You might stan sports bars and cocktail lounges. But after a long week at work, losing yourself on the dance floor is exactly what the doctor ordered.
This weekend, gather under the disco ball with a drink in hand. Primed with impressive DJ sets and trippy LED lights, these are the best clubs in Singapore for you to beat work stress and unleash your inner Michael Jackson.
| Club | Best For | Location | Cover Charge |
| Marquee | Vegas-inspired EDM club with famed international artists | Marina Bay Sands | $40 |
| Avenue | Cosy hip-hop lounge | Marina Bay Sands | Per doorman’s discretion or table reservation |
| Drip | Berlin-inspired underground club, with unique interior | Concord Hotel & Shopping Mall | From $32.50 |
| Zouk | Most popular club in Singapore, with 3 different rooms | Clarke Quay | From $35 |
| Tuff Club | Electronic music | Oxley Towers | From $35 |
| ARK11 | Spaceship-themed with robot bartenders | Orchard Gateway | $35 |
| PULSE | Live band | Clarke Quay | From $30 |
| CE LA VI | Rooftop club | Marina Bay Sands | $35 |
| Cherry Discotheque | Younger crowd with wide range of music | Cecil Street | From $30 |
| Headquarters By The Council | For Deep House and Techno music | Boat Quay | From $35 |
| XclusiV | Themed parties | Raffles Boulevard | From $51.40, depending on event |
Table of Contents
To ensure you have the best night out, you’ll want to take note of some rules to avoid getting in trouble with the authorities. First up, smoking is not allowed in all places of entertainment in Singapore, including discotheques and nightclubs, except at the approved smoking corners.
While drinks in the clubs might be pricey, you can’t bring your own alcohol in to save money. Bouncers stationed at the club entrance will conduct bag checks to examine if you’re bringing booze into the clubs, so don’t attempt to sneak any in your water bottles. Needless to say, this also applies to food.
Clubbing is when you and your friends can dress to the nines, but remember to check the club’s dress code. Some clubs, such as Marquee, follow a stricter smart casual dress code. For reference, this means that guys have to wear a collared shirt, and ladies aren’t allowed to wear slippers.
Ask anyone around town about nightclubs, and chances are they’ll tell you about Marquee – a Singapore staple – where some of the country’s richest people blow thousands of dollars every weekend.
Their monthly lineup used to feature A-listers such as Tyga and Martin Garrix.
After opening in 2019, this bi-level mega-club quickly became the place to be for those who like electronic music and famous DJs. Tiesto used to spin semi-regular sets and Zedd stopped by when he wasn’t busy in Vegas. Not to mention, Steve Aoki has thrown cakes twice from the booth.
Technology is almost as big an attraction as the eclectic DJ lineup. The space is designed with your Instagram in mind – with a slide, a ferris wheel and an 8K screen that delivers the realest visuals. Needless to say, Marquee dominates Singapore’s nightlife scene with bottle service, an all-star lineup, heart-thumping beats, and a posh crowd.
If you find yourself outside of Marquee but EDM isn’t your cup of tea, it’s not too late to take a short walk to Avenue. Also located inside Marina Bay Sands and run by the same entertainment group, Avenue is the place to be for those who’d rather sway and bend knees to the beats of hip-hop and R&B.
Here, expect to find games like 2 mini bowling alleys, a pool table, as well as old-school arcade stations like pinball and skee-ball. The dance floor might seem smaller than most clubs in Singapore. But if you have a table or are invited to one, feel free to clamber onto the sofa and twerk away.
They’ve just launched an Afrobeats, Reggaeton, and Afro Latina-themed event every Thursday. It’s called Vybe, and it certainly gives fans of these deep-bassline genres something to celebrate and get into a pre-TGIF mood.
Multiple dance floors, kitschy decor, and heart-thumping beats are what you’ll find at Drip.
Located in the basement of the Concord Hotel & Shopping Mall, the club came through dripping in funky artwork, sculptures, and HDB-inspired dance podiums. LED-lit panels line the walls and old-school chess tiles cover the ceiling too, so it’s a photo op at every corner.
As for the music, Drip offers underground house and EDM in the main Drip Room, but often spices things up with some hip hop and top 40 hits in the Salt Room.
When it comes to nightclubs, Zouk is always a safe bet. It has 3 sections dedicated to different types of music. While Phuture blasts mostly Hip Hop and R&B, Capital serves up old school Pop, House, and Electronic. Zouk, on the other hand, is the main area where international guest DJs spin the decks. Genres include a range of Hip Hop, EDM, and Techno.
Image credit: @bryner_colossal via Instagram
This weekend, take it to the dance floor, bounce from room to room, and fist-pump your night away.
Image credit: @thugshop66 via Instagram
OG clubbers will know Tuff Club as the place to go for electronic music. It used to be a pop-up nightclub, but has since found a permanent home in Oxley Tower. Their list of international guest DJs are poppin’, with names including German DJ Rey&Kjavik, French DJ CARAVEL, and London-based DJ Dax J.
ARK11 takes the cake with its creative sci-fi decorations and robot-helmed bar. Located in Orchardgateway, this futuristic club is probably the closest experience to what partying in 2050 might be. And yes, that is indeed a giant mechanical heart sculpture right next to the bar, beating along to the EDM tunes by both international and local DJs.
Image credit: @pulselivesg via Instagram
There’s more to Clarke Quay than just dive bars, Zouk, and Haidilao. There’s also the buzzing PULSE, formerly known as Yang, where you can grind to the beats of your favourite K-Pop tunes and Top 40 hits performed by live bands.
