Are you happy with your salary in Singapore? Rhetorical question, I know… But if you are happy with what you’re making, you might want to close this tab because you’re about to feel jealous of these 38 jobs where people can make above $10,000 a month.
I’m not just talking about the usual suspects like CEOs, but also regular people with just 5 or so years of working experience. Don’t believe me? Check out the following list of highest paying jobs in Singapore, split by industry.
Note: Salary statistics taken from Kelly Services Singapore 2018 Salary Guide. This article will be updated with 2019 data once available.
Highest paying jobs in accounting
Think accounting is only for boring people? Just remember that those drab-looking accountant OLs who visit your office once a year are probably earning more than you.
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Chief Financial Officer | 15 to 20 | $20,000 to $25,000 |
| Finance Director | 15 to 20 | $15,000 to $20,000 |
| Finance Controller | 10 to 15 | $8,500 to $15,000 |
| Senior Manager / Manager (Treasury) | 5 to 8 | $8,000 to $14,000 |
Highest paying jobs in banking & finance
Obviously, banking is a high paying industry in Singapore, as it is everywhere else. Why else do you think the CBD has so many overpriced gyms and eateries?
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Chief Financial Officer | 15 to 20 | $15,000 to $25,000 |
| Finance Director | 10 to 15 | $15,000 to $20,000 |
| Regional Director (Ops) | >10 | $14,000 to $19,000 |
| Head of Compliance | 8 to 10 | $12,000 to $18,000 |
| Vice President (Risk) | 8 to 10 | $12,000 to $16,000 |
| Senior Manager / Manager (Risk) | 4 to 7 | $5,000 to $13,200 |
| Vice President (Trading) | 8 to 10 | $11,000 to $13,000 |
| Manger / Assistant Manager (Ops) | 10 to 12 | $8,000 to $13,000 |
| Senior Manager / Manager (Trading) | 4 to 7 | $5,000 to $12,000 |
Highest paying jobs in engineering & construction
Unfortunately for NTU EEE grads who were told that engineering is a good field to work in, the salaries of engineers in Singapore are pathetically low. In fact, a construction project manager can earn way more than a senior engineer.
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Project Manager (Construction) | >5 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
| Deputy Manager, Commercial (Real Estate / Property Developer) | >8 | $5,200 to $13,000 |
Highest paying jobs in HR
It turns out that human resources is a pretty high-paying profession. Now I just have to figure out whether my contempt for humanity makes me a good fit for HR…
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Regional HR Director | >10 | $10,000 to $18,000 |
| HR Director / Assistant Director | >10 | $8,500 to $15,000 |
| Senior Employee Relations Consultant | 5 to 10 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
| HR Business Partner | 3 to 6 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
Highest paying jobs in law
We’ve heard enough horror stories of Singaporeans whose minds and bodies were broken by the legal profession, and yet the prospect of earning $27,000 a month (someday!) is enough to lure countless youngsters into the gaping maws of law school. Just remember that your working hours are probably double that of a normal person’s.
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Senior Legal Counsel / Legal Counsel | 5 to 10 | $10,000 to $27,000 |
Highest paying jobs in tech
Apart from free breakfast cereal and a dress code of hoodies and jeans, the other great perk of working in tech is the pay. It’s second only to banking & finance in the number of high paying jobs available.
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Chief Technology Officer | 15 to 20 | $13,000 to $21,000 |
| IT Director | 10 to 15 | $12,000 to $15,000 |
| IT Pre-sales/ Sales Manager | 5 to 10 | $7,000 to $15,000 |
| IT Senior Manager | 6 to 10 | $10,000 to $12,000 |
| IT Security Manager | 8 to 10 | $9,000 to $12,000 |
| Project Manager | 10 to 15 | $8,100 to $12,000 |
| Fintech Strategist | 5 to 10 | $7,100 to $12,000 |
| Senior App Developer / App Developer | 3 to 10 | $6,500 to $12,000 |
| App Architect | 6 to 10 | $8,000 to $11,000 |
Highest paying jobs in marketing
No one ever tells their children to study hard so that they can become a marketer when they grow up, but marketing is actually a relatively high-paying field in Singapore. Specialising in digital marketing is a big plus.
