Go-go dancers in Thailand tend to be some of the highest earners in the nightlife scene. Go-go dancers often earn more money than ladies working in beer bars or massage parlours, for example.
Depending on the popularity of the lady, where she works, and whether or not she has any sponsors, Thai go-go dancers can earn anywhere from 40,000 – 100,000 THB per month. However, some ladies are able to earn far more than this, especially if they have multiple foreign ‘boyfriends’ sponsoring them.
Go-go dancers typically earn a nominal salary from the go-go bar, they also earn money each time a customer buys a drink for them, and for each client that pays a bar fine.
There are many variables and the amount each lady earns can vary greatly; the following list can give you a rough break down of go-go dancer’s monthly earnings:
Go-go dancer salary: 15,000 THB
80 lady drinks (at 100 THB): 8,000 THB
25 customers (at 2,000 THB): 50,000 THB
25 bar fines (at 300 THB): 7,500 THB
Grand total: 80,500 THB
Usually, the salary which is paid to an a go-go dancer will only make up a small part of her total income. Salaries can vary greatly, and ladies are typically paid more money the less clothes they wear while dancing.
The current state of the market also influences salaries for go-go dancers, at certain times the bars might struggle to find staff and will offer higher salaries in order to encourage ladies to work for them.
There are many different variables involved with go-go bars and this article is only intended as a rough guide.
Go-go dancers earn money each time a drink is purchased for them. ‘Lady drinks’, as they are known, are usually more expensive than regular drinks. If the go-go bar charges 350 THB for a lady drink, then they might give the lady a 150 THB commission per drink, for example.
The commission that a bar pays per drink can also vary, though it is usually 50 – 150 THB per drink. Some bars will pay ladies 300+ THB if their customer buys an expensive bottle of liquor to share with her.
Usually, the lady will receive a slip from her cashier each time that a drink is purchased for her. You might notice go-go dancers gathering these slips and tucking them into their clothes. At the end of the night, the lady will exchange each slip for a commission.
Lady drink commissions can really add up. It’s not uncommon for popular ladies to receive 40-50 drinks per night in some cases, which can form a sizeable chunk of their overall income.
Go-go dancers can also work together with their friends… If you purchase a drink for one lady, then she might ask you to buy a drink for her friend as well. Working together in this way go-go dancers can help each other to earn the highest possible amount of money through lady drinks.
While many customers will assume that each drink they buy for a lady is alcoholic, this is not always the case. If a lady is still able to stand up after having 40 drinks purchased for her over a single evening, then you can safely assume that not all of them contained alcohol.
Seasoned go-go patrons might even tell you stories about ladies discreetly pouring out their drinks into plant pots or into the toilet.
Some go-go bars employ ‘freelance’ dancers, who do not receive a regular salary from the bar and might only receive a small retainer per night. Many ladies prefer this type of arrangement as it allows them the freedom to work at different bars and spend prolonged periods with their customers as they please.
Rules on lady drinks and bar fines for freelancers might also be different compared to regular dancers, depending on the bar.
The answer to this question will vary depending on how popular the lady is, and which bar she works in.
Many of the top earning go-go dancers will aim for at least two ‘short time’ bar fines per day during high season. A short time session can last 30 minutes or less, and if the lady is in high demand, then she will be able to service multiple customers per day.
Older or less good-looking ladies might struggle to find one customer per day.
Sponsors can form a big source of income for many go-go dancers.
Men will sometimes meet dancers in go-go bars, spend time with them, and end up falling in love. While this is obviously a bad idea for a host of different reasons, it happens more often than you might think.
Once a lady has secured a sponsor, she will then continue to work as a dancer in her go-go bar, promising her boyfriend that she ‘will never go with customers’ – in reality she will continue to leave with customers but simply lie and conceal her true activities.
In other cases, the lady might promise her sponsor that she has stopped working in the bar; she might claim to have found a legitimate job or that she has left the city. The reality of the situation is usually far different.
If a lady tells her sponsor that she has stopped working in the go-go, she will send many photos of her in the village or working at a legitimate job, in order to make her story seem believable. Most men that are in love with working girls fall for the scam hook line and sinker.
