Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Singapore instead of New York, you would:

Health

be 43.2% less likely to be obese

In New York, 29.9% of adults are obese as of 2022. In Singapore, that number is 17.0% of people as of 2024.

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Economy

be 35.9% less likely to be unemployed

In New York, 4.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Singapore, that number is 2.8% as of 2025.

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Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), World Health Organization (2024), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), World Bank (2025). How we calculate this

Compare further: New York vs. Singapore

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
Singapore is 12.8% more expensive than New York
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Size Comparison · See true size
New York is about 170 times bigger than Singapore.
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Moving from New York to Singapore · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
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Singapore: At a glance

Singapore is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 709 sq km. Singapore was founded as a British trading colony in 1819. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but separated two years later and became independent. Singapore subsequently became one of the world's most prosperous countries with strong international trading links (its port is one of the world's busiest in terms of tonnage handled) and with per capita GDP equal to that of the leading nations of Western Europe.
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How big is Singapore compared to New York? See an in-depth size comparison.

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