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Regional Marketing Director | >10 | $13,000 to $18,000 |
| Director of Corporate Communications | >10 | $11,000 to $15,000 |
| Creative Director | 5 to 8 | $10,000 to $12,000 |
| Regional Marketing Manager | 6 to 10 | $8,000 to $12,000 |
| Senior Marketing Manager | 6 to 10 | $8,000 to $12,000 |
| Digital Marketing Manager | 3 to 5 | $6,000 to $11,000 |
Highest paying jobs in sales
You know that section in the Straits Times’ Sunday edition where they feature some wealthy person who’s made in big in life and now owns 3 houses and 5 cars? It’s always inevitably a property or insurance agent. So it’s no surprise that some of the highest paying jobs in Singapore are found in sales.
| Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| General Manager / Head of Sales / Business Development Head | 12 to 15 | $15,000 to $20,000 |
| Regional Sales / Business Development Director | 6 to 10 | $12,000 to $20,000 |
| Sales / Business Development Director | 6 to 10 | $10,000 to $18,000 |
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10 highest paying early career jobs (~5 years experience)
Salaries in Singapore are often commensurate with the numbers of years of experience you have – but it’s not always the case. In some industries, you needn’t wait till you’re 50 to get a high salary. The following jobs are ones where you have a chance of earning more with less working experience. (For this table, we’re looking only at the lower end of the average monthly salary.)
| Industry | Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Law | Senior Legal Counsel / Legal Counsel | 5 to 10 | $10,000 to $27,000 |
| Marketing | Creative Director | 5 to 8 | $10,000 to $12,000 |
| Accounting | Senior Manager / Manager (Treasury) | 5 to 8 | $8,000 to $14,000 |
| Tech | IT Pre-sales / Sales Manager | 5 to 10 | $7,000 to $15,000 |
| Tech | Fintech Strategist | 5 to 10 | $7,100 to $12,000 |
| Construction | Project Manager (Construction) | >5 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
| HR | HR Business Partner | 3 to 6 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
| HR | Senior Employee Relations Consultant | 5 to 10 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
| Tech | Senior App Developer / App Developer | 3 to 10 | $6,500 to $12,000 |
| Marketing | Digital Marketing Manager | 3 to 5 | $6,000 to $11,000 |
10 highest paying jobs for diploma holders
As you’d expect in qualifications-obsessed Singapore, most of the highest paying jobs here are for degree holders. However, there are a few jobs in which diploma holders might get paid better.
| Industry | Job | Years experience | Monthly salary |
| Marketing | Senior Marketing Manager | 6 to 10 | $8,000 to $12,000 |
| Tech | IT Pre-Sales / Sales Manager | 5 to 10 | $7,000 to $15,000 |
| Construction | Project Manager | >5 | $7,000 to $12,000 |
| Engineering | Technical Services Manager | 4 to 5 | $6,500 to $9,500 |
| Healthcare | Sales Manager (Pharmaceutical / Medical Devices) | 8 to 12 | $5,500 to $8,000 |
| Developer | Property Manager | 5 to 8 | $5,000 to $8,500 |
| Construction | Quality, Health & Environmental Safety Manager | 5 to 8 | $5,000 to $7,200 |
| Banking | Senior Officer / Officer (Compliance) | 4 to 7 | $4,500 to $8,000 |
| Sales | Sales Territory Manager | 5 to 8 | $4,500 to $7,000 |
| Logistics | Supply Chain Manager / Assistant Manager | 5 to 10 | $4,200 to $8,000 |
But you’re still earning nothing compared to the Prime Minister’s & Singapore President’s salary
If you’ve found yourself in one of the above professions and are congratulating yourself for being one of the most handsomely-paid people in Singapore, don’t forget that you’re making only a tiny fraction over the heads of state.
The Singapore President’s salary is about $1.5 million a year, which works out to about $130,000 a month. And the Prime Minister’s salary is even higher at $2.2 million a year, or about $183,000 a month. Now that’s two people who never have to eat cai png at the end of the month.
What do you think about the highest paying jobs in Singapore? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
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