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Buy vs Rent in Singapore: Calculator

Updated 25 Oct 2026 SG Home Data Editorial Team
Short answer

This illustrative tool compares the money you do not get back: for buying, upfront Buyer's Stamp Duty plus mortgage interest and owning costs; for renting, the rent paid. It finds the holding period at which buying's non-recoverable cost falls below renting's.

On this page4 sections · tap to jump
  1. 01How it is calculated
  2. 02Worked example (illustrative)
  3. 03Limits of this estimate
  4. 04Related guides

Set a price, a comparable rent and your loan assumptions, then slide the holding period to see when buying stops costing more than renting — in non-recoverable terms.

Tool

Buy vs rent break-even (illustrative)

Buying: non-recoverable cost—
Renting: rent paid—
Difference—
Break-even year—

Non-recoverable cost of buying = upfront Buyer's Stamp Duty + mortgage interest + other owning costs. Principal repaid builds equity, so it is not counted. Assumes owner-occupier first property (no ABSD) and no change in property price.

Based on IRAS Buyer's Stamp Duty. As of October 2026. Illustrative only. Compares non-recoverable costs; assumes no price change and no investment return. Not financial advice.

How it is calculated

The tool compares only non-recoverable money — cash that neither renting nor owning gives back:

  • Buying. Upfront Buyer’s Stamp Duty (from the current IRAS rates) + the mortgage interest paid so far + any other yearly owning costs you enter. The principal you repay is not a cost — it becomes equity you keep — so it is excluded.
  • Renting. The rent paid over the same period.
  • Break-even. The first year at which the running buying cost is no longer higher than the running rent. Interest is computed from the loan (price minus downpayment) at your rate over your tenure using a standard amortisation schedule.

It deliberately assumes no change in property price and no investment return, so it never forecasts the market — it answers only “which wastes less cash over N years, on my assumptions”.

Worked example (illustrative)

A S$600,000 flat with 25% down at 4% over 25 years, versus renting a similar home for S$2,000/month, with no extra owning costs:

  • Break-even is around year 2: before then the upfront stamp duty and early interest make buying the costlier option.
  • By year 10, buying’s non-recoverable cost is about S$168,700 against S$240,000 of rent paid — roughly S$71,000 less, before any price change or equity.

Every figure here is illustrative and depends entirely on the inputs you choose.

Limits of this estimate

  • It ignores property-price changes, CPF accrued interest, agent fees, renovation and the opportunity cost of your downpayment — all of which can move the answer.
  • It assumes an owner-occupier buying a first property (no ABSD). If ABSD applies, add it from the stamp duty calculator.
  • Your real mortgage rate will change over time; the tool holds it fixed. Treat the output as a rough guide, not advice.

Sources

  1. Buyer's Stamp Duty (BSD) rates — Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (as of October 2026)
  2. How home loans work (MoneySense) — MoneySense (MAS) (as of October 2026)