2.18/5
339 reviews
Photo by Darren Lawrence via Unsplash

Ko Tao

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island

koh

good

great

stay

cafes

amazing

issue

tourists

murdered

dive

beautiful

small

size

work

backup

mafia

money

risk

Koh Tao is a small island popular among long-stay visitors and digital nomads, thanks to its solid internet infrastructure, scenic beaches, and a wide range of outdoor activities including scuba diving, snorkeling, hiking, and climbing. The island’s compact size allows for less time spent traveling and more time relaxing or working. Many people appreciate the laid-back pace and good selection of cafes and coworking spaces, which make it well-suited for remote work and extended stays.

However, a repeated concern from visitors is the island’s reputation for mysterious tourist deaths, along with allegations that a local mafia-like group has undue influence over authorities and businesses. While most visitors report feeling safe during their stay, these issues raise unease for some, especially considering the island's small size and relatively high number of high-profile cases. Tourists are advised to stay informed and exercise common sense.

In summary, Koh Tao offers a beautiful and convenient setup for remote workers and nature lovers, but potential travelers should weigh that against its troubling safety reputation. Most stays are trouble-free, but awareness of the island’s background is recommended.

AI-generated summary of reviews
4 months ago

Been coming to Koh Tao for years, it's an under-rated island IMO. Its small size makes it a great place to stay and remote work from. Lots of great beaches, walking trails, climbing and of course scuba and snorkeling. An amazing selection of restaurants, great coworks and cafes to work from.

Being smaller it helps you stay focused, spend less time travelling around etc.

I personally have never felt unsafe there and pretty much all the nomads I meet there say the same.

Power is much more stable than 7 years ago, for me it's never really been an issue. Interenet to the island is usually 300-400mbps up/down for anywhere with a good router/wifi. Getting an AIS SIM is a good backup if you need backup internet.

2 years ago

"Off the record, however, they told of an island held in the iron grip of a mafia family, who demanded protection money, controlled the local police force and were not above attacking or burning down the homes and businesses of people that crossed them"

I don't think Koh Tao is dangerous in terms of absolute risk. Many tourists pass through, and not that many got murdered (under a dozen over several years, as far as I know, some cases might really be suicide). Riding a motorbike anywhere in Thailand probably carries higher risk, mathematically speaking.

The issue is that it's a small island, there are people who repeatedly murdered tourists, and they (or their families) control the island to a degree that they can act with impunity. Even if your chances of actual problems are low, do you really want to give your money to those people (which you almost certainly do by going there)?

Foreign tourists don't end up dead in mysterious circumstances on Koh Samui on a semi-regular basis. For its size, Koh Tao is highly over represented in mysterious deaths.

4 years ago

Ko Tao is a quiet, laid back island. Mostly diving, but there are a lot of things to do. Wifi is super fast, food is cheap and good, people are friendly. There is a good amount of nightlife on the island, but not like Ko Phangan. This is a great option to come and chill if you are under a deadline, like to dive, or just need a quiet island escape.
Happily spent several weeks there.

6 years ago

Beautiful island. Lots of mellow nightlife spots and cafe's. Too bad there's a serial killer murdering young women a few times a year. Seriously though, look into the Koh Tao murders over the last few years. Women raped and murdered. They blame it on Burmese workers but nobody believes this. More likely it's local mafia children running the island. It's only a matter of time before the next crime. Sucks because I loved the place. Cheapest spot in the world to get your diving certification.

6 years ago

Magic island, fast wifi, very good roads ;)

7 years ago

I have lived in this paradise for 12 years. The island has seen many changes over the years. Better roads, better safety with have the Koh Tao Rescue team working here as pre hospital care for people who have accidents. The dive safety is fantastic with all centres constantly communicating with each other. The eco projects we have on going include beach clean ups, dive site clean ups, 711 don't give plastic bags, the refused use of plastic.
This is my home and I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. Come and find out for yourself but be warned you may end up staying longer than you plan as you fall in love with this place straight away

7 years ago

Koh Tao is my favorite island in Thailand, stay on Sairee beach.

