SINGAPORE: A 29-year-old foreigner new to the dating scene in Singapore took to social media to share her surprise after a local man asked about her salary on their first date.
In her post on r/singaporeraw, a Reddit forum, she admitted that she hadn’t expected the conversation to take such a pragmatic turn so early on. “I get that career and financial stability are important, but bringing up salary on a first date feels a bit transactional,” she wrote, expressing her discomfort at how quickly the discussion veered towards finances.
Perplexed by the encounter, she turned to the forum to ask locals, “Is this a cultural norm here, or did I just happen to meet someone who thinks that way?”
She added, “Do men in Singapore usually factor a girl’s income into their dating decisions? Would love to hear your thoughts and experiences! Do you personally think income matters in dating?”
“Super inappropriate. Please don’t see this guy anymore”
The post sparked a lively discussion, with many users reassuring her that discussing salary on a first date was far from the norm.
One user said, “Yeah, that sounds very transactional. I would be on alert and suss out this guy carefully. I think such questions are no-no until both parties have already established a relatively serious relationship and are thinking of taking the next step towards marriage.”
Another wrote, “Definitely rude and not normal. Sure money is important, but there are subtle ways of deducing someone’s wealth/income.”
A third remarked, “Super inappropriate. Please don’t see this guy anymore. That means that he wants the girl to pay for dates and, in the future, after marriage, to pay 50:50 at least or more. Trust me. Don’t see him again.”
However, not everyone agreed with these comments. Some said that this question was simply a matter of practicality rather than rudeness.
One user commented, “Of course, I need to ask. Are you willing to date somebody with a pathetic salary?”
Another added, “Very practical and realistic! Nothing wrong or insensitive.”
In other news, a 22-year-old foreigner from Sweden shared on social media that he was surprised to learn that so many locals wanted to leave the country.
“I keep noticing [that there] is a strong desire among many Singaporeans to leave, whether it’s for the UK or somewhere vastly different from Singapore,” he wrote on r/askSingapore on Sunday (March 2).
“It surprises me because I love this place, and I struggle to understand why so many people feel such a strong urge to leave their own country. Maybe it’s just the people I associate with—mostly in their twenties within a temporary phase in life, similar to what made me leave Sweden in the first place, but back home, I rarely hear people say, ‘Yeah, I live here, but I plan to leave anyway.’”
Featured image by freepik (for illustration purposes only)