Electricity, water, internet, cooking gas, generators and rubbish for your island home - who the providers are, how bills and dive-resort markups really work, the island's demanding water situation, typical costs, and how to pay everything by app or at 7-Eleven.
Getting your utilities sorted in Koh Tao is mostly painless because in a rental, dive-staff room or bungalow the electricity, water and often internet are already connected in the landlord's or resort's name - you just pay the monthly bills. The island does have real quirks, though: electricity comes from PEA via undersea cable and storms cause outages, water is rarely a full mains supply but instead wells, boreholes and storage tanks that trucks top up in the dry season - especially in the quieter east-coast bays - and dive-resort markups on power can double what you pay. Here is exactly how each utility works on Koh Tao, what it costs, and how to pay it.
Koh Tao is served by the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), the same state utility that covers Koh Samui and Koh Phangan, with a service point in Mae Haad. Power is 220V. Because supply runs off undersea cable to a small, ferry-only island with a hilly interior, brief outages during storms are more common than on the mainland, and Sairee, Chalok Baan Kao and the east-coast bays can see slightly longer restoration times than Mae Haad itself. A surge protector is worth having in any home.
In almost every rented bungalow, dive-staff room or apartment the electricity meter stays in the landlord's or dive resort's name and you simply pay whatever is billed each month. Long-term villa leases or registered land leases can be switched into your own name at the PEA point in Mae Haad with your passport, the house registration book (tabien baan) and the property documents - most renters and instructors never need to do this.
The true PEA residential rate is roughly 4-5 THB per unit (kWh). Many Koh Tao bungalow resorts, dive-staff accommodation and long-stay apartments bill at a marked-up flat rate of 7-10 THB per unit - similar to or slightly above Koh Phangan given the extra cost of running a small island. Always ask the exact per-unit rate before signing, especially for any AC-cooled room used through the hot season.
A fan-only dive-staff room or basic bungalow can run as little as 400-900 THB a month; an AC studio in Mae Haad or Sairee typically runs 1,200-2,800 THB; and a private villa running several AC units and a pump can reach 4,000-9,000 THB in the hot season. Fan-cooled, naturally ventilated rooms are common here, especially in dive-shop staff housing, and cut the bill sharply.
Water is Koh Tao's biggest utility variable, just as on Koh Phangan and Koh Samui. The island is not on a comprehensive Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) mains supply - homes and resorts across Mae Haad, Sairee Beach, Chalok Baan Kao and the east-coast bays typically rely on private wells, boreholes and storage tanks rather than a piped city connection. Always ask a landlord or dive resort specifically what water system a property uses before you commit.
Most Koh Tao bungalows and villas draw from a private well or borehole feeding an elevated or underground storage tank and pump, so the tank buffers day-to-day supply. This water is fine for washing, cleaning and irrigation but is not drinking quality. It is standard island infrastructure rather than a red flag, but pressure and reliability depend entirely on that specific property's tank, pump and well - worth testing before you sign, particularly in the steeper, more remote east-coast bays.
In the hot dry season - roughly February to April - wells and boreholes across the island can run low, and this is felt most acutely in the harder-to-reach east-coast bays like Ao Leuk, Tanote Bay, Hin Wong Bay and Freedom Beach, where supply infrastructure is thinner than in Mae Haad or Sairee. Private water-truck deliveries become routine in a dry spell: a tanker tops up a villa's or resort's storage tank for a few hundred baht. Ask in advance whether a property has ever run dry and who arranges and pays for truck deliveries.
Where a mains or estate connection exists, metered water is cheap - often only a few hundred baht a month - though dry-season truck top-ups add to that. Private wells are usually folded into rent with no separate metered charge unless truck deliveries are needed. Nobody drinks the tap or well water on Koh Tao: households and dive shops buy 20-litre refill bottles (roughly 20-30 THB a refill, reflecting the extra ferry freight to a small island) or run a home filter.
Home fibre comes from the same national providers as the rest of Thailand - AIS Fibre, True Online and 3BB - with the strongest, most reliable coverage around Mae Haad and Sairee Beach, where the island's dive shops, cafes and long-stay renters are concentrated. Chalok Baan Kao has solid but slightly thinner coverage, and the east-coast bays (Ao Leuk, Tanote Bay, Hin Wong Bay, Freedom Beach) can be patchy or mobile-data-only, so always check the exact address before assuming fast fibre is available.
A typical home fibre package runs about 500-1,000 THB a month for 300-1,000 Mbps, usually on a 12-month contract with the router included. It is fast and cheap enough that Sairee Beach in particular has become a workable base for remote workers and dive instructors extending their stays between courses - most keep a mobile data SIM as a back-up for outages and for the quieter east-coast bays.
In dive-staff housing and many bungalow rentals, fibre is often already installed and included, or you start a plan in your own name with your passport. In a private villa the landlord may already have a line, or you arrange installation yourself - allow a few days to a couple of weeks for a new install, longer for the more remote east-coast plots.
Because power reaches Koh Tao by undersea cable and storms cause outages, many mid- and upper-tier villas, some dive resorts and the island's hyperbaric chamber facility run a back-up generator or an inverter/battery set-up that keeps essentials running through an outage. If reliable power matters for remote work or diving-related equipment, ask whether a property has a generator and who covers its fuel.
