How can I obtain a Thai O Visa without having a Thai bank account?

It's really simple, I was worried but in the end mine went so easy, just follow all the advice, apply in your home country,money in your home country back, get to Thailand first stop immigration and phone shop next day bank account, dead easy,

Just an advice: if you go to a bank to open an account, let a Thai person, favourable with good education, accompany you. Makes it a lot easier at the bank.

as most people are saying. You get the O-visa (don't get the OA-visa as that requires medical insurance) in your home country and have to prove you have the money there, not in Thailand. The visa allows you to open a Thai bank account, you need a residency certificate from immigration for that. After depositing the money (800,000 Baht for retirement) and having it there for 2 months you can then apply for the retirement extension of stay that lasts for 1 year. You have to keep 800,000 in the bank for 3 months after the extension is issued and then it must not drop below 400,000 for the next 6 months and must go back up to 800,000 for the last 3 months before you renew the extension. I opened 2 accounts, one for the 'visa' money and the other for living expenses and I leave the 800,000 in the 'visa' account all the time, it's also my emergency fund and if I have to use it for medical expenses then I will deal with the problem when I need to renew my extension.

Once again issues seem from not understanding the difference between a visa and an extension of stay

Oh dear 🙄. You apply for the non-O before you arrive. That visa allows you to open a Thai bank account. Then you deposit the 800,000 so you can apply for 12 months extension of stay.

This is the most common misconception - you DO NOT need the money to be in a Thai bank account BEFORE arriving in Thailand. You just need to show the required amount in a bank account when you apply for your Non-O and then AFTER you arrive in Thailand, you open a bank account and transfer your money into said bank account. You will need a residence certificate, Thai phone number attached to your passport, your E-visa, obviously your passport and an attitude of patience and kindness to open a Thai bank account.

You apply for the 90 day Non-O visa before travelling to Thailand and use funds in your home bank. Once you arrive in Thailand you open a bank account and put funds in it for 2 months before you can apply for a 12 month extension of stay. You will need a residence certificate from immigration and a SIM card registered against your passport to open the account

Apply for your Non-O before coming to Thailand. You don’t need the Thai bank account to apply though you will need to meet the embassy’s financial requirements with documentation from a current account . You arrive in Thailand with the Non-O, and go open a bank account. You will need other documents but the bank will let you know what you need.

The path that is recommended is to obtain your non-o from an embassy and enter by evisa 90 day non-o.

Once you are in Thailand you can then get a bank account and transfer the necessary funds.