View source for Demographics of Singapore

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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox place demographics
| place            = [[Singapore]]
| image            = SingaporePopulationPyramid2024.png
| image_size       = 350px
| alt              = 
| caption          = [[Population pyramid]] of Singapore in 2024{{needs update|date=September 2025}}

<!-- main demographics -->
| size_of_population = 6,111,200 (2025)<ref name="Population in Brief 2025">{{cite web |title=Population in Brief 2025 |publisher=Singapore Department of Statistics |url=https://www.population.gov.sg/files/media-centre/publications/Population_in_Brief_2025.pdf|access-date=29 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250929084313/https://www.population.gov.sg/files/media-centre/publications/Population_in_Brief_2025.pdf |archive-date=29 September 2025}}</ref>
| density          = 
| growth           = 
| birth            = {{DecreaseNegative}} 7.4 births/1,000 population (2024)<ref name="singstatbirths2024">{{cite web |title=Births and Fertility|publisher=Singapore Department of Statistics |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/births-and-fertility/latest-data |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251003151202/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/births-and-fertility/latest-data |archive-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>
| death            = {{IncreaseNegative}} 6.0 deaths/1,000 population (2024)<ref name="singstatdeaths2024">{{cite web |title=Death and Life Expectancy|publisher=Singapore Department of Statistics |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/death-and-life-expectancy/latest-data |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251003151026/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/death-and-life-expectancy/latest-data |archive-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>
| life             = {{increase}} 83.5 years (2024)<ref name="singstatdeaths2024"/>
| life_male        = {{increase}} 81.2 years (2024)<ref name="singstatdeaths2024"/>
| life_female      = {{increase}} 85.6 years (2024)<ref name="singstatdeaths2024"/>
| fertility        = {{nochange}} 0.97 (2024)<ref name="singstatbirths2024"/>
| infant_mortality = 2.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2024)<ref name="singstatdeaths2024"/>

<!-- age structure -->
| age_0–14_years   = 13.60% (2025)<ref name=singstat2025>{{cite web |title=Singapore Residents by Planning Area / Subzone, Age Group, Sex and Type of Dwelling, June 2025|url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/find_data/population/statistical_tables/respopagesexfa2025e.ashx|publisher=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>
| age_15-64_years  = 67.62% (2025)<ref name=singstat2025/>
| age_65_years     = 18.78% (2025)<ref name=singstat2025/>
<!-- sex ratio -->
| total_mf_ratio   = 
| sr_at_birth      = 
| sr_under_15      = 
| sr_15–64_years   = 
| sr_65_years_over = 

<!-- nationality -->
| nation           = Singaporean
| major_ethnic     = [[Chinese Singaporeans|Chinese]] (75.5%)<ref name="Population in Brief 2025"/>
| minor_ethnic     = [[Malay Singaporeans|Malay]] (15.1%)<br/>[[Indian Singaporeans|Indian]] (7.6%)<br/>[[Eurasian Singaporeans|Eurasian]] and others (1.8%)<ref name="Population in Brief 2025"/>

<!-- language -->
| official         = [[English language|English]], [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]], [[Malay language|Malay]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]]
| spoken           = English, Singlish, Mandarin, Malay, Tamil and [[Languages of Singapore|others]]
| footnote         = 
}}

As of June 2025, the population of [[Singapore]] stood at 6.11 million. Of these 6.11 million, 4.20 million are residents, consisting of about 3.66 million [[Singaporeans|citizens]] and 540,000 [[Permanent residency in Singapore|permanent residents]] (PRs). The remaining 1.91 million people living in Singapore are classed as non-residents, defined as "foreign workforce across
all pass types, dependants and international students".<ref name="Population in Brief 2025"/>

Singapore is a multi-racial, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural society. Major religions include [[Buddhism in Singapore|Buddhism]], [[Christianity in Singapore|Christianity]], [[Islam in Singapore|Islam]], [[Taoism in Singapore|Taoism]] and [[Hinduism in Singapore|Hinduism]]. Its population is broadly classified under the CMIO system: [[Chinese Singaporean|Chinese]], [[Malay Singaporean|Malay]], [[Indian Singaporean|Indian]] and Other. While Malays are recognised as the indigenous community, 75.5 percent of citizens and permanent residents are ethnic Chinese, with Malays and Indians making up 15.1 and 7.6 percent respectively. These three groups make up 98.2 percent of the ethnic citizen population, while the remaining 1.8 percent, categorised as Other, are largely Eurasians.<ref name="UNHCR">{{cite web |title=World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples – Singapore: Malays |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/topic,463af2212,469f2f192,49749cb046,0.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019171827/http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/topic,463af2212,469f2f192,49749cb046,0.html |archive-date=19 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Vasil |first=R K |title=Governing Singapore: democracy and national development |publisher=Allen & Unwin |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-86508-211-0 |page=96}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Constitution of the Republic of Singapore |url=http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/non_version/cgi-bin/cgi_retrieve.pl?actno=REVED-CONST&doctitle=CONSTITUTION%20OF%20THE%20REPUBLIC%20OF%20SINGAPORE%0a&date=latest&method=part&sl=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110617043338/http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/non_version/cgi-bin/cgi_retrieve.pl?actno=REVED-CONST&doctitle=CONSTITUTION%20OF%20THE%20REPUBLIC%20OF%20SINGAPORE%0a&date=latest&method=part&sl=1 |archive-date=17 June 2011 |access-date=11 August 2011 |work=Attorney-General's Chambers of Singapore website |at=Part XIII Section 152(2)}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Assessment for Malays in Singapore |url=http://www.cidcm.umd.edu/mar/assessment.asp?groupId=83001#summary |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160328213055/http://www.cidcm.umd.edu/mar/assessment.asp?groupId=83001 |archive-date=28 March 2016 |access-date=28 March 2016}}</ref><ref name="census2020">{{cite web |title=Census 2020 |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/cop2020/sr1/cop2020sr1.pdf |website=Singapore Department of Statistics |access-date=16 June 2021}}</ref> Non-residents, who make up 29 percent of the overall population, are excluded from resident statistics.<ref name="census2020"/> Officially, mixed-race Singaporeans are typically assigned their father's race, though their [[National Registration Identity Card|identity card]] may also reflect both parents' ethnicities.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Tay |first1=Dawn |title=Mixed-race S'poreans can have double barrelled IC category |url=https://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20100113-191440.html |website=www.asiaone.com |access-date=27 October 2021 |date=13 January 2010}}</ref>

Singapore has four official languages:  [[Singapore English|English]], [[Malay language|Malay]], [[Singaporean Mandarin|Mandarin]] and [[Tamil language|Tamil]]. Malay holds the status of [[national language]], but English is the main [[working language]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/big-idea-no-5-speak-the-national-language|title=Big Idea No. 5: Speak the National Language|date=14 June 2014|work=The Straits Times|author=Kishore Mahbubani|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180401010736/http://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/big-idea-no-5-speak-the-national-language|archive-date=1 April 2018}}</ref> The [[Education in Singapore|education system]] is [[bilingual]], with English as the medium of instruction and a second language, usually Malay, Mandarin or Tamil, also required.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.moe.gov.sg/docs/default-source/document/education/syllabuses/english-language-and-literature/files/english-primary-secondary-express-normal-academic.pdf |title=English Language Syllabus 2010 |work=Ministry of Education |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180401003855/https://www.moe.gov.sg/docs/default-source/document/education/syllabuses/english-language-and-literature/files/english-primary-secondary-express-normal-academic.pdf |archive-date=1 April 2018 |access-date=31 March 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.asiaone.com/Business/SME%2BCentral/Talking%2Bpoint/Story/A1Story20090916-168233.html | title=Eyeing China, Singapore sees Mandarin as its future | work=Asiaone | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101104163230/http://www.asiaone.com/Business/SME%2BCentral/Talking%2Bpoint/Story/A1Story20090916-168233.html | archive-date=4 November 2010 }}</ref> [[Singlish]], a local [[Creole language|creole]], is commonly spoken in informal settings across all major ethnic groups. In 2020, the total population growth rate was -0.3 percent. The resident [[total fertility rate]] (TFR) was 1.10, with Chinese at 0.94, Malays at 1.83 and Indians at 0.97.<ref>[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/population_and_population_structure/population2015.pdf Population Trends 2015] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151124154335/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/population_and_population_structure/population2015.pdf |date=24 November 2015 |access-date=19 June 2016 }} ''Department of Statistics, Singapore''.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Statistics Singapore – Population |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/modules/infographics/population |website=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=25 June 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Statistics Singapore – Total Fertility Rate |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/modules/infographics/total-fertility-rate |website=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=25 June 2021 |archive-date=11 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411000546/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/modules/infographics/total-fertility-rate }}</ref>

== History ==

===Population growth===
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; text-align:center; margin:1em;"
|-
|+ '''Population growth and immigration in selected periods'''<ref name="saw2">{{cite book |author=Saw Swee-Hock |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dD2qVu8EpdUC&pg=PA14 |title=The Population of Singapore |date=30 June 2012 |publisher=ISEAS Publishing |isbn=978-981-4380-98-0 |edition=3rd |pages=11–18}}</ref>
|-
!style="width:6em;"| Period
!style="width:7em;"| Population increase
!style="width:7em;"| Natural increase
!style="width:7em;"| Net immigration
|-
|align=left|1881–1891
| 43,857
| −30,932{{ref|1|A}}
| 74,798
|-
|align=left|1901–1911
| 75,729
| −59,978{{ref|1|A}}
| 135,707
|-
|align=left|1921–1931
| 230,387
| 18,176
| 212,211
|-
|align=left|1947–1957
| 507,800
| 395,600
| 112,200
|-
|align=left|1970–1980
| 339,400
| 315,400
| 24,000
|-
|align=left|1990–2000
| 980,755
| 325,887
| 654,868
|-
|align=left|2000–2010
| 1,048,845
| 224,718
| 824,127
|-
|align=left|2010–2020
| 609,075
| 203,643
| 405,432
|-
|colspan=4|
*<small>{{note|1|A}} Negative figures are due to low birth rate and high death rate</small>
|}
{{see also|Immigration to Singapore}}

Population growth in Singapore was fuelled by immigration for a long period of time, starting soon after [[Stamford Raffles]] landed in Singapore in 1819, when the population of the island was estimated to be around 1,000.<ref name="rahim">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1utb8ZYyUeQC&pg=PA24 |title=Singapore in the Malay World: Building and Breaching Regional Bridges |date=9 November 2010 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-134-01397-5 |page=24 |author=Lily Zubaidah Rahim}}</ref> The first official census taken in January 1824 showed that the resident population of Singapore had grown to 10,683: 4,580 Malays, 3,317 Chinese, 1,925 [[Bugis]], 756 natives of India, 74 Europeans, 16 Armenians, and 15 Arabs.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bernard |first=F. J. |date=15 November 1884 |title=An Anecdotal History of Old Times in Singapore |work=The Straits Times |url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/straitstimes18841115-1.2.11 |url-status=live |access-date=20 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130210434/http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/straitstimes18841115-1.2.11 |archive-date=30 January 2018}}</ref> Chinese males greatly outnumbered the females; in the 1826 population figures there were 5,747 Chinese males but only 341 Chinese females, in contrast to 2,501 Malay males and 2,289 Malay females. The figures for around a thousand Indians in 1826 were also similarly skewed towards male – 209 male and 35 female [[Bengalis]], 772 males and 5 females from the [[Coromandel Coast]].<ref name="census 1826">{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924023134368#page/n43/mode/2up |title=Twentieth century impressions of British Malaya: its history, people, commerce, industries, and resources |date=1907 |editor=Wright, Arnold |page=37 |editor2=Cartwright, H.A.}}</ref> By 1836, the population figure had risen to 29,980, and marked a change in demographics as the Malays were outnumbered for the first time; 45.9% of the population were Chinese versus 41.9% for Malays (including Javanese and Bugis).<ref name="census 1836">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=50ZFAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA41 |title=The Penny Cyclopædia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, Volume 22 |date=30 March 2009 |publisher=Charles Knight |isbn=978-0-8248-3354-1 |page=41}}</ref><ref name="jstor1">{{cite journal |author=Saw Swee-Hock |date=March 1969 |title=Population Trends in Singapore, 1819–1967 |journal=Journal of Southeast Asian History |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=36–49 |doi=10.1017/S0217781100004270 |jstor=20067730}}</ref> Women from China were discouraged from emigrating, and most of the Chinese females in this early period of Singapore were likely {{transliteration|ms|[[Peranakan|nyonyas]]}} from [[Malacca]]; it was noted in 1837 that there were no Chinese women in Singapore who had emigrated directly from China.<ref name="jstor1" />

The imbalance of the sexes continued for a long period, for example, the 1901 census figures show that there were 130,367 Chinese males compared to 33,674 Chinese females.<ref>{{cite book |section=Straits Settlements |section-url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924030396067#page/n189/mode/2up/search/singapore |title=Census of the British empire. 1901 |date=1906 |publisher=Great Britain Census Office |page=123}}</ref> Such imbalance also meant that fewer people were born in early Singapore, and in the first hundred years, most of the Chinese population in Singapore were immigrants. By the late 1890s, only around 10% of the Chinese population in Singapore were born there.<ref name="warren">{{cite book |author=James Francis Warren |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wVyqbmHS2zQC&pg=PA19 |title=Rickshaw Coolie: A People's History of Singapore, 1880–1940 |date=30 June 2003 |publisher=NUS Press |isbn=978-9971-69-266-7 |page=19}}</ref> Many of the early migrant workers from China and India did not intend to settle permanently to raise their families in Singapore; they worked to send back remittance to their families back home, and would return to China or India after they had earned enough money. Later an increasing number of Chinese chose to settle permanently in Singapore, especially in the 1920s when it became more favourable to stay in Singapore rather than returning to China. Change in social attitude in the modern era also meant that Chinese women were freer to emigrate from China, and the sex ratio began to normalise.<ref name="jstor1" /> This gradual normalisation of sex ratio led to an increase in the number of native births. Immigration continued to be the main reason for the Chinese population increase in Singapore until the 1931–1947 period when the natural increase in population surpassed the net immigration figure.<ref name="warren" /><ref name="Saw Swee-Hock 12">{{cite book |author=Saw Swee-Hock |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dD2qVu8EpdUC&pg=PA12 |title=The Population of Singapore |date=30 June 2012 |publisher=ISEAS Publishing |isbn=978-981-4380-98-0 |edition=3rd |page=12}}</ref>

After [[World War II]], in the period from 1947 to 1957, Singapore saw a massive population increase mostly due to increased number of native births.<ref name="Natalism">{{cite journal |last=Wong |first=Theresa |author2=Brenda Yeoh |year=2003 |title=Fertility and the Family: An Overview of Pro-natalist Population Policies in Singapore |url=http://www.populationasia.org/Publications/RP/AMCRP12.pdf |journal=Asian Metacentre Research Paper Series |issue=12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727182245/http://www.populationasia.org/Publications/RP/AMCRP12.pdf |archive-date=27 July 2011 |access-date=12 August 2011}}</ref> The birth rate rose and the death rate fell; the average annual growth rate was 4.4%, of which 1% was due to immigration; Singapore experienced its highest birth rate in 1957 at 42.7 per thousand individuals. (This was also the same year the [[United States]] saw its peak birth rate.)

