How Much Does It Cost To Own A Bike In Singapore?

If we apply the 50/30/20 rule, we’ve worked out that you need to be earning at least S$7,500 a month in order to own a car like a financially responsible adult.

But what if you aren’t raking in that kind of money yet? Or are just… simply not into cars?

Don’t worry riders, you haven’t been forgotten!

This one’s for you. 

Once again – being the awesome rider that I am – I’ll be dropping some serious knowledge about the various costs that you’ll incur when you buy a motorcycle. More often than not, the figures stated are my estimates so please do your own due diligence when calculating how much a motorcycle costs FOR YOU.

I’ll also be looking at the prices of three different bikes to give you a better idea of what bikes from the various motorcycle classes will cost. The models I chose are based on what a couple of friends (who’re also riders) and I think are the more popular bikes from that motorcycle class:

• Class 2B – Honda CB150R Exmotion

• Class 2A – Honda CB400 SF

• Class 2 – Yamaha MT-09
  

Disclaimer: We’re not sponsored by Honda or Yamaha to promote their bikes! Although I wouldn’t mind a new bike… Okay. JK. I can already feel the Editor shaking his head in disapproval.

(Editor’s note: You got that right…)

---

Some Assumptions I Made To Calculate The Cost Of Owning A Motorcycle

Here are some assumptions I made in order to calculate the cost of owning a motorcycle in Singapore:

Certificate Of Entitlement (COE) Period

COE is for 10 years.

For this article, I’ll be looking at how much it would cost if I held onto the bike for the full 10 years.

Downpayment

I hit up my dealer and got an average of $2,500 downpayment for a bike (regardless of the class).

The remainder of the bike’s cost will be paid via Carry-On-Instalments (COI) over a period of 10 years.

For this article, however, I will be calculating the COI with no interest.

I know. I know. This isn’t very realistic BUT I would need to include an amortisation schedule if I included interest payments and it’ll just be way too complicated.

Inspection

Inspection is not required for all new bikes, at least for the first three years. Thereafter, it should be done at least once a year (I’m going to assume that we’re ALL safe and responsible riders here).

Riding Equipment

For this article, I’m going to purchase one set of riding equipment and use it for 10 years.

---

TL;DR: How Much Does It Cost To Own A Bike In Singapore?

Here’s how much it’ll cost to own a bike (according to the various bike classes):

Class 2B

Class 2A

Class 2

• ‘Total (per year)’ cost as listed is for ‘x’ number of years you hold the bike. For e.g in the first year, since you have to make a downpayment for the bike, your cost for the first year will naturally be more than the second year and so on and so forth.
• ‘Average per year (APY)’ cost is derived based on the cumulative ‘Total (per year)’ costs divided the number of years. For eg. to calculate the APY cost for a Class 2B motorcycle at Year 2 = ($5,446 + $2,946) ÷ 2 = $4,196. This is a good estimate of how much you would be paying per year, based on how long you hold onto your new bike for.
• ‘Average per month (APY/12)’ cost is an estimate of how much you will need to pay on a monthly basis.

Key Takeaway About Buying A New Motorcycle

If you plan on buying a brand new bike because it is a cheaper form of transportation as compared to a brand new car, make sure you hold onto the bike for the full 10 years that the COE is valid for, in order to get the most bang for your buck.

Based on the tables above, here’s how much it’ll cost you on a monthly basis (assuming you keep the bike for 10 years):

• $268 for a Class 2B bike
• $507 for a Class 2A bike
• $588 for a Class 2 bike

Looking at the cost of a Class 2 bike, it’ll cost me about $588 a month if I held onto the bike for 10 years. But if I only held onto the bike for say… 3 years, it would cost me $635 a month instead.

Of course, there’s remaining resale value and etc. but hey, if you’re planning to buy a brand new bike just to change it for another new one in a year’s time (coz the new model more style what…), ensure you have your finances planned out.

---

Cost Of A Bike

I’m only talking about getting a brand new bike in this article. But just for the sake of comparison, here’s a look at the difference in costs between a brand new and a second-hand bike.

These are just agar-ations based on the info I could find from the dealers I called.

Road Tax

The road tax you pay will differ depending on the engine capacity of the bike. Here’s how to calculate the cost of your bike’s road tax:

Based on the bikes I chose to represent the different motorcycle classes, the road tax for the individual classes is as such:

Insurance

Motorcycle insurance is very important for riders as we never know when we would meet with an accident. Or get into a situation that requires us to fork out a huge sum of money in compensation (eg. you hitting somebody’s car).

If you’d like to know how to compare and look for the cheapest 2B motorcycle insurance, you’ll want to read this.

With that being said, the price you’ve to pay for motorcycle insurance will also largely depend on the rider profile.

This is the rider profile I submitted to get a quotation for this article:

• 23 years old
• Male
• Intending to purchase a new bike for personal use only
• More than 2 years of riding experience 
• 0% No Claim Discount
• Most basic coverage – Third Party Only

Without going into the details of the policy and the different coverages that are available, the excess, personal accident coverage, and etc.

Here are the cheapest motorcycle insurance premiums for each class of bike. 

FYI: It’ll definitely get cheaper as you get older. And if you manage to maintain an accident and claim-free record.

COE (Certification of Entitlement)

COE, also known as Certificate of Entitlement, is a document which grants the legal right of the holder to register, own, and use a vehicle in Singapore for a period of 10 years.

