cost of Singapore compared to London
Feb 7th 2010, 8:19 am
#1
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Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2
cost of Singapore compared to London
Hi, i was wondering what is the cost difference between living in Singapore compared to London? Would you expect a salary equivalent to £30,000 (66 000 Singapore Dollars) to be comfortably living on (single, no dependants)
many thanks
many thanks
Feb 7th 2010, 9:16 am
#2
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 1,755
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
Depends on the overall package.
What is your accommodation allowance, medical, flight allowance,
utilities allowance, etc.
What is your accommodation allowance, medical, flight allowance,
utilities allowance, etc.
Feb 7th 2010, 10:55 am
#3
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
As far as I am aware no allowance for those (although will obviously investigate further). Are these allowances typical for jobs in Singapore? thanks
Feb 7th 2010, 3:31 pm
#4
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 6,848
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
Singapore is more expensive than London in many respects and don't even think of buying a car there (most expensive place in the world).
The most recent Mercer COLA index lists Singapore at no. 10 and London at no. 16 in (with the US$ and New York set as the base rate).
http://www.mercer.com/costoflivingpr
Western food is very expensive, would you enjoy eating rice and noodles every day? Hawker food is very cheap but you have to watch for MSG which is very unhealthy (can cause hair loss, jitters, rise in blood pressure etc.) and as a 'flavour enhancer' is liberally added to food in SE Asia, especially hawker food. Alcohol is extremely expensive (approx 7 quid a pint in many of the pubs) due to high tax on it.
You would be able to get by on the salary you quoted if you're happy to live in a house or flat-share, use buses, MRT or taxis, become a near teetotaller!
TBH Singapore is more suited to families than single people as Hong Kong is far more exciting...but if you just want to try it for a year or two then it's worth coming over.
Definitely get your employer to provide health insurance. Ask for an allowance to ship some personal items over or if they will pay for excess baggage on your flight.
I guess you are not very senior so it might be difficult to ask for annual home leave flights, club membership, car etc. Is it a local employer or an MNC? I would also ask for flights home if your job/work permit is terminated or/and at the end of the contract. Get any agreements in writing....too many people have been screwed over by relying on verbal agreements!
Some great points raised in this thread here:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,57966.0.html
Some comments here on food shopping:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,59257.0.html
(PS: I refuse to buy the Activia yoghurts....approx S$15 -S$17 for four small pots! Dairy products are very expensive...organic milk exceedingly so)
Hope this helps!
The most recent Mercer COLA index lists Singapore at no. 10 and London at no. 16 in (with the US$ and New York set as the base rate).
http://www.mercer.com/costoflivingpr
Western food is very expensive, would you enjoy eating rice and noodles every day? Hawker food is very cheap but you have to watch for MSG which is very unhealthy (can cause hair loss, jitters, rise in blood pressure etc.) and as a 'flavour enhancer' is liberally added to food in SE Asia, especially hawker food. Alcohol is extremely expensive (approx 7 quid a pint in many of the pubs) due to high tax on it.
You would be able to get by on the salary you quoted if you're happy to live in a house or flat-share, use buses, MRT or taxis, become a near teetotaller!
TBH Singapore is more suited to families than single people as Hong Kong is far more exciting...but if you just want to try it for a year or two then it's worth coming over.
Definitely get your employer to provide health insurance. Ask for an allowance to ship some personal items over or if they will pay for excess baggage on your flight.
I guess you are not very senior so it might be difficult to ask for annual home leave flights, club membership, car etc. Is it a local employer or an MNC? I would also ask for flights home if your job/work permit is terminated or/and at the end of the contract. Get any agreements in writing....too many people have been screwed over by relying on verbal agreements!
Some great points raised in this thread here:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,57966.0.html
Some comments here on food shopping:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,59257.0.html
(PS: I refuse to buy the Activia yoghurts....approx S$15 -S$17 for four small pots! Dairy products are very expensive...organic milk exceedingly so)
Hope this helps!
Last edited by Englishmum; Feb 7th 2010 at 3:47 pm.
Apr 28th 2010, 8:22 am
#5
Banned
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 47
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
singapore is not more expensive than london, it is a whole lot cheaper 
by "western food", i guess you mean american/british cuisine. they are not expensive, it is dirt cheap. it can be found in everywhere, basically you will always be just 5-10 mins from any western food store. a "western meal" costs only 5-7 sgd which is what, 2-4 stirling. fast food like macdonalds, starbucks are available on every street. most native singaporeans eat "western food" as their staple diet daily be it macdonalds, long johns, burger king, fish steaks, beef steaks or chicken steaks.
rice and noodles every meal? that is the funniest thing i have heard.
more exotic "western" cusines will be expensive - for eg french/italian/etc, those are mainly in higher priced restaurants and less common.
