Impressions are usually the ones most difficult to erase or even change. One such impression that many Pinoys had for so long is that in Singapore, the cost of living is very high. I must admit, even I had that impression until only recently. Back when I was still living in our beloved country Philippines, I’ve heard many stories that tell me cost of living in Singapore is high. Meaning, in order to survive, or at least live a comfortable life here, one must “pay” a lot. After spending some time here, you know what I discovered? It is a myth.

What?! You ask. The high cost of living in Singapore is just a myth? Baloney! Ok. Let’s put it into proper context so we would be on the same page. If you are like me the first time I set foot in Singapore where everything I buy I always convert into pesos, then yes you can immediately conclude that cost of living in Singapore is high. I’ll cite you an example: one pack of Cigarette here costs roughly SGD 11 or, in today’s exchange rate, PHP 330. I agree, That’s high, exorbitantly high. But that is not the right way of thinking. I’ll tell you why Singapore’s high cost of living is a myth:

1. Basic necessities like food and transportation is low. If you are not the type who always wants to eat in fancy restaurants, there are a lot of hawker centers (a collection of individual stalls selling food at very reasonable prices) here where you can get a good meal for a range of just SGD 3 - 5 or PHP 90 – 150. That’s cheap considering basic Jolly meal in the Philippines now costs less than a hundred bucks. In a hawker center, you can find food of mixed variety – Singapore, Chinese, Indian, Malay, Western, and yes, even Filipino. If you are the type who likes cooking and you are sharing with other people, then it can still get even cheaper as food ingredients are also relatively cheap here.

Another necessity is transportation. We have already discussed how good the transportation system here in Singapore. Given the convenience and security that it provides, basic fare in Singapore only ranges SGD 0.50 – 2.00 or PHP 15 – 60 pesos. That’s cheap even in Philippine terms. What with the recent hike in transport fares and the incessant demands to increase it even further in the Philippines, transportation cost in Singapore is comparatively cheaper. I’m not even putting monetary value to the lost time due to heavy traffic that you are sure to encounter EVERYDAY.

2. If you are working and earning here, expense is proportionately lower compared to working and earning in the Philippines. I have some friends here who compute their expense in nominal amount. Meaning, if they spent SGD 800 in a given month (food, transportation, rental, utilities, etc.) they compute it in peso terms so that’s about PHP 24,000 in monthly expense. That’s high considering they only spend less than PHP 10,000 in the Philippines to cover their monthly expenses. Right? Wrong! I always tell them, in the Philippines, do you also earn the same amount as you earn here? Proportionately, your expenses eat up a major part of your monthly income when you are in the Philippines while in Singapore, your expenses could just be a fraction of it, leaving you with some savings which you can send back to your loved ones.

3. Electronics and other gadgets here are cheap. I’ll share you a little secret. Here in Singapore, almost every household owns a wide-screen TV. I’m not talking about those old-fashioned CRT monitors but flat, full-HD TV sets. Size range from 32” to 48” sometime even bigger. You know why? Electronics here are cheap. I have a friend who bought a 40” full-HD, flat-screen TV for only SGD 1,300 or PHP 39,000. He bought it on a promo but the actual price is also not that far. Laptops, cell phones and other gadgets are also relatively cheaper. Again, in proportion to your income, these things are affordable and would not be a major problem for you to have.

4. Things that we pay for in the Philippines, we get it here for FREE. Let me clarify. If we want to feel a little bit safe and comfortable while traveling in the Philippines, we take a cab. That costs money. The farther you go the costlier it gets. In here, you can take a bus and you can get the same comfort and security without paying extra. If we want to get some fresh air, we go to some good place away from Metro Manila. Again, costs money. Here, you can be anywhere and air is equally fresh. These things and many more make living in Singapore relatively cheap.

So what are the expensive things here? Stay tuned for Part 2 of our article.

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