Parking is the “silent tax” of car ownership in Singapore: it’s fragmented across where you live, where you work, and where you go. Two drivers can own the same car and have wildly different parking exposure.
Start here (fast path)
Parking is a variable cost. If your parking is high, your affordability buffer needs to be higher too. See also ERP and fuel.
To budget parking without overthinking, split it into:
Most people only count (1), underestimate (3), and completely forget (2).
Home parking is usually the easiest to estimate. Your range depends on: whether your home has subsidised season parking, whether you have multiple cars, and whether your estate has scarce lots.
| Living situation | Typical monthly planning range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| HDB (season parking) | $80 – $150 | Often the lowest predictable base. |
| Condo (1 lot included / discounted) | $0 – $120 | Some condos bundle 1 lot; confirm your MCST rules. |
| Condo (additional lots / paid lots) | $120 – $300+ | Second-car penalties can be meaningful. |
| Landed / private arrangement | $0 – $100 | Usually low unless you rent a lot externally. |
Use the upper bound if your parking situation is uncertain or you’re planning for a second car.
Workplace parking is where budgets blow up, because it happens many times per month. A “reasonable” daily rate becomes large when multiplied by 20–24 working days.
| Work pattern | Monthly planning range | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Free / subsidised staff parking | $0 – $80 | Best-case scenario (rare, but exists). |
| Office season parking | $150 – $350 | Common in CBD/fringe areas. |
| Pay-as-you-park (daily) | $200 – $600+ | High variance; depends on where and how long you park. |
If you’re commuting into high-demand areas, workplace parking can exceed your home season parking.
Ad-hoc parking feels small because it’s “only a few dollars”, but it’s frequent: groceries, childcare pickup, short errands, weekend visits, etc.
For budgeting, don’t try to track every ticket. Use a band:
If you do frequent short stops (school runs, multiple errands), use the higher band.
Use this table to pick a realistic monthly number quickly.
| Scenario | Home | Work | Ad-hoc | Total monthly parking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best-case (subsidised work parking) | $80 | $50 | $60 | $190 |
| Typical (office season parking) | $120 | $250 | $120 | $490 |
| Heavy (daily paid parking + family errands) | $150 | $450 | $220 | $820 |
If your route also has meaningful ERP exposure, model that separately here: ERP Cost in Singapore (daily → monthly budget).
Parking is one of the easiest lines to underestimate when people compare “owning a car vs not owning a car”. The clean way to integrate it:
If you want a single master breakdown page, use the pillar: Cost of Owning a Car in Singapore (5-year).
Some calculators include a placeholder number, but parking varies massively by lifestyle. It’s better to set your own parking band, then run the affordability stress test.
Then workplace parking may be near zero — but ad-hoc family usage can still be meaningful if you drive mostly on weekends.
Yes. ERP is route- and time-dependent, but workplace parking is often a predictable, repeated monthly expense. For some commuters, parking is the larger line item.