CAMLIFE 2023

A national syndicated survey on Cambodian lifestyle, attitudes,

and behavior
 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Cambodian Life Survey is a lifestyle, attitudinal, and
behavioral syndicated study which monitors changing
consumer needs and behaviors in order to give clients
both a broad and deep understanding of the ever-
changing dynamics in Cambodia.

Cambodian Life 2023 is the 5TH WAVE of the study and

the results will be comparable to those in 2012, 2015, 2017,
and 2019 projecting an overview of what has changed
and remained in the past 11 years.

The study covers the following key areas:

DEMOGRAPHICS LIFE VALUES ATTITUDES EXPENSES &

TOWARDS BRANDS SAVINGS

ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA & COUNTRY GROWTH FUTURE & THE NEW

COMMUNICATIONS INDICATORS NORMAL
 METHODOLOGY
TARGET RESPONDENTS
• Males and females
• All socio-economic classes are represented
• Ages 16-60 segmented into brackets: 16-19,
20-29, 30-39, 40-49, and 50-60 years old

SEC segmentation based on monthly household income

SEC F 100 USD or less (>400,000 KHR)

SEC E 101 – 200 USD (400,001-800,000 KHR)

SEC D 201 – 300 USD (800,001-1,200,000 KHR)

SEC C 301 – 400 USD (1,200,001-1,600,000 KHR)

SEC B 401 – 800 USD (1,600,001-3,200,000 KHR)

SEC A 801 USD and up (>3,200,000 KHR)

1 QUANTITATIVE: door-to-door survey, face-to-face interviews

10 provinces in Cambodia
• URBAN: Phnom Penh, Kampong Cham, Sihanoukville, Battambang, Siem Reap
• RURAL: Kandal, Takeo, Prey Veng, Kampong Speu, Kratie

1500 consumers randomly selected to project the actual

population
• Urban n=1000 (~n=200/province), rural n=500 (~n=100/province)
• Data is nationally representative. Proportionally weighted to the 2008 census by
urban / rural
• Results skew slightly more urban than rural

2 QUALITATIVE: focus group discussions & in-depth interviews

9 FGDs and 5 IDIs to deep-dive on topics explored in the

quantitative phase
 23 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT
CAMBODIANS IN 2023
Family is the Position & Education is Due to the 27% believe
core of status in the perceived as pandemic, 9 that they
Cambodian society are top in 10 spend more
values, a important contributor to Cambodians time in traffic
motivation for aspects of the country’s prefer brands compared to
PEOPLE

working hard their lives development that are previous

focused on years
health

More Household 7 in 10 agree Cash is still There is a

conscious income that using KH the preferred significant
about their increased. Riel is better mode of decrease in
savings. 44% earn for the payment but spend for
About 19% of between USD economy there is more travel and
FINANCES

monthly 401-800 than US usage of entertainment

income is monthly Dollars digital
saved banking

8 in 10 buy They put more Smartphone There is Slight

brands to value in local is now the significant decrease in
PRODUCTS & BRANDS

project an brands but most increase in willingness to

upscale foreign common desire to own pay more for
image and brands are device owned personal car higher quality
show still more by and air brands
personal preferred for Cambodians. conditioner
success electronics 9 in 10 owns
one

72% enjoy TV usage Internet is Online Facebook

participating decreased – now the most shopping penetration
in social from 63% in credible increased among
MEDIA & COMMS

media trends 2019, now at media substantially internet users

21% in 2023 channel with 4 in 10 has now
compared to having reached 99%
TV in 2019 experienced it

Reliance to More people Cambodians

internet and take notice of are optimistic
mobile mental health as they can
THE NEW NORMAL

services due to stress now go back

continues experienced to habits
after the in the without
pandemic pandemic limitations
 PEOPLE

Family is the core of Khmer Spending time with friends than

values, the source of
1 happiness & motivation to
family keep decreasing from
2019 and remains as the low
value among all in this year.
strive hard for their future

2012 2015 2017 2019 2023

“Position and status in the society is the most

important aspect for Cambodian’s life” remains high;
however, “what other think of them is very important”
2
seems to be lower than previous two years

Due to the pandemic, 9 in Unlike the higher focus on

quality brand in 2019, in this
10 Cambodians prefer
3 brands that are focused on
year (2023) Cambodians
prefer brand that is useful for
their health condition.
health

2017 2019 2023 90 87 91

67
61
56

I am willing to pay more for higher quality I prefer a brand which has a health focus
brands
 PEOPLE
Education and child protection is now considered as
4 top contributors to country’s development followed
by job/employment

Traffic in Phnom Penh seems to have worsened with

majority of residents spending between 21 to 40 5
minutes for daily commute, which is longer than 2019
 FINANCES

Monthly household income increased; about half of

1 the population are in SEC B (401-800 USD); there are
no households earning less than 100 USD per month
SEC F SEC E SEC D SEC C SEC B SEC A

Less than 100 USD 100-200 USD 201-300 USD 301-400 USD 401-800 USD More than 801 USD

Income is mostly spent on groceries and daily life

necessities; interestingly, spending for healthcare
significantly increased while housing and 2
entertainment deprioritized
 FINANCES

The saving ratio increases by half in 2023 due to the

3 fact that they cut their expenses in almost all
categories except groceries

4
Cambodians’
support to KH Riel
has been increasing
since 2017
5
Cash payment is
still a common
method to use in
daily life
 PRODUCTS & BRANDS

