Thailand Medical Tourism Statistics 2026
Key takeaways
- About 580,000 medical tourists. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) projected this figure for 2025, equal to 1.74% of international arrivals.
- The "3 million" figure is not medical tourists. It counts all foreign hospital use, including expats and migrant workers living in Thailand.
- About 50 billion baht in revenue. Foreign patients generated this in treatment revenue at Thai private hospitals in 2024, and 16.8% of private hospital revenue in 2025.
- 55 JCI-accredited hospitals. Thailand had 68 JCI-accredited organisations in total as of October 2026.
- Cosmetic surgery is surgery-led. Plastic surgeons performed an estimated 166,583 aesthetic procedures in 2025, and 76% were surgical.
- Growth is uneven. The Cambodia border dispute and the Middle East conflict hit some hospitals, while Myanmar, US and Australian patients grew.
- Entry rules are changing. From 15 September 2026, the visa-free stay for 60 eligible countries and territories is 30 days instead of 60.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand expected about 580,000 medical tourists in 2025, and foreign patients brought Thai private hospitals about 50 billion baht in treatment revenue in 2024, according to the Ministry of Public Health. The often-quoted “3 million” is a count of foreign patient visits, and most of those are from foreigners who live and work in Thailand. Thailand has 55 hospitals accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI).
This page brings together the latest official figures, hospital company filings and peer-reviewed research on Thailand’s medical tourism industry. Because different agencies count different things, each number shows what it measures, which year it covers and where it comes from.
Key Thailand medical tourism statistics
| Statistic | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Medical tourists expected in 2025 | About 580,000 (1.74% of arrivals) | Tourism Authority of Thailand, via The Nation, Oct 2025 |
| Private hospital treatment revenue from foreign patients, 2024 | About 50 billion baht | Ministry of Public Health, via The Nation, Sep 2026 |
| Foreign patient share of private hospital revenue, 2025 | 16.8% | ttb analytics, via ThaiPublica, Jul 2026 |
| Average spend per medical tourist per trip | 107,662 baht (102% more than other tourists) | Tourism Authority of Thailand, Oct 2025 |
| JCI-accredited hospitals | 55 (68 organisations in total) | JCI directory, October 2026 |
| Medical cost compared with Western countries | 30% to 70% lower | Tourism Authority of Thailand, Oct 2025 |
| Aesthetic procedures by plastic surgeons, 2025 | 166,583 (76% surgical) | ISAPS Global Survey 2025 |
| Bumrungrad revenue from non-Thai patients, 2025 | 65.6% of hospital revenue | Bumrungrad MD&A, Feb 2026 |
| International tourist arrivals, 2025 | 32,974,321 | Ministry of Tourism and Sports |
| Wellness tourism spending, 2024 | About US$14 billion (+36.4%), 15th in the world | Global Wellness Institute, Feb 2026 |
How to cite this page
You are welcome to use any figure on this page. Please link to this page and, where possible, to the original source listed beside each number.
Suggested citation: BeautsGO (beautsgo.beauty). “Thailand Medical Tourism Statistics 2026.” https://beautsgo.beauty/blogs/thailand-medical-tourism-statistics/
How many medical tourists visit Thailand?
Somewhere between about 500,000 and 1.5 million a year, depending on the estimate. Larger figures of 3 million or more count every hospital visit by a foreigner, including the roughly 3 million migrant workers and 192,000 expats living in Thailand.
| Estimate | Figure | What it counts | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medical tourists | About 580,000 (2025 projection) | International visitors travelling for treatment | Tourism Authority of Thailand, Oct 2025 |
| Real medical tourist inflow | 0.5 to 1.5 million a year | The authors’ judgement after removing expats, migrant workers and holiday emergencies | Kohpaiboon and Pupaibul, ISEAS working paper, 2025 |
| Foreigners using Thai health services | At least 3 million a year | All foreign users, no reference year given | Department of Health Service Support, via Hfocus, Jun 2026 |
| Foreign patient visits to private hospitals | 5.2 million (2022), 4.2 million (2017) | Every visit by any foreigner | Private hospital survey cited by ISEAS, 2025 |
The ISEAS paper explains the gap. By December 2024, Thailand had about 3 million registered workers from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, many of whom need hospital health checks for work permits, plus 192,290 expats and long-stay skilled workers. Their hospital visits are counted as “foreign patients” but are not medical tourism.
Bottom line for writers: use “about 580,000 medical tourists (TAT, 2025 projection)” for tourists, and “at least 3 million foreign patient visits” only when you mean all foreign hospital use.
