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Average Ophthalmic Assistant Salary in Singapore for 2026

An ophthalmic assistant in Singapore earns about 80,340 SGD a year. That's 22% below the national average of 103,200 SGD.

Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in Singapore sit around 38,140 SGD a year, while the very top stretches to 125,700 SGD. Everything on this page is in Singapore dollar (SGD, symbol $), which lets you compare numbers like-for-like without worrying about exchange rates.

The numbers here are pulled together from official government wage data, large independent salary surveys, and aggregated worker-reported pay. Most reported salaries include the benefits that are common in Singapore, such as housing or transport allowances, which is worth keeping in mind if you're comparing against a country where those are usually paid on top.


How much does an ophthalmic assistant make in Singapore?

Average salary
80,340 SGD
6,695 SGD per month
Lowest reported
38,140 SGD
3,178 SGD per month
Highest reported
125,700 SGD
10,475 SGD per month

A typical ophthalmic assistant working in Singapore brings home around 6,695 SGD a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 38,140 SGD, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 125,700 SGD for the most experienced and specialised people in the role.

The wide gap between low end and top end reflects how much pay can vary inside the same job title. A junior ophthalmic assistant working at a small local employer earns very different money from a senior at a multinational. Skills, employer, city and years in the seat all push the number around.


How ophthalmic assistant pay ranges in Singapore

A good way to think about salary in Singapore is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all ophthalmic assistants in Singapore earn less than 87,000 SGD a year, and the other half earn more. That middle number is the median, and it is usually more useful than the average for answering "is my pay normal here".

Looking at the quartiles fills in the picture. A quarter of earners take home less than 56,140 SGD (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 116,540 SGD (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of ophthalmic assistants sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 38,140 SGD. The highest stretch to 125,700 SGD, though only a small fraction of earners ever reach that level. If you are deciding whether your own offer or current pay is reasonable, work out which of those four bands you would fall into and use that as your reference point.

38,140
Low
87,000
Median
125,700
High
56,140
25th
116,540
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in SGD

Ophthalmic assistant pay by experience in Singapore

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for an ophthalmic assistant in Singapore, ahead of education and almost any other single factor. The longer you have been in the role, the more your employer can trust you to handle complexity, mentor others and act independently, all of which command higher pay. The chart below shows how the typical ophthalmic assistant salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    41,560 SGD
  • 2-5 Years
    +31% from previous
    54,500 SGD
  • 5-10 Years
    +48% from previous
    80,640 SGD
  • 10-15 Years
    +23% from previous
    98,960 SGD
  • 15-20 Years
    +9% from previous
    107,880 SGD
  • 20+ Years
    +8% from previous
    116,780 SGD

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 48%. That is the point at which a ophthalmic assistant typically goes from "competent in the role" to "the person other people in the team learn from", and the market pays well for that step.


Ophthalmic assistant pay by education in Singapore

Education lifts pay across almost every role, but the size of the lift varies enormously. The biggest premiums show up in licensed professions like medicine, law and accounting, where extra years of formal study open up seniority that isn't available without the qualification. The smallest premiums show up in skilled trades and creative work, where practical experience often beats academic credentials.

As a rough cross-industry guide for Singapore: a post-secondary certificate or diploma adds around 17% over a high-school-only baseline. A bachelor's degree typically adds another 25% on top of that. A master's lifts pay a further 30%, and a PhD adds about 22% more in fields that value research-level qualifications. These are averages across many different professions, so the real number for your specific job could easily be twice as high or close to zero. The per-job pages below have the real numbers for individual roles.


Ophthalmic assistant gender pay gap in Singapore

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and Singapore is no exception. Male ophthalmic assistants in Singapore earn an average of 81,180 SGD a year, while female ophthalmic assistants earn around 78,500 SGD. That works out to a 3% gap in favour of men, even when comparing people doing the same work.

A pay gap of this size has a real long-term cost. Over a typical thirty-year career it can add up to several years of pay, and it compounds through pensions, retirement contributions and bonus-linked stock. Some of the gap is explained by women being more likely to work part-time, take career breaks, or be steered toward lower-paying specialisations. Some of it is straightforward unequal pay for the same job, which is harder to defend.