Immigration to Singapore also fell sharply after Singapore independence due to tighter control of immigration from Malaysia and other countries. The population increase became dominated by native births with 315,400 in the 1970–1980 period due to natural increase compared to 24,000 from net migration. However, a lower rate of natural growth in population and the need for low-skill labour resulted in a deliberate shift in policy by the Singapore government to allow more foreigners to live and work in the country, and net migration increased in the 1980–1990 period to nearly 200,000. By the decade of 1990–2000, the net migrant number of over 600,000 had surpassed the natural growth of the population, and accounted for nearly two-thirds of the population increase. The same high level of immigration is also seen in the next decade with 664,083 net migration recorded.<ref name="saw2" />
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; margin:1em;"
! Net migration rate
| align="right" | 9.12 migrants/1,000 population (2006 est.)
|}
Due to the continued low birth rate, amongst other reasons, the Singapore government has varied its [[Immigration to Singapore|immigration policy]] over the years. As the demand for labour grew with industrialisation, foreign talent with professional qualifications as well as less-skilled foreign workers has made up a significant and increasing proportion of Singapore's total population since the 2000s and 2010s. Curbs on immigration, however, began to be implemented in the 2010s to ease increasing social issues arising from the high level of immigration.<ref name="ST 2015">{{cite news |author=Rachel Chang |date=3 August 2015 |title=No easy choices on foreign worker, immigrant policies: PM Lee |work=The Straits Times |url=http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/no-easy-choices-on-foreign-worker-immigrant-policies-pm-lee |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116183146/http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/no-easy-choices-on-foreign-worker-immigrant-policies-pm-lee |archive-date=16 January 2017}}</ref>

===Population planning===
{{main|Population planning in Singapore}}

{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; text-align:center; margin:1em;"
|+ Per-period population growth, 1947—2000<ref name="Natalism" />
|-
!Period || Growth rate
|- style="text-align:right"
|1947—1957 || 84.7%
|- style="text-align:right"
|1957—1970 || 90.8%
|- style="text-align:right"
|1970—1980 || 13.3%
|- style="text-align:right"
|1980—1990 || 18.5%
|- style="text-align:right"
|1990— 2000 || 20.6%
|}
The post-war boom in births led to an interest in family planning, and by 1960, the government publicly funded and supported family planning programmes. After independence in 1965, the birth rate had fallen to 29.5 per thousand individuals, and the natural growth rate had fallen to 2.5%. Birth rates in the 1960s were still perceived as high by the government; on average, a baby was born every 11 minutes in 1965. [[Kandang Kerbau Hospital]] (KKH)—which specialised in women's health and was the most popular hospital to have children—saw over 100 deliveries per day in 1962. In 1966, KKH delivered 39835 babies, earning it a place in the [[Guinness Book of World Records]] for "largest number of births in a single maternity facility" for ten years. Because there was generally a massive shortage of beds in that era, mothers with routine deliveries were discharged from hospitals within 24 hours.<ref name="a2ofam">{{cite web |title=Family Planning |url=http://www.a2o.com.sg/a2o/public/html/etc/07_family.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812063927/http://www.a2o.com.sg/a2o/public/html/etc/07_family.htm |archive-date=12 August 2011 |access-date=12 August 2011 |work=[[National Archives]] |publisher=Government of Singapore}}</ref>

In September 1965 the [[Ministry of Health (Singapore)|Minister for Health]], [[Yong Nyuk Lin]], submitted a white paper to Parliament, recommending a "Five-year Mass Family Planning programme" that would reduce the birth rate to 20.0 per thousand individuals by 1970. In 1966, the Family Planning and Population Board (FPPB) had been established based on the findings of the white paper, providing clinical services and public education on [[family planning]].<ref name="LOC1989">{{cite web |title=Singapore: Population Control Policies |url=http://www.photius.com/countries/singapore/society/singapore_society_population_control_p~11008.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110411115633/http://www.photius.com/countries/singapore/society/singapore_society_population_control_p~11008.html |archive-date=11 April 2011 |access-date=11 August 2011 |work=Library of Congress Country Studies (1989) |publisher=[[Library of Congress]]}}</ref>

By 1970, the [[Eugenics in Singapore#Stop at Two|''Stop at Two'']] campaign was firmly established, implementing incentives, disincentives and public exhortation to discourage families from having more than two children. After 1975, the fertility rate declined below replacement level, in a sign that Singapore was undergoing the [[demographic transition]]. In 1983, the ''Graduate Mothers' Scheme'' was implemented in an attempt to get educated women, especially women with a university degree, to marry and procreate, while the government encouraged women without an [[GCE Ordinary Level|O-level degree]] to get [[sterilization (medicine)|sterilised]]. This was done out of the [[Lee Kuan Yew]] government's belief that for the nation to best develop and avoid hardship, the educated classes should be encouraged to contribute to the nation's breeding pool, while the uneducated should not, sparking the ''Great Marriage Debate''.<ref name="LOC1989" />

In 1986, the government reversed its population policy—except its stance on low-income, lowly-educated women—and initiated the [[Eugenics in Singapore|Have Three or More (if you can afford it)]] campaign, offering cash and public administration incentives to have children. In 2001, the Singapore government started its [[Baby Bonus]] scheme.

Singapore has one of the lowest [[fertility rate]]s in the world. In 2012, Singapore total fertility rate (TFR) was 1.20 children born per woman, a [[sub-replacement fertility]] rate. Ethnic Chinese had a fertility of 1.07 in 2004 (1.65 in 1990), while Malays had a TFR of 2.10 (2.69 in 1990). Both figures declined further in 2006. TFR for Indians was 1.30 in 2004 and 1.89 in 1990.<ref>{{cite web |last=Webb |first=Sara |date=26 April 2006 |title=Pushing for babies: S'pore fights fertility decline |url=http://www.singapore-window.org/sw06/060426re.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070316020939/http://www.singapore-window.org/sw06/060426re.htm |archive-date=16 March 2007 |work=Singapore Windows |agency=Reuters}}</ref> The Singapore government has launched several highly publicised attempts to raise the fertility rate and increase awareness of the negative effects of an ageing population, the elderly (65 and above) had constituted 9.9% of its population in 2012; this proportion is still significantly lower than that of many other developed nations, such as the United States and Japan. In February 2015, [[National University of Singapore]] launched the "New Age Institute" in conjunction with [[Washington University in St. Louis]] to conduct research on this issue.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About |url=http://www.fas.nus.edu.sg/nai/about/about-NAI.html |access-date=16 February 2020 |website=fas.nus.edu.sg}}</ref>

=== Area planning ===
{{main|Planning areas of Singapore|New towns of Singapore}}

The population of Singapore are generally housed within [[New towns of Singapore|new towns]], which are large scale satellite housing developments designed to be self contained. It includes public housing units, private housing, a town centre and other amenities.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wong |first=Maisy |date=July 2014 |title=Estimating the distortionary effects of ethnic quotas in Singapore using housing transactions |url=https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1080&context=real-estate_papers |journal=Journal of Public Economics |volume=115 |pages=131–145 |doi=10.1016/j.jpubeco.2014.04.006 |s2cid=52236776}}</ref> Since the 1950s, Singapore had a city centre surrounded by slums and squatter colonies. By 1959 when Singapore attained self government, the problem of housing shortage had grown. Combined with a fast population growth, it led to congestion and squalor.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Field |first=Brian |date=1 January 1992 |title=Singapore's New Town prototype: a textbook prescription? |journal=Habitat International |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=89–101 |doi=10.1016/0197-3975(92)90066-8}}</ref> The [[Planned community|new towns]] planning concept was introduced in July 1952 by the country's public housing authority, [[Housing and Development Board|Housing and Development Board (HDB)]], to counter the housing shortage problem and to relocate most of the population crammed within the city centre to other parts of the island.<ref>{{cite web |title=History of HDB |url=http://www.hdb.gov.sg/cs/infoweb/about-us/history |access-date=20 January 2017 |website=Housing & Development Board}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Tuan Seik |first=Foo |date=1 February 2001 |title=Planning and design of Tampines, an award-winning high-rise, high-density township in Singapore |journal=Cities |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=33–42 |doi=10.1016/S0264-2751(00)00052-4 |url=http://scholarbank.nus.edu.sg/handle/10635/46206 }}</ref> Today, there are 23 new towns and 3 estates within the country, with Bedok being the largest by area and population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=&#91;&#91;Urban Redevelopment Authority{{!}}URA&#93;&#93; Planning Area Brochure – Bedok |url=http://www.ura.gov.sg/MS/DMP2013/regional-highlights/~/media/dmp2013/Planning%20Area%20Brochures/Brochure_Bedok_1.ashx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216022913/http://www.ura.gov.sg/MS/DMP2013/regional-highlights/~/media/dmp2013/Planning%20Area%20Brochures/Brochure_Bedok_1.ashx |archive-date=16 February 2015 |access-date=5 October 2014}}</ref>

===Population White Paper===
{{main|Population White Paper}}

In early 2013, the [[Parliament of Singapore]] debated the policies set out in the Population White Paper (PWP) titled ''A Sustainable Population for a Dynamic Singapore''. The White Paper noted that by 2030, around 900,000 [[baby boomers]] would make up one quarter of the citizen population and that the workforce would begin to shrink "from 2020 onwards". It projected that by 2030, Singapore's total population could range between 6.5 and 6.9 million, with the resident population between 4.2 and 4.4 million and the citizen population between 3.6 and 3.8 million. To address these challenges, the PWP recommended increasing the number of foreign workers to strike a balance between skilled and less skilled labour, as well as to provide healthcare and domestic services. It also argued that foreign workers support businesses in times of economic growth.<ref>{{cite web |title=''A Sustainable Population for a Dynamic Singapore''. |url=http://202.157.171.46/whitepaper/downloads/population-white-paper.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218092002/http://202.157.171.46/whitepaper/downloads/population-white-paper.pdf |archive-date=18 February 2013}}</ref> 

The motion was passed by a vote of 77 to 13 in the [[People's Action Party]] (PAP)–[[12th Parliament of Singapore|dominated Parliament]], following amendments that removed the phrase "population policy" and placed greater emphasis on infrastructure and transport development. Opposition to the motion came from non–PAP parliamentarians, including all seven MPs of the [[Workers' Party of Singapore|Workers' Party]] (WP). In addition, three [[Non-constituency Members of Parliament]] (NCMPs) voted against it, two from the WP and one from the [[Singapore People's Party]] (SPP). Several [[Nominated Members of Parliament]] (NMPs) also expressed dissent, with three casting votes against the motion and one choosing to abstain.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Neo |first1=Chai Chin |title=Debate ends but conversation continues: PM Lee |url=https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/debate-ends-conversation-continues-pm-lee |website=todayonline.com |publisher=[[Today (Singapore newspaper)|TODAY]] |access-date=29 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240916093053/https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/debate-ends-conversation-continues-pm-lee |archive-date=16 September 2024 |language=en |date=9 February 2013}}</ref>

Outside Parliament, the PWP was heavily criticised and panned by opposition parties and government critics.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Workers' Party's Population Policy Paper: "A Dynamic Population for a Sustainable Singapore": The Workers' Party of Singapore |url=http://wp.sg/2013/02/the-workers-partys-population-policy-paper-a-dynamic-population-for-a-sustainable-singapore/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130301085335/http://wp.sg/2013/02/the-workers-partys-population-policy-paper-a-dynamic-population-for-a-sustainable-singapore/ |archive-date=1 March 2013 |access-date=9 March 2013}} The Workers' Party's Population Policy Paper: "A Dynamic Population for a Sustainable Singapore" ''The Workers' Party''.</ref> WP's [[Low Thia Khiang]] criticised current measures of increasing the fertility rate, claiming that this would lead to an increase of a higher cost of living and discourage young couples from having more kids. As for current immigration policies, he had noted that immigrants were a source of friction for Singaporeans and that an increased population would put more stress and strain on the urban infrastructure.<ref>[http://wp.sg/2013/02/a-sustainable-singapore-with-a-dynamic-singaporean-majority-mp-low-thia-khiang/ A Sustainable Singapore with a Dynamic Singaporean majority – MP Low Thia Khiang] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130315182137/http://wp.sg/2013/02/a-sustainable-singapore-with-a-dynamic-singaporean-majority-mp-low-thia-khiang|date=15 March 2013}} ''The Workers' Party''.</ref> On 16 February 2013, an estimated 4,000 Singaporeans gathered at the [[Speakers' Corner, Singapore|Speakers' Corner]] in [[Hong Lim Park]] to protest against the PWP. Participants voiced concerns that the projected population increase would strain public services and drive up the cost of living. The event was noted as the largest protest of an anti government nature to be held at the Speakers' Corner since its establishment in 2000.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rare mass rally over Singapore immigration plans |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-21485729 |website=bbc.com |publisher=[[BBC News]] |access-date=29 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250604062025/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-21485729 |archive-date=4 June 2025 |date=16 February 2013}}</ref>

==Population==
=== Population size and growth by residential status ===
{{GraphChart
| width = 600
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=year
| yAxisTitle= million
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| legend=
| type = line
| x =  1950,1955,1960,1965,1970,1975,1980,1985, 1990,1995,2000,2005,2010, 2015, 2020

| y1= 1.02, 1.31, 1.65, 1.89, 2.07, 2.26, 2.41, 2.74, 3.05, 3.52, 4.03, 4.27, 5.08, 5.54, 5.69
| y1Title= population (million)

| y2=1.02, 1.31, 1.65, 1.89, 2.01, 2.28, 2.48, 2.74, 3.01, 3.27, 3.47, 3.77, 3.9, 4.04
| y2Title= Residents (million)
}}

{{GraphChart
| width = 430
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=years
| yAxisTitle= ‰
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| hAnnotatonsLine=
| hAnnotatonsLabel=
| legend=
| type = line
| x = 1950,1955,1960,1965,1970,1975,1980,1985, 1990,1995,2000,2005,2010, 2015, 2020
| y1=, , 16.9, 12.7, 13.5, 9.2, 4.9, 3.3

| y1Title=Natural change (per 1000 Residents)

}}
{{GraphChart
| width = 600
| height = 150
| xAxisTitle=years
| yAxisTitle= TFR
| yAxisMin=
| yGrid= 0,1
| xGrid= 10
| hAnnotatonsLine=2.1
| hAnnotatonsLabel=
| legend=
| type = line
| x = 1950,1955,1960,1965,1970,1975,1980,1985,1990,1995,2000,2005,2010, 2015, 2020

| y1=, 5.76, 4.66, 3.07, 2.07, 1.82, 1.61, 1.83, 1.67, 1.60, 1.26, 1.15, 1.24, 1.10 
 
| y1Title=Total Fertility Rate (Residents)
}}

Source: Singapore Department of Statistics<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=M810001 – Indicators on Population, Annual|url=https://www.tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/publicfacing/createDataTable.action?refId=14912|publisher=Singapore Department of Statistics|access-date=3 April 2021|archive-date=4 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104131257/https://www.tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/publicfacing/createDataTable.action?refId=14912}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Population Trends 2025|url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/population/population2025.ashx|publisher=Singapore Department of Statistics|access-date=3 October 2025|archive-date=3 October 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251003065835/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/population/population2025.ashx}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 80%; "
|-
! rowspan="2" | Year || colspan="5" | Number ('000) || colspan="5" | Growth (year on year) || rowspan="2" | Land area (km<sup>2</sup>)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/publicfacing/createDataTable.action?refId=12041|title=M890151 – Land Area (As at December), Annual|website=Statistics Singapore}}{{Dead link|date=October 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>|| rowspan="2" | Population density (persons per km<sup>2</sup>)
|-
! Total population !! Total residents !! Singapore citizens !! Permanent residents !! Non-residents !! Total population !! Total residents !! Singapore citizens !! Permanent residents !! Non-residents
|- style="text-align:right"
|1950||1,022.1||na||na||na||na||4.4%||na||na||na||na||na||na
|- style="text-align:right"
|1955||1,305.5||na||na||na||na||4.6%||na||na||na||na||na||na
|- style="text-align:right"
|1960||1,646.4||na||na||na||na||3.7%||na||na||na||na||581.5||2,831
|- style="text-align:right"
|1965||1,886.9||na||na||na||na||2.5%||na||na||na||na||581.5||3,245
|- style="text-align:right"
|1970||2,074.5||2,013.6||1,874.8||138.8||60.9||2.8%||na||na||na||na||586.4||3,538
|- style="text-align:right"
|1975||2,262.6||na||na||na||na||1.5%||na||na||na||na||596.8||3,791
|- style="text-align:right"
|1980||2,413.9||2,282.1||2,194.3||87.8||131.8||1.5%||1.3%||na||na||na||617.8||3,907
|- style="text-align:right"
|1985||2,736||2,482.6||na||na||253.3||0.1%||1.6%||na||na||na||620.5||4,409
|- style="text-align:right"
| 1990 || 3,047.1 || 2,735.9 || 2,623.7 || 112.1 || 311.3 || 2.3% || 1.7% || 1.7% || 2.3% || 9.0% || 633|| 4,706
|- style="text-align:right"
|1995||3,524.5||3,013.5||2,823.7||189.8||511||3.1%||1.8%||1.4%||8.3%||11.2%||647.5||5,443
|- style="text-align:right"
| 2000 || 4,027.9 || 3,273.4 || 2,985.9 || 287.5 || 754.5 || 2.8% || 1.8% || 1.3% || 9.9% || 9.3% || 682.7|| 5,900
|- style="text-align:right"
|2005||4,265.8||3,467.8||3,081||386.8||797.9||2.4%||1.6%||0.8%||8.6%||5.9%||697.9||6,121
|- style="text-align:right"
| 2010 || 5,076.7 || 3,771.7 || 3,230.7 || 541.0 || 1,305.0 || 1.8% || 1.0% || 0.9% || 1.5% || 4.1% || 712.4 || 7,126
|- style="text-align:right"
|2015 || 5,535.0 || 3,902.7 || 3,375.0 || 527.7 || 1,632.3 || 1.2% || 0.8% || 1.0% || 0% || 2.1% || 719.1 || 7,697
|- style="text-align:right"
|2020 ||5,685.8||4,044.2||3,523.2||521.0||1,641.6||-0.3%||0.4%||0.6%|| -0.8%|| 0.02%||728.3||7,810
|- style="text-align:right"
|2025 ||6,111.2||4,204.5||3,660.7||543.8||1,906.7||1.2%||0.6%||0.7%|| -0.2%|| 2.7%||736.3||8,300
|}