For many go-go dancers, their dream is to recruit several different ‘boyfriends’, who will all believe that they are the only man in her life. By receiving cash from multiple guys, many dancers are able to earn huge amounts of money for themselves.
If you find yourself forming a relationship with a Thai go-go dancer, then we can help to check on her activities while you are out of the country.
If you are sending her money with the expectation that she will be loyal to you, then we can help to protect your investment by testing that she is being true to her word.
Investigating go-go dancers in this way typically saves our clients far more money than it would cost supporting the lady for even a short period of time – not to mention the heartache and time that can also be saved by discovering the truth early on.
Learn more about bar girl investigations.
Thai bar girls learn exactly what they should say in order to make themselves appealing to customers and to paint themselves in the best possible light. This article touches on some of the most common lies which Thai bar girls tell foreigners.
This is one of the most common lies that bar girls in Thailand tell foreigners. Whether she claims that it’s her first day, week, or month working in the bar, you can bet that most of the time these claims will turn out to be false.
A dead giveaway to this lie will be if the lady speaks good English, but never attended university… She probably learnt her English skills through working in the bar, for considerably longer than just one week!
Many Thai women have an uncanny ability to look much younger than they are, and makeup which is professionally applied in a salon can really help to seal the deal.
Thai bar girls are fully aware that most men prefer younger women, and it’s not uncommon for them to claim that they are 10 or 15 years younger, in order to increase their appeal to customers.
Most ladies end up working in bars in order to support their families. Child support in Thailand is relatively uncommon, and many women resort to working in red light areas in order to provide for their families.
Having children is another trait that bar girls believe will make them less appealing to customers. They will often lie and claim not to have any kids, or say that they have only one child when they in fact have two or three. If the man ever gets to know the lady well enough to find out that she has more children than he first thought, he will at this point be so in love and committed to her that it won’t matter.
Bar girls never tend to use their real names… They might tell you that their name is “Pin”, or “Apple”, or “Pea”, but they will very rarely give out their real names.
The use of nicknames is very prevalent in Thailand and there are many reasons for this. Bar girls understand that most foreigners will struggle to pronounce their real names and choose something that non-Thai speakers are able to understand more easily.
A bar girl’s job is to leave the bar with customers as often as possible, this is how they earn money. If a lady claims that she has never left the bar with a customer before, don’t believe her. She might be trying to prepare you for a long-distance relationship (bar girl scam), by dropping hints that she is “different” or “not like the other girls”, and trying to increase her appeal by claiming that she is not “high mileage”. This is one of the more common lies told by bar girls.
Many bar girls have boyfriends. Whether they have a local Thai boyfriend who accepts their girlfriend’s profession, or a foreigner who previously met her working in the bar.
Bar girls will never admit that they have a boyfriend. For many ladies, the goal is to recruit several different foreign boyfriends, all sending money to her on a regular basis. Having multiple boyfriends can prove to be very lucrative for some bar girls, and in order for this scam to work, each boyfriend must believe that they are the only man in her life.
Most bar girls will tell you that they don’t like Thai men, that they don’t find Thai guys attractive or that Thai men don’t treat their partners well. Perhaps this lie is told in order to remove suspicion that the lady might have a local boyfriend or husband at home; this is another claim which is designed to make the bar girl seem more attractive to customers in the bar.
After you have paid a bar fine and left the bar, you might find that the lady claims that she feels sick or unwell. Maybe she develops a headache or has an upset stomach.
The motivation for telling this lie is quite simple, the lady would like an easy night watching television or laying down rather than “performing” in the way that you might have hoped she would.
Understandably, this is a lie that you are only going to hear if you are getting on in age. Some bar girls will claim that they don’t like young men and that they are only attracted to older guys, presumably this is told in order to make the customer feel content and understand why the lady is so keen on him.
Some bar girls do actually prefer older customers, but not for reasons that they will tell you. Young guys can be more “demanding” in the bedroom, and more frugal with their money. Older guys tend to have less stamina, and will typically have more cash and be more likely to tip.
