Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Singapore and Shiso

For one person, living is cheaper in Shiso: $1,048 a month against $3,493 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $29,300 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Shiso
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Shiso Living Index

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Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,493

/mo nomad

Shiso

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Singapore and in Shiso

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

A single person spends $3,493 per month in Singapore vs $1,048 in Shiso, rent included.

Singapore $3,493
Shiso $1,048

A couple spends around $5,174 per month in Singapore vs $1,913 in Shiso, rent included.

Singapore $5,174
Shiso $1,913

A family of three spends $6,855 per month in Singapore vs $2,777 in Shiso, rent included.

Singapore $6,855
Shiso $2,777

Singapore costs about 233% more than Shiso, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Singapore sits 158% above the global median, while Shiso is 23% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.74 SGD 15.02

$7.87 ¥1,244

49.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.3 SGD 95.1

$68.0 ¥10.7K

9.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 SGD 11.21

$6.29 ¥993

39.27%

Cappuccino

$5.32 SGD 6.80

$3.69 ¥584

44.17%

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

$1.89 SGD 2.42

$0.83 ¥132

127.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 SGD 1.55

$0.72 ¥114

68.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.46 SGD 10.82

$2.58 ¥407

227.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.83 SGD 12.57

$3.15 ¥497

212.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.91 SGD 3.72

$1.52 ¥240

91.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.52 SGD 3.22

$3.00 ¥474

-16.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.86 SGD 3.66

$4.87 ¥769

-41.27%

Eggs

$3.64 SGD 4.66

$2.19 ¥346

66.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.88 SGD 26.71

$10.19 ¥1,609

104.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.92 SGD 12.69

$6.48 ¥1,023

53.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.77 SGD 32.98

$27.01 ¥4,267

-4.59%

Apples (1kg)

$4.70 SGD 6.02

$5.33 ¥842

-11.82%

Banana (1kg)

$3.08 SGD 3.94

$2.59 ¥409

18.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 SGD 6.06

$4.06 ¥641

16.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 SGD 2.80

$5.97 ¥943

-63.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.57 SGD 3.29

$4.29 ¥678

-40.09%

Onion (1kg)

$2.32 SGD 2.97

$2.60 ¥411

-10.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.86 SGD 2.39

$1.38 ¥218

34.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 SGD 1.78

$0.83 ¥130

67.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.80 SGD 17.66

$4.11 ¥650

235.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.29 SGD 29.81

$7.66 ¥1,211

204.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.77 SGD 6.10

$1.92 ¥303

148.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.69 SGD 6.00

$2.22 ¥351

111.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.60 SGD 2.04

$1.36 ¥216

17.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.0 SGD 123

$33.90 ¥5,356

183.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.61 SGD 4.61

$3.57 ¥564

1.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 SGD 1.02

$2.88 ¥455

-72.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.63 SGD 21.28

$20.87 ¥3,297

-20.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.56 SGD 3.28

$1.28 ¥202

100.00%

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

$157.0K SGD 200.8K

$22.9K ¥3.6M

585.48%

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

$149.8K SGD 191.7K

$17.0K ¥2.7M

782.35%

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

$172 SGD 220

$144 ¥22.8K

18.96%

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

$12.13 SGD 15.53

$23.93 ¥3,781

-49.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.02 SGD 35.86

$13.58 ¥2,146

106.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$108 SGD 138

$36.74 ¥5,805

194.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.24 SGD 15.67

$13.71 ¥2,167

-10.72%

Cinema Ticket

$12.03 SGD 15.39

$4.59 ¥726

162.09%

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

$1,473 SGD 1,885

$283 ¥44.8K

419.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.7K SGD 36.8K

$13.6K ¥2.1M

111.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.0 SGD 99.9

$10.06 ¥1,589

675.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.9 SGD 65.1

$29.87 ¥4,720

70.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 SGD 139

$33.76 ¥5,334

221.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 SGD 158

$99.7 ¥15.7K

23.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,917 SGD 3,733

$470 ¥74.3K

520.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,161 SGD 2,765

$165 ¥26.0K

1211.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,769 SGD 7,383

$862 ¥136.1K

569.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,849 SGD 4,925

$659 ¥104.2K

483.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$23.2K SGD 29.7K

$4,229 ¥668.1K

448.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.9K SGD 21.7K

$1,769 ¥279.5K

857.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,547 SGD 5,818

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.44

1.78

37.08%

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

Last update for Singapore: October 20, 2026

Last update for Shiso: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Singapore

$2.2K 61.8%

Shiso

$165 15.7% 92.4% $2K

Groceries & Markets

Singapore

$458 13.1%

Shiso

$368 35.2% 19.5% $90

Eating Out

Singapore

$258 7.4%

Shiso

$152 14.5% 41.3% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Singapore

$212 6.1%

Shiso

$182 17.4% 14.2% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Singapore

$162 4.7%

Shiso

$78 7.4% 51.9% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Singapore

$132 3.8%

Shiso

$46 4.4% 65.2% $86

Getting Around

Singapore

$110 3.2%

Shiso

$57 5.5% 47.8% $53

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,917 in Singapore versus $470 in Shiso. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $74.0 in Singapore versus $68.0 in Shiso. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $458 vs $368 – making Shiso the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇬 Singapore

🇯🇵 Shiso

🕒 Local time

12:13 12:13 PM

13:13 1:13 PM

1 h ahead of Singapore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,535,002 Capital

36,610

💱 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 21, 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 21, 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

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Between locations

Singapore Shiso 4,910 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Singapore
Shiso

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 Shiso: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Singapore is pricier by about 233%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,240 per month in Singapore and $1,572 in Shiso. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shiso, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,493 in Singapore and $1,048 in Shiso. That's a gap of about 233%.

Public transport costs about 183% less in Shiso. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Shiso, where all-in costs run around $1,048, than in Singapore at $3,493. In Shiso it covers expenses comfortably, while in Singapore it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shiso – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Shiso. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Singapore makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.