How big is Thailand’s medical tourism industry?
Foreign patients generated about 50 billion baht in treatment revenue at Thai private hospitals in 2024, according to a Department of Health Service Support survey cited by the Ministry of Public Health. That made up 16.8% of private hospital revenue in 2025, according to ttb analytics, and foreign patient revenue grew an average 8.5% a year from 2023 to 2025, against 1.3% for Thai patients.
| Measure | Figure | Scope | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Treatment revenue from foreign patients | About 50 billion baht (2024) | All private hospitals, treatment only | Ministry of Public Health / DHSS survey |
| Foreign share of private hospital revenue | 16.8% (2025) | All private hospitals | ttb analytics |
| Health tourism revenue | About 125 billion baht (2025 estimate and 2026 target) | Medical and wellness tourism | Tourism Authority of Thailand |
| Wellness tourism sector | About 670 billion baht (2025 estimate) | Whole wellness sector, 92,813 businesses | Ministry of Tourism and Sports, via The Nation |
These figures measure different things and should not be added together. Paid market research reports put Thailand’s “medical tourism market” anywhere from under US$0.5 billion to about US$9.5 billion, because each uses its own definition. A meaningful share of “foreign patient” revenue also comes from expats: Kasikorn Research found 51% of listed hospitals’ foreign patient revenue came from foreigners living in Thailand.
The Ministry of Public Health’s 10-year Medical and Wellness Hub strategy (2025 to 2034) aims for medical tourism to be worth at least 0.5% of GDP.
Is medical tourism in Thailand growing in 2026?
Growth is uneven. Overall tourist arrivals fell 7.2% in 2025 to 32.97 million and were down 4.1% in 2026 to 17 October. Two conflicts have hit hospital revenue: the Thailand and Cambodia border dispute since mid-2025, and the Middle East conflict that began in March 2026. Hospitals with patients from Myanmar, the US and Australia have grown.
| Hospital group | International share of revenue | 2025 international revenue | H1 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bumrungrad International | 65.6% (2025) | -2.0% | +5.6% (Middle East +13.5%, Myanmar +21.2%) |
| Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (BDMS) | 28% (2025) | +5% (about +11% excluding Cambodia) | Flat (Cambodia -73%, Middle East -13%) |
| Praram 9 Hospital | 26% (2025) | +73.0% | +10.2% |
Sources: company MD&A filings to the Stock Exchange of Thailand for 2025 and the second quarter of 2026.
BDMS, Thailand’s largest private hospital group with 60 hospitals, said revenue from Cambodian patients fell 72% in the fourth quarter of 2025 because of the border conflict. In the second quarter of 2026, its revenue from Middle Eastern patients fell 24% while revenue from Australian patients rose 17% and from Myanmar patients 42% (BDMS, Aug 2026).
Where do Thailand’s medical tourists come from?
Thai agencies do not publish patient counts by nationality, but hospital filings show the main markets: the Middle East (especially Qatar, Kuwait and Oman), Myanmar, the United States, Cambodia, Bangladesh, China and Australia.
- Bumrungrad treated more than 604,000 international patient episodes from more than 180 countries in 2025. Its top three revenue sources by country are Qatar, Myanmar and the United States (Bumrungrad investor relations).
- BDMS said its 2025 international growth was led by patients from Qatar (+36%), Myanmar (+31%) and the US (+19%).
- Cosmetic surgery: Thai plastic surgeons most often name Australia, the US and China as their foreign patients’ home countries (ISAPS 2025).
- Government priorities: the Ministry of Public Health names Qatar, Kuwait and Oman as particularly valuable markets, and South Asia (Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Maldives) as a first priority for growth.
Tourist arrivals show the size of these markets, though they are not patient counts:
| Market | Tourist arrivals, 2025 | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Middle East | 752,510 | Spent 7,712.58 baht per person per day, against 4,864.85 baht for all visitors |
| United States | 1,081,929 | |
| Myanmar | 688,678 | Average stay of 12.27 days |
| Cambodia | 253,557 | Fell from 130,621 in Q1 to 13,611 in Q4 during the border dispute |
| Bangladesh | 144,333 |
Source: Ministry of Tourism and Sports, 2025 arrivals by nationality.
What procedures do medical tourists get in Thailand?
The government’s Medical Service Hub plan prioritises four services for foreign patients: aesthetic medicine, IVF and fertility, gender reassignment and dentistry. Health check-ups and orthopaedic surgery are also major draws at the large international hospitals.