If you are spending time with a bar girl, she might tell you that she wants to go to massage school or that she would like to open a salon. These are hints that if you start a serious relationship with her, that she is happy to leave bar work behind and find a legitimate job.
Some ladies will go to massage school, open a salon, or build a small shop in their village if they are given the chance; other ladies will take the money and continue to work in a bar. Typically, it won’t be until you have started to finance her new occupation and parted with your money that you will find out what her true intentions are.
Trying to contact a Thai bar girl: You call her several times, she doesn’t answer. The phone goes to voicemail each time and your messages remain unread. Two or three hours later she calls you back and says “Sorry my phone did not have any battery” or a similar story.
Of course, the lady was spending time with another customer or her boyfriend. You might have suspicions but it will be impossible for you to disprove her claims.
If a lady is spending time with one client and the session takes longer than usual, a common excuse is to claim that she was late due to bad traffic. This is one of the best and easiest excuses to use when showing up late for a rendezvous.
Remember that a ‘short time’ session might only last 30 minutes or less, and if a lady is late turning up for this amount of time it might be because she has serviced another client before reaching you. Saying that she was caught in bad traffic is an easy excuse to use in these cases.
Scrolling through a bar girl’s social media profile or the camera roll on her phone, you are likely to find photos of her spending time other customers.
Of course, the lady will claim that “he is only a friend”. Another popular lie is to claim that the man she was with is gay. The motivation behind this lie is simple, she wants to appear single, perhaps with the hope that you will be looking to fill that void and form a romantic relationship with her.
It doesn’t matter what you look like – you could be 85 years old and 100 kilograms overweight, a bar girl will still describe you as a “handsome man”. The lady is simply trying to appease your ego and hope that you will take a shine to her.
The “handsome man” line has become so common in Pattaya that it is now a running joke among visitors and expats alike. Every man is indeed handsome when he roams the streets of Thailand.
This is another line which is designed to appease their client’s ego, many bar girls will say words to the effect of “You have a good heart, I like you, you are not the same as other guys”. This type of compliment can often help bar girls to forge a ‘connection’ with their clients, and to make them believe that the lady harbours deep feelings for them.
In most cases the bar girl will be hoping that her client decides to spend more time with her than with other women, or she might be setting herself up to start a relationship with him long term. Either outcome will help the lady to earn more money than she would during a simple one-night affair.
Most of the bar girls investigated by us are found to be cheating on their partners. If you find yourself in a relationship with a Thai bar girl, then we can help to check that she is being faithful to you while you are out of town.
Learn more about bar girl investigations.
Ladies that work at bars in Thailand are far from stupid, many of them are very intelligent. Bar girls understand that if they find the right man while working in a bar, they could get married and set themselves up for life. Many men that visit bars in Thailand end up falling in love with bar girls and fall victim to the ‘bar girl scam’.
Most bar girls will know a friend that has met their wealthy foreign husband through working in a bar, and many are looking for a boyfriend/husband to support them.
After you have visited bars in Thailand a few times, you will start to realize that bar girls tend to ask a specific set of questions. On the face of it these questions can seem like petty small talk, in fact sometimes it might be just that, however, they are usually probing for information which can help them to understand the customer and gauge his net worth.
We have put together the following list of questions that Thai bar girls ask foreigners to analyse these questions and delve into the information which can be gathered from them.
Probably the first questions that you will be asked in a bar, besides what you would like to drink, will be the questions “What your name?” or “You how old?”. This is a general ice breaker and asking for your name allows the lady to introduce herself and open dialog for further conversation.
This question is very important and will greatly influence how the bar girl views the man she is speaking to. If the customer responds by saying that he has visited Thailand 10 times, she will recognize that this guy knows the score… He will probably have spoken to many different bar girls before, possibly forged relationships with them, and will be somewhat versed on the type of scams that bar girls are known to perpetrate.
If the guy responds by saying that he’s on his first trip to Thailand, this will be music to her ears. Men that have never experienced the Thai nightlife scene tend to be more ‘believing’ of things they are told by bar girls, and more susceptible to scams in general.
