Municipal waste recycled in Singapore
Singapore: Municipal waste recycled was 3.83 million tonnes in 2021. ▲ Rising
Latest (2021)
3.83 million tonnes
Change on year
up 25.9%
World rank
17th
of 90 countries
All-time high
4.83 million tonnes
in 2013
All-time low
1.86 million tonnes
in 2000
Years of data
22
2000–2021
Municipal waste recycled in Singapore, 2000–2021
Source: United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
The most recent figure for municipal waste recycled in Singapore is 3.83 million tonnes, measured in 2021.
The figure is up 25.9% on the previous year and down 4.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal waste recycled in Singapore peaked at 4.83 million tonnes in 2013 and was at its lowest, 1.86 million tonnes, in 2000.
That places Singapore 17th out of 90 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Municipal waste recycled in Singapore, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1.86 million tonnes | — |
| 2001 | 2.23 million tonnes | +20.2% |
| 2002 | 2.18 million tonnes | -2.2% |
| 2003 | 2.22 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2004 | 2.31 million tonnes | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 2.47 million tonnes | +7.0% |
| 2006 | 2.66 million tonnes | +7.6% |
| 2007 | 2.98 million tonnes | +12.2% |
| 2008 | 3.30 million tonnes | +10.6% |
| 2009 | 3.45 million tonnes | +4.6% |
| 2010 | 3.71 million tonnes | +7.6% |
| 2011 | 4.00 million tonnes | +7.9% |
| 2012 | 4.29 million tonnes | +7.3% |
| 2013 | 4.83 million tonnes | +12.5% |
| 2014 | 4.47 million tonnes | -7.3% |
| 2015 | 4.65 million tonnes | +4.0% |
| 2016 | 4.77 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 4.72 million tonnes | -0.9% |
| 2018 | 4.73 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 4.25 million tonnes | -10.1% |
| 2020 | 3.04 million tonnes | -28.4% |
| 2021 | 3.83 million tonnes | +25.9% |
Singapore compared with similar countries
- Singapore's 3.83 million tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 948,000 tonnes, 4.0× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Singapore's 3.83 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.09 million tonnes, 1.2× the median. (10 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.57 million tonnes | 1.86 million tonnes | 3.45 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.44 million tonnes | 3.71 million tonnes | 4.83 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.43 million tonnes | 3.04 million tonnes | 3.83 million tonnes | 2 |
Countries ranked near Singapore
More environment data for Singapore
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -1.71 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -0.9965 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 42.94 % change on previous year (1990)
- Standard Deviation 0.253 °C (1990)
- Temperature change 0.647 °C (1990)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 5.11 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -5.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is municipal waste recycled in Singapore?
- Municipal waste recycled in Singapore was 3.83 million tonnes in 2021, according to United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest municipal waste recycled recorded in Singapore?
- The highest recorded value was 4.83 million tonnes in 2013.
- What is the lowest municipal waste recycled recorded in Singapore?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.86 million tonnes in 2000.
- How does Singapore rank for municipal waste recycled?
- Singapore ranks 17th out of 90 countries with data for 2021.
- Is municipal waste recycled rising or falling in Singapore?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Singapore data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Municipal waste recycled. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Municipal waste recycled (Tonnes).