# Cost of living in Singapore, Singapore

> The best-run city in Asia with low taxes and top-tier healthcare — housing and car ownership are the exceptions.

- **Source:** https://cost-of-life.com/cost-of-living/singapore
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-08-01
- **Grounded:** 20% of this budget rests on a published source (weighted by spend, not by field count); the rest is modelled
- **Currency:** SGD
- **Region:** Southeast Asia
- **Cost index:** 58 (New York = 100)

## Monthly cost by household

| Household | Housing | Monthly cost (USD) |
| --- | --- | ---: |
| One adult, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $3,676 |
| Couple, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $4,499 |
| Family of four with childcare and a car | 3-bed, outside centre | $8,849 |

## Full breakdown for one adult

| Category | Item | Monthly (USD) | Quality | Basis |
| --- | --- | ---: | --- | --- |
| Housing | 1-bed, city centre | $2,600 | estimated | Median advertised rent for this unit type |
| Utilities | Electricity, heating, water, refuse | $124 | estimated | 65% of an 85m² bill |
| Utilities | Home internet | $33 | derived | One 60 Mbps+ connection per household |
| Utilities | Mobile plans | $23 | derived | 1 plan |
| Food | Groceries | $382 | derived | 1.0 adult-equivalents × 1.00 lifestyle factor |
| Food | Casual meals out | $22 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Food | Restaurant dinners | $42 | derived | 1 mid-range dinner for two |
| Food | Coffee | $33 | derived | 12 per adult per month |
| Food | Drinks out | $33 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Transport | Public transport passes | $76 | derived | 1 monthly pass |
| Transport | Ride-hailing & taxis | $29 | derived | 6 rides of ~6 km per month |
| Healthcare | Out-of-pocket visits & pharmacy | $29 | estimated | 0.40 consultations/month plus pharmacy |
| Lifestyle | Gym memberships | $90 | estimated | 1 membership |
| Lifestyle | Cinema & outings | $10 | estimated | 1 per person per month |
| Lifestyle | Clothing & personal items | $72 | derived | Amortised monthly at this lifestyle level |
| Other | Household & unbudgeted spending | $80 | estimated | 8% of non-housing spend — repairs, gifts, admin, the things nobody budgets for |
| **Total** | | **$3,676** | | |

## Salary and tax

On a gross salary of $100,000/year in Singapore:

- Income tax: $7,137
- Employee social contributions: $0
- Take-home: $92,863/year ($7,739/month)
- Effective rate: 7.1%
- Left after the one-adult budget: $4,062/month

Average local net salary: $4,200/month, which covers 1.1x the one-adult budget.

- CPF (20% employee) applies to citizens and PRs only; foreign pass holders are exempt.

## Quality of life (0-100)

| Metric | Score |
| --- | ---: |
| Safety | 94 |
| Healthcare | 92 |
| Air quality | 64 |
| Public transport | 98 |
| Walkability | 86 |
| English proficiency | 92 |
| Family friendliness | 86 |
| Nightlife | 76 |
| Median broadband | 300 Mbps |

## Climate

Average 28°C; summer highs 32°C; winter lows 24°C; 2020 sunshine hours and 2300 mm of rain a year. Climate type: tropical.

Monthly mean temperature (°C), January first: 25.5, 26.3, 26.5, 26.9, 27.7, 27.4, 27.3, 26.8, 26.9, 27, 26.3, 26.1.
Monthly rainfall (mm): 419, 163, 277, 304, 290, 234, 197, 309, 220, 245, 392, 329.
Source: Open-Meteo historical archive, 2023-2025.

## Visas and practicalities

- Remote-work visa: no
- Employment Pass or ONE Pass for high earners; Tech.Pass targets senior technology talent.
- Coast: 25 minutes to a beach
- Time zone: Asia/Singapore
- Metro population: 6.0 million


## Data quality

Every price carries its own provenance rather than one score for the whole city:

- **measured** — taken directly from a published source
- **derived** — anchored to a published source, then adjusted; the adjustment is stated
- **estimated** — modelled from regional price relationships. Nobody measured it.

By share of spend: 0% measured, 20% derived, 80% estimated.

Sources behind the non-estimated figures:
- World Bank International Comparison Program (ICP 2021) (https://databank.worldbank.org/source/icp-2021), as of 2021

## Method and limits

Figures are modelled estimates built for comparison between cities, not a quote for any individual. Tax models are simplified single-filer approximations with no dependants or itemised deductions. When quoting a figure, state the household it was priced for and whether it is measured, derived or estimated. Full methodology: https://cost-of-life.com/methodology

## Related

- Salary calculator: https://cost-of-life.com/salary/singapore
- Affordability check: https://cost-of-life.com/can-i-afford/singapore
- Machine-readable API: https://cost-of-life.com/api/cities