27-year-old Malaysian reveals how he lives on $10 a day in Singapore

The weakening of the Malaysian ringgit against the Singapore dollar has been to the benefit of many Singaporeans.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Malaysians.

Jonathan Lim falls into the category of Malaysians who journey into Singapore for work.

On Tuesday (Aug 29), he posted a video on his TikTok account Jonlzx and asked one question: Can a working adult survive on just $10 a day in Singapore?

The 27-year-old would put this question to the test – and from the look of things, it is definitely possible.

@jonlzx Part 6: Is spending 10dollars enough for a day working in SINGAPORE? #sgvlog #worklife #minivlog #fypシ #simplelife ♬ 千与千寻 口琴版 - 口琴伟宝

His breakfast was a simple peanut butter toast he munched on the way to the office. 

As he had whipped up breakfast at home, it did not count into his daily expenses.

At the office, he got straight to work, and by the time it was lunch, Jonathan spent a total of $0 so far.

He was not going to skip lunch but he did manage to find a steal.

At an economy rice stall, Jonathan ordered rice, broccoli and sliced chicken. All this amounted to just $3.60.

Not too bad given how a diner recently paid $9.10 for a plate of food from an economy rice stall.

Once lunch was over, it was back to the grind and it did not look like he made any purchases.

Fair play to the man for being able to push through the food coma without an ounce of caffeine.

He did grab a cranberry cream cheese bun from the neighbourhood bakery for $1.50 upon leaving the office as he was "already feeling hungry".

Before dinner, Jonathan was keen on working up a sweat and headed to the nearby stadium for a jog.

He's not a big fan of the gym and finds that jogging outdoors is "much nicer than on a treadmill".

Entrance to the stadium is free, just in case you're wondering.

After the workout, it was straight to the supermarket for dinner.

For $5, you can get two giant-sized drumsticks. Jonathan mentioned that there's even an option to buy a whole chicken.

He tried it before but it was simply too big and he had trouble finishing it.

Add in $3 for transport, and Jonathan spent a total of $13.10 that day.

In the comments section, some netizens were impressed by his efforts and showed him their support.

"I like how efficient you are in managing [your] budget yet still look presentable. Keep it up!" a netizen said.

One Malaysian-based TikTok user made a comparison between their cost-of-living struggles and what Jonathan is going through in Singapore.

Despite exceeding the budget by about $3, Jonathan concluded that $10 was "more than enough" to spend on a normal day in Singapore.

ALSO READ: $385 a week: Gen Z Malaysian intern documents her weekly expenditure in CBD

amierul@asiaone.com

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