=== Gender composition of resident population ===
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics<ref name="tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg">{{cite web |title=Singapore Residents By Age Group, Ethnic Group And Gender, End June, Annual |url=https://www.tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/publicfacing/createDataTable.action?refId=14911 |access-date=30 April 2021 |website=Singapore Department of Statistics |archive-date=2 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102165914/https://www.tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/publicfacing/createDataTable.action?refId=14911 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Singapore Residents by Planning Area / Subzone, Age Group, Sex and Type of Dwelling, June 2025 |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/find_data/population/statistical_tables/respopagesextod2025e.ashx |publisher=Department of Statistics Singapore. |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 80%; "
|-
! rowspan="2" | Year || colspan="5" | Number ('000)
|-
! Total resident <br> population !! Males !! Females !! Sex ratio (males <br> per 1,000 females)
|- style="text-align:right"
|1960||1,646.4||859.6||786.8||1,093
|- style="text-align:right"
|1965||1,886.9||973.8||913.1||1,066
|- style="text-align:right"
|1970||2,013.6||1,030.8||982.8||1,049
|- style="text-align:right"
|1975||2,262.6||1,156.1||1,106.5||1,045
|- style="text-align:right"
|1980||2,282.1||1,159.0||1,123.1||1,032
|- style="text-align:right"
|1985||2,482.6||1,258.5||1,224.2||1,028
|- style="text-align:right"
|1990||2,735.9||1,386.3||1,349.6||1,027
|- style="text-align:right"
|1995||3,013.5||1,514.0||1,499.5||1,010
|- style="text-align:right"
|2000||3,273.4||1,634.7||1,638.7||998
|- style="text-align:right"
|2005||3,467.8||1,721.1||1,746.7||985
|- style="text-align:right"
|2010||3,771.7||1,861.1||1,910.6||974
|- style="text-align:right"
|2015||3,902.7||1,916.6||1,986.1||965
|- style="text-align:right"
|2020||4,044.2||1,977.6||2,066.7||957
|- style="text-align:right"
|2025||4,204.5||2,044.6||2,159.9||947
|}

=== Age distribution of resident population ===
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics<ref name="Singstat 2012">[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/population2012b.pdf Population Trends 2012] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113152420/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/population2012b.pdf|date=13 November 2012}} ''Department of Statistics, Singapore''.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Singapore Residents by Planning Area / Subzone, Age Group, Sex and Type of Dwelling, June 2000-2020|url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/find_data/population/statistical_tables/respopagesextod2000to2020e.ashx|publisher=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref><ref name=singstat2025/>
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2" | Year || colspan="7" | Age group (years)|| rowspan="2" | Median age <br> (years)<ref>{{cite web |title=Indicators on Population |url=https://tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/table/TS/M810001 |publisher=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>
|-
! 0–14 || 15–24 || 25–34 || 35–44 || 45–54 || 55–64 || 65 and over
|-
| 1990 || 23.0% || 16.9% || 21.5% || 16.9% || 9.0% || 6.7% || 6.0% || 29.8
|-
| 2000 || 21.9% || 12.9% || 17.0% || 19.4% || 14.3% || 7.2% || 7.2% || 34.0
|-
| 2005 || 20.1% || 13.0% || 15.6% || 17.9% || 16.2% || 9.1% || 8.1% || 35.8
|-
| 2010 || 17.4% || 13.5% || 15.1% || 16.7% || 16.6% || 11.7% || 9.0% || 37.4
|-
| 2015 || 15.4% || 13.0% || 14.4% || 15.8% || 15.8% || 13.7% || 11.8% || 39.6
|-
| 2020 || 14.5% || 11.4% || 14.5% || 14.8% || 15.0% || 14.6% || 15.2% || 41.5
|-
| 2025 || 13.6% || 10.2% || 13.9% || 15.0% || 14.5% || 13.9% || 18.8% || 43.2
|}

[[File:Age distribution in Singapore 1960-2016.gif|thumb|550px|This animation shows the share of age groups for the population of Singapore from 1960 – 2016. The age group which contains the median is highlighted. The population of Singapore is considered to be ageing rapidly.<ref name="tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg" />|none]]

===Population by sex and age (2025)<ref name=singstat2025/>===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! width="80pt" |Age group
! width="80pt" |Male
! width="80pt" |Female
! width="80pt" |Total
! width="80pt" |%
|-
| align="right" | Total
| align="right" | 2,044,630
| align="right" | 2,159,890
| align="right" | 4,204,520
| align="right" | 100
|-
| align="right" | 0–4
| align="right" | 84,930
| align="right" | 80,630
| align="right" | 165,560
| align="right" | 3.93
|-
| align="right" | 5–9
| align="right" | 102,130
| align="right" | 97,690
| align="right" | 199,820
| align="right" | 4.75
|-
| align="right" | 10–14
| align="right" | 105,520
| align="right" | 101,060
| align="right" | 206,580
| align="right" | 4.91
|-
| align="right" | 15–19
| align="right" | 107,470
| align="right" | 103,930
| align="right" | 211,400
| align="right" | 5.03
|-
| align="right" | 20–24
| align="right" | 111,090
| align="right" | 107,600
| align="right" | 218,690
| align="right" | 5.20
|-
| align="right" | 25–29
| align="right" | 132,470
| align="right" | 131,270
| align="right" | 263,740
| align="right" | 6.27
|-
| align="right" | 30–34
| align="right" | 155,340
| align="right" | 164,500
| align="right" | 319,840
| align="right" | 7.61
|-
| align="right" | 35–39
| align="right" | 151,850
| align="right" | 168,270
| align="right" | 321,120
| align="right" | 7.61
|-
| align="right" | 40–44
| align="right" | 146,690
| align="right" | 165,080
| align="right" | 311,770
| align="right" | 7.42
|-
| align="right" | 45–49
| align="right" | 143,670
| align="right" | 158,350
| align="right" | 302,020
| align="right" | 7.18
|-
| align="right" | 50–54
| align="right" | 149,690
| align="right" | 159,290
| align="right" | 308,980
| align="right" | 7.35
|-
| align="right" | 55–59
| align="right" | 141,440
| align="right" | 148,340
| align="right" | 289,780
| align="right" | 6.89
|-
| align="right" | 60–64
| align="right" | 147,050
| align="right" | 149,630
| align="right" | 284 626
| align="right" | 7.04
|-
| align="right" | 65–69
| align="right" | 133,510
| align="right" | 138,910
| align="right" | 296,680
| align="right" | 7.06
|-
| align="right" | 70–74
| align="right" | 103,110
| align="right" | 111,510
| align="right" | 214,620
| align="right" | 5.10
|-
| align="right" | 75–79
| align="right" | 70,220
| align="right" | 82,610
| align="right" | 152,830
| align="right" | 3.63
|-
| align="right" | 80–84
| align="right" | 31,640
| align="right" | 43,170
| align="right" | 74,810
| align="right" | 1.78
|-
| align="right" | 85-89
| align="right" | 18,250
| align="right" | 29,300
| align="right" | 47,550
| align="right" | 1.13
|-
| align="right" | 90+
| align="right" | 8,570
| align="right" | 18,790
| align="right" | 27,360
| align="right" | 0.65
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! width="80pt" | Age group<br /> (years)
! width="73pt" | Males
! width="73pt" | Females
! width="87pt" | Total<br />population
! width="87pt" | % of total<br />population
|-
| align="right" | 0–14
| align="right" | 292,580
| align="right" | 279,380
| align="right" | 571,960
| align="right" | 13.60
|-
| align="right" | 15–64
| align="right" | 1,386,760
| align="right" | 1,456,260
| align="right" | 2,843,020
| align="right" | 67.62
|-
| align="right" | 65+
| align="right" | 365,300
| align="right" | 424,280
| align="right" | 789,580
| align="right" | 18.78
|}[[File:Bevölkerungspyramide Singapur 2016.png|thumb|Population pyramid according to the CIA|none]]

=== Fertility and mortality ===
{| class="wikitable" style="vertical-align:middle; color:#202122;"
|+ Fertility and mortality<ref name="Singstat 2012" /><ref name="Singstat 2015 Population">[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/reference/yearbook_2015/excel/topic3.xls topic3] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150911223359/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/reference/yearbook_2015/excel/topic3.xls|date=11 September 2015}} (Population). Retrieved from [http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications-and-papers/reference/yoscontents%7CStatistics Singapore – Yearbook of Statistics Singapore, 2015] {{Dead link|date=July 2019|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}, ''Department of Statistics, Singapore''. Retrieved on 28 August 2015.</ref>
|-
! style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | Year
! style="font-weight:bold;" | Total live-births
! Resident live-births
! Crude birth rate (per 1,000 residents)
! Total fertility rate (per female)
! Gross reproduction rate (per female)
! Net reproduction rate (per female)
! style="font-weight:bold;" | Total deaths
! Crude death rate (per 1,000 residents)
! Infant mortality rate (per 1,000   resident live-births)
! Life expectancy at birth (years)
! Life expectancy at birth for males   (years)
! Life expectancy at birth for females   (Years)
! style="font-weight:bold;" | Natural growth
! style="font-weight:bold;" | Natural change
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1950
| 
| 
| 45.4
| N.A.
| N.A.
| N.A.
| 
| 12
| 82.2
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1955
| 
| 
| 44.3
| N.A.
| N.A.
| N.A.
| 
| 8.1
| 49.5
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1960
| 
| 
| 37.5
| 5.76
| 2.78
| 2.54
| 
| 6.2
| 34.9
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1965
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 
| 29.5
| 4.66
| 2.27
| 2.08
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 5.4
| 26.3
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1970
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 45,934
| N.A.
| 22.1
| 3.07
| 1.49
| 1.42
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 10,717
| 5.2
| 20.5
| 65.8
| 64.1
| 67.8
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 35,217
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 16.9
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1975
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 
| 17.7
| 2.07
| 1
| 0.97
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 5.1
| 13.9
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1980
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 41,217
| 40,100
| 17.6
| 1.82
| 0.88
| 0.86
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 12,505
| 4.9
| 8
| 72.1
| 69.8
| 74.7
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 28,712
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 12.7
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1985
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 
| 16.6
| 1.61
| 0.78
| 0.76
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 4.9
| 7.6
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1990
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 51,142
| 49,787
| 18.2
| 1.83
| 0.88
| 0.87
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 13,891
| 4.7
| 6.6
| 75.3
| 73.1
| 77.6
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 37,251
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 13.5
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 1995
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 
| 15.6
| 1.67
| 0.8
| 0.8
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 4.8
| 3.8
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2000
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 46,997
| 44,765
| 13.7
| 1.6
| 0.77
| 0.77
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 15,693
| 4.5
| 2.5
| 78
| 76
| 80
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 31,304
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 9.2
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2005
| 
| 
| 10.2
| 1.26
| 0.61
| 0.61
| 
| 4.4
| 2.1
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2006
| 
| 
| 10.3
| 1.28
| 0.62
| 0.61
| 
| 4.4
| 2.6
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2007
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 
| 10.3
| 1.29
| 0.62
| 0.62
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| 4.5
| 2.1
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2008
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 39,826
| 
| 10.2
| 1.28
| 0.62
| 0.62
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 17,222
| 4.4
| 2.1
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 22,604
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 5.8
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2009
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 39,570
| 
| 9.9
| 1.22
| 0.59
| 0.59
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 17,101
| 4.3
| 2.2
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 22,469
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 5.6
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2010
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 37,967
| 35,129
| 9.3
| 1.15
| 0.56
| 0.55
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 17,610
| 4.4
| 2
| 81.7
| 79.2
| 84
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 20,357
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 4.9
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2011
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 39,654
| 36,178
| 9.5
| 1.2
| 0.58
| 0.58
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 18,027
| 4.5
| 2
| 82
| 79.5
| 84.1
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 21,627
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 5
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2012
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 42,663
| 
| 10.1
| 1.29
| 0.62
| 0.6
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 18,481
| 4.5
| 1.8
| 82.1
| 79.8
| 84.3
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 24,182
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 5.6
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2013
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 39,720
| 
| 9.3
| 1.19
| 0.57
| 0.57
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 18,938
| 4.6
| 2
| 82.4
| 80.1
| 84.5
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 18,982
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 4.7
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2014
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 42,232
| 
| 9.8
| 1.25
| 0.61
| 0.6
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 19,393
| 4.7
| 1.8
| 82.8
| 80.5
| 84.9
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 22,839
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 5.1
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2015
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 42,185
| 
| 
| 1.24
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 19,862
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 22,323
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2018
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 39,039
| 35,040
| 8.8
| 1.14
| 0.56
| 0.55
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 21,282
| 5
| 2.1
| 83.4
| 81.2
| 85.5
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 17,757
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 3.8
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2019
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 39,279
| 35,330
| 8.8
| 1.14
| 0.56
| 0.56
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 21,446
| 5
| 1.7
| 83.6
| 81.4
| 85.7
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 17,833
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 3.8
|-
| style="text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" | 2020
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 38,590
| 34,323
| 8.5
| 1.1
| 0.53
| 0.53
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 22,045
| 5.2
| 1.8
| 83.9
| 81.5
| 86.1
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 16,545
| style="font-weight:bold;" | 3.3
|}

[[File:Life expectancy in Singapore.svg|thumb|[[Life expectancy]] in Singapore since 1950]]
[[File:Life expectancy by WBG -Singapore -diff.png|thumb|Life expectancy in Singapore since 1960 by gender]]

[[File:Singapore Population 1950-2021 Forecast 2022-2032 UN World Population Prospects 2022.svg|thumb|350px|[[Population]], [[fertility rate]] and [[net reproduction rate]], United Nations estimates|none]]

*Source: [https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/population/population2020.pdf Department of Statistics of Singapore: Population Trends, 2020] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210620055831/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/population/population2020.pdf |date=20 June 2021 }}
{{clear}}

