Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Singapore and Ichihara

For one person, living is cheaper in Ichihara: $1,194 a month against $3,500 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $27,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

169

Cost of Living Index in Singapore
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Singapore Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Ichihara
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Ichihara Living Index

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Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,500

/mo nomad

Ichihara

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,194

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Singapore and in Ichihara

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Singapore and in Ichihara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,500 in Singapore versus $1,194 in Ichihara.

Singapore $3,500
Ichihara $1,194

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,265 in Singapore versus $1,963 in Ichihara.

Singapore $5,265
Ichihara $1,963

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,030 in Singapore versus $2,731 in Ichihara.

Singapore $7,030
Ichihara $2,731

Living in Singapore is roughly 193% more expensive than in Ichihara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Singapore is 159% above, Ichihara is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.76 SGD 15.05

$6.25 ¥987

88.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.6 SGD 90.4

$41.68 ¥6,585

69.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 SGD 10.94

$4.96 ¥784

72.38%

Cappuccino

$5.20 SGD 6.66

$3.45 ¥545

50.72%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 SGD 2.27

$1.05 ¥166

68.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 SGD 1.58

$0.74 ¥117

66.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.26 SGD 10.58

$2.50 ¥395

230.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.17 SGD 13.01

$3.09 ¥488

229.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.04 SGD 3.89

$1.40 ¥221

117.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.55 SGD 3.26

$1.66 ¥263

53.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.86 SGD 3.66

$3.60 ¥568

-20.56%

Eggs

$3.53 SGD 4.51

$1.99 ¥315

77.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.12 SGD 27.02

$10.39 ¥1,641

103.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.90 SGD 12.67

$5.90 ¥933

67.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.42 SGD 32.53

$14.55 ¥2,298

74.71%

Apples (1kg)

$4.57 SGD 5.85

$5.75 ¥908

-20.52%

Banana (1kg)

$3.13 SGD 4.00

$2.77 ¥438

13.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.72 SGD 6.04

$2.81 ¥445

67.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 SGD 2.85

$4.12 ¥650

-45.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.57 SGD 3.29

$2.59 ¥409

-0.77%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 SGD 2.93

$2.58 ¥408

-11.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 SGD 2.39

$1.27 ¥201

47.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 SGD 1.84

$0.79 ¥125

82.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.97 SGD 17.88

$3.87 ¥612

260.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.48 SGD 30.05

$6.27 ¥991

274.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.54 SGD 5.80

$1.72 ¥271

163.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 SGD 5.68

$2.00 ¥316

122.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.57 SGD 2.01

$1.49 ¥236

5.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.8 SGD 120

$53.1 ¥8,389

76.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.64 SGD 4.66

$3.08 ¥486

18.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 SGD 0.97

$2.75 ¥435

-72.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.14 SGD 20.66

$20.19 ¥3,190

-20.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.45 SGD 3.14

$1.11 ¥176

120.72%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$155.2K SGD 198.5K

$21.6K ¥3.4M

617.72%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$148.5K SGD 190.0K

$18.4K ¥2.9M

705.13%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$172 SGD 220

$129 ¥20.4K

32.80%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$12.39 SGD 15.86

$24.13 ¥3,812

-48.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.21 SGD 33.54

$31.50 ¥4,976

-16.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$108 SGD 138

$46.03 ¥7,272

134.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.31 SGD 15.75

Cinema Ticket

$11.64 SGD 14.90

$12.43 ¥1,964

-6.36%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,481 SGD 1,895

$632 ¥99.9K

134.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K SGD 36.3K

$14.7K ¥2.3M

92.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.6 SGD 103

$63.2 ¥9,981

27.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.1 SGD 64.1

$36.21 ¥5,721

38.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 SGD 143

$61.6 ¥9,726

81.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 SGD 165

$100 ¥15.9K

28.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,015 SGD 3,858

$470 ¥74.2K

541.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,171 SGD 2,778

$326 ¥51.5K

566.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,842 SGD 7,475

$1,055 ¥166.7K

453.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,044 SGD 5,174

$816 ¥128.8K

395.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$23.8K SGD 30.4K

$4,722 ¥746.0K

403.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.8K SGD 21.4K

$1,935 ¥305.7K

765.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,385 SGD 5,611

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.44

2.64

-7.58%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Singapore: October 13, 2026

Last update for Ichihara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Singapore

$2.2K 62%

Ichihara

$326 27.3% 85% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Singapore

$458 13.1%

Ichihara

$287 24.1% 37.3% $171

Eating Out

Singapore

$256 7.3%

Ichihara

$132 11.1% 48.4% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Singapore

$210 6%

Ichihara

$185 15.5% 12.1% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Singapore

$167 4.8%

Ichihara

$118 9.9% 29.6% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Singapore

$131 3.8%

Ichihara

$71 5.9% 46% $60

Getting Around

Singapore

$107 3.1%

Ichihara

$76 6.4% 29.4% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $3,015 in Singapore and $470 in Ichihara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $71.0 in Singapore vs $42.00 in Ichihara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $458 vs $287 per month, with Ichihara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇬 Singapore

🇯🇵 Ichihara

🕒 Local time

05:13 5:13 AM

06:13 6:13 AM

1 h ahead of Singapore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,535,002 Capital

269,524

💱 Currency

Singapore Dollar SGD $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 SGD = 0.781 USD

1 SGD = 0.695 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to SGD – Singapore Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇬 Singapore Dollar ($)

Singapore Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 SGD (1 SGD = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.44 SGD (1 SGD = 0.695 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to SGD in detail →

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Between locations

Singapore Ichihara 5,340 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Singapore
Ichihara

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Singapore vs Ichihara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ichihara is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 193% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $5,251 in Singapore and $1,791 in Ichihara to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $3,015 in Singapore versus $470 in Ichihara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,481 in Singapore versus $632 in Ichihara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 59% higher in Singapore. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,194 in Ichihara versus $3,500 in Singapore, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Ichihara but tight or insufficient in Singapore. The gap between the two cities makes Ichihara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Singapore and Ichihara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Ichihara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 193% less than in Singapore. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.