Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Singapore and Kamakura

For one person, living is cheaper in Kamakura: $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
Learn more

Singapore Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Kamakura
Learn more

Kamakura Living Index

Jump to prices

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,500

/mo nomad

Kamakura

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,194

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Singapore and in Kamakura

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 Kamakura actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

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

Singapore $3,500
Kamakura $1,194

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,265 in Singapore versus $1,888 in Kamakura.

Singapore $5,265
Kamakura $1,888

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,030 in Singapore versus $2,582 in Kamakura.

Singapore $7,030
Kamakura $2,582

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

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.76 SGD 15.05

$6.34 ¥1,002

85.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.6 SGD 90.4

$31.78 ¥5,020

122.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 SGD 10.94

$4.98 ¥787

71.69%

Cappuccino

$5.20 SGD 6.66

$2.48 ¥392

109.68%

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

$1.77 SGD 2.27

$1.08 ¥171

63.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 SGD 1.58

$0.80 ¥127

53.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.26 SGD 10.58

$2.57 ¥406

221.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.17 SGD 13.01

$3.22 ¥509

215.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.04 SGD 3.89

$1.38 ¥219

120.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.55 SGD 3.26

$1.50 ¥237

70.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.86 SGD 3.66

$3.67 ¥580

-22.07%

Eggs

$3.53 SGD 4.51

$1.99 ¥315

77.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.12 SGD 27.02

$10.47 ¥1,654

101.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.90 SGD 12.67

$6.18 ¥976

60.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.42 SGD 32.53

$14.39 ¥2,274

76.65%

Apples (1kg)

$4.57 SGD 5.85

$5.61 ¥886

-18.54%

Banana (1kg)

$3.13 SGD 4.00

$2.69 ¥424

16.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.72 SGD 6.04

$2.89 ¥457

63.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 SGD 2.85

$4.30 ¥679

-48.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.57 SGD 3.29

$2.50 ¥395

2.80%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 SGD 2.93

$2.55 ¥403

-10.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 SGD 2.39

$1.13 ¥179

65.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 SGD 1.84

$0.76 ¥120

89.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.97 SGD 17.88

$3.71 ¥587

276.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.48 SGD 30.05

$6.44 ¥1,017

264.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.54 SGD 5.80

$1.81 ¥286

150.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 SGD 5.68

$2.04 ¥322

117.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.57 SGD 2.01

$1.50 ¥237

4.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.8 SGD 120

$56.5 ¥8,926

65.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.64 SGD 4.66

$3.08 ¥487

18.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 SGD 0.97

$2.76 ¥436

-72.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.14 SGD 20.66

$15.85 ¥2,505

1.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.45 SGD 3.14

$1.10 ¥173

122.73%

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

$155.2K SGD 198.5K

$21.6K ¥3.4M

617.25%

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

$148.5K SGD 190.0K

$15.3K ¥2.4M

872.62%

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

$172 SGD 220

$118 ¥18.6K

45.86%

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

$12.39 SGD 15.86

$23.42 ¥3,700

-47.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.21 SGD 33.54

$31.10 ¥4,913

-15.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$108 SGD 138

$52.8 ¥8,335

104.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.31 SGD 15.75

Cinema Ticket

$11.64 SGD 14.90

$12.67 ¥2,001

-8.13%

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

$1,481 SGD 1,895

$584 ¥92.3K

153.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K SGD 36.3K

$14.8K ¥2.3M

91.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.6 SGD 103

$50.9 ¥8,044

58.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.1 SGD 64.1

$35.32 ¥5,580

41.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 SGD 143

$59.9 ¥9,456

86.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 SGD 165

$97.5 ¥15.4K

32.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,015 SGD 3,858

$568 ¥89.7K

430.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,171 SGD 2,778

$346 ¥54.7K

527.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,842 SGD 7,475

$1,212 ¥191.4K

382.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,044 SGD 5,174

$748 ¥118.3K

440.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$23.8K SGD 30.4K

$4,369 ¥690.2K

444.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.8K SGD 21.4K

$1,979 ¥312.6K

746.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,385 SGD 5,611

$1,785 ¥282.0K

145.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.44

2.02

20.79%

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

Last update for Singapore: October 13, 2026

Last update for Kamakura: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Singapore

$2.2K 62%

Kamakura

$346 29% 84.1% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Singapore

$458 13.1%

Kamakura

$286 24% 37.4% $171

Eating Out

Singapore

$256 7.3%

Kamakura

$122 10.2% 52.2% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Singapore

$210 6%

Kamakura

$172 14.4% 18.1% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Singapore

$167 4.8%

Kamakura

$110 9.2% 34.4% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Singapore

$131 3.8%

Kamakura

$78 6.5% 40.5% $53

Getting Around

Singapore

$107 3.1%

Kamakura

$79 6.7% 26.1% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $3,015 in Singapore and $568 in Kamakura. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Singapore pays 146% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $71.0 in Singapore vs $32.00 in Kamakura for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $458 vs $286 per month, with Kamakura cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇬 Singapore

🇯🇵 Kamakura

🕒 Local time

09:35 9:35 AM

10:35 10:35 AM

1 h ahead of Singapore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,535,002 Capital

172,710

💱 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 19, 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 19, 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 →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Singapore Kamakura 5,280 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Singapore
Kamakura

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 Kamakura: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

Average pay runs 146% higher in Singapore, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $3,015 in Singapore versus $568 in Kamakura. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,481 in Singapore versus $584 in Kamakura. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 60% higher in Singapore. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,194 in Kamakura versus $3,500 in Singapore, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Kamakura but tight or insufficient in Singapore. The gap between the two cities makes Kamakura 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 Kamakura 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 Kamakura 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.