CPF OA SA MA Allocation Calculator

Instantly calculate your monthly CPF contributions split across Ordinary, Special & Medisave Accounts — updated for 2026 rates and the SGD 8,000 OW ceiling.

Understanding Your CPF OA, SA and MA

Singapore’s Central Provident Fund (CPF) is a mandatory savings scheme that channels your contributions into three distinct accounts, each with a specific purpose for your financial life. Knowing the exact CPF OA SA MA allocation rate by age helps you plan smarter — whether you are managing your housing loan, topping up for retirement, or optimising your healthcare savings.

Ordinary Account (OA)

The OA earns a guaranteed 2.5% per annum (with an extra 1% on the first SGD 20,000 for members below 55). You can use your OA for housing (HDB purchases, mortgage repayments), CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS) approved investments, education, and insurance premiums. For Singaporeans aged 35 and below, the OA receives 23% of monthly wages — the largest slice of the CPF contribution.

Special Account (SA)

The SA is ring-fenced for retirement and earns 4% per annum (plus an extra 1% on the first SGD 40,000 for members below 55). Its primary value is as a compounding retirement vehicle. At age 55, your SA balance — together with OA savings above your Basic Retirement Sum — is transferred into the newly created Retirement Account (RA). After 55, new CPF contributions flow into the RA instead of the SA.

Medisave Account (MA)

The MA is dedicated to healthcare costs — hospitalisation bills, certain outpatient treatments, and MediShield Life premiums. It earns 4% per annum. The MA has a Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS) cap; once reached, additional contributions overflow into your SA or RA, indirectly boosting retirement savings. The MA percentage of wages stays relatively stable across all age brackets at roughly 8–10.5%.

CPF Contribution and Allocation Rates by Age (2026)

The CPF contribution rate OA SA MA changes with age, shifting progressively toward retirement and healthcare savings as you grow older. From 1 January 2026, the Ordinary Wage ceiling is SGD 8,000/month. Contribution rates for workers aged 55 to 65 were also increased as part of the government’s plan to raise senior worker rates to full rates by 2030.

* Increased from 1 January 2026. Source: CPF Board. OW ceiling: SGD 8,000/month. All figures are as a percentage of monthly wages. For ages 56+, SA contributions flow to the Retirement Account (RA) first, up to the Full Retirement Sum (FRS). For informational purposes only — not financial advice.

How to Use This CPF Calculator

1. Enter your monthly salary: Input your gross monthly salary (Ordinary Wages). The calculator automatically caps this at SGD 8,000 — the OW ceiling effective 1 January 2026. If your salary exceeds this, a warning will appear and CPF will be computed on SGD 8,000.
2. Select your age group: Choose the bracket matching your current age. The CPF contribution rate OA SA MA changes across eight age brackets, so selecting the correct one is important for accurate results.
3. Click “Calculate CPF”: Results appear instantly — no page reload required. You will see your employee contribution, employer contribution, and the exact dollar amounts flowing into your OA, SA (or RA for ages above 55), and MA each month.
4. Review the allocation breakdown: The colour-coded cards show both the dollar value and percentage of salary for each account. Use this to visualise how much of your monthly CPF OA SA MA percentage goes toward housing flexibility (OA), retirement (SA/RA), and healthcare (MA).

OW vs AW note: This calculator handles Ordinary Wages (monthly salary) only. Additional Wages such as bonuses are subject to a separate Annual Wage ceiling. For full CPF computations involving bonuses, refer to the CPF Board’s official calculator.

Pro tip: Pair this with our Retirement Planning Calculator to see how your monthly CPF contributions compound over time toward your retirement goal. See also our CPF investment strategy guide for ideas on growing your OA with CPFIS-approved instruments.

What Is CPF?