7 years ago

Koh Tao is a amazing and beautiful island with more and more great cafes with good and free WiFi’s and workspaces. It’s a truly inspiring and safe place to be a female nomade in.

7 years ago

Absolut lovely place to be.

7 years ago

Koh Tao is a amazing and beautiful island with more and more great cafes with good and free WiFi’s and workspaces. It’s a truly inspiring and safe place to be a female nomade in.

7 years ago

Koh Tao was a nice place to stay, but is not anymore. The main issue is the yet unsolved waste problem. Koh Taos air quality in the inner island has become very bad since more and more people start to burn their plastic waste in the backyard.

7 years ago

✅ Great for remote work

✅ Good internet speeds

✅ Beautiful beaches and outdoor activities

✅ Plenty of cafes and coworking spaces

✅ Pretty safe

✅ Fast internet

✅ Warm now

✅ Warm all year round

✅ Good air quality on average

✅ Many Nomads.com members have been

✅ Spacious and not crowded

✅ Easy to make friends

✅ Very easy to do business

✅ Safe for women

✅ Very friendly to LGBTQ+

✅ Not many people smoke tobacco

✅ (Medical) marijuana MAY be legal, unenforced or decriminalized (always double check this)

❌ Concerns about local crime and safety

❌ Alleged control by mafia

❌ Freedom of speech is weak

❌ Not very democratic

❌ Not much to do

❌ Very sweaty and humid now

❌ Nomads.com members really didn't like going here

❌ Not many Nomads.com members right now

❌ Quality of education is low

❌ Hospitals are bad

❌ Roads are very dangerous

❌ People don't speak English well

❌ Not family friendly

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Feels (median)

30°C / 86°F warm

32°C / 90°F hot

34°C / 93°F hot

32°C / 90°F hot

31°C / 88°F hot

29°C / 84°F warm

Real (median)

27°C / 81°F
warm

28°C / 82°F
very warm

29°C / 84°F
very warm

28°C / 82°F
very warm

27°C / 81°F
warm

27°C / 80°F
warm

Humidity

sweaty
78%

sweaty
77%

sweaty
79%

sweaty
78%

sweaty
80%

sweaty
79%

sweaty
80%

sweaty
81%

sweaty
83%

sweaty
78%

Most common

☀️ Clear

☔️ Rain

☀️ Clear

Rain

dry
38mm

dry
17mm

dry
34mm

rainy
99mm

rainy
175mm

rainy
139mm

rainy
126mm

rainy
132mm

rainy
176mm

rainy
306mm

rainy
252mm

rainy
126mm

Cloud

pockets
36%

pockets
26%

pockets
25%

pockets
47%

cloudy
54%

cloudy
53%

cloudy
57%

cloudy
55%

cloudy
59%

cloudy
56%

cloudy
59%

pockets
37%

Sun

avoid sun
8 UVI

avoid sun
10 UVI

avoid sun
8 UVI

avoid sun
6 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

Remote workers

688 people

1,000 people

671 people

680 people

480 people

511 people

486 people

382 people

446 people

356 people

380 people

938 people

Green is good. Red is bad. Values shown are the medians of all daily highs in a month based on past few years, not necessarily current numbers. Remote worker count is estimated based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members.

If you'd like to filter destinations based on their climate, try Nomads.com's Climate Finder

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$4,576 / mo

30 Mbps

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked mediocre

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌧 Feels 38° 100° 30° 86° 🥵 AQI 4

✈️1h

$1,025 / mo

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Malaysia

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⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast

👍 Liked good

👮 Safety mediocre

Tap to open

🌦 Feels 19° 66° 19° 66° AQI 59 😷

✈️2h

$1,064 / mo

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Members who have been here

Values shown are estimated visits by traveling remote workers based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members. Visits to a place are only counted once per year per user, even if they visit more in that year. Visits are also normalized by overall trips added per month on the site, so if site usage goes up or down it does not affect trends. Not all digital nomads are on Nomads.com, and not all Nomads.com members log their trips. So the data is only indicative.