If you are buying a brand new bike, you will effectively be paying the COE for the whole 10 year period. This is usually factored into the cost price of a brand new bike along with the accompanying road tax, insurance and etc.

If you are looking for a second-hand bike however, the COE prices will be “pro-rated” by the seller and will have already been factored into the final price. Also, when sourcing for a second-hand bike, you will have to purchase your own insurance before the transfer of ownership or else, the transfer of ownership will be blocked. 

In the latest COE bidding exercise, the COE for a new motorcycle is $3,554.

So unless you’re buying a second-hand bike, you will bear the full brunt of COE for a brand new bike.

Total COE cost: $3,554

Petrol 

The amount that you spend on petrol will depend on the type of bike and their fuel consumption.

Based on our petrol price comparison guide:

The average price per litre of 95-Octane is $2.20.

Apart from the price of petrol, your monthly petrol costs will ultimately depend on a few factors:

• How frequent you use your bike
• The distance and type of terrain you travel on
• Fuel efficiency/consumption
• Class of bike
• How you use your bike (eg. don’t rev for no reason lah…)

Here’s a look at the tank capacity of the bikes that I’m comparing:

• (Class 2B) Honda CB150R: 8.5-litre tank capacity
• (Class 2A) Honda CB400SF: 18-litre tank capacity
• (Class 2) Yamaha MT-09: 14-litre tank capacity
  

Assuming you travel 1,000km a month, and you choose to pump 95-Octane regardless of the class of bike, here’s how much you’ll be spending on petrol:

P.S. For the mathematically enthusiastic peeps, there’s a reason why I’m not calculating this based on kilometres travelled per litre of petrol. Instead, I’m using how many times I’ll need to pump a full tank in order to get to 1,000km. Think about it. The 1,000km travelled in a month is just an estimation. You’re not gonna go to a petrol kiosk to measure swee swee 0.9387653L of a tank just because that’s how much more you need to hit 1,000km riiiiiiight…

Generally, the cost of petrol for a bike is still very much cheaper than for a car.

If you still think that you need cheaper petrol prices for your bike, check out our Ultimate Comparison of Petrol Prices and Credit Card Promotions which can help you save some moolah.

Parking (HDB Carparks And Shopping Malls)

 

When I told my friend that I was only paying $20 a month to park at ANY HDB carpark and most URA carparks in Singapore, he couldn’t believe his ears.

To the readers who also think that I’m playing a prank here… it is what it is. I ain’t lyin man. 

It really makes cents… I meant sense (HAHA sorry) to get Concessionary Season Parking unless you aren’t eligible for it.

I mean it’s JUST $3 more to park at ANY HDB carpark and MOST URA carparks in Singapore.

Here’s a re-enactment of when I found out that there are 132489348193484994309490934 HDB carparks in Singapore and I could use them all.

For shopping malls, parking for motorbikes is usually calculated on a per-entry basis. For cars, it’s usually calculated on a per-minute basis. Woohoo for riders!

Using my parking habits as an example – I usually park at HDB carparks as much as possible (to get the most out of that $20 Concessionary Season Parking) and only park at shopping malls occasionally…

Monthly parking cost= $20 (Concessionary Season Parking) + $5 (Per entry cost at Shopping Mall Parking) = $25 per month

ERP Charges 

ERP (Electronic Road Pricing) or otherwise known by us Singaporeans as ‘Every Road also Pay’ (get it?) is used to manage traffic and prevent road congestion. Motorists like you and me are charged whenever we use roads with ERP gantries. And it gets especially expensive during peak hours.

For motorcyclists, the ERP charge ranges from $0.25 to $3.

It rarely ever exceeds $1 unless you’re entering a super hot area during the worst of timings.

Taking myself as an example yet again, just a dude travelling to and from work…

Monthly ERP cost = $2.75 per day x 20 days = $55 per month

Servicing

This really depends on what type of person you are.

For bike enthusiasts, you might prefer to do self-servicing (at least for the parts that can be self-serviced).

If you’re a busy bee, you’ll probably want to send your bike to the workshop.

Assuming you service your bike once after every 3,000km, that’ll be one service (basic stuff like changing of oil, oil filter, and spark plug) every three months. Here’re the costs for the various bike classes:

Riding Equipment

Ah yes, riding equipment, such an easily-neglected yet crucial part of riding.

Don’t overlook this, ladies and gents!

Safety should always be your priority.

Some typical riding equipment you’ll need would be a helmet, raincoat, riding gloves, riding jacket, phone holder etc. Here’s how much you’ll expect to pay on average:

Of course, this is all for one rider only. You’ll want to factor in an additional helmet and other stuff if you’re ferrying someone else.

---

How Much Does It Cost Per Month To Own A Bike?

Well, these are all the costs you’ll need to factor when thinking of buying a bike.

Here’s a look again at how much it’ll cost you on a monthly basis (assuming you keep the bike for 10 years):

• $268 for a Class 2B bike
• $507 for a Class 2A bike
• $563 for a Class 2 bike

And this does not include the costs that you’ll incur when you get your motorcycle licence and it’ll probably differ a bit if you choose to get more comprehensive (and more expensive) motorcycle insurance.

Even though it might be cheaper to own a bike than a car, you should always make sure you have put aside enough savings first and consider if a motorbike is a want or a need, before budgeting and saving up for one!