Reading Singapore’s restaurant sales index: what the August 2026 figures mean

Start with the number Singapore publishes every month: SingStat's services latest-data table lists the Food & Beverage Services Index at current prices (2025=100) at 104.0 for Aug-26, a fall of 1.6 per cent year-on-year, with the previous period at 99.8, down 1.9 per cent. It is published as a read on how the sector's sales value has performed, not as a guide to what anything costs. ^[1]

The useful answer to "when should I eat out?" is not a cheaper bill. Falling aggregate sales are a reason to read an operator's own terms before you book an off-peak session. The index tracks sales value at current prices, which can move with prices, quantities or both, excludes taxes such as GST from that value, and does not cover individual stalls in hawker centres, food courts, coffee shops or canteens. None of that is your table. ^{[2] [3]}

The one table worth opening

Open the SingStat services page and find the latest-data table. Three columns do the work: the unit and reading (2025=100); the latest period, here Aug-26; and the year-on-year change beside the value. Compare that change with the previous period's change in the same row — August's -1.6 per cent sits beside -1.9 per cent, so both readings on the page point the same way. A suggested habit: note the direction, the reference month and the unit before reading anything else. ^[1]

Pair the index row with the proportion row further down the same table: online sales made up 20.6 per cent of total F&B sales in Aug-26, against 20.9 per cent in the previous period. Together the rows describe the sector's sales mix, not what it charges. One thing to keep in mind: the page shows only the latest period and the one before it, so for an earlier month you need the full data tables rather than this summary. ^[1]

How 2026 reached three falls in a row

The year did not start weak. DOS reported that F&B services sales rose 5.5 per cent in Feb 2026 against Feb 2025, in a release published on 6 April 2026, and rose a further 2.3 per cent in Mar 2026 in the release published on 5 May. May brought the turn: sales registered flat growth year-on-year, against 0.1 per cent growth in April, on an estimated total of $1.7 billion, of which an estimated 19.8 per cent came from online sales. ^{[4] [5] [6]}

By July, DOS reported a 1.9 per cent year-on-year decline following a 2.3 per cent decrease in June, though seasonally adjusted sales rose 0.6 per cent over June. Food courts and other eating places and cafes fell 6.6 and 6.4 per cent, restaurants slipped 0.3 per cent, and fast food outlets and food caterers rose 4.6 and 0.3 per cent. For August, CNA reported a 1.6 per cent fall — the third consecutive monthly decline — with cafes down 5.3 per cent and restaurants down 2.1 per cent. ^{[2] [7]}

What the index measures, and what it cannot tell you

SingStat's methodology sets the boundaries. The Food & Beverage Services Index measures the short-term performance of the industry from the sales records of F&B establishments; individual stalls in hawker centres, food courts, coffee shops or canteens are not covered, and the base year is 2025. DOS also states that the index at current prices measures changes in sales values, which can result from changes in both price and quantity, while the volume version removes the price effect. The monthly survey covered about 270 F&B enterprises, with respondents accounting for roughly 80 per cent of sales revenue, and counts delivery-platform transactions as well as on-premises ones. ^{[2] [3] [6]}

The other number people reach for is the Consumer Price Index, and it answers a different question. DOS's technical note says the CPI measures price movements but not absolute price levels at a point in time, so it cannot tell you what a plate of food costs today. In the Feb 2025 release, Food & Beverage Serving Services carried a weight of 1,391 out of 10,000 for all items and was up 1.0 per cent year-on-year, with restaurants, cafes and pubs also up 1.0 per cent. That is a change in prices, not a price. ^[8]

Why operators are selling the quiet hours

CNA's 8 October 2026 report described operators filling hours that rarely sell themselves. At the Chinatown restaurant Yum Cha, a 26-year-old eatery, Friday afternoons since August have hosted mahjong sessions in the quieter post-lunch window from 2pm to 6pm, with sessions fully booked for October and bookings stretching into November. In Katong, Chin Mee Chin Confectionery stayed open beyond its usual 4pm closing time for two evenings to host an art and book fair with Woods in the Books on 2 and 3 October. ^[7]

The stated reasons are cost and footfall. Yum Cha executive director Melody Tan said rental, manpower and ingredient costs had risen about 20 per cent from a year earlier, while footfall had fallen by around 20 per cent since 2024; CNA also reported that Chin Mee Chin contends with higher operating expenses, with supplier and manpower costs rising around 15 per cent year-on-year. Jeff Ng, head of Asia macro strategy at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, said the figures reflect selectivity in spending habits and perhaps a search for value, and MTI noted the sector contracted in the second quarter, partly on outbound travel by locals and fewer visitor arrivals. ^[7]

Before you book an off-peak session

Treat off-peak dining as a scheduling question with a published answer, rather than a discount someone has promised you. As a suggestion, check the operator's own page for session times, whether a minimum spend or set menu applies, and what the session actually includes, then weigh that against what you would order at a busier hour. A hypothetical example: if a 2pm-to-6pm session bundles an afternoon tea set you would have ordered anyway, the difference is timing, not price. ^{[7] [2]}

Falling sales tell you that less was sold, in value terms at current prices and before GST, across surveyed establishments — and, because prices and quantities both feed the figure, they do not tell you which of the two moved. They say nothing about the venue you have in mind. The index is worth reading for context; the times, the terms and the price are worth reading on the operator's own page, before you book rather than after you arrive. ^{[1] [3]}

Read next

• Ticketed dinners: the per-person cost after the session fee

Sources

1. Latest News & Data – Services
2. Monthly Retail Sales Index and Food & Beverage Services …
3. Our Data Explained – Services
4. Monthly Retail Sales Index and Food & Beverage Services Index, Feb 2026
5. Monthly Retail Sales Index and Food & Beverage Services Index, Mar 2026
6. Singapore Department of Statistics | Retail Sales Index and Food & Beverage Services Index May 2026
7. Mahjong, art fairs: F&B businesses look beyond food to attract diners – CNA
8. Singapore Department of Statistics | Singapore Consumer Price Index, Feb 2025

BUTLER Magazine Editorial · AI-assisted research and writing, reviewed by our automated editorial team. Sources checked 2026-10-09. Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration.