‘Why do daily essentials and hawker food feel cheaper in Singapore than in Malaysia?’: Malaysian who spends more time in SG for work asks

MALAYSIA: Singaporeans continue to cross the Causeway to shop in Johor Bahru (JB) mainly to take advantage of the stronger Singapore dollar. However, it seems that while Singaporeans think they could stretch their money by buying across the border, some Malaysians feel otherwise.

A Malaysian woman who said she has been spending more time in the city-state because of work wrote on r/malaysia that, after constantly travelling between the two countries, she noticed that perhaps Singapore isn’t all that expensive, especially when it comes to daily necessities.

“I’ve started paying closer attention to the grocery receipts. There’s always this perception that everything in SG is “expensive,” but for basic daily necessities, I’m realising that SG is actually cheaper?”

She noted how a litre of Dove body wash in Singapore is often on sale for around S$6 to S$7, which normally costs between RM21 to RM25 (S$6.81 to S$8.10) in Kuala Lumpur. While for staples like eggs, buying a pack of 10 in the city-state would cost her around S$2.80, compared to RM8 to RM9 (S$2.59 to S$2.92) back home.

Citing data from StashAway, she pointed out that the median monthly income in Singapore is around S$5,800, compared to just RM3,200 (S$1037.21) in Malaysia, making the purchasing power difference feel “insane”.

“They spend a tiny fraction of their pay on their daily necessities, which feels like a growing expense for us. How did this happen? SG imports roughly 70-80% of its food and has much higher labour/rent costs, yet their supply chains seem so much more efficient at keeping prices lower. Is the strength of the SGD just giving them massive bulk-buying power globally? It’s a bit depressing to realise that despite being the ones with the farms and resources, our cost of living for the ‘basics’ is arguably worse now,” she added.

After asking others online if they had observed the same, Malaysian commenters responded that they too felt the impact of rising prices, with some saying they have now turned to thrifting instead.

Another commenter even wondered how Malaysians are coping with their low purchasing power. While a third said that, in fact, Malaysians don’t. “Wages are around the same dollar to dollar, but expenses for average Malaysian is higher (car, insurance, petrol, etc.). I was earning RM3600 (S$1166.86) before I moved to SG, earning S$3600; the purchasing power difference is massive. With some budgeting, you can afford luxury items and overseas trip with just one month saving.”

“I just don’t understand why things imported from Malaysia are actually more expensive in Malaysia, like fresh produce. Just saw a grocery store selling Malaysian pineapple buy 1 free 1 at S$1.50 lol,” he added.

In the little red dot, however, Singaporeans feel a different reality, with the cost of everything seemingly going up—except their pay. /TISG

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