The SingaporeHome TuitionReport2026–2027
Inside more than 100,000 home tuition arrangements: what families pay, when they look for help and how lessons happen.
10 Findings from More than 100,000 Home Tuition Arrangements
Data from 7 Years of Home Tuition in Singapore
October 2019 – August 2026
10 Findings from More than 100,000 Home Tuition Arrangements
7 years of home tuition in Singapore, October 2019 – August 2026.
What Families Pay
- 01The monthly cost of a home tutor rises with each stage, from a median S$260 at Preschool to about S$550 at Junior College.
- 02Families in the Core Central Region (CCR) spend 36% more on a home tutor than families in the Outside Central Region (OCR): S$488 vs S$358 a month.
- 03Rates follow the tutor’s background: from Primary to Junior College, NIE-Trained Teachers charge 2–2.5× the Part-Time Tutor rate and about 1.5× the Full-Time Tutor rate.
- 04Average tuition rates rose 13% between 2020 and 2025, while overall inflation over the same 5 years was 18%.
When Families Look
- 05Tuition starts before Primary 1: 56% of Preschool requests are for English or Phonics, and 40% for a Mother Tongue language.
- 06The search for PSLE help starts early: Primary 6 enquiries peak in November, before the school year begins.
- 07Every stage of school has its own tuition season: parents are most active in January for Secondary 4, and in July for Junior College and Lower Primary.
- 08Most requests are for 1 subject (85%), but 47% of children end up with requests in 2 or more.
What Families Pay
Monthly costs, where families live, tutors’ backgrounds and how rates have moved.
- 01From S$260 to S$550: The Monthly Cost of a Home Tutor, from Preschool to Junior College
- 02Families in the Core Central Region (CCR) Spend 36% More on a Home Tutor Than Families in the Outside Central Region (OCR)
- 03From Primary to Junior College, NIE-Trained Teachers Charge 2–2.5× the Part-Time Tutor Rate and About 1.5× the Full-Time Tutor Rate
- 04Average Tuition Rates Rose 13% in 5 Years, While Inflation Was 18%
From S$260 to S$550: The Monthly Cost of a Home Tutor, from Preschool to Junior College
The monthly cost of a home tutor rises with each stage and roughly doubles from Preschool to Junior College. The overall median is S$390 a month.
The middle 50% of arrangements cost between S$293 and S$520 a month. By stage, the median is S$260 a month at Preschool, S$325 at Primary, S$390 at Secondary and about S$550 at Junior College.
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Preschool and Primary sit below the overall median of S$390, Secondary sits on it, and Junior College is about S$160 above it, roughly 40% more. As children move through school, 2 things push the cost up: higher hourly rates and longer lessons, shown in the next 2 charts.
Hourly rates rise in S$5 steps from S$40 at Preschool to S$60 at Upper Secondary, then jump to S$80 at Junior College, S$5–10 more than in 2020 at every stage.
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Lessons also get longer as children grow, which helps double the monthly cost.
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The 1.5-hour lesson is the majority at every stage. Lessons of 1 hour or less are common only at Preschool (29%), while 2-hour lessons rise from 8% at Preschool to 33% at Junior College.
Junior College figures include International Curriculum students.
Families in the Core Central Region (CCR) Spend 36% More on a Home Tutor Than Families in the Outside Central Region (OCR)
The S$390 median varies across Singapore. A home tutor costs a median S$488 a month in the CCR, S$390 in the Rest of Central Region (RCR) and S$358 in the OCR.
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The kind of tutor families hire differs too. At Primary level, 34% of arrangements in the CCR are with an NIE-Trained Teacher, compared with 24% in the RCR and 19% in the OCR. Part-Time Tutors account for 21% of Primary arrangements in the CCR, against 33% in the OCR.
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Across all tutors, the median Primary rate is S$60 an hour in the CCR and S$45 in the OCR, a gap of S$15. For the same type of tutor, the gap is S$5 or less: a Part-Time Tutor for a Primary pupil costs a median S$35 an hour in all 3 regions, a Full-Time Tutor S$45–50, and an NIE-Trained Teacher S$70–75.
| Region | Monthly Spend | Primary Hourly Rate | Primary Arrangements with an NIE-Trained Teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Central (CCR) | S$488 | S$60 | 34% |
| Rest of Central (RCR) | S$390 | S$50 | 24% |
| Outside Central (OCR) | S$358 | S$45 | 19% |
Regions follow URA’s Core Central, Rest of Central and Outside Central Regions, approximated by postal district. CCR: D01, D02, D06, D09, D10, D11. RCR: D03, D04, D05, D07, D08, D12, D13, D14, D15, D20. OCR: all other districts. In-person lessons only.
From Primary to Junior College, NIE-Trained Teachers Charge 2–2.5× the Part-Time Tutor Rate and About 1.5× the Full-Time Tutor Rate
Who families hire matters more to the price than where they live. At the same school level, the tutor’s background makes a large difference.
