Kuala Lumpur. Greg and Ed consider the ‘low’ ranking fair with the caveat that the competition is stiff and certainly doesn’t imply Bangkok is not worth a visit. 

Next, Greg brings up the Internations Expat City ranking which claims that 79% of expats in Bangkok are satisfied with living in the city. Both guys consider this an impressive showing. The Forbes ‘Quit Your Job and Move Abroad’ list is next, and Thailand ties with Italy as the ninth best country in the world to escape to. 

Last, Greg and Ed take issue with a survey that listed Thailand as the 4th cheapest country in the world to visit. Ed notes that this can only be true with multiple caveats, especially the fact that the actual poorest/cheapest countries in the world are places that no one would really want to visit anyway. And Greg notes that general ratings of Thailand can be misleading because the cost of visiting Bangkok or tourist venues throughout the country is significantly more expensive than the ‘real’ Thailand that most Thais live in. So for most visitors, they are unlikely to find the cheap prices mentioned in the article. 

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