approximate living expenses in Singapore

vikasm · Post by **vikasm** » Sun, 11 Jul 2010 4:26 am

Hi....I am looking to move to singapore for a job and need your help in determining what will be the ideal salary that i should quote to my employer....I have data related to living expenses but them seems to be of around the year 2008 so i will just list them below....please correct them with current rates

1. Accommodation: $700 (rental varies with geographical area, type of accommodation, demand, facilities provided and the number of people sharing/ exclusive accommodation). As of now i am single so quoting it on sharing basis only. PLease let me know what will be the full house rent as i plan to shift my family in near future.

2. Utilities (Water/ Electricity): $70

3. Food: $500

4. Public Transport (Bus + MRT + Cab) : $300

5. TV + Mobile + Broadband: $130

6. Personal Expenses: $300 (varies with individuals: clothes, toiletries, entertainment, miscellaneous)

8. Income Tax: $1000 (Calculated on a salary of S$ 80000/ annum,Income tax is calculated on the fact that i will be working for less than 183 days for this year and for that condition i heard 15% is the flat tax rate)

So the total comes out to be roughly $2700. Tax will drop to 550 per month approx from 2nd year so the expense will get reduce to around $2250 per month.

Please correct them if they are wrong and if not then please confirm they are right item wise as far as you know. Thanks in advance....

Mad Scientist · Post by **Mad Scientist** » Sun, 11 Jul 2010 6:10 am

Go to the search button on look for this and compare yourself based on your own requirement is the best way to go. Other than that yeah you are in the ball park

amarettoSour · Post by **amarettoSour** » Sun, 11 Jul 2010 9:07 am

vikasm wrote:8. Income Tax: $1000 (Calculated on a salary of S$ 80000/ annum,Income tax is calculated on the fact that i will be working for less than 183 days for this year and for that condition i heard 15% is the flat tax rate)

So the total comes out to be roughly $2700. Tax will drop to 550 per month approx from 2nd year so the expense will get reduce to around $2250 per month.

not sure if i'm understanding correctly. are you still planning to work here next year? if so i think you will still be taxed as locals.

http://www.iras.gov.sg/irasHome/page01_ektid6140.aspx
see "If you are here for at least 183 days straddling two years"

Ryan_ · Post by **Ryan_** » Sun, 11 Jul 2010 10:09 am

If you can find a lessor that can provide you with a fix cost for 1,2 & 5 that would be good for your budget so that you will not be worried about the fluctuation of charges later on like for example when I had a chat recently with the owner of the room I rented she told me that we have about 25-30% of electricity increase the previous month of our consumption but she did not increase my rental charges. 3,4 & 6 may vary on your lifestyle but looks fair enough.. let me share to you what I normally do each month I tried to allocate money and tap up for my Kopitiam and EZLink cards (like for example $G100 for each) instead of using cash every time I dine out or access the bus/train.

thismyvoice · Post by **thismyvoice** » Mon, 12 Jul 2010 9:38 pm

Food :
Eating at hawker centres and coffee shops will cost you $3 to $6 a meal most of the time. Add $1 for drinks if required. Add about $2 if you are a big eater. Some places are famous for catering to the expat crowd so budget extra $$$ if you are eating there. Newton comes to mind.

Eating at air conditioned food court is going to cost you $5 and above. Budget $8 if you want the more fanciful stuff and not the usual local fare.

Eating at cafe and restaurant is going to cost you $10 and above. Well there is really no limit and you just have to choose a place that meets your budget. Recently some suckers paid $1200 for a fish at a restaurant near casino. Some places charge extra $$$ for dinner.

Fast food. Above $6 for a set at most places. You should have little difficulty finding Mac, KFC, Burger King, Pizza hut, etc in Singapore.

Transport :

Avoid cabs and you will save a bundle. Depending on where you stay, per journey in bus and MRT can cost as little as a $1.