40% of singapore's population are foreigners and singapore has all kinds of food everywhere.
yes cars are as expensive as houses in singapore (due to small land area and need to limit number of cars on the road) but singapore is so small and the transport system is so efficient, you can get by easily with public transport.
with 66k sgd anually, you can and will live a very good life. that is above average wage for singaporeans.
by "western food", i guess you mean american/british cuisine. they are not expensive, it is dirt cheap. it can be found in everywhere, basically you will always be just 5-10 mins from any western food store. a "western meal" costs only 5-7 sgd which is what, 2-4 stirling. fast food like macdonalds, starbucks are available on every street. most native singaporeans eat "western food" as their staple diet daily be it macdonalds, long johns, burger king, fish steaks, beef steaks or chicken steaks.
rice and noodles every meal? that is the funniest thing i have heard.
more exotic "western" cusines will be expensive - for eg french/italian/etc, those are mainly in higher priced restaurants and less common.
40% of singapore's population are foreigners and singapore has all kinds of food everywhere.
yes cars are as expensive as houses in singapore (due to small land area and need to limit number of cars on the road) but singapore is so small and the transport system is so efficient, you can get by easily with public transport.
with 66k sgd anually, you can and will live a very good life. that is above average wage for singaporeans.
Singapore is more expensive than London in many respects and don't even think of buying a car there (most expensive place in the world).
The most recent Mercer COLA index lists Singapore at no. 10 and London at no. 16 in (with the US$ and New York set as the base rate).
http://www.mercer.com/costoflivingpr
Western food is very expensive, would you enjoy eating rice and noodles every day? Hawker food is very cheap but you have to watch for MSG which is very unhealthy (can cause hair loss, jitters, rise in blood pressure etc.) and as a 'flavour enhancer' is liberally added to food in SE Asia, especially hawker food. Alcohol is extremely expensive (approx 7 quid a pint in many of the pubs) due to high tax on it.
You would be able to get by on the salary you quoted if you're happy to live in a house or flat-share, use buses, MRT or taxis, become a near teetotaller!
TBH Singapore is more suited to families than single people as Hong Kong is far more exciting...but if you just want to try it for a year or two then it's worth coming over.
Definitely get your employer to provide health insurance. Ask for an allowance to ship some personal items over or if they will pay for excess baggage on your flight.
I guess you are not very senior so it might be difficult to ask for annual home leave flights, club membership, car etc. Is it a local employer or an MNC? I would also ask for flights home if your job/work permit is terminated or/and at the end of the contract. Get any agreements in writing....too many people have been screwed over by relying on verbal agreements!
Some great points raised in this thread here:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,57966.0.html
Some comments here on food shopping:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,59257.0.html
(PS: I refuse to buy the Activia yoghurts....approx S$15 -S$17 for four small pots! Dairy products are very expensive...organic milk exceedingly so)
Hope this helps!
The most recent Mercer COLA index lists Singapore at no. 10 and London at no. 16 in (with the US$ and New York set as the base rate).
http://www.mercer.com/costoflivingpr
Western food is very expensive, would you enjoy eating rice and noodles every day? Hawker food is very cheap but you have to watch for MSG which is very unhealthy (can cause hair loss, jitters, rise in blood pressure etc.) and as a 'flavour enhancer' is liberally added to food in SE Asia, especially hawker food. Alcohol is extremely expensive (approx 7 quid a pint in many of the pubs) due to high tax on it.
You would be able to get by on the salary you quoted if you're happy to live in a house or flat-share, use buses, MRT or taxis, become a near teetotaller!
TBH Singapore is more suited to families than single people as Hong Kong is far more exciting...but if you just want to try it for a year or two then it's worth coming over.
Definitely get your employer to provide health insurance. Ask for an allowance to ship some personal items over or if they will pay for excess baggage on your flight.
I guess you are not very senior so it might be difficult to ask for annual home leave flights, club membership, car etc. Is it a local employer or an MNC? I would also ask for flights home if your job/work permit is terminated or/and at the end of the contract. Get any agreements in writing....too many people have been screwed over by relying on verbal agreements!