Cosmetic surgery
Plastic surgeons in Thailand performed an estimated 166,583 aesthetic procedures in 2025, and 76% of them were surgical. That is far more surgery-led than South Korea (43% surgical) or Japan (21%) (ISAPS 2025; shares are our calculation).
| Rank | Surgical procedure | Procedures, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eyelid surgery | 31,778 (25.0%) |
| 2 | Rhinoplasty | 14,630 (11.5%) |
| 3 | Breast augmentation | 10,640 (8.4%) |
| 4 | Facial fat grafting | 7,980 (6.3%) |
| 5 | Brow lift | 6,365 (5.0%) |
Source: ISAPS International Survey 2025, page 41. Botulinum toxin (24,700) and hyaluronic acid filler (9,120) were the most common non-surgical treatments.
Thailand has an estimated 475 plastic surgeons, and they reported that on average 28.3% of their patients came from abroad (median 10%), the highest share among the East and Southeast Asian countries in the survey (ISAPS 2025).
Gender-affirming surgery
Thailand remains a leading destination, but the national figures are old. A 2014 peer-reviewed review found about 20 Thai surgeons performing gender-affirming surgery, with foreigners making up 90% of male-to-female patients in 2010 to 2012, up from 5% in the late 1980s (Chokrungvaranont et al., 2014). A 2024 study in Shanghai found that 37 of 39 people examined after gender reassignment surgery (94.9%) had their surgery in Thailand.
Fertility and surrogacy
Thailand offers IVF to foreign patients, but surrogacy is still not legal for foreign couples. A revised bill that would allow it under conditions was put to public consultation in July 2026 and had not been passed as of that date (The Nation, Jul 2026). Three fertility providers in Thailand hold JCI accreditation.
Health check-ups and orthopaedics
Bumrungrad lists 47 health check-up packages, with those on its first page priced from 7,000 to 75,000 baht. Its total knee replacement package is 356,500 baht and total hip replacement 425,200 baht, both excluding the implant (Bumrungrad price list, Oct 2026).
Important Pricing Note (Terms and Conditions Apply): The prices above are hospital list prices checked on 30 October 2026 and are general planning estimates only, not fixed quotations. Terms and conditions apply. The final price can only be confirmed after an in-person consultation and examination at the hospital, and it may be higher or lower depending on individual complexity.
How many JCI-accredited hospitals does Thailand have?
Thailand had 55 JCI-accredited hospitals and 68 JCI-accredited organisations in total as of October 2026, according to Joint Commission International’s own directory. The rest are clinics, imaging, home care and long-term care providers. Thai officials quote slightly different counts (61 from the Tourism Authority, 66 from the Department of Health Service Support), so check the JCI directory for the current list.
The accredited list includes Bumrungrad (accredited since 2002), three facilities known for cosmetic surgery (Yanhee Hospital, Kamol Cosmetic Hospital and Asia Cosmetic Hospital), two dental providers and three fertility clinics.
Is it safe to go to Thailand for cosmetic surgery?
Thailand has many accredited hospitals and experienced surgeons, but complications after cosmetic surgery abroad do happen, and patients often need follow-up care at home.
- Australian registry data: among Australian residents who needed breast implant revision surgery in 2016 to 2023, 11.7% had implants inserted overseas, and Thailand was the most common country of origin at 35.7% of those overseas cases (Cevik et al., 2026). This counts revision operations in Australia, not a complication rate for Thai surgery.
- Hospital data: at Westmead Hospital in Sydney, 3 of 24 patients treated for complications of overseas cosmetic surgery had been operated on in Thailand, against 13 in Turkey (Res et al., 2026).
To lower the risk, check the surgeon’s registration and the facility’s accreditation, plan enough recovery time before flying home, and arrange follow-up care in advance. Read our guides on whether plastic surgery in Thailand is safe and whether medical tourism is safe.
Thailand medical visa and entry rules in 2026
- Visa exemption: from 15 September 2026, travellers from 60 countries and territories can stay up to 30 days without a visa, replacing the previous 60-day exemption (TAT, Sep 2026).
- Medical treatment visa: Thailand’s e-visa portal lists two medical treatment visas, for stays of under 60 days and over 60 days. The shorter one requires a hospital appointment letter and at least 20,000 baht in funds (Thai e-visa).
- Destination Thailand Visa: medical treatment is an eligible activity for the five-year, multiple-entry DTV, which allows stays of up to 180 days per entry.
A one-year medical visa approved by the Cabinet in 2022 does not appear on the official e-visa portal, so do not rely on it.
