Why Singapore women may need to plan harder for retirement than men

A Singaporean man and woman:

• Have the same birthday.
• Hold the same amount of retirement savings.
• Expect to spend the same amount every month.
• Live similar lifestyles.
• And even retire on the same day after turning 65.

You might expect they could have the same retirement plan. But women may need to plan their retirements differently even with the same financial resources as a man.

The first challenge: women's retirement money might need to last longer

According to the latest Singapore Department of Statistics data:

• A male resident who reached 65 in 2025 can expect to live another 19.9 years on average.
• For women, it is 23.1 years.

That is a difference of 3.2 years, or more than 38 additional months of retirement.

For illustration, if someone expects to spend S$2,500 a month during retirement, 3.2 additional years would represent about S$96,000 in additional spending, before accounting for inflation, investment returns or other income sources.

The second challenge: same CPF savings may not mean same CPF LIFE payouts

One less obvious consequence of women's longer life expectancy is that a man and woman with otherwise similar CPF LIFE circumstances may not receive the same monthly payout.

CPF Board states that longer life expectancy results in lower monthly payouts on average, and that males receive higher payouts than females because their average life expectancy is shorter.

This does not make CPF LIFE less valuable for women. Its lifelong payout feature helps protect against the risk of outliving retirement savings.

But women should plan their retirements around the CPF LIFE payouts they are actually projected to receive, rather than using a generic payout calculation.

• Some CPF Board illustrations of CPF LIFE payouts are based on a male member.
• For instance, CPF Board's 2026 illustration shows that someone turning 55 with the Full Retirement Sum of S$220,400 could receive an estimated S$1,780 a month from age 65 under the CPF LIFE Standard Plan. The footnote states that these payout figures are based on a male member.
• For women, a more reliable payout figure can be found using CPF’s Retirement Payout Planner or Monthly Payout Estimator.

The third challenge: women approaching retirement may have lower CPF balances

CPF statistics also reveal another difference. Based on Lifepedia calculations using figures as of 31 December 2025, average total CPF balances were approximately:

• Age above 50 to 55: S$334,000 for men versus S$295,000 for women
• Age above 55 to 60: S$330,000 for men versus S$295,000 for women
• Age above 60 to 65: S$308,000 for men versus S$272,000 for women

Across the three age groups combined, that works out to around S$324,000 for men and S$288,000 for women, or an 11% difference.

There are important caveats:

• The figures are calculated averages from aggregate CPF data, not medians. CPF member counts are published in thousands, so these calculated averages should be read as approximate.
• They show balances across CPF accounts and are not a direct measure of how retirement-ready an individual is.
• Housing choices, CPF usage and employment histories can also differ substantially.

It would be wrong to conclude that the average Singapore woman is automatically 11% less prepared for retirement. But the pattern is still notable: women aged 50 to 65 currently have lower calculated average CPF balances in all three five-year age bands.

Coupled with the fact that women have longer average lifespans, some women may be approaching retirement with less money that needs to support them for longer.

How women can plan for their retirement more deliberately

That is why the answer is not simply: Women need to save more.

A better conclusion is: women may need to design their retirement plans more carefully, which starts with changing what you plan for.

1. Plan for both your household and yourself

Instead of looking at a combined retirement sum for yourself and your spouse, you should ask: How much retirement income would each spouse have individually?

• A couple's expenses do not simply halve if one person dies.
• The surviving spouse may still have to pay for housing, utilities, transport, insurance, healthcare and many other fixed expenses.

For women, knowing their own financial position within the household is important.

• How much CPF LIFE income will you personally receive?
• What savings and investments are in your name?
• What happens to household income if your spouse dies first?
• Which expenses remain?
• What assets, insurance payouts or other income would then be available?

This is not about planning for the worst. It is about recognising that a retirement plan designed for two people may eventually have to support one.

2. Give yourself a planning age, not just a retirement age

Most people know roughly when they would like to retire. Far fewer decide how long their financial plan should be designed to last.

For women, this number can be particularly important.

• If you plan to retire at 65, consider running your plan to at least age 90, and then stress-test it to 95.

You do not need to keep 30 years of expenditure sitting in cash. Instead, ask whether the combination of lifelong income, investments, savings and other assets could continue supporting you under a longer-than-expected retirement.

3. Work backwards from income, not just a big savings number

A retirement goal such as "I need S$1 million" sounds reassuringly concrete. But the number on its own tells you relatively little.

Instead, begin with the income you need.

• Suppose you expect to need S$3,000 a month for essential and regular retirement expenses.
• If lifelong income sources cover S$2,000, your remaining problem is very different from someone who needs to fund almost the entire S$3,000 from a finite investment portfolio.

This is where CPF LIFE can form an important part of the plan.

• CPF LIFE provides monthly payouts for life, helping to protect against the risk of living longer than expected.
• Women should check their personal projected payout, especially because CPF LIFE payouts take sex-specific life expectancy into account.

From there, the remaining income gap can be supported through other savings, investments or retirement income sources.