Smart phone
has become the
most common
device owned
by majority of
Cambodians

2
Washing
machine,
refrigerator,
and personal
car are what
Cambodians
wish to own the
most

8 in 10 people still prefer to be recognized by their

3 success and achievement, yet 6 in 10 also believe that
purchasing certain brands can uplift their image
 PRODUCTS & BRANDS

Smart phone
has become the
most common
device owned
by majority of
Cambodians

2
Washing
machine,
refrigerator,
and personal
car are what
Cambodians
wish to own the
most

8 in 10 people still prefer to be recognized by their

3 success and achievement, yet 6 in 10 also believe that
purchasing certain brands can uplift their image
 PRODUCTS & BRANDS

People still hold the same perception in showing

4 success through brands; however, the number of
people who prefer buying well-known brands dropped

There is more willingness to pay for higher-quality brands

among SEC A; agreement from other SECs have decreased
compared to 2019

74
70 69
66 68 64 65
62
56 57 57 56 55
48 46

SEC A SEC B SEC C SEC D SEC E

2017 2019 2023

69 66
62 60
56 56

2017 2019 2023

urban rural
 PRODUCTS & BRANDS

Most Cambodians show support for local brands; this

5 is seen increasing across SECs

When asked spontaneously, top-of-mind for FMCG are

local brands while foreign brands are more recalled for
electronics, skin care, and clothing
SPONTANEOUS RECALL OF FMCG BRANDS

SPONTANEOUS RECALL OF ELECTRONICS, SKIN CARE, CLOTHING BRANDS

 MEDIA & COMMS

Internet usage keeps increasing sharply from year to

1 year, while TV and Radio keep decreasing
dramatically

The internet is now the most credible media channel,

given that almost all people use the internet at least 2
once in every two weeks

3 Everyone use Facebook at least once every 2 weeks

 MEDIA & COMMS

Participation in social media trends significantly

4 increased in 2023 and can be seen across all age
groups but more so with younger cohorts

2019 61 39

2023 72 28

I like to participate in online trends on social media I don’t care about any trends

16-19 76 24

20-29 76 24

30-39 73 27

40-49 68 32

50-60 66 34

Online shopping went up substantially across

genders and age groups 5
2017 2019 2023

55 57
45 40
32
20

I have purchased a product on the internet in the past. I have researched products/services on the internet before
purchase.

69 66
59 60
52 51
43 38
30
24

16-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-60

I have purchased a product on the internet I have researched products/services on the

in the past internet before purchase
 THE NEW NORMAL

More people take notice of mental health due to stress

1 experienced in the pandemic
“We became more stress during Covid-19 because we stayed home the whole day.” – Students

• Many experienced mental health decline such as panics and

stress due to knowing someone who got or passed away due to
COVID-19

• Moms had additional concerns about not being able to pay off
loans or rent due to changes in income

Cambodians are optimistic as they can now go

back to habits without limitations 2

The situation • No more lockdowns and restrictions – can

nowadays is better
and most feel more •
relaxed resuming
their daily activities
socialize with their peers again and can go
wherever they want
Back to face-to-face work and schooling – less
Zoom calls, less concerns on poor internet
connection or focusing on their tasks

“It is the new normal that we
need to keep our hand
cleaned and wearing mask
to protect ourselves from
new viruses. ” – Moms with
kids
BUT THE DANGER IS NOT COMPLETELY GONE!
• Many are still wary about COVID-19 and fear that
new variants will continue to emerge
• Most still ensure that they continue hygiene habits
they’ve become accustomed to during the
pandemic – e.g. washing hands, wearing mask, etc.

Food expenditure was most impacted post-

3 pandemic; internet and mobile expenses also
increased
 Chhat Research is a We are a
regional
professionally leading data, company with an
insights, and consulting international
company. standard quality
of service.
We help clients address their business
objectives and guide them to make We have offices in Phnom Penh, Siem
right decisions. Reap, Battambang, and Kampong
Cham and fieldwork forces in all 25
provinces.
All our recommendations are derived from
insights from consumers and what we Our capacity also extends to other
know about the market – what happened, regions in the Mekong Region. We
why it happened, and where opportunities lie conduct researches in LAOS and
for your business. MYANMAR.

We have extensive experience in the

Cambodia market thus a complete and
unique understanding of Cambodian
consumers.
WHO WE ARE
WHAT WE DO
We conduct market and
social research – both
qualitative and
COMPANY
quantitative.
We cover different areas and services
to answer your business needs.
OUR LOCATIONS
OUR TEAM OF EXPERTS
The senior members of the
team have a collective 53
years’ worth of research
experience – both in
Cambodia and across
Southeast Asia.
We have 40+ full time staff
and more than 1,000 part-
PROFILE time interviewers
nationwide.
We have dedicated teams
for both qualitative and
quantitative research.

BRAND INNOVATION CREATIVE

UNDERSTANDING How to disrupt and EVALUATION CONTACT US
What should the renew? How to win through
brand stand for? comms?
https://chhatgroup.com

Chhat Research
Professional
info@chhatgroup.com
SHOPPER EXPLORATORY PUBLIC AFFAIRS
How to win with Who are the How can behaviour Pritheacha Hun Neang
shoppers? consumers outside & programs Rd., Khan Sen Sok,
product usage? improve society? Phnom Penh

Access the full report of the study by contacting

Mr. Lengchansocheat Chhat:

lengchansocheat.chhat@chhatgroup.com
012 63 01 03 / 016 30 10 30