CE LA VI might be a little smaller than other clubs, but that only adds to the energy and atmosphere at this ultra-modern rooftop lounge.
Image credit: @celavisingapore via Instagram
Between Sam Smith and David Beckham, it’s clear that this poshy lounge is where international A-listers used to frequent and where you can camp out to get a pic or 2 with celebrities. DJs spun a mix of new wave Electronic, oldie Hip Hop and down-and-dirty RnB, while the crowd sipped on drinks and admired the panoramas of the city skyline 57 floors above the ground.
Don’t let anyone tell you there aren’t any good late-night spots in the CBD. Tucked away on Cecil Street, Cherry Discotheque is lit until 3am most night. Here, you’ll be able to catch live DJs, groove to the beats of Top 40 jams, and order cheap alcohol with a side of fried popcorn chicken.
Image credit: @sunnydelacruz via Instagram
Unless you have a table reservation, you’ll be waiting in line with gaggles of girls singing to 50 Cents’ classics. Judging from the look of the younger crowd in sneakers and shorts previously, it’s safe to assume Cherry Discotheque is a stomping ground for the newly legal undergraduates.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t swing by for some reasonably priced drinks, 90’s Hip Hop and Reggaeton.
For a grungy dungeon-like club with some of the best Deep House and Techno tunes, make your way to Headquarters By The Council.
There are no flashy dancers, trains of champagne and bottle services here. Once you descend the staircase into this underground space, you’ll be greeted by a rave crowd who passionately sways to the throbbing tech-house tracks spun by a lineup of both established local and international DJs.
If you need to give your ears and eyes a break, head to the upstairs space for some fresh air, chill vibes and sizzling hot wings.
Address: 66 Boat Quay, Singapore 049854
Opening hours: Wed-Fri 10:30am-3am | Sat 10:30am-4am (Closed from Sundays to Tuesdays)
Contact: 9667 9424
Themed parties at the clubs are usually reserved for Halloween or Valentine’s. But hit XclusiV, formerly known as PRISM, on the right weekend, and you’re likely to find patrons in costumes dropping it low on the dance floor.
Image credit: @xclusiv_singapore via Instagram
The sounds over here are heavy on HipHop and Top40, with the occasional big-name artists like Kid Ink making an appearance. Every Wednesday night, ladies get free manicures, tarot reading, and chocolate served by shirtless waiters.
Occupying the space that Bang Bang used to be, Luxe Club is lit till 4am on most nights.
The 4,000sqft swanky space is the kind of place you’ll see in music videos. There’s an illuminated entry tunnel, a kinetic light art installation, and a giant bar near the entrance. Local acts like Sound Of Fai spin a wide variety of tunes here, ranging from 2000s top hits and latest EDM to deep and dirty house beats.
We’ll cut to the chase here: there’s no conversion clinic on Neil Road. What you might have walked past or seen floating on social media is a club where the LGBTQ crowd comes to play.
mage credit: District Singapore Facebook
Once you get past the initial shock by The Clinic’s front, proceed to the back where quirky graffiti wall arts, drag shows, and stiff drinks await. The raucous party at The Clinic only kickstarts around 11pm so, by all means, stay.
We had no problems forking out big bucks to cover our clubbing expenses back then and we certainly won’t now. However, there are a few things you can do to save some money and still do it big.
Whether you’re heading to a lowkey bar in Clarke Quay or the swanky rooftop of Marina Bay Sands, a night of paying for booze might burn a hole in your back pocket. Well, here’s a solution: pre-drink at home.
Buy your party a bottle of vodka, tequila, gin – whatever you like – and bottoms up prior to going out. Not only will it give you a good buzz, it’ll also hopefully reduce the number of drinks you’re planning to order. Just make sure you won’t overdo it and get wasted before even reaching the club.
To get the party started, here’s a list of all the affordable alcohol shops so you can stock up on bottles.
A trip home from the club can be a pricey one, somewhere between $20-$30 or more due to the after-hours surcharge. Since you’d rather spend that money on another round of shots at the bar, you might want to consider pre-planning your ride home.
There are a few options: have a designated driver AKA a sober sister in your group who doesn’t drink but still wants to join the party to drop you off at home; book a Grab Hitch in advance; or wait for public transportation to resume at 5.30am. However, the latter might require some serious willpower and a lot of energy drinks
We’re no longer in the early 2000s, so don’t be surprised if there are no complimentary guest lists or free drinks for ladies. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t try to weasel your way in without paying.
When it comes to clubbing, if you can’t afford to make it rain on expensive bottles, you’ll need to make friends with the right people in order to get freebies. Think club managers, bouncers and door hosts or hostesses. These are the people who have the power to let you cut the line, skip the cover charge and waltz in even when the club has allegedly hit its capacity.
They also have something called drink tickets which can get you comfortably drunk at no extra cost. As the saying goes, it’s not about what you know, it’s about who you know that matters.
Whether you’re a homebody or a party animal, you’ll probably want to blow off some steam and check out the nightlife scene in Singapore. If that’s the case, bookmark these venues and mark your calendar.
Then, round up your squad, book a table, sort out your tickets and have a good time. You deserve it.
For more Singapore nightlife features:
Cover image adapted from: @sunnydelacruz, District Singapore
Last updated by Joycelyn Yeow and Shannon Lee on 24th September 2024.
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