In Singapore, Luxury Doesn’t Mean Owning a Ferrari or Lamborghini. True Luxury Is Simply Driving

Singapore, the small city-state between Malaysia and Indonesia with a population of just over 5 million, is a place of contrasts. While the enclave has a high degree of government control and some repressive practices, it also embraces new technologies to the point of being a global reference for AI systems. There, owning a car isn’t a practical necessity—it’s a status symbol.

Driving in Singapore. According to The New York Times, owning a car in Singapore isn’t about practicality. It’s as much a statement as wearing a designer suit or a luxury watch. The government’s Certificate of Entitlement (COE) system, introduced in 1990 to control congestion and pollution, imposes astronomical fees just for the right to buy a vehicle.

These certificates can cost as much as $84,000, raising the total price of ordinary cars to supercar levels. Insurance agent Andre Lee told The Times that he paid $24,000 for a used Kia Forte in 2020. Having a car was part of his professional image, but he later realized the expense wasn’t worth it and sold the vehicle.

An unnecessary luxury. With an affordable and efficient public transportation system, few residents need a car to get around the city. Long commutes cost less than $2, and ride-hailing apps like Grab are widely available. Still, the government holds COE auctions twice a month with limited quotas.

The policy has worked. Singapore has only 11 cars per 100 people, well below the figure in countries such as the U.S. or Italy, which exceeds 75. Other cities, including London, Stockholm, and New York, have adopted congestion pricing, but none charge as much as Singapore.

Cars and social classes. For the country’s wealthiest, buying a car and covering its costs isn’t an issue. Businesswoman Su-Sanne Ching, for example, paid $150,000 for a Mercedes-Benz, including a $60,000 COE. But for the middle class, especially families with children, owning a car has become an increasingly difficult expense to justify.

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Joy Fang and her husband told The Times they bought a used Hyundai Avante for $58,000 in 2022 to transport their two children. Each month, they spend more than 10% of their family budget on maintaining the vehicle, forcing them to cut back on outings and travel. Still, they find the alternative—using public transportation with small children and bags—unworkable.

Sometimes, not even symbolically. For those who buy a car for symbolic or professional reasons, like Lee, the mounting costs can make ownership meaningless. Maintenance, gas, parking, and insurance quickly outweigh initial expectations.

Lee, for example, sold his car three years after buying it. Now, he commutes by public transportation and borrows his father’s car when meeting with clients. In his view, other priorities ultimately outweigh the prestige of car ownership.

Rational choice vs. chaos. Singapore’s restrictive model contrasts with cities such as Jakarta or Bangkok, where extreme traffic congestion turns commuting into an ordeal. For many Singaporeans, giving up their cars is a reasonable trade-off for cleaner roads and faster commutes.

According to sociologist Chua Beng Huat, the choice is both cultural and practical. He says Singaporeans prefer to avoid long hours behind the wheel. Though he owns a BYD SUV for transporting his grandchildren, he takes the subway when going downtown.

In Singapore, cars have become aspirational rather than functional commodities—reserved for those who can afford them without financial strain. Unlike in much of the world, where vehicles are a necessity for mobility and independence, in the island nation, they’re a luxury on par with the most ostentatious possessions.

Driving there is like owning a Rolex.

Image | Swapnil Bapat (Unsplash)

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