Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Singapore and Tokyo

For one person, living is cheaper in Tokyo: $1,635 a month against $3,454 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $21,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

168

Cost of Living Index in Singapore
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Singapore Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Tokyo
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Tokyo Living Index

Jump to prices

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,454

/mo nomad

Tokyo

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,635

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Singapore and in Tokyo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,454 in Singapore versus $1,635 in Tokyo.

Singapore $3,454
Tokyo $1,635

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,224 in Singapore versus $2,608 in Tokyo.

Singapore $5,224
Tokyo $2,608

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,994 in Singapore versus $3,581 in Tokyo.

Singapore $6,994
Tokyo $3,581

Living in Singapore is roughly 111% more expensive than in Tokyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Singapore 158% above, Tokyo 22% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.53 SGD 14.77

$7.64 ¥1,207

50.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.2 SGD 91.2

$38.51 ¥6,087

84.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 SGD 11.22

$5.05 ¥799

73.47%

Cappuccino

$5.25 SGD 6.73

$3.61 ¥570

45.43%

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

$1.83 SGD 2.34

$1.62 ¥257

12.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 SGD 1.60

$0.86 ¥135

45.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.42 SGD 10.79

$3.69 ¥583

128.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.02 SGD 12.83

$5.27 ¥834

90.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.94 SGD 3.76

$1.53 ¥242

92.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.47 SGD 3.16

$1.76 ¥278

40.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 SGD 3.47

$5.59 ¥883

-51.52%

Eggs

$3.73 SGD 4.77

$2.24 ¥354

66.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.54 SGD 27.58

$10.65 ¥1,684

102.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.52 SGD 12.20

$6.60 ¥1,043

44.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.98 SGD 33.27

$16.74 ¥2,646

55.20%

Apples (1kg)

$4.48 SGD 5.74

$4.86 ¥768

-7.82%

Banana (1kg)

$3.11 SGD 3.99

$2.35 ¥371

32.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.62 SGD 5.92

$4.33 ¥684

6.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 SGD 2.86

$5.28 ¥835

-57.77%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 SGD 3.20

$3.41 ¥539

-26.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.38 SGD 3.05

$3.19 ¥504

-25.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 SGD 2.28

$1.18 ¥187

50.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 SGD 1.93

$0.83 ¥131

81.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.18 SGD 18.16

$3.84 ¥607

269.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.79 SGD 30.47

$9.27 ¥1,466

156.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.51 SGD 5.78

$1.64 ¥259

175.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 SGD 5.86

$2.75 ¥434

66.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.58 SGD 2.03

$1.29 ¥204

22.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.4 SGD 123

$62.1 ¥9,819

55.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.63 SGD 4.65

$3.08 ¥487

17.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 SGD 1.02

$3.21 ¥507

-75.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.18 SGD 20.72

$18.41 ¥2,909

-12.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.51 SGD 3.21

$1.07 ¥169

134.58%

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

$155.9K SGD 199.6K

$22.2K ¥3.5M

603.07%

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

$145.8K SGD 186.7K

$15.3K ¥2.4M

853.40%

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

$175 SGD 224

$148 ¥23.3K

18.58%

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

$12.45 SGD 15.94

$21.97 ¥3,472

-43.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.64 SGD 34.11

$30.43 ¥4,810

-12.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$112 SGD 143

$65.1 ¥10.3K

71.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.07 SGD 15.46

$25.55 ¥4,039

-52.76%

Cinema Ticket

$11.60 SGD 14.85

$12.87 ¥2,034

-9.87%

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

$1,463 SGD 1,874

$1,360 ¥215.0K

7.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.4K SGD 36.3K

$18.3K ¥2.9M

55.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.5 SGD 104

$56.5 ¥8,932

44.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.6 SGD 64.8

$33.16 ¥5,241

52.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 SGD 143

$64.4 ¥10.2K

73.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 SGD 166

$71.8 ¥11.3K

80.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,916 SGD 3,734

$1,275 ¥201.5K

128.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,128 SGD 2,725

$702 ¥111.0K

202.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,654 SGD 7,241

$2,565 ¥405.5K

120.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,968 SGD 5,081

$1,480 ¥234.0K

168.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$23.6K SGD 30.2K

$9,152 ¥1.4M

157.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.8K SGD 21.5K

$4,191 ¥662.4K

301.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,369 SGD 5,594

$2,998 ¥473.8K

45.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.44

2.25

8.44%

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

Last update for Singapore: October 5, 2026

Last update for Tokyo: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Singapore

$2.1K 61.4%

Tokyo

$702 42.2% 67% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Singapore

$457 13.2%

Tokyo

$325 19.5% 28.9% $132

Eating Out

Singapore

$256 7.4%

Tokyo

$158 9.5% 38.1% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Singapore

$214 6.2%

Tokyo

$200 12% 6.6% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Singapore

$168 4.9%

Tokyo

$102 6.1% 39.5% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Singapore

$135 3.9%

Tokyo

$91 5.5% 32.6% $44

Getting Around

Singapore

$110 3.2%

Tokyo

$86 5.2% 21.6% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,916 in Singapore and $1,275 in Tokyo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Singapore pays 46% 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 $39.00 in Tokyo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $457 vs $325 per month, with Tokyo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇬 Singapore

🇯🇵 Tokyo

🕒 Local time

11:48 11:48 AM

12:48 12:48 PM

1 h ahead of Singapore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,535,002 Capital

13,613,660 Capital

💱 Currency

Singapore Dollar SGD $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 SGD = 0.781 USD

1 SGD = 0.696 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.64 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 SGD (1 SGD = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.44 SGD (1 SGD = 0.696 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.64 EUR).

USD to SGD in detail →

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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 Tokyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tokyo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 111% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 46% 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: $2,916 in Singapore versus $1,275 in Tokyo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $3,454 per month in Singapore versus $1,635 in Tokyo – a 111% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Tokyo runs roughly 55% less than in Singapore. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,635 in Tokyo versus $3,454 in Singapore, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Tokyo but tight or insufficient in Singapore. The gap between the two cities makes Tokyo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Tokyo is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Singapore, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Singapore and Tokyo 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 Tokyo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 111% less than in Singapore. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.