Hi thanks for looking at the post! My situation is as follows:
- 30M from the UK. Currently working in London.
- I’m currently being headhunted by a design agency in Singapore.
- The salary I’m expected to be offered is £70 - 75,000 (Roughly 120K SGD)
- I love a pub/bar and a bit of socialising / Also love nature
I’d love to get over to Singapore and make the most of the travel opportunities. I would also be joined by my girlfriend later down the line. My main questions are:
- Is my salary enough to live a comfortable life in Sing? (I currently save around £800 - 1200 a month in London)
- As a UK native where would be the best area to live?
- What’s the working culture like?
The tax rate is low, so you’re likely paying ~10% tax rate. So around $9k SGD take home per month.
Rent is stupid expensive in Singapore, but seems to be coming down a bit. Expect to pay $4,000 SGD per month for a 1-bedroom condo close to transit and not in the hinterland. That leaves you with $5,000 for everything else which is more than enough. Food is very affordable as is transit.
The foreigners who can afford it tend to live in the river valley - Newton, Orchard and further north. It can be a bit insular, so i’d suggest looking elsewhere. You can live in CBD but it’s pretty empty on weeekend. Anywhere within ~8 MRT stops from city center is usually a good place to live as it’s easy to get to the interesting parts of Singapore.
Working culture is intense. People put in long hours, there is little regard for work-life balance or your own time. But of course that depends on the company, it can be more or less relaxed. But don’t expect it to be like Europe. I’d say it’s even more intense than the US.
If you love nature, then you better get used to the heat. It’s pretty hard to spend all day outside when it gets to 32C with 60% humidity (feels like 38C). Most people are outside early morning and late evening. There are some areas that are closer to nature, but it’s mostly just city.