Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Singapore and Otsu

For one person, living is cheaper in Otsu: $1,300 a month against $3,500 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $26,400 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Otsu
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Otsu Living Index

Jump to prices

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,500

/mo nomad

Otsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,300

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Singapore and in Otsu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,500 in Singapore versus $1,300 in Otsu.

Singapore $3,500
Otsu $1,300

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,265 in Singapore versus $1,886 in Otsu.

Singapore $5,265
Otsu $1,886

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,030 in Singapore versus $2,472 in Otsu.

Singapore $7,030
Otsu $2,472

Living in Singapore is roughly 169% more expensive than in Otsu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Singapore is 159% above, Otsu is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.76 SGD 15.05

$8.63 ¥1,364

36.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.6 SGD 90.4

$32.03 ¥5,061

120.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 SGD 10.94

$5.00 ¥790

71.00%

Cappuccino

$5.20 SGD 6.66

$3.24 ¥511

60.49%

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

$1.77 SGD 2.27

$1.23 ¥195

43.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 SGD 1.58

$0.88 ¥139

39.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.26 SGD 10.58

$3.17 ¥501

160.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.17 SGD 13.01

$4.29 ¥678

137.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.04 SGD 3.89

$1.51 ¥239

101.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.55 SGD 3.26

$1.54 ¥243

65.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.86 SGD 3.66

$4.52 ¥714

-36.73%

Eggs

$3.53 SGD 4.51

$2.12 ¥334

66.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.12 SGD 27.02

$15.86 ¥2,506

33.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.90 SGD 12.67

$6.89 ¥1,089

43.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.42 SGD 32.53

$17.02 ¥2,689

49.35%

Apples (1kg)

$4.57 SGD 5.85

$4.90 ¥775

-6.73%

Banana (1kg)

$3.13 SGD 4.00

$2.47 ¥390

26.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.72 SGD 6.04

$4.88 ¥771

-3.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 SGD 2.85

$4.36 ¥689

-48.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.57 SGD 3.29

$2.18 ¥344

17.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 SGD 2.93

$1.92 ¥303

19.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 SGD 2.39

$1.14 ¥181

64.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 SGD 1.84

$0.94 ¥149

53.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.97 SGD 17.88

$3.89 ¥614

259.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.48 SGD 30.05

$9.69 ¥1,530

142.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.54 SGD 5.80

$1.96 ¥310

131.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 SGD 5.68

$2.17 ¥343

104.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.57 SGD 2.01

$1.49 ¥235

5.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.8 SGD 120

$52.6 ¥8,303

78.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.64 SGD 4.66

$3.13 ¥494

16.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 SGD 0.97

$2.80 ¥442

-72.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.14 SGD 20.66

$28.90 ¥4,566

-44.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.45 SGD 3.14

$1.07 ¥169

128.97%

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

$155.2K SGD 198.5K

$21.6K ¥3.4M

618.93%

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

$148.5K SGD 190.0K

$15.2K ¥2.4M

875.13%

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

$172 SGD 220

$115 ¥18.2K

48.94%

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

$12.39 SGD 15.86

$23.03 ¥3,639

-46.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.21 SGD 33.54

$30.88 ¥4,878

-15.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$108 SGD 138

$51.2 ¥8,082

111.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.31 SGD 15.75

$9.67 ¥1,528

27.30%

Cinema Ticket

$11.64 SGD 14.90

$12.33 ¥1,948

-5.60%

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

$1,481 SGD 1,895

$569 ¥89.9K

160.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K SGD 36.3K

$12.4K ¥2.0M

128.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.6 SGD 103

$56.7 ¥8,955

42.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.1 SGD 64.1

$35.70 ¥5,639

40.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 SGD 143

$69.3 ¥10.9K

61.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 SGD 165

$98.8 ¥15.6K

30.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,015 SGD 3,858

$450 ¥71.1K

570.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,171 SGD 2,778

$376 ¥59.4K

477.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,842 SGD 7,475

$625 ¥98.7K

834.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,044 SGD 5,174

$461 ¥72.8K

777.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$23.8K SGD 30.4K

$4,259 ¥672.9K

458.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.8K SGD 21.4K

$1,749 ¥276.3K

857.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,385 SGD 5,611

$1,814 ¥286.6K

141.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.44

2.1

16.19%

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

Last update for Singapore: October 13, 2026

Last update for Otsu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Singapore

$2.2K 62%

Otsu

$376 28.9% 82.7% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Singapore

$458 13.1%

Otsu

$331 25.4% 27.8% $127

Eating Out

Singapore

$256 7.3%

Otsu

$156 12% 39.1% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Singapore

$210 6%

Otsu

$169 13% 19.5% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Singapore

$167 4.8%

Otsu

$117 9% 29.9% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Singapore

$131 3.8%

Otsu

$76 5.8% 42.3% $55

Getting Around

Singapore

$107 3.1%

Otsu

$76 5.8% 29.6% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $3,015 in Singapore and $450 in Otsu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Singapore pays 142% 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 Otsu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $458 vs $331 per month, with Otsu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇬 Singapore

🇯🇵 Otsu

🕒 Local time

16:48 4:48 PM

17:48 5:48 PM

1 h ahead of Singapore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,535,002 Capital

341,314

💱 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 →

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Singapore vs Otsu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Otsu wins on cost – living expenses run 169% lower than in Singapore. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Otsu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 142% 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 $450 in Otsu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,481 in Singapore versus $569 in Otsu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 38% higher in Singapore. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,300 in Otsu versus $3,500 in Singapore, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Otsu but tight or insufficient in Singapore. The gap between the two cities makes Otsu 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 Otsu 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 Otsu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 169% less than in Singapore. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.