Some great points raised in this thread here:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,57966.0.html
Some comments here on food shopping:
http://www.expatsingapore.com/forum/...c,59257.0.html
(PS: I refuse to buy the Activia yoghurts....approx S$15 -S$17 for four small pots! Dairy products are very expensive...organic milk exceedingly so)
Hope this helps!
Last edited by wowoweee; Apr 28th 2010 at 8:46 am.
Apr 28th 2010, 11:17 am
#6
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Joined: Jun 2007
Location: Dubai
Posts: 13,547
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
if you are looking to share an apartment then its enough
if you want a nice place of your own then you won't have much spare cash
if you want a nice place of your own then you won't have much spare cash
Apr 28th 2010, 4:58 pm
#7
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 47
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
May 3rd 2010, 6:28 am
#8
Account Closed
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 153
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
singapore is not more expensive than london, it is a whole lot cheaper
by "western food", i guess you mean american/british cuisine. they are not expensive, it is dirt cheap. it can be found in everywhere, basically you will always be just 5-10 mins from any western food store. a "western meal" costs only 5-7 sgd which is what, 2-4 stirling. fast food like macdonalds, starbucks are available on every street. most native singaporeans eat "western food" as their staple diet daily be it macdonalds, long johns, burger king, fish steaks, beef steaks or chicken steaks.
rice and noodles every meal? that is the funniest thing i have heard.
more exotic "western" cusines will be expensive - for eg french/italian/etc, those are mainly in higher priced restaurants and less common.
40% of singapore's population are foreigners and singapore has all kinds of food everywhere.
yes cars are as expensive as houses in singapore (due to small land area and need to limit number of cars on the road) but singapore is so small and the transport system is so efficient, you can get by easily with public transport.
with 66k sgd anually, you can and will live a very good life. that is above average wage for singaporeans.
by "western food", i guess you mean american/british cuisine. they are not expensive, it is dirt cheap. it can be found in everywhere, basically you will always be just 5-10 mins from any western food store. a "western meal" costs only 5-7 sgd which is what, 2-4 stirling. fast food like macdonalds, starbucks are available on every street. most native singaporeans eat "western food" as their staple diet daily be it macdonalds, long johns, burger king, fish steaks, beef steaks or chicken steaks.
rice and noodles every meal? that is the funniest thing i have heard.
more exotic "western" cusines will be expensive - for eg french/italian/etc, those are mainly in higher priced restaurants and less common.
40% of singapore's population are foreigners and singapore has all kinds of food everywhere.
yes cars are as expensive as houses in singapore (due to small land area and need to limit number of cars on the road) but singapore is so small and the transport system is so efficient, you can get by easily with public transport.
with 66k sgd anually, you can and will live a very good life. that is above average wage for singaporeans.
If you want to eat cheap food then of course you can - you get what you pay for.
Buying quality food not drenched in pesticides is difficult - organic food is extremely expensive. The quality of food in the supermarkets is often dire too. I remember tomatoes never ripened no matter how long I kept them outside the fridge.
Flying to London from Singapore is also much more expensive than flying from London to Singapore.
May 3rd 2010, 8:15 am
#9
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jun 2007
Location: Dubai
Posts: 13,547
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
Having lived in both places I completely disagree with you. Singapore is much more expensive than London for grocery shopping, housing, car purchase certainly.
If you want to eat cheap food then of course you can - you get what you pay for.
Buying quality food not drenched in pesticides is difficult - organic food is extremely expensive. The quality of food in the supermarkets is often dire too. I remember tomatoes never ripened no matter how long I kept them outside the fridge.
Flying to London from Singapore is also much more expensive than flying from London to Singapore.
If you want to eat cheap food then of course you can - you get what you pay for.
Buying quality food not drenched in pesticides is difficult - organic food is extremely expensive. The quality of food in the supermarkets is often dire too. I remember tomatoes never ripened no matter how long I kept them outside the fridge.
Flying to London from Singapore is also much more expensive than flying from London to Singapore.
don't forget you'll also only pay around 10pct income tax
and food is only expensive if you do all your shopping in cold storage as many expats do. go to Giant or Fairprice and the prices are a lot less. Buy vegies from your local wet-market
May 3rd 2010, 12:49 pm
#12
Account Closed
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 153
Re: cost of Singapore compared to London
It certainly IS NOT! $2000.00 Sing/Lon/Sing compared with 670.00 sterling Lon/Sing/Lon
Are you looking at a carrier like Emirates where you have to stop over for at least 8 hours? Not my idea of fun stopping in Dubai.
Are you looking at a carrier like Emirates where you have to stop over for at least 8 hours? Not my idea of fun stopping in Dubai.