Daniel Slotta
Research expert covering Greater China
Smartphone market in Singapore - Statistics and facts
In 2023, the number of smartphone users in Singapore was estimated to reach 5.72 million, with a forecast of 99.4 percent of the population using the device by 2026. The widespread use of smartphones is reflected in the multiplication of daily activities carried out online. Smartphones now centralize a wide range of activities such as social networking, live streaming, payments, transport and delivery applications.
The major telecom providers, Singtel, M1, StarHub and Simba (formerly TPG) are recently joined by other companies such as Circles.Life and Gorilla Mobile. The advent of lower cost plans offered by the new players and incumbent telcos’ sub-brands, such as Singtel’s Gomo and StarHub’s Giga!, have led more to seek new SIM-only and off-contract plans across multiple telcos.
In the third quarter of 2023, the average mobile data usage in Singapore was estimated at 86 petabytes per month. As smartphones continue to become an integral part of everyday life, Singapore was the first country in the world to achieve country-wide standalone 5G coverage. User experience is among the best in the region, with one of the highest median 5G download speeds in Asia-Pacific, after Malaysia and South Korea.
Network and connectivity
With a mobile penetration rate of 169.6 percent and high smartphone usage, Singapore is an attractive market for foreign vendors. In 2024, Apple was the market leader among mobile vendors in Singapore with a market share of approximately 28.71 percent.The major telecom providers, Singtel, M1, StarHub and Simba (formerly TPG) are recently joined by other companies such as Circles.Life and Gorilla Mobile. The advent of lower cost plans offered by the new players and incumbent telcos’ sub-brands, such as Singtel’s Gomo and StarHub’s Giga!, have led more to seek new SIM-only and off-contract plans across multiple telcos.
Smartphone usage
Entertainment and video sharing activities are some of the most popular uses of mobile apps among Singaporeans. This is demonstrated by the growth of mobile apps such as TikTok. Over the past few years, TikTok has experienced the strongest growth in terms of usage in the country, with a penetration rate now reaching over 65 percent. More and more locals are also using their personal mobile devices for online transactions. Mobile wallets reached 1.8 million users in 2022 and are expected to continue to grow, with DBS PayLah! and GrabPay leading the e-wallet services. This frequency and intensity with which Singaporeans use their smartphone opens-up infinite opportunities for companies to reach their customer.In the third quarter of 2023, the average mobile data usage in Singapore was estimated at 86 petabytes per month. As smartphones continue to become an integral part of everyday life, Singapore was the first country in the world to achieve country-wide standalone 5G coverage. User experience is among the best in the region, with one of the highest median 5G download speeds in Asia-Pacific, after Malaysia and South Korea.
