Here Are 7 Stable Jobs That Pay Surprisingly Well in Singapore in 2022

Alevin K Chan

Alevin K Chan

Last updated 28 March, 2022

Working in a stable, well-paying job is a prerequisite for living a comfortable life. Here are seven such careers in Singapore you can pursue. 

Boy, 2022 is turning out to be a rocky year isn’t it? 

Just as the world is coming to terms with the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, along comes the Russian invasion of Ukraine, threatening to plunge economies into further chaos.

Even during the best of times, retrenchment and job loss can happen without warning. While there is no such thing as a guaranteed livelihood, there are certain careers that do offer a greater degree of resilience. 

Some careers offer high stability because they either fulfil an essential need that won’t be going away for the foreseeable future, or because they are at the forefront of the next big thing. Bonus points if they also happen to pay well -- even if not outrageously so.

Do jobs like these exist in Singapore? Sure they do -- in fact, here are eight of them.

7 stable jobs in Singapore that pay S$70,000 per year or more

Role Average salary (per year)
Nurse Manager S$119,923
General Practitioner S$100,850
Dentist S$98,183
Blockchain Developer S$86,400
Regulatory Compliance Manager S$81,951
Accounting Manager S$70,752
Marketing Manager S$70,375 

Sources: PayScale, Glassdoor, Indeed, SalaryExplorer

Nurse Manager - S$119,923 per year

A Nurse Manager is a high-level position, and a pretty important one at that. 

The role requires you to oversee the nursing department at a public or private hospital, leading the proper growth and development of the nurses working in your institution.

This means that you’ll not only need to have a keen grasp of the present and future needs of the medical facility you’re serving, be able to identify appropriate training and manpower arrangements, while also being a cheerleader, mediator and mentor to those under you.

Yes, this is a highly advanced and specialised role that requires you to balance nursing care with profitability and accountability to stakeholders. However, it is also highly in demand, given Singapore’s emphasis on high standards of healthcare.

It also pays well - successful candidates can expect to earn an average of S$120,000 per year.

General Practitioner - S$100,850 per year

We know that doctors in an affluent city like Singapore make a good living, but did you know even General Practitioners (GP) earn an average of S$100,850 per year? 

Of course not every single doctor running their own neighbourhood clinic makes that much - this is an average figure after all. Still, at the lower end, GPs report earning around S$70,000 per year. 

That’s not too shabby, considering the average workday consists of seeing patients with common complaints that are usually easily solvable with medications and a few day’s rest.

Doctors will also never not be needed, so there’s no question about career stability if you choose this path. But first, you’ll need to tough it out through medical school, which can be both financially and physically demanding

Dentist - S$98,183 per year

Coming in third place in our list of stable, well-paying jobs in Singapore is Dentist. 

The good folks who ensure your teeth, gums and mouth are as healthy as possible earn an average salary of nearly S$100,000 per year. That may seem high, but only until you’ve had the pleasure of requiring a root canal

The fact is, dentistry is a specialised branch of healthcare, and there are very many different skills and levels of knowledge involved. Indeed, it’ll take between six to eight years to become a full-fledged dentist. 

However, just as with doctors, the world will never stop needing dentists (even though we actively fear and avoid them - but don’t do that kids, that’s how you’ll end up needing a root canal), so this is a career that will enjoy perpetual demand. 

Blockchain Developer - S$86,400 per year

One of the best ways to ensure job stability is to join an industry involved with a product or service that is on the brink of mass adoption. 

Cryptocurrency - and the blockchain technology underlying it - is one of the clearest examples at the moment, with the space attracting increasing amounts of venture capital funds from year to year.

With all this money flooding into the space, companies and organisations are fighting to attract the best talent. This is why blockchain developers in Singapore report an average salary of S$86,400 per year. 

Besides the attractive salary, a career in blockchain also comes with a higher degree of mobility than more traditional roles, further adding to stability.

This is because at the heart of blockchain development is coding skills, which are highly transferable across projects - especially if they use the same language. 

Regulatory Compliance Manager - S$81,951

A Regulatory Compliance Manager is focused on ensuring that the company they work for adheres to all applicable local and international laws and regulations. This role really only came into prominence 

As you’d imagine, this job would involve the study, creation and implementation of policies, procedures and prevailing best practices, interpret and apply audit and compliance requirements for the relevant departments, and develop appropriate internal controls, sometimes in consultation with external auditors. 

Regulatory Compliance Managers may also be called upon to develop safeguards against fraudulent activities, and have the opportunity to help companies operate safely and ethically as well. 

This is a multi-faceted role that would require the ability to break down opaque legalese into digestible and actionable steps, along with the ability to persuade and motivate colleagues and department heads to properly implement them.

Clearly being a Regulatory Compliance Manager can be quite complex and challenging, which is why it attracts a relatively high salary. On average, Regulatory Compliance Managers in Singapore earn S$81,951 per year.

But is it a stable career? You could say so. The industry saw a hiring boom as recently as last year, with some compliance professionals receiving multiple job offers and securing pay rises of up to 25%. 

Accounting Manager - S$70,752

Not to be confused with Accounts Manager (a role that primarily deals with client needs), Accounting Managers are responsible for overseeing the activities and output of the company’s accounting department.

This means that not only will you have to supervise the work of the accountants, you’ll also need to be skilled and knowledgeable enough to ensure the accuracy and veracity of the account books under your charge.

An important part of being an Accounting Manager is the establishment and enforcing of implementation of proper accounting procedures and practices. This alone can present a big challenge, especially if support or accountability is lacking in the organisation. 

Being an Accounting Manager may not be for the faint-of-heart, but those who rise to the challenge can look forward to a comfortable paycheck; the average salary for Accounting Managers in Singapore is around S$70,000 a year.

Marketing Manager - S$70,375

Marketing Managers in Singapore earn an average salary of around S$70,000 per year. 

This role requires you to plan, oversee and execute the marketing campaigns and activities of the company or clients you work for, and can involve a lot of coordination and consensus making. 

Working with a predetermined budget, you’ll need to drive specified objectives and goals, such customer sign ups, conversions, sales, campaign participation and other metrics. 

Given the enormity and complexity of most marketing activities, Marketing Managers usually work with an internal team of creatives, such as writers and social media specialists. They may also often hire external agencies and talent to help deliver their campaigns.

Marketing can be hectic and complicated even at the best of times. To succeed in this job, Marketing Managers need to be able to track results, meet deadlines, and make adjustments on the fly, while keeping a lid on the chaos.

But whether you find this exciting or frightening, you can be assured that as long as  businesses exist, Marketing Managers will always be in demand.

While drawing a decent salary is important for earning a good income, having a high savings rate is crucial for building financial independence. Compare and find the best savings account to help you achieve your financial goals. 

Read these next:


Alternative Careers During the Pandemic – How Much Can You Earn?
The Great Resignation 2021: How Do You Know When It’s Time To Quit Your Job?
School Didn’t Teach Me: To Talk Money When Talking About Career Growth
School Didn’t Teach Me: How to Turn a Hobby into a Career (Without Losing the Passion for It)
School Didn’t Teach Me: How To Strike A Balance Between Motherhood And Career Ambition

Alevin loves helping people make good money decisions. He briefly flirted with being a Financial Advisor, but quickly realised writing about personal finance is the better way to go.

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