The Chicken Rice Index
Singapore's purchasing power, measured in plates of its most ubiquitous dish
A plate of chicken rice cost $2.22 in 1990. Today, that same plate costs $4.20 — a 2.6% average annual increase over 34 years. But raw price increases only tell half the story.
Price vs. Purchasing Power
Data from 1990 to 2024 • Source: SingStat CPI + Field Research
What the data shows
While chicken rice prices have increased 89% since 1990, median incomes have risen faster. The average Singaporean could afford 653 plates per month in 1990. By 2024, that figure had grown to approximately 1,309 plates.
This divergence reveals something fundamental about Singapore's economic trajectory: wages have consistently outpaced food inflation, even for one of the nation's most stable and affordable dishes.
1990 Purchasing Power
653
plates per month
2024 Purchasing Power
1,309
plates per month