Ophthalmic Assistant gender pay gap

3%

Men earn this much more than women on average in Singapore.

Men 81,180 SGD
Women 78,500 SGD

Pay raises for an ophthalmic assistant in Singapore

Most countries hand out at least some kind of pay raise every year, typically when an employee's contract is reviewed or as a cost-of-living adjustment to keep wages roughly in step with inflation. The rhythm and size of those raises varies hugely between industries.

A typical worker doing this role in Singapore sees a raise of about 10% every 15 months, which works out to roughly 8% on an annual basis. That figure is the typical underlying rate; in years where inflation runs high you can usually expect a bit more, and in flat-economy years a bit less.

Across all jobs in Singapore, the national average raise is around 9% every 15 months.

By industry

Industries with the highest pay raises in Singapore:

  • Banking
  • Energy
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
    1%
  • Travel
  • Construction
  • Education

By experience level

Experienced workers tend to see larger raises. Retaining a senior is cheaper than replacing them, so employers fight harder for them.

  • Junior Level
    3% - 5%
  • Mid-Career
  • Senior Level
  • Top Management

Ophthalmic assistant bonus rates in Singapore

Bonuses are the other half of total compensation, and they vary a lot between jobs and industries. Some roles are paid almost entirely in base salary; others lean heavily on bonus structures tied to revenue, project completion or company performance. Whether a job pays a bonus, how big it is, and how often it lands all factor into whether the headline salary is actually a good offer.

60%

60% of ophthalmic assistants in Singapore reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes an ophthalmic assistant a moderate-bonus role overall, which is useful context when you're weighing up a job offer where the base is below market.

Among those who did receive a bonus, the size of the payment varied substantially. Reported bonuses ranged from 2% to 7% of base salary. The remaining 40% of ophthalmic assistants reported no bonus at all over the same period.

Which careers pay bonuses in Singapore

Revenue-facing roles tend to pay the biggest bonuses. Operational and support roles tend toward smaller, more predictable ones.

  • Finance
  • Architecture
  • Sales
  • Business Development
  • Marketing / Advertising
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Insurance
  • Customer Service
  • Human Resources
  • Construction
  • Transport
  • Hospitality

Ophthalmic assistant: public vs private sector pay

Public-sector pay in Singapore is about 5% more than private-sector pay for similar work. The private sector typically offers stronger upside and bigger bonuses; the public sector typically offers better benefits and stability.

Public vs private pay gap

5%

Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in Singapore on average.

Public sector 103,440 SGD
Private sector 98,540 SGD


Ophthalmic Assistant in Singapore: FAQs

  • How much does an ophthalmic assistant make per month in Singapore?

    An ophthalmic assistant in Singapore earns about 6,695 SGD a month before tax, based on an annual average of 80,340 SGD.

  • What's the salary range for an ophthalmic assistant in Singapore?

    Entry-level ophthalmic assistants in Singapore start near 38,140 SGD. Top-end pay reaches around 125,700 SGD. The middle 50% of earners sit between 56,140 and 116,540 SGD.

  • Is the median ophthalmic assistant salary in Singapore higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 87,000 SGD, higher than the average of 80,340 SGD. Half of ophthalmic assistants in Singapore earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for ophthalmic assistants in Singapore?

    Men working as an ophthalmic assistant in Singapore earn around 3% more than women on average (81,180 vs 78,500 SGD a year).

  • Do ophthalmic assistants in Singapore get bonuses?

    About 60% of ophthalmic assistants in Singapore reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 2% to 7% of base salary.

  • Do ophthalmic assistants earn more in the public or private sector in Singapore?

    In Singapore, the public sector pays an ophthalmic assistant about 5% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.

  • How often do ophthalmic assistants in Singapore get a pay raise?

    An ophthalmic assistant in Singapore sees a raise of around 10% every 15 months, equivalent to roughly 8% a year.