Ang bao rates for Singapore weddings 2020

You know the drill. The sound of your phone buzzing like crazy wakes you up from your Sunday nap. Bleary eyed, you reach for your phone to find yourself in a newly formed Whatsapp group.

Squinting to read the chat group’s name, you barely make out the word ‘Wedding’ buried under the avalanche of emojis on your screen.

Messages fly past so quickly it takes you a good five seconds to realise they are from people you haven’t contacted since… forever. 

Then it dawns on you. One of your long lost classmates is tying the knot, and the Whatsapp group was created to solicit RSVPs.

You reply with a half-hearted ‘Hello… long time!’ while scrolling to find out where the banquet will be held – and how big a hole the customary wedding ang bao will blow in your pocket.

A social affair fraught by financial anxieties

While undoubtedly a happy affair, weddings can be a source of financial anxiety. The genuine desire to see your friends have a blissful start to married life is fraught with awkwardness when deciding how much you should put into your ang bao.

Polite messages from the wedding couple to “just come and enjoy yourself” only adds to the anxiety as you know they will be judging each and every red packet they receive (that’s what your name on the ang bao is for). 

Being ever pragmatic, Singaporeans have quickly formulated a rule of thumb: your ang bao should at least cover the cost of the banquet dinner per head to be considered respectable.

Never mind you would almost never buy yourself an eight or 10-course meal for what amounts to two weeks’ worth of groceries for the privilege. For example, if the wedding banquet dinner costs $1,000++ per table of 10, then the cost per head = $1,000 divided by 10 = $100.

With the “++”, the expected price per seat on the table is around $120. Bear these rough stats in mind when settling on your ang bao rates.

That amount is only for the most lukewarm relationships – colleagues, ex-school mates, people you used to spend all weekend playing online games with and totally smashed the server record that one time.

The closer you happen to be to the couple – like ride-or-die close back in the day – you’re expected to up the ante in the wedding ang bao stakes. God forbid if your spouse or partner is also invited – expect to pay double.

Gee, and here we thought marriage was an affair strictly between two people. 

How much should your wedding ang bao be?

Social conventions aside, if you really want to be there for your friend’s big day, just tick “yes”, and show up with your brightest smile and an ang bao that suits your finances. In the end, you actually being there is what truly matters. 

But just in case you want to be a good guest, we’ve compiled a list of popular wedding dinner banquets in Singapore. And to help you arrive at a thoughtful ang bao rate, we have sorted the banquets according to four different price ranges.

You can track down the wedding banquet venue in the list, and have a look at the price of a table. Then, take an average and divide by 10 to work out the cost of the dinner per head – to derive the  “market rate” for your wedding ang bao. 

In general, lunch banquets tend to cost less than dinner banquets. Saturdays also tend to be the most costly for wedding banquets. For auspicious or popular dates, there could also be an additional surcharge per table.

Hotel wedding banquets at around $1,000 per table

If the wedding dinner you’ve been invited is at one of these hotels, breathe easy. The going rate for ang baos at these locations ranges between $100 and $120. 

Hotel wedding banquets at around $1,500 per table

Most of the hotels in this tier are located in the trendy CBD/Orchard shopping belt. As befitting their posh location, a wedding dinner here will set you back by $150 to $180 per wedding ang bao.

Hotel	Weekend (Sat/Sun) prices	No. of tables
Amara Singapore	$1,368 – $1,755	25 to 42
Carlton Hotel Singapore	$1,278 – $1,398	5 to 32
Changi Cove Hotel	$1,198 – $1,575	15 to 25
Concorde Hotel Singapore	$1,188 – $1,258	25 to 44
Crowne Plaza Changi Airport	$1,358	23 to 30
Four Points by Sheraton Singapore, Riverview	$1,238 – $1,438	20 to 30
Hilton Singapore	$1,330 – $1,630 (Sat)$1,330 – $1,420 (Sun)	18 to 50
Holiday Inn Singapore Orchard City Centre	$1,338 – $1,388	3 to 38
Hotel Fort Canning	$1,300 – $1,900 (Sat)$1,300 – $1,700 (Sun)	18 to 50
Hotel Jen Tanglin Singapore by Shangri-La	$1,268 – $1,398	15 to 28
M Hotel	$1,198 – $1,328	6 to 32
PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay (Previously Marina Mandarin)	$1,668	15 to 60
Novotel Singapore Clarke Quay	$1,288	18 to 45
Novotel Singapore on Stevens	$1,488	25 to 36
One°15 Marina Sentosa Cove	$1,288 – $1,588 (Sat)$1,108 – $1,588 (Sun)	15 to 36
ParkRoyal on Beach Road	$1,458 – $1,488 (Sat)$1,358 – $1,388 (Sun)	22 to 45
ParkRoyal on Kitchener Road	$1,138	15 to 45
Peninsula.Excelsior Hotel	$1,163 – $1,516	20 to 36
Ramada by Wyndham Singapore at Zhongshan Park	$1,316	8 to 26
Rendezvous Hotel Singapore at Bras Basah	$1,188	15 to 24
Royal Plaza on Scotts	$1,080	6 to 11
Shangri-La’s Rasa Sentosa Resort and Spa	$1,408 – $1,980 (Sat)$1,308 – $1,980 (Sun)	25 to 36
Swissotel Merchant Court Singapore	$1,328 (Sat) $1,428 (Sun)	30 to 50
York Hotel	$1,148 to $1,228	12 to 30

Hotel wedding banquets at around $2,000 per table

With five-and six-star hotels like The Westin and The Fullerton on the list, you’re playing with the big boys now. Pack between $200 to $250 per wedding ang bao, if you’ve been so ‘lucky’ to be invited. 

