By the WahLiao desk · Last verified 28 September 2026
A mid-range trip to Singapore costs about S$230 to S$330 a person a day, sharing a double room. A careful budget trip, with a hostel bed and hawker food, runs about S$100 to S$140. Comfortable travel starts around S$500. Flights are extra.
Singapore’s reputation for expense is mostly a reputation for hotel rooms. Rooms averaged about S$273 a night across 2025, with occupancy at 82%. The rest of the city is kinder: a train ride costs a couple of dollars, a hawker lunch about five, and the best evening shows cost nothing. Here is the arithmetic, line by line.
Singapore daily budget: three ways to travel
| Per person, per day | Budget | Mid-range | Comfortable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bed | S$50 to S$75 (hostel or capsule bed) | S$125 to S$160 (half a S$250 to S$320 double) | S$250 and up (half a S$500 room) |
| Food and drink | S$25 to S$35 (three hawker meals, kopi) | S$50 to S$80 (hawker lunch, restaurant dinner) | S$120 and up |
| Getting around | S$6 to S$10 (trains and buses) | S$10 to S$25 (trains, one taxi) | S$40 and up (taxis) |
| Sights | S$15 to S$20 (one small ticket, the rest free) | S$45 to S$60 (one headline ticket) | S$80 and up |
| Total a day | About S$100 to S$140 | About S$230 to S$330 | About S$500 and up |
| 3 days | S$300 to S$420 | S$690 to S$990 | S$1,500 and up |
| 5 days | S$500 to S$700 | S$1,150 to S$1,650 | S$2,500 and up |
The WahLiao Verdict
| Cost | About S$230 to S$330 a person a day, mid-range, before flights. |
| What you get | A clean, safe, efficient city where the cheapest meal is often the best one. |
| The alternative | Kuala Lumpur or Bangkok, at roughly half the daily cost for the room. |
| Worth it for | Travellers who value ease, food and safety over a cheap room. |
| Skip it if | The room price decides your whole trip. |
The hotel: where your money actually goes
The room is the single largest line in every Singapore budget. The official figure for 2025 was an average room rate of about S$273 a night, and hotels were 82% full. With few empty rooms, prices climb fast on big weekends: the Grand Prix, major concerts, the year-end holidays. Book early, and check this month’s events before you pick your dates. Where to Stay in Singapore shows which areas cost less.
There is no cheap short-let escape hatch. Singapore does not allow short stays in homes: private flats need a minimum stay of three consecutive months, and HDB flats six. A listing offering you three nights in a flat is offering you a problem.
Food: the best bargain in the city
A hawker centre meal is where Singapore stops being expensive. Chicken rice, laksa or a plate of noodles usually costs S$5 to S$7, and a kopi about S$1.50. Prices have been rising: in April 2026 many Chinatown Complex stalls added 50 cents to a dollar, blaming fuel and ingredient costs. What to Eat in Singapore lists the dishes and their prices.
Sit-down restaurants are different arithmetic. A menu price marked “++” means a 10% service charge, then 9% GST on top. A S$100 bill becomes S$119.90 before you have lifted a glass. Alcohol is heavily taxed, so a beer at a bar costs several hawker meals; Why Drinks Cost So Much in Singapore shows the maths.
Getting around: cheap, if you tap
A train or bus ride costs about S$1 to S$2.50, charged to the contactless card or phone you tap at the gantry. Foreign-issued cards pay an extra S$0.60 per day of use. The Singapore Tourist Pass gives unlimited basic rides for S$17 (one day), S$24 (two), S$29 (three), S$37 (four) or S$45 (five).
Most visitors ride four or five times a day, so the pass rarely saves much; MRT and Bus Fares in Singapore shows how the fares add up. Taxis cost more: the airport run alone is S$25 to S$45 on the meter, before surcharges. Our Changi Airport to the City guide prices every option.
Sights: what the big tickets cost
| Attraction (non-resident adult) | Price |
|---|---|
| Night Safari | S$58 |
| Rainforest Wild Adventure, Mandai | S$55 |
| Gardens by the Bay: Flower Dome and Cloud Forest | S$46 |
| SkyPark Observation Deck, Marina Bay Sands | S$35 by day, S$39 from 5pm |
| National Orchid Garden | S$15 |
| Supertree Observatory or OCBC Skyway, Gardens by the Bay | S$14 each |
| Singapore Botanic Gardens, Garden Rhapsody, Spectra, Merlion Park, Chinatown, Little India, Kampong Glam, Jewel’s indoor waterfall | Free |
The free list is long, and it is not the consolation prize. Two of the best evenings in Singapore, the Supertree and Marina Bay light shows, cost nothing. The Diary keeps more things to do, priced and dated.
Six ways to spend less without seeing less
- Eat lunch at a hawker centre every day. Spend the savings on one good dinner.
- Put paid sights in the heat of the day and free shows in the evening.
- Tap your own contactless card. Buy the Tourist Pass only if you will ride more than five times a day.
- Drink the tap water. It is safe, and bottled water adds up in this heat.
- Stay near an MRT station just outside the Marina Bay core, where rooms cost less and the train still takes minutes.
- Keep your receipts. Visitors aged 16 and over can claim back the 9% GST on purchases of S$100 or more from participating shops, at Changi before departure; GST Refund for Tourists shows how.
Thinking of a day trip to Johor Bahru to stretch the budget? It can work, with rules on what you bring back. That trip belongs to The Escape.
Singapore trip cost: FAQ
Is Singapore expensive to visit?
The hotel is expensive; most other things are not. A careful visitor spends about S$100 to S$140 a day, and a comfortable mid-range visitor about S$230 to S$330.
How much money do I need for 3 days in Singapore?
About S$300 to S$420 a person on a budget, or S$690 to S$990 mid-range, before flights. Our 3-day itinerary shows one plan priced hour by hour.
How much does a meal cost in Singapore?
About S$5 to S$7 at a hawker centre, S$10 to S$20 at a food court or casual café, and S$40 or more a head at a restaurant once service charge and GST are added.
Do I need cash in Singapore?
Cards and phone wallets work almost everywhere, including trains and taxis. Carry some small notes and coins for hawker stalls, where a few still take cash only.
Can tourists get a GST refund in Singapore?
Yes, on goods of S$100 or more bought from participating shops and taken out through Changi or Seletar within two months. Claim at an eTRS kiosk before check-in for goods you check in, or after immigration for goods you carry on board.
Read next
This page belongs to Visiting Singapore, our guide for first-time visitors. Plan the days with the 3-day Singapore itinerary, and find where to eat for five dollars at The Table. For the price of daily life here, the WahLiao Price Index tracks a fixed basket.
Also on WahLiao: How Attraction Pricing Works in Singapore · Singapore on a Budget · Money in Singapore: Cash, Cards and Tipping
Sources checked 28 September 2026: STB hotel statistics on data.gov.sg (2025 average room rate and occupancy); Ministry of National Development on minimum rental periods; Eatbook on typical hawker meal prices; Secret Singapore on the April 2026 hawker price rises; Gardens by the Bay admission prices; Mandai, Night Safari admission; Mandai, Rainforest Wild Adventure admission; The Right Tour on SkyPark Observation Deck prices; NParks, Singapore Botanic Gardens; Singapore Tourist Pass; SimplyGo; Changi Airport, Leaving the Airport; Changi Airport, GST refund at departure. Daily budgets, bed prices, restaurant and bar figures are desk estimates, shown as ranges. Last updated 28 September 2026.