The chart below shows visitors by nationality normalized for population size. This means we take all trips logged on Nomads.com, check which country of origin the user is from, then divide that total visit count by the country of origin's population. If we didn't, it'd just show the big countries like US, Brazil and India always on top. Instead, this shows which nationalities worldwide proportionally visit more or less, which is more useful.

⭐️ Total score	2.18/5 (Rank #817) 339 reviews
❤️ Liked by members	👍2 liked it 👎2 disliked it
👍 Quality of life score	Okay
👶 Family score	Bad
🎒 Community score	Okay
💵 Cost	😙 Affordable: $2,178 / mo
📡 Internet	😡 Slow: 19 Mbps (avg)
😝 Fun	Okay
⛅️ Temperature (now)	🥵 Hot: 28°C83°F (feels 31°C88°F)
💦 Humidity (now)	🥵 Sweaty: 76%
❄️ % of buildings with AC	🥵 Low: 37%
👌 Safety	Okay
👩 Safe for women	Okay
🌈 Safe for LGBTQ+	Great
🤮 Food safety*	Bad
👮‍♀️ Lack of crime*	Good
🤝 Lack of racism*	Bad
🎓 Education level*	Mediocre
⚡️ Power grid	Great
🌊 Vulnerability to climate change	Okay
💰 Income level*	Very low: $493 / mo
🙊 English speaking*	Bad
🚶 Walkability	Bad
🚦 Traffic safety*	Bad
✈️ Airline scores*	Good
🧳 Lost luggage*	Great
😄 Happiness*	Good
🍸 Nightlife	Bad
📶 Free WiFi in city	Bad
🖥 Places to work from	Great
❄️ A/C or heating	Bad
😁 Friendly to foreigners	Okay
🗯 Freedom of speech*	Okay
🎅 Startup Score	Bad

🌍 Continent	Asia
🚩 Country	Thailand
🗓️ Average trip length	8 days
📡 Internet speed (avg)	19 Mbps
⛅️ Weather (now)	🌧 28°C 83°F + 🥵 Sweaty (76%) = feels 31°C 88°F
🔌 Power	230V 50Hz
🚕 Best taxi app*	Grab
🚑 Travel medical insurance	Safetywing
💸 100 THB in USD	USD 3.05
🏧 Suggested ATM take out:	THB 10,000 = USD 305
💸 Tipping	Yes, 5%
💳 Cashless	💳 Yes, cards OK almost everywhere
💻 Best coworking space	Tao Hub
🚰 Tap water	🚫 No, not drinkable
♻️ Return rate	9% of visitors return
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Population	1,400 people
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 GDP per capita*	$5,911 / year
👫 Gender ratio (nomads)	👨 82% 👱‍♀️ 18%
⛪️ Religious government	Non-religious
💻 Online electronics shop	Lazada
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier	Air Asia
✈️ Best int'l air carrier	Air Asia
🏥 Best hospital	Koh Tao International Clinic

💵 Cost of living for nomad	$2,178 / month
💵 Cost of living for expat	$1,286 / month
💵 Cost of living for family	$2,481 / month
💵 Cost of living for local	$709 / month
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$1,442 / month
🏡 Airbnb (median price)	$2,440 / month
🏠 1br studio rent in center	$561 / month
🏠 Median home price	$244,076
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$68 / night
🏠 Airbnb (median price)	$80 / night
🏢 Coworking hot desk	$424 / month
🍛 Dinner	$2
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L)	$1
🍺 Beer in cafe (0.5L)	$2
☕️ Coffee in cafe	$2