A Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) report from earlier this year revealed that Singaporeans were getting married at an ever-increasing age.
In 2024, the median ages for brides and grooms rose to a record high of 29.6 and 31.1, respectively — while there was also a 7% overall drop in marriages.
According to an Answers.sg poll with 619 respondents, 48% chose “difficulty in finding a match” as the reason why Singaporeans are staying single or getting married later.
23% said that people in Singapore are busy building their career, while 21% believe that they are saving for big purchases such as housing.
A minority said Singaporeans were travelling the world or seeking higher education instead of settling down.
26-year-old Mustafa told MS News that he believed the main reason for the trend was the cost of raising children in Singapore.
Additionally, he suspected that people might not want to put their children through Singapore’s “very intense and brutal” education system.
Mustafa, a bartender, also gave his personal reasons for being single.
“I work in the food and beverage industry and have unconventional hours and work weekends,” he explained.
“This makes it difficult to maintain a relationship with a 9-5 girl.”
Source: vladans on Canva, for illustration purposes only
The unusual working hours also meant that meeting potential partners was a challenge in itself.
However, Mustafa admitted that he has not been very proactive in searching for a date either.
“I don’t have many friends in the same boat as me,” he told MS News.
Most of them were currently in relationships, with some already engaged or married.
Diane, a 28-year-old working in marketing, echoed the reasoning that people are putting their careers first.
“People seem driven to achieve some progress in their career and accumulate wealth before making a commitment to start a family,” she said.
She held cost as a primary reason too, noting that starting a family is a “very costly chain of events”, from the proposal to the wedding, to buying a house.
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In fact, Diane felt that getting married early nowadays would raise questions amongst friends and family.
The 28-year-old told MS News that she is currently giving herself time to establish job stability, with plans to get married in the future.
Footnotes, an “experience-first brand” in Singapore which holds ‘Plus One’ events to link singles together, shares with MS News that most of their participants fall within the 25 to 34 age range.
Image courtesy of Footnotes
Footnotes agreed that Singaporeans are staying single longer and getting married to a partner later, but said it was not a “one-size-fits-all” situation.
“People aren’t just looking for someone to fill a role anymore,” they told MS News.
Instead, they are seeking “shared values, emotional stability, and the ability to add value to each other’s lives”.
Image courtesy of Footnotes
Footnotes called the change encouraging, as it is a step towards building relationships that last.
The trend lined up with the MSF report, which saw a decline in dissolved marriages before the 10th anniversary.
Footnotes further agreed that it seemed harder for people to find a match nowadays.
“Dating app fatigue is real, and there’s a tendency to treat people as disposable with the mindset of ‘there’s always someone else’,” they said.
“Terms like ‘icks’, ‘beige flags’, or ‘performative male’ make dating feel more like a checklist than a connection.”
Footnotes created their ‘Plus One’ experiences to spark organic and natural connections in real life, rather than swiping through dating app profiles.
Image courtesy of Footnotes
The first experience, hosted on Valentine’s Day earlier this year, involved single participants bringing a platonic friend of the opposite gender along.
They could then act as each other’s wingmen or wingwomen, with the experience intended to be casual.
They held two more Plus One experiences on 19 March and 30 May, reportedly receiving nearly 1,000 sign-ups in total.
Image courtesy of Footnotes
For Mustafa, the Government could tackle the trend by reducing the cost of having children in Singapore.
Diane agreed that lowered costs of living would likely result in Singaporeans getting married sooner.
Additionally, she felt that job seekers with children are sometimes discriminated against in hiring, and sought an improved employment climate through social campaigns.
In the conclusion of MSF’s Family Trends Report 2025, the Government promised to continue supporting Singaporeans in marriage and parenthood.
Footnotes noted that Singapore’s housing system still encourages some to get engaged in their early to mid-20s.
However, more individuals are becoming more “discerning and intentional about their choices”.
“There’s a growing mindset of wanting to be whole on your own, to fill up your cup first, and only be with someone who can truly grow with you,” they said.
“At the end of the day, we believe finding a match is still possible — it just takes an open mind and a bit of patience.”
Also read: S’pore sees drop in marriages over last few years, people are also getting married later
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Featured images courtesy of Footnotes and Kaboompics on Pexels.