At Upper Primary, a Part-Time Tutor charges a median S$35 an hour, a Full-Time Tutor S$50, and an NIE-Trained Teacher S$80: 2.3× the Part-Time Tutor rate.
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The gap holds from Primary to Junior College. At Upper Secondary, a Part-Time Tutor charges a median S$45 an hour, a Full-Time Tutor S$60 and an NIE-Trained Teacher S$90; at Junior College, the 3 rates are S$50, S$80 and S$120. Only at Preschool is the gap narrower: an NIE-Trained Teacher charges 1.7× the Part-Time Tutor rate.
Against a Full-Time Tutor, the gap is smaller. From Primary to Junior College, an NIE-Trained Teacher costs about 1.5× the Full-Time Tutor rate: S$25–40 more an hour, from S$70 vs S$45 at Lower Primary to S$120 vs S$80 at Junior College.
| Stage | Part-Time Tutor | Full-Time Tutor | NIE-Trained Teacher | NIE-Trained vs Part-Time | NIE-Trained vs Full-Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preschool | S$35 | S$50 | S$60 | 1.7× | 1.2× |
| Lower Primary | S$35 | S$45 | S$70 | 2.0× | 1.6× |
| Upper Primary | S$35 | S$50 | S$80 | 2.3× | 1.6× |
| Lower Secondary | S$40 | S$55 | S$80 | 2.0× | 1.5× |
| Upper Secondary | S$45 | S$60 | S$90 | 2.0× | 1.5× |
| Junior College | S$50 | S$80 | S$120 | 2.4× | 1.5× |
How to read the table: each row gives the median hourly rate for the 3 types of tutor at one stage, and the last 2 columns show the NIE-Trained Teacher’s rate as a multiple of the Part-Time and Full-Time Tutor rates. Across the stages, 2 patterns stand out. Part-Time Tutor rates stay at S$35 an hour from Preschool all the way to Upper Primary, while NIE-Trained Teacher rates rise from S$60 to S$80 over the same stages. And the dollar gap widens as students get older: an NIE-Trained Teacher costs S$25 an hour more than a Part-Time Tutor at Preschool, and S$70 more at Junior College.
Junior College figures include International Curriculum students.
Average Tuition Rates Rose 13% in 5 Years, While Inflation Was 18%
Rates have also risen over time, though not as fast as everyday prices. Between 2020 and 2025, the average hourly rate for home tuition rose 13%. Over the same 5 years, overall inflation in Singapore was 18%.
Once inflation is taken into account, the average hourly rate in 2025 was about 4% lower than in 2020. In other words, tuition rates rose more slowly than prices across the wider economy.
Swipe sideways to see the full chart →
Swipe sideways to see the full chart →
Behind the average, rates at the top and bottom of the market have moved differently. The bottom of the shaded band has not moved: in every year from 2019 to 2026, at least 25% of hourly rates were S$40 or less. The top of the band has risen: the point where the most expensive 25% of rates begin went from S$60 in 2020 to S$70 by 2023. The median, the line, moves only in S$5 steps, because almost all rates are set in multiples of S$5. It rose from S$50 in 2019 to S$55 in 2025 and 2026, after a dip to S$45 in 2020. The average, used for the 13% figure, moves more smoothly and is the better measure of change.
Averages reflect the mix of levels and tutors in each year.
When Families Look
Tuition before Primary 1, the PSLE search, each stage’s tuition season and how subjects add up.
Tuition Starts Before Primary 1
Home tuition is not only for exam years. At Preschool level, requests centre on the basics: 56% ask for English or Phonics, and 40% for a Mother Tongue language.
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Mother Tongue demand is almost as strong as demand for English: 40% of Preschool requests ask for help in Chinese, Malay or Tamil, against 43% for English.
A Preschool tutor costs a median S$260 a month, the lowest of any level. Lessons are shorter too: 29% last 1 hour or less, and only about 8% run for 2 hours. Enquiries stay relatively even through the year, without the sharp peaks of the exam years. And Preschool families are the least open to online lessons: about 1%.
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Preschool parents are most active in January, as the school year begins, at about 20% above a typical month, with smaller rises in May and July. They are least active from October to December, between about 16% and 27% below a typical month. Across the year, the most active month is only about 1.6× the least active, compared with nearly 10× at Primary 6.
The Search for PSLE Help Starts Early: Primary 6 Enquiries Peak in November
Many families preparing for the PSLE start looking for help before Primary 6 begins.
Tuition enquiries for incoming Primary 6 pupils peak in November, at 2× the level of a typical month.
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By September of the exam year, the search is all but over: enquiries fall to about 20% of a typical month. At the November peak, enquiries are nearly 10× their September level.
Every Stage of School Has Its Own Tuition Season
There is no single tuition season. Across all levels, parents are most active in looking for tuition in May, but each stage of school follows its own calendar.