Hotel	Weekend (Sat/Sun) prices	No. of tables
Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa	$1,688 to $1,888	30 to 45
Conrad Centennial Singapore	$1,628 (Sat)$1,528 (Sun)	8 to 34
Fairmont Singapore and Swissotel The Stamford	$1,438 – $1,498	12 to 60
Four Seasons Hotel Singapore	$1,668 to $1,988 (Sat)$1,608 to $1,928 (Sun)	12 to 32
Goodwood Park Hotel	$1,668 (Sat) $1,618 (Sun)	18 to 38
Grand Hyatt Singapore	$1,780 – $1,900 (Sat)$1,680 – $1,800 (Sun)	15 to 36
Intercontinental Singapore	$1,888 – $2,080	32 to 27
Le Meridien Singapore Sentosa	$1,888 (Sat)$1,788 (Sun)	12 to 16
Mandarin Orchard Singapore	$1,618 to $2,088 (Sat)$1,548 to $2,088 (Sun)	6 to 95
Mandarin Oriental	$1,800 – $2,050 (Sat)$1,800 – $1,900 (Sun)	10 to 40
Marina Bay Sands	$1,888	20 to 150
One Farrer Hotel	$1,568 (Sat)$1,388 (Sun)	15 to 43
Orchard Hotel Singapore	$1,688 – $1,728 (Sat)$1,588 – $1,628 (Sun)	25 to 100
Pan Pacific Singapore	$1,618 – $1,658 (Sat)$1,468 – $1,508 (Sun)	22 to 65
ParkRoyal on Pickering	$1,638	8 to 30
Regent Singapore	$1,398 – $1,718 (Sat) $1,308 – $1,618 (Sun)	4 to 50
Sheraton Towers Singapore	$1,628 (Sat) $1,528 (Sun)	10 to 45
Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza	$1,188 – $1,588	5 to 55
The Fullerton Hotel	$1,708 $1,768	8 to 48
The Westin Singapore	$1,700 – $2,000	25 to 30

Hotel wedding banquets at above $2,000 per table

If you’ve been invited to a wedding dinner at one of these hotels, prepare to set aside a cool $250 to $280 for your wedding ang bao.

Hotel	Weekend (Sat/Sun) prices	No. of tables
Andaz Singapore by Hyatt	$1,968 – $2,068	8 to 28
Capella Singapore	$1,888 – $2,888	15 to 40
JW Marriott Singapore South Beach	$2,088- $2,238	28 to 37
Shangri-La Hotel	$1,888 – $2,488	15 to 100
Sofitel Singapore City Centre	$1,738	10 to 36
Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort and Spa	$1,838 (Sat) $1,788 (Sun)	10 to 25
The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore	$2,000 – $2,330	8 to 22
The Outpost Hotel Sentosa	$1,508 – $1,808	12 to 16
The Ritz Carlton, Millenia	$2,100 – $2,810	10 to 50
The St Regis Singapore	$2,088 (Sat) $1,988 (Sun)	6 to 42
W Singapore Sentosa Cove	$1,948 (Sat)$1,748 (Sun)	25 to 48

Popular restaurants for wedding 

If you’re attending a dinner at one of these locations, a wedding ang bao of between $60 to $90 is acceptable (and an ang bao in this range is cheap is on the pocket too).

Restaurant	Weekend (Sat/Sun) prices	No. of tables
Ling Zhi Vegetarian	$498 – $698	10 to 13
Peach Garden	$858 – $1,338	5 to 42 (varies by location)
Tung Lok	$488 – $1,888	8 to 30 (varies by location)
Qian Xi	$728 – $1,178	5 to 120 (varies by location)
Peony Jade	$1,000 – $1,400	18 to 40

As popular as hotel wedding banquets are, some Chinese restaurants in Singapore still make a roaring trade as the venue of choice for some couples. These restaurants are also often picked for wedding banquets with smaller number of guests or tables.

How much ang bao to give at Malay or Indian weddings?

The ang bao rates we discussed above mostly applies to Chinese weddings, as it’s customary to hold a grand wedding celebration, especially if you’re the first-born in the family, or your family has a lot of business contacts.

That’s not to say that Malay and Indian weddings aren’t glorious affairs – they obviously are too in their own way. However, the differences in venue and wedding style can cost a lot less than Chinese weddings.

For example, Malay weddings are comparatively more relaxed affairs compared to the formal sit-down, 10-course dinners observed at Chinese weddings.

With a focus on community and sharing, expect more of a buffet-style dinner with free seating.

These are usually hosted at simple restaurants with large spaces, or at common facilities like community centre/function halls or HDB void decks.

At Malay weddings, ang bao rates of around $50 per person are acceptable. 

Similarly, for Indian wedding dinners, take your cue from the location of the wedding reception for the ang bao you’d like to give. A typical Indian wedding takes place at a temple, with a reception to follow, which could be held at a temple, function hall or a similar venue.

It’s also not unusual for Indian couples to host their wedding receptions at hotels. If that’s the case, it’s good manners to give an ang bao reflecting the prestige of the venue and cost of the meal per head.