CPF Contribution in Singapore: Your Questions Answered
These are the questions people ask most often about cpf contribution. Each answer is short; follow the links for the full detail.
What does a cpf contribution calculation tell me?
Works out the monthly CPF contribution for Singapore Citizens and third-year-onwards PRs, split into employee and employer shares, using the 2026 rates and the S$8,000 Ordinary Wage ceiling.
What is the formula?
Total CPF = (employer rate + employee rate) × wage up to S$8,000, rounded to the nearest dollar; the employee share drops cents, and the employer pays the rest. For age 55 and below the rates are 17% employer and 20% employee.
What do I need to enter?
Monthly salary (S$), Age (years).
What is the CPF Ordinary Wage ceiling in 2026?
S$8,000 a month. Salary above that does not attract CPF on ordinary wages, although bonuses can still attract CPF up to the annual S$102,000 ceiling.
Why is my CPF lower if I earn under S$750?
Between S$500 and S$750 the employee share is phased in (it is 0.6 × (wage − 500) for those 55 and below). Below S$500 only the employer contributes.
Do these rates apply to first and second-year PRs?
No. PRs in their first two years pay graduated lower rates unless they and their employer opt into full rates. This calculator uses the full rates.
Are these figures exact?
They follow the published CPF and MOM formulas, but your employer's payroll may round slightly differently or include allowances in a different way. Your payslip is the final reference.
Can you show an example?
For example, with these inputs:
- Monthly salary (S$): 5,000
- Age (years): 30
the calculator returns:
- Your CPF (employee share): S$1,000.00
- Employer CPF: S$850.00
- Total CPF contribution: S$1,850.00
- Wage counted for CPF: S$5,000.00
Any tips?
- If you change jobs mid-year, the Additional Wage ceiling is calculated across all employers for the calendar year.
- Keep a copy of your payslips: MOM requires employers to issue itemised payslips, which makes checking deductions easy.
- CPF rates drop in steps after age 55, so check which age band applies from the month after your birthday.
Background
The Central Provident Fund is Singapore's mandatory savings scheme for citizens and permanent residents. Contributions are shared between employee and employer and flow into the Ordinary Account for housing, education and investment, the Special Account for retirement, and MediSave for healthcare. Because the money is locked up for specific purposes, many people underestimate how much of their total pay it represents.
Total compensation in Singapore is more than the number on your offer letter. Employer CPF, variable bonuses, the Annual Wage Supplement (often called the 13th month) and benefits all add value, and comparing offers on take-home pay alone can hide meaningful differences.
The Employment Act sets out how hourly and daily rates are calculated for overtime, public holiday work and salary deductions. These formulas use the monthly basic rate of pay rather than gross salary, which is why the numbers can look lower than a simple division of your salary by hours worked.
Related calculations
- CPF Special Account Interest Calculator: Projects Special Account growth at the 4% floor rate.
- Take-Home Pay Calculator: Shows what lands in your bank account each month after the employee CPF deduction, for Singapore Citizens and full-rate PRs.
- Employer CPF & Hiring Cost Calculator: Estimates the full monthly cost of employing a local worker: salary, employer CPF and the Skills Development Levy.
- CPF on Bonus (Additional Wage) Calculator: Calculates CPF on a bonus or other additional wage using the AW ceiling of S$102,000 minus the ordinary wages already subject to CPF in the year.
Try it yourself with the CPF Contribution Calculator.
Run your own numbers: CPF Contribution Calculator