Most Koh Tao kitchens cook on bottled LPG rather than piped gas or electric hobs. You buy or exchange a gas bottle (around 350-450 THB for a refill) that a local shop or the resort delivers and connects. One bottle lasts a typical household or small dive-shop kitchen a month or two. Newer apartments in Mae Haad are more often all-electric with induction hobs.
Household waste collection is run by the local municipality (tessaban) and is usually either folded into rent or a small monthly charge; bungalow resorts and dive shops run their own collection schedule. Recycling is informal - glass, cans and plastic are often collected separately by local buyers - and cutting single-use waste matters more here than on a larger island, given Koh Tao's genuinely limited disposal capacity.
A distinctive Koh Tao arrangement: many dive shops bundle staff or instructor accommodation with a work or course package, with utilities either included flat or billed at the resort's own rate. If you are joining a dive centre as staff, get the utility terms - what is included, what is billed separately, and at what per-unit rate - confirmed in writing before you commit to a course-and-accommodation package.
The simplest way to pay every utility is your Thai bank app (Bualuang, K PLUS, SCB Easy, KMA). Scan the barcode on the paper bill or use the biller menu and it clears instantly. Opening a local bank account early - most easily done at the Kasikornbank or SCB branches in Mae Haad - makes island life noticeably smoother. See our Koh Tao banking guide.
You can pay almost any Koh Tao utility bill in cash at any 7-Eleven or a Counter Service point - hand over the bill, pay the amount plus a small (10-15 THB) fee, keep the receipt. It is the fallback before your bank account is open, and 7-Elevens are easy to find in Mae Haad and Sairee, less so in the quieter east-coast bays.
On dive resorts, in staff housing and with many private landlords, you do not pay PEA or a water authority directly - the resort office or landlord reads the meters, adds their rate (including any dry-season water-truck costs) and issues one combined bill you settle monthly by transfer or cash. Ask to see the per-unit electricity and water rates in writing so there are no surprises.
When an account is genuinely in your own name (usually only owners or long villa/land leases), PEA takes a small refundable deposit at connection in Mae Haad. As a normal renter or dive-shop staff member you rarely deal with this - utilities are already live in the owner's or resort's name and you simply start paying the monthly bills from your move-in date.
Koh Tao's grid is run by the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), with a service point in Mae Haad. In a rental or dive-staff room the meter stays in the landlord's or resort's name and you simply pay the monthly bill; owners or long villa leases can register the account in their own name at the PEA point with a passport, house registration book and property documents. Power is already live in almost every home, so a new connection is rarely needed - a surge protector, and in some villas a back-up generator, are worth having for storm-season outages.
Two reasons: air-conditioning in the tropical heat, and landlord or resort markups. The true PEA residential rate is about 4-5 THB per unit, but many bungalow resorts and long-stay apartments bill tenants at 7-10 THB per unit. Always ask the per-unit rate before signing, and note that fan-only dive-staff rooms and bungalows are common and much cheaper than AC studios, which can run 1,200-2,800 THB a month, or a villa at 4,000-9,000 THB in hot season.
Not from a full city mains network - this is the island's biggest utility quirk, shared with Koh Phangan and Koh Samui. Most homes and resorts rely on private wells, boreholes and storage tanks rather than a piped city connection. In the dry season (roughly February to April), wells can run low - especially in the harder-to-reach east-coast bays like Ao Leuk, Tanote Bay and Hin Wong Bay - and private water trucks top up storage tanks for a few hundred baht. Always ask what water system a specific property uses, and note that nobody drinks the tap or well water - buy refill bottles or use a filter.
Home fibre from AIS Fibre, True or 3BB typically costs 500-1,000 THB a month for 300-1,000 Mbps on a 12-month contract with the router included. Coverage is strongest in Mae Haad and Sairee Beach, patchier in Chalok Baan Kao, and can be thin or mobile-data-only in the quiet east-coast bays. Sairee in particular works reasonably well for remote work between dive courses - most residents keep a mobile SIM as a back-up.
The easiest way is your Thai mobile banking app - scan the barcode on the bill and it clears instantly. Without an app you can pay any bill in cash at any 7-Eleven or Counter Service for a small fee. On dive resorts, in staff housing and with many private landlords, the resort office or landlord reads the meters and gives you one combined bill - electricity, water and any water-truck deliveries - to settle by transfer or cash each month.
Koh Tao cost of living · Koh Tao banking · Koh Tao areas guide · Koh Phangan utilities setup · Koh Tao city hub
Primary and official sources are cited above. Government rules, fees and procedures in Thailand change over time and vary by office; always confirm current requirements with the relevant authority before relying on them. BAANLYY never takes paid placement in editorial content.
Browse Koh Tao areas and homes, and get set up for long-stay life on the island.
Hero photo by Ahmed Rashed on Pexels. General information only; utility providers, rates and water arrangements vary by area and property and change often - confirm current details locally before signing a lease. Costs in Thai baht (THB) and are indicative.