A foreigner who has lived both in Taiwan & Singapore makes a comparison between the two countries when it comes to living as an expatriate.
He gives a fair comparison on several aspects:
- Ease of Getting Things Done
- Government Services & Taxes
- Healthcare
- Safety
- Education
- Car Ownership
- Daily Commute
- Swimming
- BBQ
- Food
His name is Richard and he describes himself as such:
“I’m Richard, a forty-something Brit who has been living and working in Asia for almost half my life. A part-time fascination with high places developed into a full-time addiction while living in Taiwan, and now I try to spend any free time available tramping the trails of this vast and beautiful continent. Through this channel I hope to introduce the pleasures of hiking to as many people as possible and inspire them to get active, get outside and in touch with nature. When not scaling peaks I like to cook, eat, read, and spend time with my family.”
Richard runs a YouTube channel named Asia Hikelopedia.
Among the aspects he has shared, he finds that the cost of living in Singapore is much higher than in Taiwan. That’s no surprise, actually. He rented a home Taiwan for NT30,000 (SGD1,388) while in Singapore, it would cost him NT65,000 (SGD2,800).
For healthcare, Taiwan wins with their national healthcare system while in Singapore, it’s basically private healthcare for foreigners.
Regarding public transport both countries are very similar in terms of cost and convenience.
He does find that groceries are generally cheap, if one knows where to buy their food from, such as wet markets.
Education is another peeve for him as it is rather expensive to put kids through school in Singapore as a foreigner. The education costs that a Singapore is often used to is heavily subsidised while a foreigner is not eligible for these subsides. In Taiwan, it’s as good as free.
He gives a fair assessment and comparison.
We shall not spoil all the point he covered. Watch the video below. Let us know what you think.