If you feel like homes in Singapore are getting tighter, you are not alone. Across both private condominiums and public housing, average unit sizes have gradually decreased over the past few decades. While today’s apartments may look sleek and efficiently designed, many residents are learning to live large within increasingly compact footprints.

For some homeowners, small-space living is a conscious trade-off. Compact one-bedroom units, often referred to as “shoebox” apartments, are designed to maximise functionality within limited floor area. Dining tables double as work desks, beds come with built-in storage, and foldable or wall-mounted furniture helps free up precious space. Clever interior solutions have become essential rather than optional.

This shift is not simply a design trend. Data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), analysed by Knight Frank Singapore, shows that the average floor area of new non-landed private homes has fallen significantly over the years. In the mid-1990s, new units averaged about 118 square metres. By 2025, that figure had declined to around 83 square metres. Resale condominium units have followed a similar trajectory.

Public housing has seen more stability overall, but long-term patterns still reveal changes. According to Housing & Development Board (HDB) data, resale flats built in the mid-1990s averaged about 130 square metres. In more recent decades, while standard four-room and five-room flats have remained relatively consistent at about 90 and 110 square metres respectively, the overall mix of flat types has evolved. Executive apartments and maisonettes are no longer being built, and there has been a steady rise in one- and two-room flats since the 2010s.

Several factors are driving this downsizing. Demographics play a key role. Singapore’s average household size has fallen from 4.87 persons in 1980 to just over 3 in 2025, according to the Department of Statistics. One-person households now make up a significant share of resident households. With fewer large families and more singles or elderly residents living alone, smaller homes have become more acceptable.

At the same time, economic pressures are shaping housing design. Rising land costs, construction expenses, and financing challenges have increased development costs. To keep overall purchase prices within reach, developers often build more compact units, even as prices per square foot continue to climb. In the core central region, for example, average prices per square foot for mid-sized condo units have risen sharply over the past decade.

Government housing policies and subsidies have helped stabilise public housing sizes to some extent, but private market forces are more directly influenced by cost and demand dynamics. As a result, smaller units have become a common feature in new condominium launches.

This trend has also contributed to widening differences in living space. Larger homes, especially landed properties and older freehold condominiums, are limited in supply and often command premium prices. Market analyses show that price growth for bigger private units has outpaced that of smaller ones in recent years. For many aspiring homeowners, upgrading to a more spacious property requires significantly greater financial commitment.

Interestingly, preferences have not entirely shifted toward compact living. Surveys suggest that a notable portion of residents still prefer older developments with more generous layouts over newer but smaller units. While compact homes may suit singles or young professionals starting out, many express hopes of eventually moving into larger spaces for entertaining, working from home, or future family needs.

The key takeaway lies in the numbers: new private homes have shrunk from an average of 118 square metres in 1995 to about 83 square metres in 2025, household sizes have declined to just over three persons on average, and one-person households now account for roughly 16 per cent of resident households. Against a backdrop of rising property prices and land scarcity, smaller homes are becoming the norm rather than the exception in Singapore’s evolving housing landscape.