Entertainment :

Movies about $10 a ticket depending on day of week.
Drinks will set you back at least $15 a bottle in pubs
Sitting along the beach at East Coast is free.
There is actually very little entertainment in my humble opinion. If possible, a short trip to Malaysia would be good fun.

vikasm · Post by **vikasm** » Sat, 17 Jul 2010 4:06 am

amarettoSour wrote:
vikasm wrote:8. Income Tax: $1000 (Calculated on a salary of S$ 80000/ annum,Income tax is calculated on the fact that i will be working for less than 183 days for this year and for that condition i heard 15% is the flat tax rate)

So the total comes out to be roughly $2700. Tax will drop to 550 per month approx from 2nd year so the expense will get reduce to around $2250 per month.
not sure if i'm understanding correctly. are you still planning to work here next year? if so i think you will still be taxed as locals.

http://www.iras.gov.sg/irasHome/page01_ektid6140.aspx
see "If you are here for at least 183 days straddling two years"

Yes i am coming for atleast an year ....so you are sayng in a 2 year tenure if i stay for more than 183 days then i will not be taxed 15%....i was earlier assum(till dec) it will be less than 183 so i have to undergo a flat 15% tax and normal tax rates from January 2011

Post by **sundaymorningstaple** » Sat, 17 Jul 2010 8:50 am

vikasm wrote:
amarettoSour wrote:
vikasm wrote:8. Income Tax: $1000 (Calculated on a salary of S$ 80000/ annum,Income tax is calculated on the fact that i will be working for less than 183 days for this year and for that condition i heard 15% is the flat tax rate)

So the total comes out to be roughly $2700. Tax will drop to 550 per month approx from 2nd year so the expense will get reduce to around $2250 per month.
not sure if i'm understanding correctly. are you still planning to work here next year? if so i think you will still be taxed as locals.

http://www.iras.gov.sg/irasHome/page01_ektid6140.aspx
see "If you are here for at least 183 days straddling two years"

Yes i am coming for atleast an year ....so you are sayng in a 2 year tenure if i stay for more than 183 days then i will not be taxed 15%....i was earlier assum(till dec) it will be less than 183 so i have to undergo a flat 15% tax and normal tax rates from January 2011

Your wording is slightly incorrect or you don't quite have a total grasp of it yet. You should have written "if i stay for more than 183 consecutive days then i will not be taxed 15%...."

Michael_D · Post by **Michael_D** » Sat, 17 Jul 2010 5:33 pm

I'm in the same boat as you friend. I'm currently working on organizing a budget, and coming to Singapore before 2010 ends.

VIKASM... email me [email protected] or private message me, and perhaps we can trade information on the subject.

Thanks.

KindnessFirst · Post by **KindnessFirst** » Mon, 19 Jul 2010 4:13 pm

Hi,

1. Accommodation: If you are an expat, this will be more expensive, unfortunately. For a full 1 or 2 bedroom apartment, you can expect to pay around $3k/month. For a rented room, it could be $700 - $1000, but make sure it is a legal rental. If you plan on renting a place with a roomate, it should be around $1500 each.

2. Utilities (Water/ Electricity): $70 - $200 depending how much you use and size of your apartment. Suggest you set aside at least $100/mnth for this

3. Food: $300/month if you only eat at hawker centers.
If you want to cook yourself: $30/week on groceries should be enough if you don't mind eating lots of veggies and rice (meat is more expensive, so maybe around $100/week if you want to eat meat every day)
Then you should keep about $100/week for going out to dinner and drinks if you like to go to restaurants.
If you want to try the delicious local food at the hawker centers, you can probably spend about $10/day and eat very well.

4. Public Transport (Bus + MRT + Cab) : $100/month or less if you take MRT and bus but no cabs. Cabs may be around $20/ride.

5. TV + Mobile + Broadband: $130 - $200 (TV+Broadband should be about $100/month, mobile depends on your plan)

6. Personal Expenses: $300 (varies with individuals: clothes, toiletries, entertainment, miscellaneous)

8. Income Tax: Advise you use IRAS website income tax calculator to figure this out

After rent and taxes, you should have at least $1500 left over to spend per month if you do not have a car.

ching · Post by **ching** » Tue, 20 Jul 2010 12:01 am

One of the things we did before moving over was to check the cost of groceries.

Try your typical shopping list back home, compare with the Singapore prices online and see how much it comes to.

For non-perishables:
http://www.fairprice.com.sg/

For perishables (although much more expensive than the local market):
http://www.coldstorage.com.sg/

nn27 · Post by **nn27** » Thu, 30 Sep 2010 9:19 pm

Excellent idea! Why didn't I think of that?

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approximate living expenses in Singapore

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