SINGAPORE: The average monthly amount Singapore households spend on education rose to $404 in 2023, according to the Singapore Department of Statistics’ latest household expenditure survey, conducted from December 2022 to December 2023. The poll is conducted every five years.
It shows that in 2017/2018, when the survey was last taken, Singaporeans spent an average of $374 on education. Five years later, however, the expense for this category has risen to $404 due to increased spending on pre-primary education and private tuition.
For comparison’s sake, healthcare spending increased from $320 to $474 in the last five years, but household spending for information and communication went down from $276 to $270 in the same period.
However, to see the big picture, it is essential to note that household income in Singapore has outpaced spending. While the average monthly household income in the city-state was $12,661 in 2017/2018, it rose to $15,473 by 2022/2023, an increase of 4.1% yearly.
Average monthly household spending, meanwhile, went up by just 2.8 per cent a year, from $5,163 to $5,931.
How much Singaporean households value education is reflected in the total amount spent for private tuition from 2022 to 2023, an eye-watering $1.8 billion. Expenses for tuition have gone up over the years. In 2017/2018, it was $1.4 billion; in 2013, it was $1.1 billion.
On average, households in Singapore paid $104.80 monthly for private tuition, while in 2017/2018, it was $88.40, and in 2012/2013, it was $79.90.
Quite understandably, There is a difference in how much various households spend on private tuition, depending on parents’ income. Households whose income is in the bottom 20 per cent spent $36.30 a month on tuition, while those at the other end of the scale in the top 20% paid quite a bit more at $162.60 per month.
Singaporeans spent the most on housing and housing-related expenses, an average of $2,122 monthly. Next is food ($1,422) monthly, followed by transportation ($951), and then health ($474). Education costs $404, and recreation, sport, and culture ($335) are the top six expenses.
The survey involved a total of 13,100 selected households in Singapore. They were divided into 26 batches covered in the year-long poll, with each batch surveyed over two weeks. /TISG