Your Guide to Singapore's Car Market
FAQs, glossary of key terms, data sources, and guides to understanding COE, PARF, and car registration trends.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about Singapore's vehicle market, from COE bidding to PARF rebates.
Certificate of Entitlement (COE)
Car Registration and Market Trends
Electric and Hybrid Vehicles
PARF and Vehicle Deregistration
Using SG Cars Trends
Still Have Questions?
If you have additional questions about Singapore's automotive market or need help understanding specific data points, feel free to explore our comprehensive car registration and COE data through the navigation menu above.
Glossary of Key Terms
Understanding Singapore's automotive terminology is essential for navigating the car market.
Core Terms
COE
Certificate of Entitlement — a quota licence required to register a vehicle in Singapore, valid for 10 years.
PQP
Prevailing Quota Premium — the moving average of COE prices used to calculate COE renewal costs after 10 years.
PARF
Preferential Additional Registration Fee — a rebate given when deregistering a vehicle before its COE expires, calculated as a percentage of the ARF paid.
ARF
Additional Registration Fee — a tax levied on top of the vehicle's Open Market Value at registration. The rate is tiered based on OMV.
OMV
Open Market Value — the price of a vehicle before any Singapore-specific taxes, assessed by Singapore Customs.
Road Tax
An annual tax based on engine capacity (for ICE vehicles) or power output (for EVs), payable to renew the vehicle's road usage rights.
COE Categories
Category A
Cars up to 1,600cc and 130bhp, or electric cars with power up to 110kW.
Category B
Cars above 1,600cc or 130bhp, or electric cars with power above 110kW.
Category C
Goods vehicles and buses.
Category D
Motorcycles.
Category E
Open category — can be used for any vehicle type. Typically attracts the highest premiums.
Vehicle Types
BEV
Battery Electric Vehicle — powered entirely by an electric motor and battery, with zero tailpipe emissions.
PHEV
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle — has both an electric motor and internal combustion engine, with a battery that can be charged externally.
HEV
Hybrid Electric Vehicle — combines an internal combustion engine with an electric motor but cannot be plugged in to charge.
Regulatory Bodies and Schemes
LTA
Land Transport Authority — the government agency responsible for planning, operating, and maintaining Singapore's land transport infrastructure and systems.
VQS
Vehicle Quota System — the overall system that controls vehicle population growth in Singapore through COE quotas.
VES
Vehicular Emissions Scheme — a scheme that provides rebates or surcharges based on a vehicle's emissions, encouraging cleaner vehicles.
CEVS
Carbon Emissions-based Vehicle Scheme — the predecessor to VES, which provided rebates or surcharges based on carbon emissions alone.
ERP
Electronic Road Pricing — a congestion pricing system that charges motorists for using certain roads during peak hours.
Market Terms
Quota Premium
The price of a COE as determined by the bidding exercise — the lowest successful bid in each category.
Deregistration
The process of removing a vehicle from the Singapore register, either for export, scrappage, or to claim PARF/COE rebates.
Parallel Import
Vehicles imported by dealers other than the official authorised distributor, often at competitive prices.
Paper Bid
A pre-bidding COE commitment made through authorised dealers before the actual bidding exercise.
Where Our Data Comes From
All data is sourced from official government channels and updated regularly.
Primary Data Source
All vehicle registration and COE data is sourced directly from Singapore's Land Transport Authority (LTA) DataMall, the official government open data platform for transport-related datasets.
Update Frequency
Data is updated monthly following LTA's official release schedule. New data typically becomes available 2-3 weeks after the end of each month.
COE bidding results are updated after each exercise (twice monthly).
Data Coverage
Our dataset covers Singapore vehicle registration and COE data from January 2015 to present, with monthly granularity.
Accuracy Disclaimer
While we strive for accuracy, this platform is not affiliated with the Singapore government. Data is provided for informational purposes only. For official records and legal matters, please refer directly to LTA's official channels. Minor discrepancies may occur due to data processing and formatting.
Guides & Tutorials
Step-by-step guides to help you understand Singapore's vehicle market and make the most of our platform.
How COE Bidding Works
The Certificate of Entitlement (COE) bidding system uses a uniform-price auction format. All successful bidders pay the same price — the lowest successful bid (known as the Quota Premium).
Bidding exercises are held twice a month, typically on the first and third Wednesday, and run for three days. You can submit, modify, or withdraw your bid during this period.
To bid, you must place a deposit through an authorised dealer or via the OneMotoring portal. The deposit is typically $10,000 for Category A/B/E, or $200 for Category D (motorcycles).
If your bid is successful, you have six months to register a vehicle using the COE. Unused COEs are forfeited, and the deposit is not refunded.
Understanding PARF Rebates
When you deregister a vehicle before its 10-year COE expires, you receive a PARF rebate — a percentage of the Additional Registration Fee (ARF) you paid at registration.
The rebate percentage decreases as your vehicle ages. Under the new Budget 2026 rates: 30% for 5 years and younger, 25% for >5-6 years, 20% for >6-7 years, 15% for >7-8 years, 10% for >8-9 years, and 5% for >9-10 years.
If your vehicle is over 10 years old, you receive no PARF rebate. The maximum PARF rebate is capped at $30,000 (reduced from $60,000 under Budget 2026).
The PARF rebate is separate from the COE rebate, which refunds a pro-rated portion of the COE premium based on remaining validity.
Reading the Charts and Data
Registration charts show the number of new vehicles registered each month, broken down by make, fuel type, or vehicle type. A rising trend suggests increased demand, while dips may indicate higher COE prices or seasonal effects.
COE premium charts track the winning bid price over time for each category. Comparing Category A (smaller cars) and Category B (larger cars) can reveal shifting buyer preferences.
Deregistration data shows vehicles leaving the road — whether scrapped, exported, or reaching the end of their COE. High deregistration months typically lead to more COE quotas in future exercises.
Use the month selector on each page to navigate through historical data. You can compare month-on-month and year-on-year trends to identify patterns in Singapore’s car market.
Dive Into the Data
Explore Singapore's car registration trends, COE bidding results, and market insights — all in one place.