The Central Provident Fund (CPF) is Singapore’s compulsory social security savings system, established in 1955. Every employed Singapore Citizen and Permanent Resident — along with their employer — must make monthly CPF contributions based on a percentage of the employee’s wages. CPF serves three pillars: retirement adequacy through the OA and SA, healthcare financing through the MA, and housing through the OA’s flexibility to fund HDB purchases. In 2026, over four million CPF members collectively hold more than SGD 500 billion in their accounts, making CPF one of Asia’s largest managed savings systems.

Understanding the CPF OA SA MA allocation is not just a compliance exercise — it directly shapes your ability to buy a home, your retirement nest egg, and the size of your healthcare buffer. The better you understand how CPF contributions are distributed, the more strategically you can use CPF to build long-term wealth.

Why Your CPF Allocation Shifts With Age

The CPF contribution rate OA SA MA is not fixed — it changes across eight age brackets, and the shift is deliberate policy. In your younger years (35 and below), the OA receives the largest share: 23% of your monthly wages. This front-loading of OA funds supports young Singaporeans who need CPF balances for their first HDB flat, typically purchased between ages 25 and 35.

As you move into your 40s and early 50s, the OA allocation tapers while the SA and MA allocations increase. This reflects the policy priority of shifting savings toward retirement security and healthcare as you approach the second half of your working life. By ages 51 to 55, the SA receives 11.5% of wages compared to just 6% for those below 35.

After 55, a significant restructuring occurs. Your SA is closed and funds are rolled into the Retirement Account (RA). Simultaneously, the employer contribution rate drops — from a combined 37% total (20% employee + 17% employer) for those below 55, to 34% for ages 56 to 60, 25% for ages 61 to 65, and down to 12.5% for those above 70. This recognises that older workers are often in different employment arrangements and that retirement savings are already substantially accumulated. The MA percentage of wages remains relatively stable across all brackets at 8 to 10.5%, reflecting the importance of healthcare savings throughout life.

Maximising Your CPF Ordinary Account

Your CPF Ordinary Account is one of the most versatile financial tools available to Singaporeans. With a guaranteed 2.5% interest rate — and a 3.5% effective rate on the first SGD 20,000 for those below 55 — it offers risk-free compounding that beats many savings accounts. Here is how to use it strategically:

• HDB housing: Your OA can fund your down payment, monthly mortgage instalments, and stamp duties on HDB properties. Using OA for housing is the most common use, but remember that OA savings used for housing must be refunded with accrued interest when you sell the property.
• Transfer to SA: You can transfer OA funds to your SA to earn the higher 4% interest rate. This is irreversible, so it is best done when you do not need the OA balance for housing in the near future. Transferring before age 55 maximises compounding at 4% in your SA.
• CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS): You can invest your OA balance in approved unit trusts, Singapore Exchange (SGX) listed shares, and REITs. However, the CPF OA’s guaranteed 2.5% sets a high hurdle — your investments must consistently beat this risk-free rate to justify the switch out of CPF.
• Education: OA funds can pay for approved full-time diplomas and degree programmes for you or your children. Amounts withdrawn must be repaid with interest upon course completion.

CPF Special Account & Retirement Planning

The Special Account is often called CPF’s hidden gem because of its 4% per annum guaranteed return — government-backed, with no market risk. For Singaporeans in their 30s and 40s, the SA is an incredibly powerful compounding engine. A 30-year-old who maintains SGD 40,000 in their SA and makes consistent contributions can accumulate over SGD 180,000 by age 55 purely from CPF contributions and interest, without deploying a single cent from their take-home salary.

The SA also allows voluntary top-ups via the Retirement Sum Topping-Up (RSTU) scheme, which carries attractive tax relief of up to SGD 8,000 per year (for your own SA top-up) and an additional SGD 8,000 for topping up a parent’s, grandparent’s, or spouse’s Retirement Account. This makes SA top-ups one of the most efficient ways for higher-income Singaporeans to reduce their taxable income while building retirement wealth.

At age 55, the RA is created and your SA and eligible OA savings are swept in to meet the Full Retirement Sum (FRS). Any SA balance above the FRS can be withdrawn. From age 65, your RA balance is used to purchase CPF LIFE, providing a guaranteed monthly payour for life. Planning around the FRS and Enhanced Retirement Sum (ERS) is therefore central to retirement income planning for Singaporeans.

MediSave Account: Your Healthcare Safety Net

The MediSave Account is the anchor of Singapore’s 3M healthcare financing framework (MediSave, MediShield Life, MediFund). Your MA automatically pays your MediShield Life premiums each year — Singapore’s basic hospitalization insurance — which means the healthcare safety net is funded even if you forget about it. The MA can also be used to pay hospitalisation bills, day surgery costs, and certain outpatient chronic disease treatments.

The Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS) acts as a cap on your MA balance. For 2026, the BHS is SGD 71,500 for those below 65. Once your MA reaches the BHS, excess contributions flow into your SA (for those below 55) or your RA (for those above 55). This overflow mechanism ensures that strong earners with healthy MA balances continue to build retirement savings through the back door.

Because the MA earns 4% per annum — the same rate as the SA — building up your MA is always beneficial. Healthcare costs in Singapore are rising, and having a well-funded MA gives you both peace of mind and the financial flexibility to handle major medical events without drawing down your retirement savings.

The 2026 CPF Changes You Need to Know

Two significant changes came into effect on 1 January 2026 that affect the CPF contribution rate OA SA MA for many Singaporeans:

• Ordinary Wage ceiling raised to SGD 8,000: The previous OW ceiling of SGD 7,400 (set in 2023) was raised to SGD 8,000. This means employees earning between SGD 7,400 and SGD 8,000 now contribute additional CPF on that increment. For someone earning SGD 8,000, this translates to an extra SGD 120/month in CPF employee contributions and SGD 102/month from the employer — with those additional funds flowing into OA, SA, and MA at the standard allocation rates.
• Senior worker contribution rates raised (56–65): As part of the government’s decade-long plan to bring senior worker CPF rates to parity with younger workers by 2030, rates for ages 56 to 60 increased to 18% (employee) + 16% (employer) = 34% total, and rates for ages 61 to 65 increased to 12.5% + 12.5% = 25% total. Both the employee and employer contribution rates were raised, improving retirement adequacy for this cohort at a time when their SA/RA accumulation is most critical.

These changes underscore the CPF Board’s ongoing commitment to strengthening retirement outcomes. If you are in the affected age brackets, use our CPF OA SA MA allocation calculator above to see exactly how these higher contribution rates affect your monthly breakdown.

CPF Investment Scheme: Putting Your OA to Work

The CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS) allows you to invest your OA and SA balances in a range of approved financial products, including unit trusts, Singapore Savings Bonds (SSBs), T-bills, ETFs, and SGX-listed shares and REITs. Up to 35% of your investible OA savings can be invested in stocks and property funds; up to 10% in gold products.

For dividend investors, CPFIS is particularly interesting. You can use your OA to invest in approved S-REITs that deliver 5–7% annual distribution yields — potentially significantly higher than the 2.5% OA interest. For example, owning units of a diversified S-REIT ETF via CPFIS could yield 4–6% distribution income, which would then be credited back to your OA. Compare this with our best S-REITs 2026 guide to identify CPFIS-eligible REITs with the strongest fundamentals.

However, exercise caution: CPFIS investments carry market risk. The OA’s guaranteed 2.5% interest — and the SA’s guaranteed 4% — are risk-free benchmarks that are exceptionally hard to beat consistently. Research consistently shows that the majority of CPFIS investors underperform the CPF interest rates over the long run. Before investing your CPF OA or SA, honestly assess whether you have the knowledge and discipline to beat a guaranteed government-backed return. For many Singaporeans, leaving CPF money in the accounts and topping up voluntary contributions is the highest-return, lowest-risk path to retirement adequacy.

For a full breakdown of CPF-linked strategies, see our CPF investment strategy guide. For passive income using dividend stocks outside CPF, see our Dividend Portfolio Yield Calculator.

Frequently Asked Questions

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