best cheap eats in singapore (2026)

tldr: out of 20 hawker stalls and cheap eats, my top 3 are tian tian chicken rice (maxwell food centre, SGD 5-6), 328 katong laksa (east coast road, SGD 5.50), and newton food centre nasi lemak (newton, SGD 3.50). full reviews with prices and honest opinions below.

singapore is the only city in the world where michelin-starred meals cost less than a taxi ride. that is not an exaggeration. a plate of chicken rice that won a michelin bib gourmand costs SGD 5. a grab ride across town costs SGD 15-25. the math is absurd and i love it.

i spent a week eating through as many hawker centers and street stalls as my stomach could handle. newton food centre, maxwell food centre, old airport road, chinatown complex, tiong bahru market - i hit them all. the plan was 50 dishes in a week. i got through about 35 before my body politely asked me to stop. the damage was approximately SGD 180 for a week of eating, which works out to about SGD 25 a day for three meals and snacks. try doing that in any other global city.

the thing about singapore’s cheap eats is that cheap does not mean compromised. these hawker stalls have been perfecting single dishes for decades. some of them have had the same recipe for three generations. the quality is absurd for the price.

if you’re looking for the broader singapore food scene beyond budget eats, i have a singapore food guide in the works. for now, this is strictly the under-SGD-8 zone.

the awards (my personal picks)

• best overall: tian tian chicken rice at maxwell food centre. the queue is annoying, but correct.
• best breakfast: ya kun kaya toast. the kaya and butter on charcoal-toasted bread is perfection at SGD 4.80 for a set.
• best budget meal: newton food centre nasi lemak. a full plate with fried chicken for SGD 3.50. no serious competition at that price.
• most overrated: jumbo seafood. it is fine, but at SGD 50+ for chili crab, it does not belong on a cheap eats list. every tourist guide puts it there anyway.
• best laksa: 328 katong laksa. thick, rich, coconutty, spicy. the noodles are cut so short you eat it with a spoon. annoying, but correct.
• best late-night: lau pa sat satay street. the entire stretch of satay stalls fires up after 7 pm. SGD 0.70-0.80 per stick.
• best for variety: old airport road food centre. over 150 stalls. you could eat here for a month and not repeat a dish.
• best roti prata: mr and mrs mohgan’s, jalan kayu. plain prata at SGD 1.50 is one of the best things i have eaten in southeast asia.

the full list

the top tier (the ones i keep going back to)

1. tian tian hainanese chicken rice

maxwell food centre, chinatown / SGD 5-6 / 9/10

tian tian is the most famous chicken rice stall in singapore and possibly the most famous hawker stall in the world. the queue during lunch can stretch 30-40 minutes. is it worth it. yes. annoying, but yes.

the chicken is poached to that exact point where it is silky and tender with a thin layer of gelatin between the skin and flesh. the rice is fragrant with chicken fat and pandan leaf and has that slightly oily quality that separates great chicken rice from average chicken rice. the chili sauce has a ginger kick that ties everything together.

the thing that gets me is the simplicity. it is chicken. it is rice. it is three sauces. and yet every single element is so precisely executed that the dish transcends its own simplicity. the chicken fat rice alone is worth the visit.

they close when they sell out, which is usually by 2-3 pm. go before 11:30 am or after 1:30 pm to minimize the queue. the stall is in maxwell food centre which is a 5-minute walk from chinatown MRT.

what to order: chicken rice with breast or thigh (SGD 5 for small, SGD 6 for large). add a plate of bean sprouts (SGD 3). get extra chili sauce.

verdict: the most famous chicken rice in singapore for a reason. the queue is real but the chicken is realer.

2. 328 katong laksa

east coast road / SGD 5.50 / 9/10

katong laksa is a specific style of laksa where the noodles are cut into short pieces so you eat the entire thing with just a spoon. no chopsticks. no fork. just a spoon and that thick, rich, coconut-forward curry broth with prawns, cockles, fish cake, and a generous scoop of laksa leaf.