== Vital statistics ==
=== Registered births and deaths ===
Data from Singapore Department of Statistics, Ministry of Home Affairs, Republic of Singapore:<ref name="Singstat 2012" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Report on Registration of births and deaths 2023 |url=https://www.ica.gov.sg/docs/default-source/ica/stats/annual-bd-statistics/stats_2023_annual_rbd_report.pdf?sfvrsn=a4042753_12 |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=23 April 2025 |work=ica.gov.sg}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Births and Fertility - Latest Data |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/births-and-fertility/latest-data |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Base |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Births And Fertility Rates |url=https://tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/table/TS/M810091#! |access-date=2025-08-17 |website=tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: right;"
|-
!
! style="width:80px;"|Average population 
! style="width:80px;"|Live births
! style="width:80px;"|Deaths
! style="width:80px;"|Natural change
! style="width:80px;"|Crude birth rate (per 1000)
! style="width:80px;"|Crude death rate (per 1000)
! style="width:80px;"|Natural change (per 1000)
! style="width:80px;"|Crude migration rate (per 1000)
! style="width:80px;"|Total fertility rate (TFR)
|-
|1947
| style="text-align:right;"| 938,100
| style="text-align:right;"|  
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1948
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1949
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1950
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,022,100
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1951
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,068,100
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1952
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,127,000
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1953
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,191,800
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1954
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,248,200
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1955
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,305,500
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1956
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,371,600
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1957
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,445,929
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1958
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,518,800
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
|-
|1959
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,587,200
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| 
| style="text-align:right; color:blue;"| 
|-

|1960
|1,646,400
|style="color:blue;"|61,775
|10,210
|style="color:blue;"|51,565
|style="color:blue;"|37.5
|6.2
|style="color:blue;"|31.3
|
|style="color:blue;"|5.76
|-
|1961
|1,702,400
|59,930
|style="color:blue;"|10,027
|49,903
|35.2
|5.9
|29.3
|3.6
|style="color:blue;"|5.41
|-
|1962
|1,750,200
|58,977
|10,178
|48,799
|33.7
|5.8
|27.9
|—0.6
|style="color:blue;"|5.21
|-
|1963
|1,795,000
|59,530
|10,138
|49,392
|33.2
|5.6
|27.5
|—2.6
|style="color:blue;"|5.16
|-
|1964
|1,841,600
|58,217
|10,434
|47,783
|31.6
|5.7
|25.9
|—0.6
|style="color:blue;"|4.97
|-
|1965
|1,886,900
|55,725
|10,263
|45,462
|29.5
|5.4
|24.1
|—0.1
|style="color:blue;"|4.66
|-
|1966
|1,934,400
|54,680
|10,444
|44,236
|28.3
|5.4
|22.9
|1.7
|style="color:blue;"|4.46
|-
|1967
|1,977,600
|50,560
|10,523
|40,037
|25.6
|5.3
|20.2
|1.6
|style="color:blue;"|3.91
|-
|1968
|2,012,000
|47,241
|10,982
|36,259
|23.5
|5.5
|18.0
|—0.9
|style="color:blue;"|3.53
|-
|1969
|2,042,500
|44,562
|10,224
|34,338
|21.8
|5.0
|16.8
|—1.9
|style="color:blue;"|3.22
|-
|1970
|2,074,507
|45,934
|10,717
|35,217
|22.1
|5.2
|17.0
|—1.5
|style="color:blue;"|3.07
|-
|1971
|2,122,900
|47,088
|11,329
|35,759
|22.3
|5.4
|16.8
|6.0
|style="color:blue;"|3.02
|-
|1972
|2,152,400
|49,678
|11,522
|38,156
|23.1
|5.4
|17.7
|—4.0
|style="color:blue;"|3.04
|-
|1973
|2,193,000
|48,269
|11,920
|36,349
|22.0
|5.4
|16.6
|1.9
|style="color:blue;"|2.79
|-
|1974
|2,229,800
|43,268
|11,674
|31,594
|19.4
|5.2
|14.2
|2.3
|style="color:blue;"|2.35
|-
|1975
|2,262,600
|39,948
|11,447
|28,501
|17.7
|5.1
|12.6
|1.9
|2.07
|-
|1976
|2,293,300
|42,783
|11,648
|31,135
|18.7
|5.1
|13.6
|—0.2
|style="color:blue;"|2.11
|-
|1977
|2,325,300
|38,364
|11,955
|26,409
|16.5
|5.1
|11.4
|2.4
|1.82
|-
|1978
|2,353,600
|39,441
|12,065
|27,376
|16.8
|5.1
|11.6
|0.4
|1.79
|-
|1979
|2,383,500
|40,779
|12,468
|28,311
|17.1
|5.2
|11.9
|0.7
|1.79
|-
|1980
|2,413,945
|41,217
|12,505
|28,712
|17.6
|4.9
|11.9
|0.7
|1.82
|-
|1981
| 2,532,835
| 42,250
| 12,863
| 29,387
| 17.6
| 4.9
| 11.6
|style="color:blue;"| 48.6
| 1.78
|-
|1982
| 2,646,466
| 42,654
| 12,896
| 29,758
| 17.5
| 4.9
| 11.2
| 14.2
| 1.74
|-
|1983
| 2,681,061
| 40,585
| 13,321
| 27,264
| 16.3
| 5.0
| 10.2
| 9.2
| 1.61
|-
|1984
| 2,732,221
| 41,556
| 13,162
| 28,394
| 16.5
| 4.8
| 10.4
| 2.5
| 1.62
|-
|1985
| 2,735,957
| 42,484
| 13,348
| 29,136
| 16.6
| 4.9
| 10.6
| —11.4
| 1.61
|-
|1986
| 2,733,373
| 38,379
| 12,821
| 25,558
| 14.8
| 4.6
| 9.4
| 5.9
| 1.43
|-
|1987
| 2,774,789
| 43,616
| 13,173
| 30,443
| 16.6
| 4.7
| 11.0
| 1.9
| 1.62
|-
|1988
| 2,846,108
| 52,957
| 13,690
| 39,267
| 19.8
| 4.9
| 13.8
| 2.2
| 1.96
|-
|1989
| 2,930,901
| 47,669
| 14,069
| 33,600
| 17.5
| 4.9
| 11.5
| 2.3
| 1.75
|-
|1990
| 3,047,132
| 51,142
| 13,891
| 37,251
| 18.2
| 4.7
| 12.2
| 4.2
| 1.83
|-
|1991
| 3,135,083
| 49,114
| 13,876
| 35,238
| 17.1
| 4.6
| 11.2
| 7.0
| 1.73
|-
|1992
| 3,230,698
| 49,402
| 14,337
| 35,065
| 16.8
| 4.7
| 10.9
| 4.7
| 1.72
|-
|1993
| 3,313,471
| 50,225
| 14,461
| 35,764
| 16.8
| 4.6
| 10.8
| 2.1
| 1.74
|-
|1994
| 3,419,048
| 49,554
| 14,946
| 34,608
| 16.2
| 4.7
| 10.1
| 2.1
| 1.71
|-
|1995
| 3,524,506
| 48,635
| 15,569
| 33,066
| 15.6
| 4.8
| 9.4
| 2.3
| 1.67
|-
|1996
| 3,670,704
| 48,577
| 15,590
| 32,987
| 15.2
| 4.7
| 9.0
| 3.1
| 1.66
|-
|1997
| 3,796,038
| 47,333
| 15,305
| 32,028
| 14.5
| 4.5
| 8.4
| 3.0
| 1.61
|-
|1998
| 3,927,213
| 43,664
| 15,657
| 28,007
| 13.1
| 4.6
| 7.1
| 3.1
| 1.48
|-
|1999
| 3,958,723
| 43,336
| 15,516
| 27,820
| 12.8
| 4.5
| 7.0
| 1.4
| 1.47
|-
|2000
| 4,027,887
| 46,997
| 15,693
| 31,304
| 13.7
| 4.5
| 7.8
| 4.2
| 1.60
|-
|2001
| 4,138,012
| 41,451
| 15,367
| 26,084
| 11.8
|style="color:blue;"| 4.3
| 6.3
| 20.3
| 1.41
|-
| 2002
| 4,175,950
| 40,760
| 15,820
| 24,940
| 11.4
| 4.4
| 6.0
| —2.3
| 1.37
|-
|2003
| 4,114,826
| 37,485
| 16,036
| 21,449
| 10.5
| 4.5
| 5.2
| 2.5
| 1.27
|-
|2004
| 4,166,664
| 37,174
| 15,860
| 21,314
| 10.3
| 4.4
| 5.1
| 2.5
| 1.26
|-
|2005
| 4,265,762
| 37,492
| 16,215
| 21,277
| 10.2
| 4.4
| 5.0
| 4.8
| 1.26
|-
|2006
| 4,401,365
| 38,317
| 16,393
| 21,924
| 10.3
| 4.4
| 5.0
| 7.2
| 1.28
|-
|2007
| 4,588,599
| 39,490
| 17,140
| 22,350
| 10.3
| 4.5
| 4.9
| 8.2
| 1.29
|-
|2008
| 4,839,396
| 39,826
| 17,222
| 22,604
| 10.2
| 4.4
| 4.7
| 8.2
| 1.28
|-
|2009
| 4,987,573
| 39,570
| 17,101
| 22,469
| 9.9
|style="color:blue;"| 4.3
| 4.5
| 2.7
| 1.22
|-
|2010
| 5,076,732
| 37,967
| 17,610
| 20,357
| 9.3
| 4.4
| 4.0
| 4.2
| 1.15
|-
|2011
| 5,183,688
| 39,654
| 18,027
| 21,627
| 9.5
| 4.5
| 4.2
| 5.2
| 1.20
|-
|2012
| 5,312,437
| 42,663
| 18,481
| 24,182
| 10.1
| 4.5
| 4.6
| 4.9
| 1.29
|-
|2013
| 5,399,162
| 39,720
| 18,938
| 20,782
| 9.3
| 4.6
| 3.8
| 2.9
| 1.19
|-
|2014
| 5,469,724
| 42,232
| 19,393
| 22,839
| 9.8
| 4.7
| 4.2
| 2.6
| 1.25
|-
|2015
| 5,535,002
| 42,185
| 19,862
| 22,323
| 9.7
| 4.8
| 4.0
| 9.0
| 1.24
|-
|2016
| 5,607,283
| 41,251
| 20,017
| 21,234
| 9.4
| 4.8
| 3.8
| —2.9
| 1.20
|-
|2017
| 5,612,253
| 39,615
| 20,905
| 18,710
| 8.9
| 5.0
| 3.3
| 1.4
| 1.16
|-
|2018
| 5,638,676
| 39,039
| 21,282
| 17,757
| 8.8
| 5.0
| 3.1
| 8.4
| 1.14
|-
|2019
| 5,703,569
| 39,279
| 21,446
| 17,833
| 8.8
| 5.0
| 3.1
| —6.2
| 1.14
|-
|2020
| 5,685,807
| 38,590
| 22,054
| 16,536
| 8.5
| 5.2
| 2.9
| —43.8
| 1.10
|-
|2021
| 5,453,566
| 38,672
| 24,292
| 14,380
| 8.6
| 5.8
| 2.6
| 31.0
| 1.12
|-
|2022
| 5,637,022
| 35,605
|style="color:red;"| 26,891
| 8,714
| 7.9
|style="color:red;"| 6.3
| 1.5
| 48.2
| 1.04
|-
|2023
| 5,917,648
|style="color:red;"| 33,541
| 26,888
|style="color:red;"| 6,653
|style="color:red;"| 7.4
| 6.2
|style="color:red;"| 1.1
| 19.0
|style="color:red;"| 0.97
|-
|2024
|style="color:blue;"| 6,036,860
| 33,703
| 26,442
| 7,261
|style="color:red;"| 7.4
| 6.0
| 1.2
| 18.6
|style="color:red;"| 0.97
|-
|}

===Current vital statistics===
{| class="wikitable"  style="text-align:center;"
|+
|-
! Period
! Live births
! Deaths
! Natural increase
|-
| '''January - September 2024'''
| 25,052
| 19,905
| 5,147
|-
| '''January - September 2025'''
| 22,493
| 19,748
| 2,745
|-
| '''Difference'''
| {{decrease}} -2,559 (-10.21%)
| {{decreasepositive}} -157 (-0.79%)
| {{decrease}} -2,402
|-
| colspan="4" style="text-align: center;" | '''Source:'''<ref>{{cite web |title=Live-Births By Sex And Ethnic Group |url=https://tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/table/TS/M810051#! |website=SingStat Table Builder |access-date=3 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Deaths By Ethnic Group And Sex |url=https://tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/table/TS/M810121#! |website=SingStat Table Builder |access-date=3 November 2025}}</ref>
|}

=== Population by area ===
{{Largest planning areas of Singapore}}

== Ethnic groups ==
{{Main|Race in Singapore|Singaporeans}}

===Post-independence===
In the post-independence period after 1965, Singapore's population has been broadly classified into four main groups: [[Chinese Singaporean|Chinese]], [[Malay Singaporeans|Malays]], [[Indian Singaporeans|Indians]] and Others, a category that consists largely of [[Eurasian Singaporeans|Eurasians]]. These groups collectively shape the country's contemporary cultural and social landscape, influencing its cuisine, languages, religions and traditions that are regarded as distinctive to Singapore. The CMIO framework was first proposed in 1956 during [[Colony of Singapore|British colonial rule]] as a way to structure the [[Education in Singapore|education system]] around [[Languages of Singapore|four designated national languages]].<ref name="rocha">{{cite journal |author=Zarine L. Rocha |date=2011 |title=Multiplicity within Singularity: Racial Categorization and Recognizing "Mixed Race" in Singapore |url=http://journals.sub.uni-hamburg.de/giga/jsaa/article/view/476 |journal=Journal of Current South East Asian Affairs |volume=30 |issue=3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170110090143/http://journals.sub.uni-hamburg.de/giga/jsaa/article/view/476 |archive-date=10 January 2017 |access-date=9 January 2017}}</ref>

Although immigration was a major driver of population growth in Singapore during the colonial period, by the mid-20th century growth became dominated by native births and accelerated following [[World War II]]. After [[Independence of Singapore Agreement 1965|Singapore's separation from Malaysia]] in 1965, the free movement of people between the two countries ended, and net immigration fell to a low of 24,000 in the decade from 1970 to 1980 due to tighter immigration controls by the Singaporean government.<ref name="saw2" /> Meanwhile, fertility among the Chinese population declined sharply after the post-war boom, while fertility among the Malay population remained relatively high. As a result, the Malay share of the population increased to 14.5% in the late-1960s, reversing a long period of decline during the British colonial period.<ref name="jstor1" />

From the 1980s onwards, the government's immigration policy shifted, leading to a sharp increase in the number of immigrants, which once again became an important driver of population growth in Singapore. By the period from 1990 to 2000, immigration had overtaken natural population growth, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the decadal increase with 640,571 net migrants, including non-residents.<ref name="saw2" /> While the racial composition of citizens has remained relatively constant over the decades, slight shifts are observed in the figures for residents (citizens plus permanent residents). A smaller proportion of immigrants were Malays, resulting in a decline in the percentage of Malays among the resident population. By contrast, the proportion of Indian residents rose to 9.2% in 2010, an increase from 7.4% among citizens alone, largely due to the inflow of migrant workers from [[South Asia]] particularly in the construction sector.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dD2qVu8EpdUC&pg=PA30 |title=The Population of Singapore |edition=3rd |author=Saw Swee-Hock | publisher=ISEAS Publishing|date=30 June 2012|isbn= 978-981-4380-98-0 |pages=29–30}}</ref>

