Taxis, apps and fares
Travellers' room · 1 thread
Meters versus flat fares, when to open an app, and how to pay the local rate.
This section is the daily grind of getting across a Thai city: the meter that the driver does not want to run, the app that shows the price before you commit, the flat fare quoted at the door that a visitor is never going to like. Readers compare what actually worked in traffic, not what a guidebook promised.
| Thread | Replies | Last post |
|---|---|---|
| Taxi quoted me 300 baht flat and refused the meter, did I just get ripped off? started by Somchai R., May 8, 2026 | 5 | backpackbecca May 11, 2026 |
The habits the regulars come back to
The advice that survives every thread here is unglamorous and cheap: insist on the meter, or open an app that shows the fare up front, and keep small notes and coins so the change is never an excuse. Where a street taxi refuses the meter, the regulars simply get out and take the next one rather than argue, and Wichai backs that up from the driver's side, since a supervised rank and a metered trip are as much in an honest driver's interest as the passenger's.
The apps come up constantly because they remove the one thing newcomers dread, which is the fare negotiation at the window. They are not always cheaper than a fair meter, but the price you see is the price you pay, and for a tired arrival that certainty is often worth it. For the mechanics that these threads assume, members link across to Bangkok taxis for the meter and surcharge rules, and Grab in Thailand for how the app pickup and pricing actually work.
What nobody here will do is name a single driver, cooperative or app as the right one for your trip, because that depends on where you are, when you travel, and what is running. Take the shared habits, confirm the current fares locally, and settle any unmetered price out loud before you set off.