Just for fun I computed my gross starting salary in current (January, 2024) U.S. dollars. In current dollars it was about US$104,700 (about S$140,600 at the current exchange rate, or about S$11,600 per month). That’s with an excellent graduate degree and does not include any bonuses, although I may not have gotten a bonus that first year. (I remember I had no expectation of a bonus, but whether I actually got one I can’t rule out.) It was also in a moderate cost of living U.S. city.
My recollection is that I was able to negotiate a starting salary that was more than 13% above the original offer. It was a short negotiation, though. They made an initial offer, I gave them another number, and they accepted my number. I think the whole negotiation lasted a minute.
In current dollars the median U.S. salary is now just shy of US$60,000 (S$80,500) per year. That’s for all ages. So a starting salary of ~US$104,700 (current dollars) was genuinely very good. A salary like that helps when trying to save. As I recall I did most of the things you’re supposed to do: maxed out tax advantaged retirement savings (analogous to Singapore’s Supplementary Retirement Scheme but with some employer matching funds, which is arguably CPF-like), accumulated an emergency buffer, and got ready to pay off relatively high cost debt (student loans that would start accruing interest 6 months after I started work). And saved for a car I bought a little over a year later since that was a genuine necessity in that context. I knew my existing car would need replacement fairly soon. (Cars are not a necessity here in Singapore, so that was a higher cost of living element.) I also got disability income insurance. You could get that via the employer with a payroll deduction, to get 2/3rds salary replacement in the event of disability. That was the only additional insurance that made sense to pay extra to get at that time. I couldn’t participate in the Employee Stock Purchase Program (opportunity to buy shares at a decent discount) during the first year (a typical rule, maybe even required legally), but I signed up as soon as allowed and maxed that out.
I was already living on my own, in a different city than the one my parents lived in. And I really needed a car for my job. So for that reason too my living costs were higher than what a typical person starting his/her first real job in Singapore would experience. Income taxes were higher (and paid on a withholding basis from paychecks, so it's not like Singapore where you can pay the income tax later), but the Social Security part was 15.3% I think (employer plus employee) — a lot lower than the 37% CPF contribution rate. (I closed most of that gap by maxing out the tax advantaged retirement savings accounts, but those were voluntary.) Medical insurance was "free" (employer-provided) and more comprehensive than in Singapore, so there were no direct MediShield Life or Integrated Shield plan premiums to pay — nothing equivalent to that. But the employer's salary offer is reduced to help pay for the medical insurance benefit. The money has to come from somewhere, after all. Sales tax was broadly similar to Singapore's GST, so no real difference there.
Anyway, none of this stuff is exotic in terms of core principles whether here in Singapore or elsewhere. Just do the best you can to equip yourself for success (good educational investments), try to get a good salary (and keep looking for reasonable opportunities for advancement), save early and diligently, insure what actually needs to be insured, and then try not to do anything too stupid.
Since this topic is about FIRE, or early retirement, so it is a choice we are making in terms of when to stop working.