The population profile of Singapore changed significantly after the relaxation of immigration policy from the 1980s, with a sharp increase in the number of transient foreigners. Official figures show that the number of non-residents grew from 30,900 in 1970 to 1,641,600 in 2020, representing about a 53-fold increase over 50 years. Their share of the total population rose from 2.9% in 1970 to 28.9% in 2020. Despite this, no further breakdown of the non-resident population (such as by ethnic origin) is publicly provided by Singstat. It is widely assumed that this group comprises individuals from a broad range of countries who generally do not fit into the CMIO classification, which may explain the lack of detailed categorisation. By the mid-2020s, it was estimated that more than 40% of Singapore's total population were of foreign origin, being both permanent residents and non-residents, including foreign workers, students and their dependants, among others.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Proportion of non-residents out of total population<ref name="Singstat site" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Census of Population 2010 (Advance Census Release) |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/cop2010/census_2010_advance_census_release/c2010acr.pdf |website=singstat.gov.sg |publisher=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=2 October 2025 |date=August 2010}}</ref><ref name="census2020"/>
|-
! || 1970 || 1980 || 1990 || 2000 || 2010 || 2020
|-
|Non-residents (Residents = Citizens + PRs)
| align="right" |2.9%
| align="right" |5.5%
| align="right" |10.2%
| align="right" |18.7%
| align="right" |25.7%
| align="right" |28.9%
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Ethnic composition of resident population (Citizens + PRs)
!
! Chinese
! Malays
! Indians
! Others
|-
! 1970<ref name="Singstat site">{{cite web|url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg|title=Singapore Department of Statistics (DOS)|website=Department of Statistics Singapore|access-date=30 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180318142338/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/|archive-date=18 March 2018}}</ref>
| {{percentage bar|77.0}}
| {{percentage bar|14.8}}
| {{percentage bar|7.0}}
| {{percentage bar|1.2}}
|-
! 1980<ref name="Singstat site" />
| {{percentage bar|78.3}}
| {{percentage bar|14.4}}
| {{percentage bar|6.3}}
| {{percentage bar|1.0}}
|-
! 1990<ref name="Singstat 2012" />
| {{percentage bar|77.8}}
| {{percentage bar|14.0}}
| {{percentage bar|7.1}}
| {{percentage bar|1.1}}
|-
! 2000<ref name="Singstat 2012" />
| {{percentage bar|76.8}}
| {{percentage bar|13.9}}
| {{percentage bar|7.9}}
| {{percentage bar|1.4}}
|-
! 2010<ref name="Singstat 2012" />
| {{percentage bar|74.1}}
| {{percentage bar|13.4}}
| {{percentage bar|9.2}}
| {{percentage bar|3.3}}
|-
! 2020<ref name="census2020" />
| {{percentage bar|74.3}}
| {{percentage bar|13.5}}
| {{percentage bar|9.0}}
| {{percentage bar|3.2}}
|}
<gallery caption="Population pyramids of ethnic group residents in 2020">
File:Chinese population pyramid in 2020 Singapore.svg|Chinese
File:Malays population pyramid in 2020 Singapore.svg|Malays
File:Indian population pyramid in 2020 Singapore.svg|Indian
File:Others population pyramid in 2020 Singapore.svg|Other
File:Overseas Citizens population pyramid in Singapore in 2020.svg|Overseas Citizens (outside of census figures)
</gallery>

{{Bar chart
| title = Chinese Resident Population by Detailed Ethnic Group (2020)<ref name="census2020" />
| label_type = Group
| data_type  = Population
|label1= [[Hoklo people|Hokkien]]				|data1= 1,180,599
|label2= [[Teochew people|Teochew]]				|data2= 583,963
|label3= [[Cantonese people|Cantonese]]			|data3= 429,329
|label4= [[Hakka people|Hakka]]					|data4= 259,153
|label5= [[Hainan people|Hainanese]]			|data5= 183,312
|label6= [[Fuzhou people|Foochow]]				|data6= 59,609
|label7= [[Putian people|Henghua]]				|data7= 26,702
|label8= [[Shanghainese people|Shanghainese]]	|data8= 22,503
|label9= [[Fuzhou people|Hockchia]]				|data9= 17,070
|label10= Other Chinese							|data10= 244,529
|label11= Total									|data11= 3,006,769
|data_max= 3,006,769
}}
{{Bar chart
| title = Malay Resident Population by Detailed Ethnic Group (2020)<ref name="census2020" />
| label_type = Group
| data_type  = Population
|label1= [[Malays (ethnic group)|Malay]]					|data1= 370,445
|label2= [[Javanese people|Javanese]]/[[Bawean people|Boyanese]]	|data2= 154,869
|label3= Other Malays										|data3= 20,184
|label4= Total												|data4= 545,498
|data_max= 545,498
}}
{{Bar chart
| title = Indian Resident Population by Detailed Ethnic Group (2020)<ref name="census2020" />
| label_type = Group
| data_type  = Population
|label1= [[Tamils|Tamil]]	|data1= 198,449
|label2= [[Malayali]]		|data2= 26,693
|label3= Hindi				|data3= 18,618
|label4= [[Sikhs|Sikh]]		|data4= 12,589
|label5= Other Indians		|data5= 105,925
|label6= Total				|data6= 362,274
|data_max= 362,274
}}
{{Bar chart
| title = Resident Population of Other Ethnic Groups by Detailed Ethnic Group (2020)<ref name="census2020" />
| label_type = Group
| data_type  = Population
|label1= [[Filipinos|Filipino]]		|data1= 30,893
|label2= White		     			|data2= 29,981
|label3= Eurasian					|data3= 18,060
|label4= [[Burmese people|Burmese]]	|data4= 11,899
|label5= [[Arabs|Arab]]				|data5= 9,028
|label6= [[Thai people|Thai]]		|data6= 7,036
|label7= Others						|data7= 22,772
|data_max= 30,893
}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Total fertility rate by ethnic group<ref name="Singstat 2012" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/births-and-fertility/latest-data |title=M810091 – Births And Fertility Rates, Annual |work=Department of Statistics Singapore }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Births and Fertility Rates |url=https://tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/table/TS/M810091 |website=SingStat Tables |access-date=10 August 2024}}</ref>
|-
! Year
! Chinese
! Malays
! Indians
! Total
|-
| 1980
| 1.73
| 2.20
| 2.03
| 1.82
|-
| 1990
| 1.65
| 2.69
| 1.89
| 1.83
|-
| 2000
| 1.43
| 2.54
| 1.59
| 1.60
|-
| 2010
| 1.02
| 1.65
| 1.13
| 1.15
|-
| 2020
| 0.94
| 1.82
| 0.96
| 1.1
|}

=== Pre-independence ===
Singapore, following its founding as a British [[Free economic zone|free port]] by [[Stamford Raffles]] in the 19th century, did not have a sizeable native population as the population became dominated by three main groups of [[immigrant]]s.<ref name="jstor1" /><ref>{{cite book |author=Saw Swee-Hock |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MUxLDhv9HB4C&pg=PA28 |title=The Population of Singapore |date=2007 |publisher=SEAS Publishing |isbn=978-981-230-738-5 |page=28}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Swee-Hock Saw |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LGIyAAAAMAAJ&q=true+sense |title=Singapore population in transition |date=1970 | publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |isbn=978-0-8122-7588-9}}</ref> When Raffles arrived in Singapore in January 1819, Singapore had approximately 120 Malays, 30 Chinese and some native tribes ([[Orang Laut]]) under the rule of the [[Temenggung]].<ref name="early population">{{cite book |author=Saw Swee-Hock |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dD2qVu8EpdUC&pg=PA7 |title=The Population of Singapore |date=30 June 2012 |publisher=ISEAS Publishing |isbn=978-981-4380-98-0 |edition=3rd |pages=7–8}}</ref> Around 100 of the Malays had originally moved to Singapore from the mainland ([[Johor]]) in 1811, led by the Temenggung. Other estimates place the then population of Singapore at 1,000, belonging to various local tribes.<ref name="rahim" /> Early census figures show a long influx of migrant workers into the country, initially consisting mostly of Malays, but shortly thereafter followed by the Chinese. By 1821, the population was estimated to have increased to 4,724 Malays and 1,150 Chinese.<ref name="early population" />

In the first census of 1824, 6,505 out of the 10,683 total were Malays and Bugis, constituting over 60% of the population. Large number of Chinese migrants started to enter Singapore just months after it became a British settlement, and they were predominantly male. In 1826, official census figures give a total population of 13,750, with 6,088 Chinese, 4,790 Malays, 1,242 [[Bugis]], 1,021 Indians from [[Bengal]] (244) and the [[Coromandel Coast]] (777), smaller number of [[Javanese people|Javanese]] (267), Europeans (87) and other peoples.<ref name="census 1826" /> The population total of Singapore increased to 16,000 in 1829, 26,000 five years later. By 1836, the Chinese at 13,749 had become the most populous ethnic group, overtaking the broad Malay grouping (12,538, including other groups such as the Bugis, Javanese, and Balinese from the Dutch East Indies).<ref name="saw swee-hock">{{cite book |author=Saw Swee-Hock |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dD2qVu8EpdUC&pg=PA29 |title=The Population of Singapore |date=30 June 2012 |publisher=ISEAS Publishing |isbn=978-981-4380-98-0 |edition=3rd |page=29}}</ref> By 1849, the population had reached 59,043, 24,790 of them Chinese.<ref name="anoma">{{cite book |last=Pieris |first=Anoma |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PhngAfyvQIYC&pg=PA238 |title=Hidden Hands and Divided Landscapes: A Penal History of Singapore's Plural Society |date=2009 |publisher=University of Hawaiʻi Press |isbn=978-0-8248-3354-1 |page=238}}</ref>

Many of the migrants from China in the 19th century came to work on the pepper and [[Uncaria gambir|gambier]] plantations, with 11,000 Chinese immigrants recorded in one year.<ref name="sanderson">{{cite book |author=Mrs Reginald Sanderson |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924023134368#page/n227/mode/2up |title=Twentieth century impressions of British Malaya: its history, people, commerce, industries, and resources |date=1907 |editor=Wright, Arnold |pages=220–221 |editor2=Cartwright, H.A.}}</ref> Singapore became one of the entry and dispersal points for large number of Chinese and Indian migrants who came to work in the plantations and mines of the Straits Settlements, many of whom then settled in Singapore after their contract ended. By 1860, the total population had reached around 90,000, of these 50,000 were Chinese, and 2,445 Europeans and Eurasians. The first thorough census in Singapore was undertaken in 1871, and the people were grouped into 33 racial, ethnic or national categories, with Chinese forming the largest group at 57.6%.<ref>{{cite book |author=James Francis Warren |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wVyqbmHS2zQC&pg=PA18 |title=Rickshaw Coolie: A People's History of Singapore, 1880–1940 |date=30 June 2003 |publisher=NUS Press |isbn=978-9971-69-266-7 |page=18}}</ref>

Censuses were then conducted at 10-year intervals afterwards. The 1881 census grouped the people into 6 main categories, and further subdivided into 47 sub-categories. The 6 broad groups were given as Europeans, Eurasians, Malays, Chinese, Indians and Others in 1921.<ref name="rocha" /> The Malays group included other natives of the Malay archipelago, the Europeans included Americans, the Indians would be people from the [[Indian subcontinent]] including what are now [[Pakistan]] and [[Bangladesh]]. In 1901, the total population of Singapore was 228,555,<ref name="sanderson" /> with 15.8% Malays, 71.8% Chinese, 7.8% Indians, and 3.5% Europeans and Eurasians. The Chinese population figure of Singapore has stayed at over 70% of the total since, reaching 77.8% in 1947. After dropping from a peak of 60% in the early years of Singapore, the Malay population settled within the range of 11 and 16% in the first half of the 20th century, while Indians hovered between 7 and just over 9% in the same period.<ref name="saw swee-hock" />

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
|-
|+ Population of colonial era Singapore
|-
! rowspan="2" | Ethnic group
! colspan="7" | Population{{ref|11|A}}
|-
! style="width:4.5em;" |1824<ref name="1823 census">{{cite web |title=First Census of Singapore is Taken |url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/2fb8948b-5f16-4a7a-8e3c-7a724e1eb6ad |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106012547/http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/2fb8948b-5f16-4a7a-8e3c-7a724e1eb6ad |archive-date=6 January 2017 |work=History SG}}</ref>
! style="width:4.5em;" |1826<ref name="census 1826" />
! style="width:4.5em;" |1836<ref name="census 1836" />
! style="width:4.5em;" |1871<ref name="census 1871">{{cite book |author=Brenda S. A. Yeoh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qGEFUeRySkwC&pg=PA317 |title=Contesting Space in Colonial Singapore: Power Relations and the Urban Built Environment |date=30 April 2003 |publisher=NUS Press |isbn=978-9971-69-268-1 |page=317}}</ref>
! style="width:4.5em;" |1901<ref name="census 1871" />
! style="width:4.5em;" |1931<ref name="census 1871" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Armenian |url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_334_2005-01-26.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161003140108/http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_334_2005-01-26.html |archive-date=3 October 2016 |work=Singapore Infopedia |publisher=National Library Board, Singapore}}</ref>
! style="width:4.5em;" |1957<ref>{{cite journal |author=Lim Peng Han |title=The history of an emerging multilingual public library system and the role of mobile libraries in post colonial Singapore, 1956–1991 |url=http://umijms.um.edu.my/filebank/published_article/2804/no.6.pdf |journal=Malaysian Journal of Library & Information Science |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=85–108 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170131191506/http://umijms.um.edu.my/filebank/published_article/2804/no.6.pdf |archive-date=31 January 2017 |access-date=19 January 2017}}</ref>
|-
| align="left" |Europeans
|74
|87
|141
|1,946
|3,824
|8,082
|10,826
|-
| align="left" |[[Eurasians in Singapore|Eurasians]]
|
|
|117
|2,164
|4,120
|6,903
|11,382
|-
| align="left" |Native Christians{{ref|12|B}}
|
| 188
| 421
|
|
|
|
|-
| align="left" |[[Armenians in Singapore|Armenians]]
|16
|19
|34
|
|
|(81)
|
|-
| align="left" |[[Arab Singaporeans|Arabs]]
|15
|26
|41
|
|
|
|
|-
| align="left" |[[Malay Singaporeans|Malays]]{{ref|13|C}}
| 4,580
| 4,790
| 9,632
|26,148
|36,080
|65,014
|197,059
|-
| align="left" |Bugis
| 1,925
| 1,242
| 1,962{{ref|14|D}}
|
|
|
|
|-
| align="left" |Javanese
|
| 267
| 903
|
|
|
|
|-
| align="left" |[[Chinese Singaporeans|Chinese]]
| 3,317
| 6,088
|13,749
|54,572
|164,041
|418,640
|1,090,596
|-
| align="left" |[[Indian Singaporeans|Indians]]
| 756
|1,021
|2,930
|11,610
|17,824
|50,811
|124,084
|-
| align="left" |Others{{ref|15|E}}
|
|12
|50
|671
|2,667
|8,275
|11,982
|- style="background: #DDE"
| align="left" |Total
|10,683
|13,750
|29,980
|97,111
|228,555
|557,745
|1,445,929
|}
*<small>{{note|11|A}} Population figures do not include transient populations of military personnel and convicts</small>
*<small>{{note|12|B}} Mostly of [[Kristang people|Portuguese descent]]</small>
*<small>{{note|13|C}} Include other peoples of the [[Malay Archipelago]] if figures not given separately</small>
*<small>{{note|14|D}} Include Balinese</small>
*<small>{{note|15|E}} Include [[Cafres]], Siamese, [[Parsi]]s, Jews, and other groupings if figures not given separately.</small>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|--
|+ Annual growth rate for main ethnic groups in selected periods<ref name="Saw Swee-Hock 12" />
! Ethnic group
! 1824–1830 || 1849–1860 || 1881–1891 || 1901–1911 || 1931–1947
|-
| Chinese || 12.0% || 5.4% || 3.5% || 3.0% || 3.5%
|-
| Malays || 2.9% || 5.2% || 0.1% || 1.5% || 3.6%
|-
| Indians || 6.7% || 6.8% || 2.9% || 5.0% || 1.9%
|}

==Languages==
[[File:Geylang Serai Market aka Pasar Geylang Serai (2025) - img 06.jpg|thumb|left|A quadrilingual sign written in Singapore's four official languages; [[English language|English]], [[Chinese language|Chinese]], [[Malay language|Malay]] and [[Tamil language|Tamil]] for the Geylang Serai Market]]
{{Main|Languages of Singapore}}

{{bar box
|title=Languages of Singapore (2020)<ref name="CIATONGA">{{cite web|url= https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/singapore/|title= East & Southeast Asia:: Singapore |date= 19 November 2021 |publisher= CIA The World Factbook}}</ref>
|titlebar=#ddd
|left1=Languages
|right1=percent
|float=right
|bars=
{{bar percent|[[Singapore English|English]]|blue|48.3}}
{{bar percent|[[Mandarin Chinese]]|orange|29.9}}
{{bar percent|[[Malay Language|Malay]]|red|9.2}}
{{bar percent|[[Chinese dialects]]|purple|8.7}}
{{bar percent|[[Tamil language|Tamil]]|green|2.5}}
{{bar percent|Others|grey|1.4}}
}}

Singapore has four [[official language]]s: [[English language|English]], [[Malay language|Malay]], [[Standard Chinese|Mandarin]] and [[Tamil language|Tamil]].