Wellness tourism in Thailand
Thailand’s wellness economy was worth US$42.7 billion in 2024, up 10.1%, the 24th largest in the world. Wellness tourism spending grew 36.4% to about US$14 billion, ranking Thailand 15th worldwide (Global Wellness Institute, 2026). Thailand has more than 17,000 Thai massage, spa and wellness establishments, according to the Ministry of Public Health. Explore wellness treatments.
How does Thailand compare with other Asian destinations?
Each country counts medical tourism differently, so these figures are not like for like.
| Country | Latest figure | What is counted |
|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 2,011,822 patients (2025) | Foreign patients without Korean health insurance |
| Malaysia | 1.84 million travellers (2025) | Registered foreign healthcare travellers |
| Thailand | About 580,000 (2025 projection) | Medical tourists |
For the full comparison across seven markets, see our Asia aesthetic and medical tourism statistics, and compare Thailand with other destinations.
Commonly misquoted Thailand medical tourism statistics
| Often quoted | What the data shows |
|---|---|
| “Thailand receives 2.5 million medical tourists” | An old forecast of foreign patient visits, including expats. TAT expected about 580,000 medical tourists in 2025. |
| “3 million medical tourists a year” | About 3 million is the count of foreigners using Thai health services, most of them people living in Thailand. |
| “Save up to 85% or 90%” | The Tourism Authority of Thailand says costs are 30% to 70% lower than in Western countries. Savings vary by procedure. |
| “Thailand is No.1 in the Medical Tourism Index” | Thailand ranked 17th of 46 in the 2020-2021 index, according to TAT’s governor at the time (The Nation, 2022). |
| “No.2 medical tourism destination in the world” | From a media list with no stated method. |
| “Foreign couples can use surrogacy in Thailand” | Not yet. The bill was only at public consultation in July 2026. |
| “Tourists can stay 60 days visa-free” | Reduced to 30 days from 15 September 2026. |
Methodology and sources
- Definitions: “medical tourists” are visitors who travel to Thailand for treatment. “Foreign patients” or “foreign patient visits” include expats, migrant workers and tourists who fall ill on holiday. We label each figure accordingly.
- Official data: Tourism Authority of Thailand, Ministry of Public Health and Department of Health Service Support, Ministry of Tourism and Sports, and the Thai e-visa portal. TAT’s 580,000 figure was a projection made in October 2025; no official 2025 outturn has been published.
- Hospital data: management discussion and analysis (MD&A) filings to the Stock Exchange of Thailand. Hospitals report revenue shares and growth, not patient counts by nationality.
- ISAPS figures are estimates projected from a survey of plastic surgeons and cover only procedures by plastic surgeons.
- Prices are hospital list prices on 30 October 2026 and may change.
- Currencies: figures are shown in the currency of the original source.
Sources
- Tourism Authority of Thailand, via The Nation, 18 October 2025. nationthailand.com
- Ministry of Public Health medical hub plan, via The Nation, September 2026. nationthailand.com
- Department of Health Service Support, via Hfocus, June 2026. hfocus.org
- Kohpaiboon and Pupaibul, ISEAS Economics Working Paper 2025-3. iseas.edu.sg
- ttb analytics, via ThaiPublica, July 2026. thaipublica.org
- Ministry of Tourism and Sports, international tourist arrivals 2025. mots.go.th
- Bumrungrad Hospital MD&A, FY2025 and 2Q2026; investor relations profile. bh.listedcompany.com
- Bangkok Dusit Medical Services MD&A, FY2025 and 2Q2026. bdms.listedcompany.com
- Praram 9 Hospital MD&A, FY2025. set.or.th
- Joint Commission International, directory of accredited organisations (Thailand), October 2026. jointcommission.org
- ISAPS International Survey on Aesthetic/Cosmetic Procedures 2025. isaps.org
- Global Wellness Institute, Thailand wellness market data, February 2026. globalwellnessinstitute.org
- Cevik et al., overseas breast implant revisions, Australian Breast Device Registry, 2026. PMC
- Res et al., complications of overseas cosmetic surgery, ANZ Journal of Surgery, 2026. PMC
- Chokrungvaranont et al., sex reassignment surgery in Thailand, Scientific World Journal, 2014. PMC
- Tourism Authority of Thailand, new visa exemption rules, September 2026. tatnews.org
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thai e-visa: medical treatment. thaievisa.go.th
Frequently asked questions
How many medical tourists visit Thailand each year?
How big is Thailand's medical tourism industry?
Why is Thailand popular for medical tourism?
Is it safe to go to Thailand for cosmetic surgery?
Which nationalities use Thai hospitals most?
Can Americans get healthcare in Thailand?
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