TIP: If you are visiting Thailand for the first time, it’s best to keep that information to yourself when speaking to bar girls. Don't tell bar girls that you are visiting for the first time. Instead, claim that you have visited several times already.
This is another very common question that bar girls ask customers. And while it might seem innocuous, a lot can be learned about a potential client by the hotel he is staying at. If you respond by saying that you are staying in a hostel, or a cheap budget friendly hotel, this will signal to her that you don’t have much money to spend.
If you respond by saying that you are staying at The Hilton, or another five star/luxury hotel, this is a pretty good indication that you have money. The lady might show more interest in you if she perceives that you have money and are willing to spend it.
“Where do you work?” or “What you work?” as spoken in broken English, is another great way for the lady to size up the man’s net worth and his social status. If he responds by saying that he works cleaning public toilets and has saved up for years to holiday in Thailand, then his appeal as a long term ‘boyfriend’ is probably going to drop.
On the other hand, if the customer claims that he is a CEO or a white collar professional, this is going to help the lady realize that she is dealing with a man with a good-sized disposable income, which is exactly what she wants to hear.
Native English speakers can easily figure out where another English speaker comes from, just by hearing their voice. Most of us will be able to distinguish between a British voice and an American voice, or an Australian voice and a south African voice, for example.
Many Thai ladies struggle to recognize accents and most of the time will need to ask where you come from in order to figure this out.
And make no mistake about it, bar girls have their own stereotypes about different nationalities, which will be based on their own experiences and stories from their friends. Speaking in general terms, most bar girls tend to favour guys from Western countries such as the US, UK, Europe, or Australia.
“How long is your holiday?” is another good question which can help a lady to build a picture about their customer. If a guy is only in town for 7 days, then he might be staying with a lower overall budget, and her timeframe to form a relationship with him will be more limited.
If the man responds by saying that he is staying for 3 or 4 weeks on the other hand, this shows that he can afford a longer trip and has the freedom to stay in Thailand for a longer time. If a guy is more likely to be a repeat customer, then she might form the opinion that he is more deserving of her attention.
Again, this question seems innocent enough, but it can help the lady to build a picture about a man’s lifestyle and his income.
Not everyone that has wealth will display it by driving around in an expensive vehicle. The type of man that doesn’t might be described as a “cheap Charlie”. Bar girls are looking for men with money that are not afraid to spend it.
As “saving face” is a big part of Thai culture, most Thais will drive expensive vehicles if they can afford it and are given the opportunity, in order to increase how they are perceived by others. Driving an old or cheap vehicle will be a turnoff for many bar girls.
Sometimes bar girls will be very direct and ask whether their customer wants a Thai girlfriend. They might ask this question jokingly, but if the answer is “yes”, then this can act as a green light for further advances, if she has deemed that he is worthy of her attention.
Finding your girlfriend in a Thai bar is never a good idea. Bar girls are always on the lookout for sponsors and men that will help to send them money whilst they continue to work in the bar and sleep with new clients.
Many bar girls also practice what we describe as ‘bar girl scams’, which can prove extremely lucrative for them and heart breaking for the victims.
The above questions are typical small talk that you will probably find when drinking in Thai bars. Bar girls will usually ask these questions hundreds of times per month to different clients.
The answer to these questions will help a lady to form an opinion about the man she is speaking to, specifically how much money he has and how suitable he is for her.
If your girlfriend works in a bar in Thailand, then you are in trouble. Most of the bar girls we investigate are found to be cheating on their boyfriends while they are out of the country.
Instead of blindly wiring money to a Thai bar girl, you can instruct us to check on her activities and discover the truth. Bar girl investigations typically save our clients far more money than we charge in professional fees.
Learn more about bar girl investigations.
If you intend to take a lady from a bar in Pattaya and spend time with her, then you will need to pay what is called a “bar fine” to the establishment she works at.
In Pattaya, regular beer bars tend to charge 500 THB to 1,000 THB for bar fines. Beer bars in less popular, non-tourist areas might charge only 300 THB. A go-go bars tend to be the most expensive and can charge 1,000-2,000+ THB, sometimes going up even higher for popular ladies in high end establishments.
