What is the Singapore CPF?
CPF is Singapore's mandatory savings scheme covering retirement, housing and healthcare. Below age 55, employees contribute 20% and employers 17% — 37% of salary in total.
Contributions split across three accounts: Ordinary (housing, education, investment), Special (retirement, higher interest) and MediSave (healthcare). Rates step down progressively from age 55 — 18% employee and 16% employer from 55 to 60, and 12.5% each from 60 to 65 in 2026.
From age 55 there is no Special Account: CPF closed the Special Account for members aged 55 and above on 19 January 2025, moving those savings into the Retirement Account up to the Full Retirement Sum and the remainder into the Ordinary Account. The account split shown below is indicative — CPF allocates each contribution using an age-banded table it publishes and revises, so check cpf.gov.sg for the exact shares for your age. The contribution rates and wage ceilings used here are the current published ones.
Formula & worked example
Employer CPF = min(Salary, $8,000) × 17%
Annual total wage ceiling: $102,000
Worked example: a $6,000 monthly salary means $1,200 employee CPF and $1,020 employer CPF, leaving $4,800 take-home. Across the year with a $12,000 bonus, total CPF contributions come to roughly $31,080 — split across the three accounts.
How to use this singapore cpf calculator
- Enter your monthly salary — contributions are capped at the $8,000 ordinary wage ceiling that applies from 1 January 2026.
- Select your age group; rates drop after 55.
- Add your annual bonus, subject to the additional wage ceiling.
- Review the account split — it determines what the money can be used for.
Smart tips
- The Special Account earns 4%+ risk-free — topping it up is one of the best guaranteed returns available anywhere.
- Voluntary top-ups to your own or family members' accounts qualify for tax relief up to annual limits.
- Ordinary Account funds can be used for property, but using them reduces retirement savings and accrues notional interest you must repay on sale.
- CPF LIFE converts your Retirement Account into lifelong monthly payouts from 65.
- CPF contributions are not taxable income, which makes the effective tax position better than the headline rate suggests.
Frequently asked questions
What are CPF contribution rates?
For employees aged 55 and below, 20% from the employee and 17% from the employer, on wages up to the $8,000 monthly Ordinary Wage ceiling in force from 1 January 2026. Rates step down above 55.
What are the three CPF accounts?
Ordinary Account for housing and education, Special Account for retirement at a higher interest rate, and MediSave for healthcare.
What is the CPF wage ceiling?
The ordinary wage ceiling caps monthly contributions, and an annual total wage ceiling of $102,000 caps contributions including bonuses.
Can I withdraw CPF?
Limited withdrawals are permitted from age 55 above the Retirement Sum, with the balance converted into CPF LIFE payouts from 65.
Want the theory behind the numbers? Read our Singapore finance guides on the Money Blog.
Written by Gurjeet Singh, Sharpen Solutions. Last reviewed 15 Oct 2026. Sources: CPF Board — contribution rates and the Ordinary Wage ceiling (from 1 Jan 2026). How we check these numbers.