[[Malay language|Malay]] is the national language of the country, although English is the official language used in the [[Education in Singapore|educational system]] and by the government. The colloquial English-based creole used in everyday life is often referred to as [[Singlish]], spoken by all races of Singapore.

The government of Singapore promotes the use of Mandarin. The use of other [[Chinese language|Chinese]] varieties, like [[Min Nan|Hokkien]], [[Teochew dialect|Teochew]], [[Yue Chinese|Cantonese]] and [[Hakka dialect|Hakka]], has been declining over the last two decades, although they are still being used especially by the older generations of the Chinese population.

About 60% of [[Indian Singaporeans]] are Tamils although the percentage of those who speak [[Tamil language|Tamil]] at home has been declining, with around 37% of Singaporean Indians speaking Tamil at home according to the 2010 census.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications_and_papers/cop2010/census_2010_release1/cop2010sr1.pdf |title=Census of Population 2010]" (table 6)|publisher= Singapore Department of Statistics|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113154937/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications_and_papers/cop2010/census_2010_release1/cop2010sr1.pdf |archive-date=13 November 2013}}</ref> Other spoken [[Languages of India|Indian languages]] are [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]], [[Malayalam]], [[Hindi]] and [[Bengali language|Bengali]], but none of them alone is spoken by more than 10% of the Indian Singaporeans. As with Chinese Singaporeans, a large proportion of Indian Singaporeans speak English at home.<ref name="singstat.gov.sg">[https://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/cop2010/census_2010_release1/cop2010sr1.pdf Census of Population 2010 Statistical Release 1 – Demographic Characteristics, Education, Language and Religion] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005201416/https://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/cop2010/census_2010_release1/cop2010sr1.pdf |date=5 October 2016}}</ref>

Around 5,000 to 10,000 [[Peranakan]]s, the early Chinese population of the region, still use the Hokkien-influenced [[Malay language|Malay]] dialect called [[Baba Malay]].
{| class="wikitable"
|+Languages of Singapore most frequently spoken at home
! Year
! English
! Mandarin<br />Chinese
! Malay
! Chinese<br />dialects
! Tamil
! Others
|-
| 1980
| {{percentage bar|width=70|11.6}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|10.2}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|13.9}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|59.5}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|3.1}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|1.7}}
|-
| 1990
| {{percentage bar|width=70|20.3}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|26.0}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|13.4}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|36.7}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|2.9}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|0.7}}
|-
| 2000
| {{percentage bar|width=70|23.0}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|35.0}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|14.1}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|23.8}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|3.2}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|0.9}}
|-
| 2010
| {{percentage bar|width=70|32.3}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|35.6}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|12.2}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|14.3}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|3.3}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|2.3}}
|-
| 2020
| {{percentage bar|width=70|48.3}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|29.9}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|9.2}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|8.7}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|2.5}}
| {{percentage bar|width=70|1.4}}
|}

==Religion==
{{Main|Religion in Singapore}}

{{Pie chart
|thumb = right
|caption = Religion in Singapore (census 2020)<ref name="2020Religion">{{cite web|last=|date=16 June 2021|title=20% of Singapore residents have no religion, an increase from the last population census|url=https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/census-2020-more-residents-no-religion-15023964|access-date=17 June 2021|website=Channel News Asia|archive-date=16 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210616140325/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/census-2020-more-residents-no-religion-15023964|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Singapore Census 2020">{{cite web |url=https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/publications/cop2020/sr1/cop2020sr1.pdf |title=Census of Population 2020: Demographic Characteristics, Education, Language and Religion|website=Department of Statistics Singapore |access-date=25 June 2021 |date=16 June 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/singapore/ |title=Singapore |publisher=CIA World Factbook |access-date=6 June 2021}}</ref>
|label1 = [[Buddhism in Singapore|Buddhism]]
|value1 = 31.3
|color1 = Gold
|label7 = [[Irreligion in Singapore|No religion]] 
|value7 = 19.9
|color7 = White 
|label2 = [[Christianity in Singapore|Christianity]]
|value2 = 18.9
|color2 = DarkBlue
|label3 = [[Islam in Singapore|Islam]]
|value3 = 15.6
|color3 = Green
|label4 = [[Taoism in Singapore|Taoism]] and [[Chinese folk religion|other Chinese religions]]
|value4 = 8.8
|color4 = Red
|label5 = [[Hinduism in Singapore|Hinduism]]
|value5 = 5.0
|color5 = DarkOrange 
|label6 = Other religions
|value6 = 0.6
|color6 = Chartreuse
}}
The main religions of Singapore are [[Chinese folk religion]], [[Buddhism]], [[Taoism]], [[Confucianism]], [[Christianity]], [[Judaism]], [[Islam]], [[Hinduism]], and [[Sikhism]], with a significant number who profess no religion.<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite book|url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/C2010sr1/cop2010sr1.pdf|title=Census of Population 2010 Statistical Release 1: Demographic Characteristics, Education, Language and Religion|date=January 2011|publisher=Department of Statistics, Ministry of Trade & Industry, Republic of Singapore|isbn=978-981-08-7808-5|access-date=28 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110303155259/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/C2010sr1/cop2010sr1.pdf|archive-date=3 March 2011}}</ref><ref name="Census 2000 religion">{{cite web|url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/c2000adr/chap5.pdf |title=Census 2000 – Chapter 5: Religion |access-date=29 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927013657/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/c2000adr/chap5.pdf |archive-date=27 September 2011}}</ref>

Singapore has freedom of religion, although the government restricts some religions such as [[Jehovah's Witnesses]], due to their opposition to conscription. The majority of Malays are [[Islam|Muslim]], while the plurality of Chinese practise Buddhism and syncretic Chinese folk traditions. [[Christianity]] is growing in the country. [[Taoism]] was overtaken as the second-most prominent religion in the 2000 census among the Chinese as more have increasingly described themselves as Buddhists rather than Taoist.<ref name="Census 2000 religion"/> Indians are mostly [[Hindu]]s, though many are [[Muslims]], [[Sikhs]], and [[Christians]]. People who practise no religion form the second largest group in Singapore.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2001/5732.htm|title=Singapore|website=state.gov|access-date=30 April 2018}}</ref>
{{clear}}

==Marriage and divorce==
{{Update|section|date=October 2025}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+Marriages and divorces<ref name="Singstat 2015 Population" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/stats/themes/people/marriages.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=9 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071124144733/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/stats/themes/people/marriages.pdf |archive-date=24 November 2007}} ''Singapore Department of Statistics''.</ref>
|-
!
! 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012 || 2013 || 2014 || 2015 || 2016 || 2017
|-
|'''Number of marriages''' (excluding previously married)
|align=center | 24,596 || 26,081 || 24,363 || 27,258 || 27,936 || 26,254 || 28,407
|-
|'''Number of divorces''' (not including divorces under Muslim law)
|align=center | 5,170 || 5,416 || 5,433 || 5,696 || 5,306 || 5,471 || 5,172 || 5,450 || 5,505 || 5,570
|-
| colspan="8" | '''Median age of first marriage''' (years)
|-
|...Grooms
|align=center | 29.8 || 29.8 || 30.0 || 30.1 || 30.1 || 30.1 || 30.2
|--
|...Brides
|align=center | 27.3 || 27.5 || 27.7 || 28.0 || 28.0 || 28.1 || 28.2
|--
| colspan="8" | '''General marriage rate'''
|--
|...Males (per 1,000 unmarried resident males aged 15 to 49)
|align=center | 43.5 || 43.4 || 39.3 || 43.5 || 43.8 || 40.5 || 44.4
|--
|...Females (per 1,000 unmarried resident females aged 15 to 49)
|align=center | 39.6 || 38.9 || 35.3 || 39.2 || 39.4 || 36.9 || 40.8
|--
|colspan="8" | '''Median age at divorce''' (years)
|--
|...Grooms
|align=center | 39.9 || 40.5 || 41.0 || 41.3 || 41.6 || 42.4 || 42.6
|--
|...Brides
|align=center | 36.3 || 36.9 || 37.4 || 37.7 || 38.0 || 38.2 || 38.4
|--
|colspan="8" | '''General divorce rate'''
|--
|...Males (per 1,000 married resident males aged 20 years and over)
|align=center | 7.5 || 7.5 || 7.5 || 7.6 || 7.1 || 7.3 || 7.0
|--
|...Females (per 1,000 married resident females aged 20 years and over)
|align=center | 7.3 || 7.1 || 7.2 || 7.2 || 6.7 || 6.9 || 6.5
|--
|'''Crude marriage rate''' (per 1,000 resident population)
|align=center | || || || 6.7 || || ||

|--
|'''Crude rate of marital dissolution''' (per 1,000 resident population)
|align=center | || || || 2.0 || || ||

|}

==Literacy and education==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Literacy rate population aged 15 years and above<ref>{{Cite web|title=Education, Language Spoken and Literacy – Latest Data|url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/population/education-language-spoken-and-literacy/latest-data|website=Base|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref>
|-
! Year
! Total
! Male
! Female
|-
| 1960
| {{percentage bar|52.6}}
| {{percentage bar|70.3}}
| {{percentage bar|32.8}}
|-
| 1970
| {{percentage bar|68.9}}
| {{percentage bar|83.0}}
| {{percentage bar|54.3}}
|-
| 1980
| {{percentage bar|82.3}}
| {{percentage bar|91.4}}
| {{percentage bar|73.1}}
|-
| 1990
| {{percentage bar|89.1}}
| {{percentage bar|95.1}}
| {{percentage bar|83.0}}
|-
| 2000
| {{percentage bar|92.5}}
| {{percentage bar|96.6}}
| {{percentage bar|88.6}}
|-
| 2010
| {{percentage bar|95.9}}
| {{percentage bar|98.0}}
| {{percentage bar|93.8}}
|-
<!--
| 2011
| {{percentage bar|96.2}}
| {{percentage bar|98.4}}
| {{percentage bar|94.1}}
|-
| 2012
| {{percentage bar|96.4}}
| {{percentage bar|98.5}}
| {{percentage bar|94.4}}
|-
| 2013
| {{percentage bar|96.6}}
| {{percentage bar|98.5}}
| {{percentage bar|94.7}}
|-
| 2014
| {{percentage bar|96.7}}
| {{percentage bar|98.6}}
| {{percentage bar|94.9}}
|-
| 2015
| {{percentage bar|96.8}}
| {{percentage bar|98.6}}
| {{percentage bar|95.2}}
|-
| 2016
| {{percentage bar|97.0}}
| {{percentage bar|98.7}}
| {{percentage bar|95.4}}
|-
| 2017
| {{percentage bar|97.2}}
| {{percentage bar|98.8}}
| {{percentage bar|95.7}}
|-
| 2018
| {{percentage bar|97.3}}
| {{percentage bar|98.9}}
| {{percentage bar|95.9}}
|-
| 2019
| {{percentage bar|97.5}}
| {{percentage bar|98.9}}
| {{percentage bar|96.1}}
-->
|-
| 2020
| {{percentage bar|97.1}}
| {{percentage bar|98.5}}
| {{percentage bar|95.8}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Highest qualification attained of resident non-student population aged 25 years and over<ref name="Singstat 2012" />
|-
! Year
! Below secondary
! Secondary
! Post-secondary<br />(non-tertiary)
! Diploma or<br />professional<br />qualification
! University
|-
| 2001
| {{percentage bar|46.9}}
| {{percentage bar|24.1}}
| {{percentage bar|6.6}}
| {{percentage bar|8.9}}
| {{percentage bar|13.6}}
|-
| 2011
| {{percentage bar|33.4}}
| {{percentage bar|19.6}}
| {{percentage bar|8.9}}
| {{percentage bar|13.6}}
| {{percentage bar|24.5}}
|-
| 2020
| {{percentage bar|25.5}}
| {{percentage bar|16.3}}
| {{percentage bar|10.0}}
| {{percentage bar|15.3}}
| {{percentage bar|33.0}}
|}

Among residents aged 25–39 years, the percentage of university graduates increased from 23.7% in 2001 to 45.9% in 2011 while that who had attained a diploma or professional qualification increased from 15.9% to 22.9% over the same period.<ref name="Singstat 2012" />

==Employment==
{{Update|section|date=October 2025}}
In 2005, the unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and over was 2.5%, the lowest in the last four years, with a labour force of 2.3 million people.<ref>"[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/mqstats/indicators.html Latest Data (1 February 2006)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050711015920/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/mqstats/indicators.html |date=11 July 2005}} – ''Singapore Department of Statistics''. URL accessed on 2 February 2006.</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Singapore's employment hits all-time high of 2.3 m in 2005 | publisher = Channel NewsAsia | date = 1 February 2006 | url = http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/191175/1/.html | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060218031934/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/191175/1/.html | archive-date = 18 February 2006}} By May Wong.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/annual/yos/yos110.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=16 July 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051031041632/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/annual/yos/yos110.pdf |archive-date=31 October 2005}} ''Department of Statistics, Singapore''.</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Employment (thousands)<ref name="MOM 2012">[http://www.mom.gov.sg/Publications/mrsd_qtlmr124.pdf Labour Market 2012] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130319135857/http://www.mom.gov.sg/Publications/mrsd_qtlmr124.pdf |date=19 March 2013}} ''Ministry of Manpower, Singapore''.</ref>
|-
! rowspan="2" | Year || colspan="11" | Employment ''change'' || rowspan="2" | Employment in December 2012
|-
! 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012
|-
| Total || −22.9 || −12.9 || 71.4 || 113.3 || 176.0 || 234.9 || 221.6 || 37.6 || 115.9 || 122.6 || 129.1 || 3,357.6
|-
| Total (excluding foreign domestic workers) || −23.6 || −11.7 || 66.4 || 105.5 || 168.0 || 223.5 || 213.4 || 32.9 || 110.6 || 117.7 || 125.8 || 3,148.0
|-
| Locals || 19.4 || 14.9 || 49.9 || 63.5 || 90.9 || 90.4 || 64.7 || 41.8 || 56.2 || 37.9 || 58.7 || 2,089.3
|-
| Foreigners || −42.3 || −27.9 || 21.5 || 49.8 || 85.1 || 144.5 || 156.9 || −4.2 || 59.7 || 84.8 || 70.4 || 1,268.3
|-
| Foreigners (excluding foreign domestic workers) || −43.0 || −26.6 || 16.5 || 42.0 || 77.1 || 133.1 || 148.7 || −8.9 || 54.4 || 79.8 || 67.1 || 1,058.7
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+Unemployment rate (%) for persons aged 15 years and over<ref name="Singstat 2015 Key Indicators">[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/reference/yearbook_2015/excel/topic1.xls topic1] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912044859/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/publications/publications_and_papers/reference/yearbook_2015/excel/topic1.xls|date=12 September 2015}} (Key Indicators). See Table 1.14 on ''Education and Literacy'' and Table 1.11 on ''Employment''. Retrieved from [https://web.archive.org/web/20150108100846/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications-and-papers/reference/yoscontents Statistics Singapore – Yearbook of Statistics Singapore, 2015], ''Department of Statistics, Singapore''. Retrieved on 28 August 2015.</ref><ref name="MOM 2012" />
|-
! Year
! Overall
! Residents
! Singapore citizens
|-
| 2002
| {{percentage bar|3.6}}
| {{percentage bar|4.8}}
| {{percentage bar|5.1}}
|-
| 2003
| {{percentage bar|4.0}}
| {{percentage bar|5.2}}
| {{percentage bar|5.4}}
|-
| 2004
| {{percentage bar|3.4}}
| {{percentage bar|4.4}}
| {{percentage bar|4.8}}
|-
| 2005
| {{percentage bar|3.1}}
| {{percentage bar|4.1}}
| {{percentage bar|4.4}}
|-
| 2006
| {{percentage bar|2.7}}
| {{percentage bar|3.6}}
| {{percentage bar|3.7}}
|-
| 2007
| {{percentage bar|2.1}}
| {{percentage bar|3.0}}
| {{percentage bar|3.1}}
|-
| 2008
| {{percentage bar|2.2}}
| {{percentage bar|3.2}}
| {{percentage bar|3.4}}
|-
| 2009
| {{percentage bar|3.0}}
| {{percentage bar|4.3}}
| {{percentage bar|4.5}}
|-
| 2010
| {{percentage bar|2.2}}
| {{percentage bar|3.1}}
| {{percentage bar|3.4}}
|-
| 2011
| {{percentage bar|2.0}}
| {{percentage bar|2.9}}
| {{percentage bar|3.0}}
|-
| 2012
| {{percentage bar|2.0}}
| {{percentage bar|2.8}}
| {{percentage bar|3.0}}
|-
| 2013
| {{percentage bar|2.0}}
|
|
|-
| 2014
| {{percentage bar|2.0}}
|
|
|}