The cost of a bar fine will depend on the type of establishment, and sometimes the time of night (some bars might reduce their bar fines after midnight, for example). A go-go bars almost always charge more expensive bar fines than beer bars.
Bar fines are payments which are made to the bar in exchange for taking a member of their staff, the lady in question will typically receive a percentage of the bar fine payment (usually around 1 third of the fee). The bar fine does not include compensation for the lady herself and you will need to agree a separate amount which will be paid to her directly.
Bar fines typically allow patrons of the bar a level of ‘protection’, in the sense that if a lady steals from you, misbehaves, or takes items from your hotel room, you can then return to the bar that she works at and explain the situation to them. Most ladies will not attempt anything untoward with the knowledge that they are traceable and might run into problems through their employer.
Bar fines are typically not negotiable. You will need to pay whatever amount the bar’s mamasan or cashier requests. Sometimes if you are paying a bar fine for several days or weeks, then the bar might offer a discount. However, this will be at their discretion and not all bars offer ‘bulk discounts’, especially if the lady is popular or the bar is struggling to find staff.
If you are intending to pay a bar fine for several days or weeks, then you might encounter issues which are more serious than the amount which you pay as a bar fine – typically falling in love with the lady and becoming a victim to a ‘bar girl scam’, where the lady will continue to work at a bar despite being ‘in a relationship’ with a previous customer.
If a lady is taken from a bar by a customer, then she will no longer be encouraging people into the bar, and no-one will buy drinks for her – by having one less member of staff the bar will lose money. Put simply, bars charge bar fines as compensation for losing a member of their staff.
Thousands of foreign men visit Pattaya every year and end up falling in love with bar girls. If you are spending a prolonged amount of time with a certain lady then you might find yourself in a similar predicament.
Sometimes relationships between bar girls and foreigners can work, however, such cases are rare, and for every success story there are 10 horror stories.
Men that fall in love with bar girls will always say “She’s different!” or “She’s not like the other bar girls!”. When guys fall head over heels in love with bar girls, they tend to lose sight of the full picture.
Whether the lady works in a beer bar, gentleman’s club, a go-go, or a massage parlour, bar girls work in these venues because they need money. They usually have children from previous relationships and need to provide for their parents as well. The minimum wage in Thailand is quite low and usually not enough to support a full family of people.
Without a university degree, it can be difficult to find a decent paying job in Thailand, and many ladies resort to bar work in order to earn enough cash to support themselves and their families. If you form a relationship with a bar girl, then you will need to send her money on a regular basis to support both her and her family, and this is where problems can arise.
You may hear tales of “bar girl scams” in Pattaya… Men often fall in love with ladies that are working in bars and decide to send money to them. In return the lady will promise not to leave the bar with any customers, or she might claim that she has left Pattaya and gone back to live with her family in the village.
We know from experience that most of the time bar girls will continue to accept bar fines and leave the bar with customers whilst a foreign man is “taking care” of them and wiring money on a regular basis.
Another classic bar girl scam involves the lady forging multiple relationships, and having several different foreign boyfriends sending her money. Each boyfriend will believe that they are the only man in her life. When done correctly, this type of scam can allow some bar girls to earn huge amounts of money.
You might read this article thinking that “it could never happen to you” or “she is really different”… This is the type of mentality which helps guys fall victim to bar girl scams. Not all bar girls are different and most of them are actually quite similar.
If you do happen to find yourself in a romantic relationship with a bar girl, then we can help to find out if she is different and get to the truth.
We often investigate bar girls that are working in Pattaya in order to check that they are loyal to their boyfriends. Most ladies are not loyal and will continue to leave the bar with customers whilst their boyfriends are back in their home countries. Bar girl investigations can typically save our clients huge amounts of money, as well as their time and heartache.
Learn more about bar girl investigations.
How much does a Thai girlfriend cost? The answer to this question will depend on the type of lady that you are involved with. Financial support for a Thai girlfriend could range anywhere between 10,000 – 50,000 THB per month, and some men send considerably more money to their partners per month.