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Secondary 4 parents are most active in January, as the national-exam year begins, with enquiries about 50% above a typical month. Junior College parents are most active in July, early in the second half of the school year, at about 65% above a typical month. Lower Primary parents are also most active in July, though January and May come close.
| Stage | When Parents Are Most Active | Where It Falls in the School Year |
|---|---|---|
| All Levels | May | Before the June holidays |
| Preschool | January | Start of the school year |
| Lower Primary | July | Early in the second half of the year |
| Primary 6 | November | Before the PSLE year begins |
| Secondary 4 | January | Start of the national-exam year |
| Junior College | July | Early in the second half of the year |
Each of these months sits at a clear point in the school calendar: the start of the year, either side of the June holidays, or the run-up to an exam year. What differs by stage is which of these points draws the most enquiries.
The Weeks Parents Are Most Active
Looking week by week rather than month by month, 2 periods stand out across all levels: early January, as the school year begins, and late May, just before the June holidays.
Most Requests Are for 1 Subject, but 47% of Children End Up with Requests in 2 or More
85% of tuition requests name a single subject. Follow the same child over time, though, and the picture changes.
Followed over time, 47% of children end up with requests in 2 or more subjects.
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The 2 bars measure the same thing in different ways. The first looks at each request on its own: 15% ask for help in 2 or more subjects. The second follows each child across all their requests from 2022 to 2026: 47% end up with requests in 2 or more subjects, about 3× as many, while 53% have requests in only 1. A family might ask for Maths in Primary 4 and return for Science in Primary 5. Each request names 1 subject, but together they cover 2.
How Lessons Happen
Online or in person, weekday or weekend: how tuition fits family life.
Online Tuition Was a Lockdown Necessity, Not a Lasting Preference
The surge in online tuition was driven by the rules, not by choice. Twice, in-person lessons were suspended; twice, openness to online lessons rose, then fell back once the restrictions lifted.
Before the Circuit Breaker, almost no family asked for online tuition: from January to March 2020, 1% or less of enquiries were open to it. When in-person home tuition was suspended from 7 April to 18 June 2020, at least 86% of May’s enquiries were open to online lessons. In July, the first full month after home tuition resumed, that had fallen to around 14%.
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The pattern repeated in 2021. When in-person tuition for students aged 18 and under was suspended again from 19 May to 13 June, the share of enquiries open to online lessons rose to at least 31%, then fell back as lessons resumed.
What remains is a small shift. Since 2023, around 5% of families have been willing to consider online lessons, up from almost none before the pandemic.
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Openness to online lessons rises at every stage of school: about 1% at Preschool, 2% at Primary, 6% at Secondary, 13% at Junior College and 22% at Polytechnic and University. For younger children, home tuition remains almost entirely in person; online lessons are mainly an option for older students.
Figures show families open to online lessons, not lessons taught online. Junior College figures include International Curriculum students.
As Children Grow, Tuition Moves to Evenings and Weekends
Lessons start later and move to the weekend as children grow: 25% of Primary arrangements start on a Saturday or Sunday, rising to 48% at Junior College.
Primary pupils most often start lessons at 3pm on a weekday; for Secondary and Junior College students, the most popular weekday start is 7pm. On weekdays, about 30% of Primary first lessons start at 6pm or later, against about 45% at Secondary and about 55% at Junior College.
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The weekend share rises with each stage: 25% at Primary, 37% at Secondary and 48% at Junior College. At every level, the favourite weekend slot is 10am.
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If first lessons were spread evenly across the week, about 29% would fall on a weekend, since weekends are 2 of 7 days; the dashed line marks that level. Primary sits below that mark, while Secondary and Junior College are well above it. At Junior College, Saturday alone accounts for about 25% of first lessons.
Based on the first lesson of each arrangement.
About the Data
This report draws on more than 100,000 home tuition arrangements, and the enquiries behind them, recorded by MindFlex Education from October 2019 to August 2026. An enquiry, or request, is a family asking for a tutor; an arrangement is a confirmed match with one. Prices are what families agreed to pay, not advertised rates. Monthly costs are per tutor arrangement, based on hourly rate, lesson length and lessons per week. Rates and costs are medians unless stated otherwise. Where no other period is given, figures cover January 2024 to August 2026; those on subjects per request and per child cover 2022 to 2026. Seasonal patterns compare each month with a typical month, that year’s monthly average, across the complete years 2022 to 2025. Online openness before 2023 is based on what families wrote in their requests. Inflation figures use Singapore Department of Statistics consumer price data. The findings describe MindFlex’s records, not every household in Singapore.
Suggested Citation
MindFlex Education (2026). The Singapore Home Tuition Report 2026–2027.
About MindFlex Education
Founded in 2017, MindFlex Education connects Singapore families with home tutors across all levels and subjects, from Preschool, Primary, Secondary and Junior College to International Curriculum, Polytechnic and University. Its network of more than 60,000 tutors includes Part-Time Tutors, Full-Time Tutors and NIE-Trained Teachers.
Published September 2026 by MindFlex Education.