328 katong is the stall that made this style famous. the broth is thick enough that the spoon almost stands up in it. the coconut milk is fresh and rich. the chili paste gives it a slow building heat that sneaks up on you. the prawns are cooked just right.

the portion is not huge, which is actually fine because this is a rich dish. one bowl fills you up. the location on east coast road means it is not as convenient as the central hawker centers, but the bus 16 from town gets you there in about 20 minutes.

what to order: laksa with extra cockles (SGD 5.50-7). pair it with an otah (grilled fish paste in banana leaf, SGD 1.50).

verdict: the best laksa i have had in singapore. the spoon-only format is weird but works.

3. newton food centre nasi lemak

newton food centre / SGD 3.50 / 9/10

newton food centre got tourist-famous after crazy rich asians but the breakfast scene at 7 am is still very local. the nasi lemak stall here serves what might be the best value meal in all of singapore. SGD 3.50 gets you coconut rice, sambal, crispy anchovies (ikan bilis), a perfectly fried egg, fried chicken wing, and a small pile of peanuts.

the sambal is the soul of this plate. it is spicy, sweet, savoury, with that deep umami from the dried shrimp. the coconut rice is fragrant without being heavy. the fried chicken wing has crispy skin and juicy meat. and those tiny crispy anchovies add a crunch that ties the whole plate together.

the fact that this costs SGD 3.50 is almost insulting to every restaurant charging SGD 15 for the same dish with worse execution. hawker food does not play around.

what to order: nasi lemak with fried chicken (SGD 3.50). add an extra wing for SGD 1.

verdict: the best breakfast deal in singapore. SGD 3.50 for a complete, balanced, deeply satisfying meal.

4. mr and mrs mohgan’s super crispy roti prata

jalan kayu / SGD 1.50-3 / 9/10

this is a pilgrimage spot for prata lovers. mr and mrs mohgan’s has been making roti prata for decades and the technique is visible from the moment you watch them work. the dough is stretched thin, folded, slapped onto the griddle with ghee, and cooked until it is simultaneously crispy and flaky on the outside and soft and chewy in layers inside.

plain prata here costs SGD 1.50. egg prata is SGD 2. and those prices feel like they have not changed in a decade. the fish curry served alongside is thick and flavourful. the prata is best eaten by tearing it, dipping it in curry, and immediately putting it in your mouth before the crispiness fades.

the location in jalan kayu is a bit out of the way - about 20 minutes by bus from ang mo kio MRT. but this is the kind of place worth making a trip for.

what to order: plain prata (SGD 1.50) and egg prata (SGD 2) with fish curry. get a teh tarik (SGD 1.50) to wash it down.

verdict: the crispiest, flakiest prata in singapore. SGD 1.50 for something this good should be illegal.

the solid middle

5. lau pa sat satay street

lau pa sat, raffles place / SGD 8-12 for 10-15 sticks / 8.5/10

lau pa sat itself is a beautiful victorian-era hawker center right in the financial district. but the real action happens on boon tat street after 7 pm when the entire road closes to traffic and satay stalls set up their charcoal grills. the smoke and aroma hit you from a block away.

the satay is good. chicken and mutton are the standard options. each stick costs SGD 0.70-0.80 and they come in sets of 10. the peanut sauce is thick and slightly sweet. the meat has that charred, smoky flavour from the open charcoal grill. is it the best satay ever? no. but eating satay on a warm evening with the financial district lit up behind you is an experience that is hard to beat.

what to order: 10 chicken satay, 10 mutton satay, with extra peanut sauce and ketupat (compressed rice cakes, SGD 2).

verdict: good satay in a great setting. not the best satay stall in singapore but the atmosphere makes up for it.

6. ya kun kaya toast

multiple locations / SGD 4.80 for a set / 8.5/10

ya kun is a chain and i normally do not recommend chains. but this one has been around since 1944 and the kaya toast set is a singapore institution. two slices of charcoal-grilled bread, a thick spread of kaya (coconut jam with pandan), a slab of cold butter, two soft-boiled eggs with soy sauce and white pepper, and a cup of kopi. SGD 4.80 for the set.

the magic is in the contrast. the hot crispy bread, the cold butter that melts slowly, the sweet kaya, the runny eggs dipped in dark soy sauce. it should not work this well but it does. this is the breakfast that every singaporean grew up on.

what to order: kaya toast set A (SGD 4.80). do not skip the soft-boiled eggs. add soy sauce and white pepper.

verdict: the quintessential singapore breakfast. SGD 4.80 and you understand why this city loves kaya.