The amount of money that it costs to help your girlfriend will depend entirely on her circumstances and lifestyle. Many Thai women are university educated and have decent careers to support themselves and their families… If you are reading this article then we assume your girlfriend does not fit into this category.
If you are sending money to a Thai lady that is working in a beer bar, a go-go, club, or a similar adult entertainment venue, then she is probably continuing to sleep with customers whether or not you are sending her money. We have seen cases which fall into this category hundreds of times and the results are (almost) always the same. Beware of this and don’t fall victim to the Thai girlfriend scam.
If your Thai girlfriend is accustomed to a high standard of living, then renting a decent property could cost over 10,000 – 50,000 THB per month by itself, in which case the total amount of money she asks from you will obviously be far higher.
When it comes to supporting a Thai girlfriend that is working a menial job, it’s worth nothing that a small amount of money can go a long way in Thailand. Rather than subsidise your girlfriend’s minimum wage salary, why not help her to attend university so that she is able to secure a more profitable career in the future? Compared with the costs involved for schooling in Western countries, foreigners often find that Thailand offers excellent bang for your buck. If your Thai girlfriend owns a small piece of land for example, then you might be able to construct a modest home for 1,000,000 THB or less. The costs involved for a Thai lady to open a small business, or buy farm livestock for example, are probably far less than in Western countries; many foreigners help to make their girlfriends become more self sufficient through carefully investing money into a business or education.
If you are making the commitment of sending your Thai girlfriend money every month then it’s important to make sure she is honest with you, that she is truly working where she claims to be, and that no other men are involved with her. Many foreigners unfortunately fall victim to the Thai girlfriend scam, which usually involves a lady recruiting multiple foreign boyfriends.
While most Thai women are honest people, when you are meeting ladies in places such as Pattaya, you are effectively dealing with a subset of the population who make a living through the tourism industry and forming relationships with foreign men. If you were putting money into a business, it would be wise to perform checks beforehand in order to make sure that you are making a sound investment. Whether investing money into a business or a person (in this case a Thai girlfriend), we feel it always makes sense to perform your own checks beforehand in order to avoid being ripped off.
Many of the ladies that find themselves working in areas of the country such as Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, or Chiang Mai, have travelled to these places because they have a family to support, and often their family will include children from a previous relationship. Thai culture with regards to child support, and taking care of children after you are left a relationship, is often seen much differently than in Western countries. While some Thai men will send money to their ex-partner as child support, it is not uncommon for them to refuse and let the lady fend for herself. Supporting 3 people (2 parents and 1 child) on a minimum wage income would be very difficult or impossible.
Many women can find themselves resorting to work in beer bars or other establishments in order to support themselves. Without an education to apply for a well-paid job, or the capital necessary to start a business, they can find themselves in a financial rut that is often compounded by the burden of debt.
Personal debt is a big issue for many people living in Thailand, especially in the fallout of Covid-19. Statistically, if you have met a lady in Thailand then it is highly likely she has some form of debt, or is responsible for debt on behalf of her family. Discovering that your Thai girlfriend is in debt can be more difficult than you might think due to the Thai concept of saving face. A Thai lady is not likely to provide you with information that will put you off being in a relationship with her. Often foreigners only discover a lady’s true financial state after knowing her for several years.
Sending money to support a Thai girlfriend is all well and good, as long as you are not falling victim to the Thai girlfriend scam, and understand how the money is being spent. If you are falling victim to the Thai girlfriend scam, then you are effectively dealing with a professional fraudster, and catching a professional fraudster is usually very difficult or impossible, unless you seek professional help. Romance scammers make their living by telling lies and know exactly how to manipulate their foreign boyfriends into doing as they wish.
A good first step when entering into a serious relationship with a Thai lady would be to meet with her parents and learn more about their circumstances. Your girlfriend will be responsible for supporting her parents, and as her partner that responsibility also falls on yourself. Meeting with her parents also shows them that you are serious about the relationship.
We can help to check your Thai girlfriend and ensure that she is being honest with you. Our agents work across Thailand, please get in touch with us for a free, no obligation quote.