Online shopping sites in Singapore
This is a list of the best shopping sites to buy things from online in Singapore, from groceries to blogshops to retail shopping to food delivery. We make a list of everything you can buy from the comfort of your home. These days online shopping is kinda a big deal. I mean Singaporeans spent S$1.1 bil online in 2010 and this trend is only going to continue.
In the spirit of fun we decided to do a bit of a ranking. Do note that this list can change throughout the year depending on the reviews on the site our members write. So if you have any comments and suggestions feel free to let us know in the comments below.
The best places to buy Online Groceries in Singapore
The nominees:
- Prime Online
- NTUC Fairprice
- Redmart
- Cold Storage
- Sheng Siong (coming soon)
The winner:
When you get the co-founder of Skype investing in you and support from the who’s who of the Singapore start-up scene, you know you’ve got something good. Another plus point? The design of RedMart’s site which is super slick and easy to navigate. The fact that they specialise solely in online delivery helps too.
Because they deal with manufacturers directly and don’t have retail premises, you can expect very competitive prices. Some perks are same day delivery options and free delivery for orders above $75. They are definitely the ones to look out for in time to come. And I guess in time their range will widen, which seems to be their only drawback at the moment.
Have you bought from RedMart before? Be sure to leave them a TSL review.
Note: There are some really awesome Korean deliveries that we use but they aren’t in English so I’m not going to list them here.
The Best Blogshops in Singapore
Nominees:
- Runway Bandits (
Website | 
TSL Reviews) - Love, Bonito ( Website | TSL Reviews)
- Ministry of Retail ( Website | TSL Reviews)
- Ohvola ( Website | TSL Reviews)
- Her Velvet Vase ( Website | TSL Reviews)
Winner:
Every nominee here is a big winner raking in tons of moolah every month. They are the success stories all aspiring blogshop owners look up to. However, Love, Bonito is in a league of their own. They were set up by three very fashionable ladies – two sisters and their childhood friend. They even have their own warehouse and clearing sales. And a fabulous return service if you aren’t happy with what you bought, imagine that!
In terms of popularity, well look at it this way. TSL gets more traffic then all the blogshops here except for Love, Bonito. And Love, Bonito more than doubles our traffic. The gap between them and the other blogshops is HUGE.
The awesome people from clicknetwork.TV went to their warehouse and came back with an insightful inside story on them awhile ago. Check it out here.
And if you’d like to know more about these blogshops just read the reviews left by our members. I highly recommend you checking out our “Top 10 Blogshops in Singapore” article.
The Best Luxury Retailer
Singaporeans love stuff that is cheap, good, and branded. A combination not always easy to find. Thankfully Reebonz satisfies our cravings so well that I ain’t going to list any nominees because I can’t think of any. They perfected price undercutting and then made it the cool thing to do. Their concept works through luxury “private” flash sales which aren’t really private since anyone can join their site. But hey that makes us feel special and it works. Very well.
During their sales events branded items go for as much as 70% off. And did you know that in May 2013 MediaCorp invested $40 Million in them? Yes, online shopping is serious business and Reebonz is very good at what they do.
Winner: Reebonz
Losers: All the expensive clones you see lined up on Orchard Road paying astronomical rents.
The closet sites to these would be the traditional groupon sites so if you want to find out a good groupon site make sure you check out our list here of some of the Best groupon sites in Singapore.
The Best Alternative ‘Hotel’ Accommodation site
By alternative accommodation, I mean websites like Airbnb which offer you options different from the traditional way you’re used to. Yes, these sites practically turn home owners into a mini hoteliers. You can rent out your homes or stay in the places of others, giving you a great localised experience and cheaper rates. And this travel trend has taken off in a crazy big way all around the world.
Nominees:
Wimdu and airbnb are two international giants and don’t seem to offer much regional content with their featured destinations being in America and Europe. It should be noted that airbnb recently set up office in Singapore so perhaps they might even open up a more localised Asian Pacific portal in the future.
Next up, two promising Singapore start-ups. Roomorama although a local site gives me the feeling they have a global focus. The other site travelmob is the only one I’ve found with an Asia Pacific focus. And why is this relevant? Simply because the majority of Singaporeans will be looking to travel somewhere nearby in the region! So travel mob would be second on this list.
Winner:
My pick in this The Luxe Nomad for their refreshing take on this alternative accommodation market. In a way, they are like the Reebonz for hotels. And in fact they get similar traffic. They offer big discounts ‘exclusively’ during private flash sales from luxurious hotels around the world.
It was set up by former Malaysian model Stephanie Chai who currently calls Singapore her home. It seems she has put her networking from her days as a globe trotting model / presenter to great use.
The Best Mass Online Shopping Retailer
Nominees:
These are massive marketplaces with a large amount of variety. Especially Amazon and Ebay where you can buy virtually anything. Most recently, Amazon announced free shipping for Singaporeans but this is only for a select items at the moment. I am sure when they become more localised and involved in Asia we can really see more Singaporeans using these foreign powerhouses.
Moving on, Rocket Internet’s Zalora in its growing pains lost 70 million Euros in 2012, and their service isn’t exactly praiseworthy either. I mean check out this shocking Zalora review by one of our members nonsempre where she mentioned how they sent her two right footed sandals and even worse, they were of different sizes! She posted this picture with her Zalora review.
But other reviewers seem to have good experiences so maybe she was unlucky. That’s something you have to decide for yourself.
Qoo10 is kinda like a Korean eBay but with more moderation by the system and they have received all-around great reviews from our members. They also cater far more to the Singaporean market than eBay or Amazon and for that reason, we feel they are the best mass online retailer for Singaporeans at the moment.
Winner: Qoo10
The Best Non-Pizza Hut Pizza Delivery
I’m going to go with Sarpinos, it seems to be the pizza chain most universally loved by Singaporeans here and they offer 2 for 1 pizzas making them great value for money. You can check out more Sarpinos reviews from our members.
And if you haven’t seen our extremely popular list of food delivery in Singapore do check it out and bookmark it! There are over 50 options to choose so maybe now you won’t have to order Mc Donald’s every time!
The rest of this section is incomplete as I do need more suggestions and nominations. I am sure there are some great gems I am missing. If you have any to recommend, feel free to mention it on the comments below.
The Best Beauty / Health shop
The Best Individual Retailer
The Best Heath Stores
Nothing but Green (Organic / Health)
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Also check out:
- Ultimate guide to shopping in Singapore
- New malls in Singapore
- Online Singapore furniture stores
- Singapore outlet stores
- Where to buy men’s leather shoes
- Furniture stores at Tan Boon Liat Building
- Best buys from Don Don Donki Singapore
Cover image adapted from Redmart.