7. old airport road fried carrot cake

old airport road food centre / SGD 4 / 8.5/10

carrot cake in singapore has nothing to do with carrots or cake. it is stir-fried radish cake (chai tow kway) with eggs, preserved radish, and dark soy sauce (the “black” version) or without the dark soy (“white” version). the stall at old airport road does the black version particularly well - smoky wok hei, crispy edges on the radish cake, and that sweet-savoury caramelisation from the dark soy.

what to order: black carrot cake (SGD 4). get the large if you are hungry (SGD 5).

verdict: one of the most underrated hawker dishes. if you only eat chicken rice and laksa in singapore, you are missing out.

8. NTU canteen ayam penyet

nanyang technological university / SGD 4.50 / 8/10

only in asia do you go to a university campus for food. the NTU canteen is open to the public and serves an indonesian-style ayam penyet (smashed fried chicken) that is genuinely worth the trip. the chicken is smashed flat, making it extra crispy, and served with rice, sambal, and a small salad.

getting here is an expedition - the NTU campus is enormous and the canteen is a good 15-minute walk from the nearest drop-off. but the chicken is crispy enough to justify the cardio.

what to order: ayam penyet with rice (SGD 4.50).

verdict: the crispiest fried chicken i had in singapore, in the most unlikely location.

9. maxwell fuzhou oyster cake

maxwell food centre / SGD 2 / 8/10

while you are at maxwell waiting in the tian tian queue, get a fuzhou oyster cake from the stall nearby. it is a deep-fried fritter with a filling of minced pork, oyster, and vegetables. crispy on the outside, flavourful and slightly chewy on the inside. SGD 2 each.

these are best eaten immediately while they are hot. the moment they cool down, they lose about 40% of their appeal. but fresh out of the fryer, they are addictive.

what to order: 2-3 oyster cakes (SGD 2 each). eat immediately.

verdict: the best SGD 2 snack in singapore.

the ones i would skip (but you might not)

10. song fa bak kut teh

clarke quay / SGD 7-9 / 7.5/10

song fa is famous and the peppery pork rib soup is decent. but at SGD 7-9 per person it is at the upper end of cheap eats, and the queue during peak hours is painful. the broth is good but not extraordinary. there are better bak kut teh spots in the geylang area that cost less and have no queue.

verdict: fine, but not worth a 45-minute wait. try founder bak kut teh instead.

singapore cheap eats tips

• hawker centers are the move. if you eat at restaurants in singapore, you are doing it wrong. the best food in the country costs SGD 3-6 at hawker stalls.
• breakfast is king. go to hawker centers between 7-9 am when everything is freshest and queues are shortest. many stalls sell out by 2-3 pm.
• pay attention to queue length. in singapore, a long queue at a hawker stall is usually a reliable signal. the locals know.
• kopi (not coffee) is the order. singaporean kopi is made with butter-roasted beans and condensed milk. kopi-o is black with sugar. kopi-c is with evaporated milk. learn the ordering system, it is not complicated.
• drink prices are great. a kopi or teh at any hawker center costs SGD 1-1.50. sugar cane juice is SGD 1.50-2. avoid buying bottled water when fresh drinks are this cheap.
• grab the app. grab (southeast asia’s uber) works perfectly in singapore and is the easiest way to get between hawker centers.
• tipping is not expected at hawker centers. just pay the listed price, clear your tray when done.
• the MRT connects most hawker centers. maxwell is near chinatown MRT, newton has its own MRT stop, tiong bahru market is near tiong bahru MRT. plan your eating route around the train line.

if you found this useful, check out these other travel guides:

• singapore food guide
• best street food in southeast asia