Company landscape
Large enterprises and startups are the top employers, hybrid work is the new norm, and remote roles command a significant compensation premium.
Company landscape
Company type
Large enterprises and startups are Singapore's two biggest draws for design talent, followed by agencies and consulting firms. Government, non-profit, and academic employers remain a small slice of the market by comparison. It is a workforce split mostly between the biggest and the newest companies, with fewer designers at small and mid-sized firms in between.
Chart proof
Company type
Respondents by organisation type (N=223, Singapore)
Singapore designers work primarily in large enterprises (32.2%), ahead of startups and agencies or consulting firms.
View data table
| Organisation type | Share |
|---|---|
| Large enterprises | 32.2% |
| Startups | 28.5% |
| Agency/consulting | 20.4% |
| SMEs | ~14% |
| Government | 3.4% |
| Non-profits | 0.9% |
| Academia | 0.6% |
Industry distribution
Design work in Singapore is spread across sectors rather than concentrated in one or two. Even its two largest industry cohorts (banking and capital markets, and consumer products) leave more than three in five respondents elsewhere. Pay by industry is a separate question, and only the industries with a large enough published cohort are compared on pay elsewhere in this report.
Chart proof
Industry distribution
Respondents by industry sector (N=224, Singapore). Banking/Capital Markets and Consumer Products each account for roughly one in five respondents. Industries with fewer than 10 respondents are grouped as Other.
Banking and consumer products dominate. Seven industries meet the minimum cohort threshold; all others are grouped.
View data table
| Industry | Respondents (N=224) | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Banking & Capital Markets | 44 | 19.6 |
| Consumer Products | 43 | 19.2 |
| Transportation, Hospitality & Services | 20 | 8.9 |
| Government & Public Services | 18 | 8.0 |
| Retail, Wholesale & Distribution | 11 | 4.9 |
| Investment Management | 11 | 4.9 |
| Health Care | 10 | 4.5 |
| Other industries | 67 | 29.9 |
Company and team size
Chart proof
Company size
Distribution of company size among all respondents (N=323).
Company size is spread across mid-sized and large firms, with 51-200 employees the largest single bucket.
View data table
| Company size | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1-10 | 17 | 5.3 |
| 11-50 | 63 | 19.5 |
| 51-200 | 66 | 20.4 |
| 201-1,000 | 62 | 19.2 |
| 1,001-10,000 | 55 | 17.0 |
| 10,001+ | 60 | 18.6 |
Distribution of company size among Singapore respondents (N=224).
Singapore respondents cluster a little more toward larger firms, especially 10,001+ employers.
View data table
| Company size | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1-10 | 13 | 5.8 |
| 11-50 | 38 | 17.0 |
| 51-200 | 40 | 17.9 |
| 201-1,000 | 38 | 17.0 |
| 1,001-10,000 | 44 | 19.6 |
| 10,001+ | 51 | 22.8 |
Company size is a little larger in Singapore than in the full sample.
Chart proof
Design team size
Distribution of design-team size among all respondents (N=323).
Most respondents work in teams of 2-10 people, with relatively few solo designers or very large teams.
View data table
| Team size | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Team of 1 | 24 | 7.4 |
| 2-10 | 175 | 54.2 |
| 11-50 | 89 | 27.6 |
| 51-200 | 27 | 8.4 |
| 200+ | 8 | 2.5 |
Distribution of design-team size among Singapore respondents (N=224).
Singapore respondents skew a little more toward larger design teams.
View data table
| Team size | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Team of 1 | 16 | 7.1 |
| 2-10 | 116 | 51.8 |
| 11-50 | 59 | 26.3 |
| 51-200 | 25 | 11.2 |
| 200+ | 8 | 3.6 |
Most respondents work in design teams of two to ten people. Solo designers and design orgs of 200 or more both sit at the rare end of the scale.
Local vs international companies
Chart proof
Company headquarters
Share of respondents physically located at their company's headquarters (N=323).
About three in five respondents work at their company's headquarters, and Singapore is almost identical.
View data table
| Response | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 201 | 62.2 |
| No | 96 | 29.7 |
| Not applicable | 26 | 8.0 |
Share of Singapore respondents physically located at their company's headquarters (N=224).
Singapore is nearly identical to the full sample on this question.
View data table
| Response | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 139 | 62.1 |
| No | 67 | 29.9 |
| Not applicable | 18 | 8.0 |
Most designers work at their company's headquarters, which suggests they are largely employed by local or locally headquartered companies. Working at a non-local company carries a pay premium too, with a median 67.1% higher than at local ones.
Work arrangement
Chart proof
Work arrangement
Share of respondents by working arrangement (N=323).
Hybrid work is the clear default, ahead of remote and in-office.
View data table
| Work arrangement | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | 232 | 71.8 |
| Remote | 54 | 16.7 |
| In-Office | 37 | 11.5 |
Share of Singapore respondents by working arrangement (N=224).
Singapore respondents are even more hybrid-heavy than the full sample.
View data table
| Work arrangement | Respondents | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | 180 | 80.4 |
| Remote | 23 | 10.3 |
| In-Office | 21 | 9.4 |
Hybrid was already the default by early 2023, well into the post-pandemic shift toward flexible work. Remote work also carries a premium in the pay data: a fully remote median more than 2.7 times higher than in-office, and nearly double the hybrid median. Much of that gap traces back to who tends to hire remotely: the same global and non-local employers already shown above to pay a premium.
Where this sits in the conversation
-
Overview
2023 report -
Landscape
Demographics -
Landscape
Roles and experience -
Landscape
Compensation -
Landscape
Company landscape you are here -
Sentiments
Sentiments: negotiations and pay -
Sentiments
Sentiments: work setup -
Sentiments
Sentiments: career progression -
Singapore deep dive
Analysis: gender 🇸🇬 -
Singapore deep dive
Analysis: experience 🇸🇬 -
Singapore deep dive
Analysis: company 🇸🇬 -
Singapore deep dive
Analysis: education 🇸🇬 -
Close
The first count