==Household income==

===Average household monthly income===
The average household monthly income was [[Singapore dollar|SGD]] 4,943 in 2000, which was an increase of $3,080 in 1990 at an average annual rate of 4.9%. The average household income experienced a drop of 2.7% in 1999 due to economic slowdown. Measured in 1990 dollars, the average household monthly income rose from SGD$3,080 in 1990 to SGD$4,170 in 2000 at an average annual rate of 3.1%.<ref name="adr-hhinc">{{cite web |url=http://mms.elibraryhub.com/SHC/Govt/MTI/SingStat/c2000adr-hhinc.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=29 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110822074736/http://mms.elibraryhub.com/SHC/Govt/MTI/SingStat/c2000adr-hhinc.pdf |archive-date=22 August 2011}} ''Department of Statistics, Singapore.''</ref>

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Household income from work <small>([[Singapore dollar|SGD]])</small><ref name="adr-hhinc" /><ref name="adr2011-hhinc">{{cite web |url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/papers/people/pp-s18.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=27 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113154915/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/papers/people/pp-s18.pdf |archive-date=13 November 2012 }} ''Department of Statistics, Singapore.''</ref>
|-
! Year || 1990 || 1995 || 1997 || 1998 || 1999 || 2000 || 2010 || 2011 || 2017
|-
| Average income || 3,076 || 4,107 || 4,745 || 4,822 || 4,691 || 4,943 || 8,726 || 9,618 ||11,589
|-
| Median income || 2,296 || 3,135 || 3,617 || 3,692 || 3,500 || 3,607 || 5,600 || 6,307 || 8,846
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+ Households income from work by ethnic group per head <small>([[Singapore dollar|SGD]])</small><ref name="adr-hhinc" />
|-
! rowspan="2" | Ethnic group
! colspan="3" | Average household<br />income
! colspan="4" | Median household<br />income
|-
! 1990
! 2000
! 2010<ref name="sing stat">{{cite web |url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications_and_papers/cop2010/census_2010_release2/cop2010sr2.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=21 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140113221750/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/Publications/publications_and_papers/cop2010/census_2010_release2/cop2010sr2.pdf |archive-date=13 January 2014}}</ref>
! 1990
! 2000
! 2010<ref name="sing stat" />
! 2020
|-
|'''Total'''
|'''3,076'''
|'''4,943'''
|'''7,214'''
|'''2,296'''
|'''3,607'''
|'''5,000'''
|'''7,744'''
|-
|Chinese
|3,213
|5,219
|7,326
|2,400
|3,848
|5,100
|7,792
|-
|Malays
|2,246
|3,148
|4,575
|1,880
|2,708
|3,844
|5,704
|-
|Indians
|2,859
|4,556
|7,664
|2,174
|3,387
|5,370
|8,500
|-
|Others
|3,885
|7,250
|
|2,782
|4,775
|
|}

===Household income distribution===
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Resident households by monthly household income from work ''including'' employer CPF contributions (%)<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Household Income – Latest Data|url=http://www.singstat.gov.sg/find-data/search-by-theme/households/household-income/latest-data|website=Base|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref>
|-
! Year || 2000 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012
!2013
!2014
!2015
!2016
!2017
!2018
!2019
|-
| No working person || 8.6 || 6.9 || 9 || 9.7 || 9.8 || 10 || 9 || 8.6 || 8.6 || 9.6 || 10.5 || 9.3 || 9.2
|9.4
|10.4
|9.7
|10.8
|11.8
|12.1
|13.2
|-
| Retiree households || 2.6 || 2.3 || 3 || 3.6 || 3.7 || 3.5 || 4.1 || 4.1 || 3.8 || 4 || 4.1 || 4.5 || 4.7
|4.9
|5.7
|5.3
|6.1
|6.9
|7.1
|7.9
|-
| Below $1,000 || 3.3 || 3.9 || 4 || 4.6 || 4.3 || 4.3 || 4.4 || 4.3 || 3.8 || 4.1 || 3.5 || 3.2 || 3
|2.7
|2.3
|2
|2
|1.9
|1.9
|1.8
|-
| $1,000–$1,999 || 12.2 || 11.1 || 11.5 || 11.1 || 11.4 || 10.9 || 10.5 || 9.8 || 8.3 || 7.8 || 7 || 6.5 || 6.2
|6.2
|5.9
|5.7
|5.5
|5.4
|5.3
|5.1
|-
| $2,000–$2,999 || 13.2 || 12.7 || 12.5 || 11.9 || 12.2 || 11.4 || 11.2 || 10 || 8.6 || 8.6 || 8.2 || 7.1 || 6.3
|6.3
|5.8
|5.8
|5.4
|5.1
|5.2
|4.9
|-
| $3,000–$3,999 || 12.6 || 11.5 || 11.6 || 11.7 || 11.4 || 10.7 || 10.8 || 9.7 || 8.5 || 8.9 || 8.3 || 7.6 || 6.6
|6.7
|6
|5.5
|5.3
|5.5
|5.2
|5.2
|-
| $4,000–$4,999 || 10.2 || 9.8 || 9.5 || 9.4 || 9.6 || 9.1 || 8.9 || 8.8 || 8.4 || 8.1 || 7.9 || 7.2 || 7
|6.3
|5.9
|5.9
|5.4
|5.2
|5.3
|5.4
|-
| $5,000–$5,999 || 8.3 || 8.3 || 8.1 || 7.9 || 7.9 || 7.9 || 8.1 || 7.7 || 7.3 || 7.5 || 7.4 || 7 || 6.8
|6.4
|6.1
|5.7
|5.9
|5.4
|5.4
|4.9
|-
| $6,000–$6,999 || 6.7 || 6.7 || 6.4 || 6.9 || 6.3 || 6.4 || 6.9 || 6.8 || 6.4 || 6.9 || 6.7 || 6.5 || 6.1
|5.8
|5.8
|5.8
|5.8
|5.2
|5.2
|4.9
|-
| $7,000–$7,999 || 5.1 || 5.3 || 5.1 || 4.9 || 5.3 || 5.4 || 5.3 || 5.7 || 5.9 || 5.7 || 5.7 || 6 || 5.8
|5.6
|5.4
|5.3
|5.1
|5.2
|4.6
|4.6
|-
| $8,000–$8,999 || 4 || 4.3 || 4.3 || 4 || 4.1 || 4.5 || 4.4 || 4.7 || 5.1 || 4.7 || 5.1 || 5.4 || 5.4
|5.1
|5.1
|5.3
|4.9
|5
|4.7
|4.6
|-
| $9,000–$9,999 || 3.1 || 3.5 || 3.3 || 3.4 || 3.3 || 3.4 || 3.5 || 3.8 || 4.1 || 4.1 || 4.2 || 4.7 || 4.7
|4.6
|4.7
|4.8
|4.6
|4.6
|4.4
|4.1
|-
| $10,000–$10,999 || 2.4 || 2.9 || 2.8 || 2.7 || 2.7 || 2.8 || 2.9 || 3.3 || 3.8 || 3.7 || 3.8 || 4.1 || 4.1
|4.4
|4.7
|4.3
|4.6
|4.3
|4.3
|4.2
|-
| $11,000–$11,999 || 1.8 || 2.1 || 2.1 || 1.9 || 1.9 || 2.1 || 2.3 || 2.6 || 3.2 || 2.9 || 3 || 3.3 || 3.8
|3.7
|3.6
|3.8
|3.8
|3.6
|3.8
|3.8
|-
| $12,000–$12,999 || 1.5 || 1.8 || 1.5 || 1.5 || 1.5 || 1.8 || 1.9 || 1.9 || 2.4 || 2.4 || 2.6 || 2.7 || 3.3
|3.4
|3.3
|3.6
|3.5
|3.2
|3.2
|3.4
|-
| $13,000–$13,999 || 1.1 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.4 || 1.5 || 1.9 || 2 || 2.2 || 2.1 || 2.4 || 2.6
|2.8
|3
|3
|3
|3
|3.2
|3
|-
| $14,000–$14,999 || 0.9 || 1.1 || 1.1 || 1.1 || 1 || 1.1 || 1.2 || 1.4 || 1.7 || 1.8 || 1.8 || 2.1 || 2.2
|2.6
|2.6
|2.7
|2.6
|2.7
|2.6
|2.8
|-
| $15,000–$17,499 || 1.6 || 2 || 1.8 || 1.9 || 1.8 || 2.1 || 2 || 2.6 || 3.2 || 3.2 || 3.5 || 4.2 || 4.6
|4.7
|4.9
|5.2
|5.5
|5.6
|5.8
|5.4
|-
|$17,500–$19,999
|1
|1.4
|1.2
|1.1
|1.2
|1.3
|1.4
|1.7
|2.2
|2.1
|2.2
|2.8
|3.1
|3.3
|3.5
|3.8
|4
|4.1
|4.2
|4.1
|-
|$20,000 and over
|2.4
|3.2
|2.8
|3
|2.9
|3.4
|3.8
|4.7
|6.4
|5.7
|6.6
|8
|9.2
|9.9
|11
|12.1
|12.4
|13.3
|13.5
|14.4
|}

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Resident households by monthly household income from work ''excluding'' employer CPF contributions (%)<ref name=":1" />
|-
! Year || 2000 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012
!2013
!2014
!2015
!2016
!2017
!2018
!2019
|-
| No working person || 8.6 || 6.9 || 9 || 9.7 || 9.8 || 10 || 9 || 8.6 || 8.6 || 9.6 || 10.5 || 9.3 || 9.2
|9.4
|10.4
|9.7
|10.8
|11.8
|12.1
|13.2
|-
| Retiree households || 2.6 || 2.3 || 3 || 3.6 || 3.7 || 3.5 || 4.1 || 4.1 || 3.8 || 4 || 4.1 || 4.5 || 4.7
|4.9
|5.7
|5.3
|6.1
|6.9
|7.1
|7.9
|-
| Below $1,000 || 3.9 || 4.4 || 4.6 || 5.2 || 4.8 || 4.8 || 4.9 || 4.7 || 4 || 4.3 || 3.7 || 3.4 || 3.2
|2.9
|2.4
|2.2
|2.1
|2.1
|2
|2
|-
| $1,000–$1,999 || 13.8 || 13.3 || 13.6 || 13 || 12.9 || 12.3 || 11.9 || 10.9 || 9.5 || 9 || 8.2 || 7.5 || 7
|7.2
|6.7
|6.6
|6.4
|6.2
|6.1
|5.9
|-
| $2,000–$2,999 || 14.7 || 14.2 || 14.1 || 13.9 || 13.6 || 12.7 || 12.4 || 11.2 || 9.8 || 9.9 || 9.3 || 8.3 || 7.3
|7.2
|6.7
|6.5
|6
|6
|6
|5.5
|-
| $3,000–$3,999 || 13.1 || 12.6 || 12.4 || 12.2 || 12.2 || 11.5 || 11.3 || 10.6 || 9.7 || 9.9 || 9.3 || 8.3 || 7.7
|7.4
|7
|6.7
|6.4
|6.2
|6
|6.2
|-
| $4,000–$4,999 || 10.3 || 10 || 9.8 || 9.7 || 9.8 || 9.4 || 9.5 || 9.2 || 8.9 || 8.5 || 8.6 || 8.2 || 8
|7.4
|6.8
|6.5
|6.5
|6.1
|6.3
|5.8
|-
| $5,000–$5,999 || 8.2 || 8.3 || 7.9 || 8.2 || 7.8 || 7.9 || 8.2 || 7.9 || 7.6 || 8.2 || 7.8 || 7.5 || 7.3
|6.9
|6.7
|6.7
|6.7
|6.3
|6
|6
|-
| $6,000–$6,999 || 6.3 || 6.3 || 6.1 || 6 || 6 || 6.3 || 6.4 || 6.7 || 6.4 || 6.7 || 6.6 || 6.7 || 6.4
|6.3
|6.1
|6.1
|6
|5.8
|5.5
|5.4
|-
| $7,000–$7,999 || 4.6 || 4.7 || 4.8 || 4.6 || 4.8 || 5 || 4.9 || 5.3 || 5.9 || 5.2 || 5.6 || 6 || 5.9
|5.8
|5.7
|5.9
|5.6
|5.7
|5
|5
|-
| $8,000–$8,999 || 3.5 || 3.9 || 3.6 || 3.6 || 3.8 || 3.9 || 3.9 || 4.2 || 4.6 || 4.6 || 4.8 || 5.2 || 5.3
|5
|5.2
|5
|5.3
|5
|5.2
|4.6
|-
| $9,000–$9,999 || 2.6 || 3 || 2.9 || 2.6 || 2.7 || 2.8 || 3 || 3.4 || 3.9 || 3.7 || 3.9 || 4.2 || 4.2
|4.6
|4.7
|4.5
|4.5
|4.5
|4.4
|4.5
|-
| $10,000–$10,999 || 2.1 || 2.2 || 2.3 || 2.2 || 2.1 || 2.4 || 2.6 || 3 || 3.4 || 3.4 || 3.4 || 3.7 || 4.2
|4.3
|4
|4.3
|4.3
|3.9
|4.2
|4.2
|-
| $11,000–$11,999 || 1.5 || 1.7 || 1.3 || 1.5 || 1.6 || 1.8 || 1.9 || 1.9 || 2.5 || 2.4 || 2.6 || 2.7 || 3.2
|3.3
|3.3
|3.5
|3.5
|3.4
|3.6
|3.5
|-
| $12,000–$12,999 || 1.2 || 1.4 || 1.3 || 1.3 || 1.4 || 1.5 || 1.6 || 2 || 2 || 2.3 || 2.2 || 2.5 || 2.6
|3
|3.1
|3.2
|3
|3
|3.1
|3.2
|-
| $13,000–$13,999 || 0.9 || 1.1 || 1 || 1.1 || 1 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 1.6 || 1.8 || 1.8 || 2.1 || 2.3
|2.5
|2.5
|2.7
|2.8
|2.7
|2.7
|2.6
|-
| $14,000–$14,999 || 0.7 || 0.8 || 0.7 || 0.7 || 0.7 || 0.9 || 0.9 || 1.1 || 1.4 || 1.4 || 1.5 || 1.8 || 1.9
|2.1
|2.3
|2.2
|2.3
|2.4
|2.4
|2.4
|-
| $15,000–$17,499 || 1.3 || 1.6 || 1.5 || 1.4 || 1.5 || 1.7 || 1.6 || 2.1 || 2.7 || 2.6 || 2.8 || 3.6 || 3.8
|4
|4.1
|4.4
|4.6
|4.9
|5.1
|4.8
|-
|$17,500–$19,999
|0.8
|1.1
|1
|0.9
|0.9
|1
|1.3
|1.5
|1.8
|1.6
|1.8
|2.2
|2.6
|2.6
|2.9
|3.2
|3.3
|3.4
|3.2
|3.5
|-
|$20,000 and over
|2
|2.5
|2.2
|2.3
|2.5
|2.9
|3.4
|4.2
|5.5
|4.9
|5.7
|6.8
|7.7
|8.3
|9.2
|10.1
|9.9
|10.7
|11.1
|11.7
|}

===Growth in household income by decile===
With the recovery from the 1998 economic slowdown, household income growth had resumed for the majority of households in 2000. However, for the lowest two deciles, the average household income in 2000 had declined compared with 1999. This was mainly due to the increase in the proportion of households with no [[income earner]] from 75% in 1999 to 87% in 2000 for the lowest 10%. Households with no income earner include those with retired elderly persons as well as unemployed members.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mms.elibraryhub.com/SHC/Govt/MTI/SingStat/c2000adr-hhinc.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=29 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110822074736/http://mms.elibraryhub.com/SHC/Govt/MTI/SingStat/c2000adr-hhinc.pdf |archive-date=22 August 2011 }}</ref>

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size: 90%;"
|+Average monthly household income from work ''including'' employer CPF contributions among resident employed households<small>([[Singapore dollar|SGD]])</small><ref name="Singstat Income">[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications_and_papers/household_income_and_expenditure/pp-s19.pdf Key Household Income Trends 2012] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810003500/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/Publications/publications_and_papers/household_income_and_expenditure/pp-s19.pdf|date=10 August 2013}} ''Department of Statistics, Singapore.''</ref><ref>[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/statistics/browse_by_theme/population/time_series/hhinc.xls "Household Income from work 2000–2014"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151005183818/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/statistics/browse_by_theme/population/time_series/hhinc.xls |date=5 October 2015}}, The Department of Statistics, Singapore. Retrieved 4 October 2015</ref>
|-
! rowspan="2" | Decile || colspan="15" | Average monthly household income <small>([[Singapore dollar|SGD]])</small> || colspan="14" | Nominal annual change (%)
|-
! 2000 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012 || 2013 || 2014 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012 || 2013 || 2014
|-
| Total || 5,947 || 6,417 || 6,229 || 6,276 || 6,285 || 6,593 || 6,792 || 7,431 || 8,414 || 8,195 || 8,726 || 9,618 || 10,348 || 10,469 || 11,143 || 7.9 || −2.9 || 0.8 || 0.1 || 4.9 || 3.0 || 9.4 || 13.2 || −2.6 || 6.5 || 10.2 || 7.6 || 1.2 || 6.4
|-
| 1st – 10th || 1,382 || 1,331 || 1,266 || 1,223 || 1,232 || 1,257 || 1,258 || 1,321 || 1,399 || 1,361 || 1,497 || 1,581 || 1,644 || 1,711 || 1,775 || −3.7 || −4.9 || −3.4 || 0.7 || 2.0 || 0.1 || 5.0 || 5.9 || −2.7 || 10.0 || 5.6 || 4.0 || 4.1 || 3.7
|-
| 11th – 20th || 2,241 || 2,275 || 2,180 || 2,164 || 2,199 || 2,257 || 2,305 || 2,418 || 2,700 || 2,696 || 2,940 || 3,135 || 3,302 || 3,372 || 3,641 || 1.5 || −4.2 || −0.7 || 1.6 || 2.6 || 2.1 || 4.9 || 11.7 || −0.1 || 9.1 || 6.6 || 5.3 || 2.1 || 8.0
|-
| 21st – 30th || 2,986 || 3,043 || 2,944 || 2,984 || 2,988 || 3,116 || 3,182 || 3,379 || 3,831 || 3,787 || 4,158 || 4,421 || 4,782 || 4,993 || 5,226 || 1.9 || −3.3 || 1.4 || 0.1 || 4.3 || 2.1 || 6.2 || 13.4 || −1.1 || 9.8 || 6.3 || 8.2 || 4.4 || 4.7
|-
| 31st – 40th || 3,683 || 3,867 || 3,722 || 3,746 || 3,786 || 4,020 || 4,038 || 4,335 || 4,906 || 4,978 || 5,418 || 5,794 || 6,183 || 6,376 || 6,863 || 5.0 || −3.7 || 0.6 || 1.1 || 6.2 || 0.4 || 7.4 || 13.2 || 1.5 || 8.8 || 6.9 || 6.7 || 3.1 || 7.6
|-
| 41st – 50th || 4,505 || 4,680 || 4,572 || 4,637 || 4,648 || 4,859 || 4,971 || 5,358 || 6,055 || 5,980 || 6,603 || 7,032 || 7,608 || 7,993 || 8,303 || 3.9 || −2.3 || 1.4 || 0.2 || 4.5 || 2.3 || 7.8 || 13.0 || −1.2 || 10.4 || 6.5 || 8.2 || 5.1 || 3.9
|-
| 51st – 60th || 5,304 || 5,677 || 5,522 || 5,638 || 5,504 || 5,865 || 6,027 || 6,561 || 7,492 || 7,319 || 7,840 || 8,436 || 9,133 || 9,469 || 10,108 || 7.0 || −2.7 || 2.1 || −2.4 || 6.6 || 2.8 || 8.9 || 14.2 || −2.3 || 7.1 || 7.6 || 8.3 || 3.7 || 6.7
|-
| 61st – 70th || 6,354 || 6,751 || 6,664 || 6,725 || 6,633 || 7,136 || 7,180 || 7,928 || 8,957 || 8,798 || 9,310 || 10,101 || 10,894 || 11,293 || 11,861 || 6.2 || −1.3 || 0.9 || −1.4 || 7.6 || 0.6 || 10.4 || 13.0 || −1.8 || 5.8 || 8.5 || 7.9 || 3.7 || 5.0
|-
| 71st – 80th || 7,608 || 8,322 || 8,132 || 8,229 || 8,012 || 8,641 || 8,809 || 9,479 || 10,820 || 10,694 || 11,105 || 12,306 || 13,186 || 13,807 || 14,496 || 9.4 || −2.3 || 1.2 || −2.6 || 7.9 || 1.9 || 7.6 || 14.1 || −1.2 || 3.8 || 10.8 || 7.2 || 4.7 || 5.0
|-
| 81st – 90th || 9,461 || 10,755 || 10,294 || 10,271 || 10,350 || 10,701 || 11,048 || 12,386 || 14,013 || 13,423 || 13,943 || 15,509 || 16,366 || 16,984 || 18,017 || 13.7 || −4.3 || −0.2 || 0.8 || 3.4 || 3.2 || 12.1 || 13.1 || −4.2 || 3.9 || 11.2 || 5.5 || 3.8 || 6.1
|-
| 91st – 100th || 15,946 || 17,467 || 16,998 || 17,146 || 17,493 || 18,076 || 19,100 || 21,146 || 23,968 || 22,909 || 24,442 || 27,867 || 30,379 || 28,688 || 31,142 || 9.5 || −2.7 || 0.9 || 2.0 || 3.3 || 5.7 || 10.7 || 13.3 || −4.4 || 6.7 || 14.0 || 9.0 || −5.6 || 8.6
|}

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size: 90%;"
|+ Average monthly household income from work ''excluding'' employer CPF contributions among resident employed households<small>([[Singapore dollar|SGD]])</small><ref name="Singstat Income" />
|-
! rowspan="2" | Decile || colspan="13" | Average monthly household income <small>([[Singapore dollar|SGD]])</small> || colspan="12" | Nominal annual change (%)
|-
! 2000 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012
|-
| Total || 5,456 || 5,736 || 5,572 || 5,618 || 5,761 || 6,052 || 6,280 || 6,889 || 7,752 || 7,549 || 8,058 || 8,864 || 9,515 || 5.1 || −2.9 || 0.8 || 2.5 || 5.1 || 3.8 || 9.7 || 12.5 || −2.6 || 6.7 || 10.0 || 7.3
|-
| 1st – 10th || 1,285 || 1,209 || 1,151 || 1,112 || 1,140 || 1,162 || 1,165 || 1,223 || 1,300 || 1,264 || 1,385 || 1,460 || 1,518 || −5.9 || −4.8 || −3.4 || 2.5 || 1.9 || 0.3 || 5.0 || 6.3 || −2.8 || 9.6 || 5.4 || 4.0
|-
| 11th – 20th || 2,062 || 2,040 || 1,956 || 1,942 || 2,009 || 2,064 || 2,114 || 2,218 || 2,464 || 2,462 || 2,679 || 2,834 || 2,985 || −1.1 || −4.1 || −0.7 || 3.5 || 2.7 || 2.4 || 4.9 || 11.1 || −0.1 || 8.8 || 5.8 || 5.3
|-
| 21st – 30th || 2,737 || 2,717 || 2,627 || 2,668 || 2,721 || 2,833 || 2,903 || 3,078 || 3,464 || 3,436 || 3,759 || 3,988 || 4,290 || −0.7 || −3.3 || 1.6 || 2.0 || 4.1 || 2.5 || 6.0 || 12.5 || −0.8 || 9.4 || 6.1 || 7.6
|-
| 31st – 40th || 3,367 || 3,434 || 3,312 || 3,330 || 3,431 || 3,645 || 3,673 || 3,950 || 4,420 || 4,495 || 4,887 || 5,200 || 5,529 || 2.0 || −3.6 || 0.5 || 3.0 || 6.2 || 0.8 || 7.5 || 11.9 || 1.7 || 8.7 || 6.4 || 6.3
|-
| 41st – 50th || 4,097 || 4,149 || 4,043 || 4,103 || 4,200 || 4,390 || 4,514 || 4,870 || 5,455 || 5,391 || 5,959 || 6,303 || 6,800 || 1.3 || −2.6 || 1.5 || 2.4 || 4.5 || 2.8 || 7.9 || 12.0 || −1.2 || 10.5 || 5.8 || 7.9
|-
| 51st – 60th || 4,830 || 5,015 || 4,884 || 4,981 || 4,978 || 5,301 || 5,477 || 5,962 || 6,753 || 6,601 || 7,090 || 7,587 || 8,196 || 3.8 || −2.6 || 2.0 || −0.1 || 6.5 || 3.3 || 8.9 || 13.3 || −2.3 || 7.4 || 7.0 || 8.0
|-
| 61st – 70th || 5,773 || 5,971 || 5,891 || 5,936 || 6,005 || 6,458 || 6,535 || 7,234 || 8,107 || 7,972 || 8,450 || 9,147 || 9,806 || 3.4 || −1.3 || 0.8 || 1.2 || 7.5 || 1.2 || 10.7 || 12.1 || −1.7 || 6.0 || 8.2 || 7.2
|-
| 71st – 80th || 6,919 || 7,365 || 7,187 || 7,273 || 7,256 || 7,846 || 8,046 || 8,694 || 9,849 || 9,733 || 10,142 || 11,193 || 11,973 || 6.4 || −2.4 || 1.2 || −0.2 || 8.1 || 2.5 || 8.1 || 13.3 || −1.2 || 4.2 || 10.4 || 7.0
|-
| 81st – 90th || 8,631 || 9,557 || 9,144 || 9,142 || 9,443 || 9,797 || 10,203 || 11,491 || 12,916 || 12,354 || 12,887 || 14,307 || 15,038 || 10.7 || −4.3 || 0.0 || 3.3 || 3.7 || 4.1 || 12.6 || 12.4 || −4.4 || 4.3 || 11.0 || 5.1
|-
| 91st – 100th || 14,862 || 15,905 || 15,524 || 15,688 || 16,425 || 17,021 || 18,170 || 20,174 || 22,797 || 21,784 || 23,345 || 26,622 || 29,012 || 7.0 || −2.4 || 1.1 || 4.7 || 3.6 || 6.8 || 11.0 || 13.0 || −4.4 || 7.2 || 14.0 || 9.0
|}

===Household income ratio===
The disparity in household income had widened in 2000, reflecting the faster income growth for the higher-income households.<ref name="adr-hhinc" /><ref>http://hdr.undp.org/reports/global/2004/pdf/hdr04_HDI.pdf [[United Nations]]<span> Development Programme Report 2004</span> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070718000227/http://hdr.undp.org/reports/global/2004/pdf/hdr04_HDI.pdf|date=18 July 2007}} See page 50–53.</ref>

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:800px;"
|+ Gini coefficient among resident employed households<ref name="Singstat Income" />
|-
! Year || 2000 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012
|-
| Household income from work ''excluding'' employer CPF contributions per household member || 0.444 || 0.456 || 0.457 || 0.460 || 0.464 || 0.470 || 0.476 || 0.489 || 0.481 || 0.478 || 0.480 || 0.482 || 0.488
|-
| Household income from work ''including'' employer CPF contributions per household member || 0.442 || 0.454 || 0.454 || 0.457 || 0.460 || 0.465 || 0.470 || 0.482 || 0.474 || 0.471 || 0.472 || 0.473 || 0.478
|-
| Household income from work ''including'' employer CPF contributions per household member ''after'' accounting for government transfers and taxes || 0.434 || 0.437 || 0.433 || 0.446 || 0.446 || 0.449 || 0.444 || 0.467 || 0.449 || 0.448 || 0.452 || 0.448 || 0.459
|}

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:800px;"
|+ Ratio of household income from work per household member at the 90th percentile to 10th percentile among resident employed households<ref name="Singstat Income" />
|-
! Year || 2000 || 2001 || 2002 || 2003 || 2004 || 2005 || 2006 || 2007 || 2008 || 2009 || 2010 || 2011 || 2012
|-
| Household income from work ''excluding'' employer CPF contributions per household member || 7.74 || 8.68 || 8.49 || 8.51 || 8.81 || 9.26 || 9.3 || 9.52 || 9.61 || 9.25 || 9.43 || 9.12 || 9.18
|-
| Household income from work ''including'' employer CPF contributions per household member || 7.75 || 8.58 || 8.82 || 8.81 || 8.87 || 9.06 || 9.23 || 9.38 || 9.64 || 9.43 || 9.35 || 9.19 || 9.14
|-
| Household income from work ''including'' employer CPF contributions per household member ''after'' accounting for government transfers and taxes || 7.68 || 7.82 || 7.71 || 8.28 || 8.24 || 8.3 || 7.68 || 8.68 || 7.94 || 8.00 || 8.1 || 7.54 || 7.87
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Singapore}}

* [[Singaporeans]]
* [[Malay Singaporeans]]
* [[Chinese Singaporeans]]
* [[Indian Singaporeans]]
* [[Arab Singaporeans]]
* [[Eurasians in Singapore]]
* [[Population planning in Singapore]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
 {{Library resources box
 |onlinebooks=no
 |by=no
|lcheading=Singapore – Population Statistics, Vital.
}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040215001654/http://www.singstat.gov.sg/keystats/people.html#census Census 2000]
*[http://www.singstat.gov.sg/ Singapore Dept of Statistics]

{{Ethnic groups in Singapore}}
{{Singapore topics}}
{{Asia in topic|Demographics of}}
{{Asia topic|Ethnic groups in}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demographics of Singapore}}
[[Category:Demographics of Singapore| ]]
[[Category:Demographics by city|Singapore]]