Pregnancy

Your pregnancy, trimester by trimester
Pregnancy is usually counted as 40 weeks from the first day of your last period, split into three trimesters. The first trimester (weeks 1 to 13) is about confirming the pregnancy, choosing your care and starting folic acid. The second (weeks 14 to 27) often brings more energy, your detailed anomaly scan and the glucose tolerance test. The third (week 28 onwards) is about growth checks, preparing for labour and packing your bag.
Our trimester guides walk you through each stage. Start with the first trimester in Singapore: week-by-week guide, which covers early symptoms, your first gynae visit and red flags, then read our overview of pregnancy scans and tests in Singapore to see what is coming and what it typically costs. Want to know your due date? Try the calculator in our tools.

Choosing your care: public or private
One of the first decisions you will make is where to receive antenatal care and deliver. Subsidised care at a public hospital, such as KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), National University Hospital (NUH) or Singapore General Hospital (SGH), needs a referral from a polyclinic or GP and costs much less, though you usually will not choose your own doctor. Private care, at a public hospital or at private hospitals such as Thomson Medical, Mount Elizabeth, Gleneagles, Mount Alvernia or Parkway East, lets you see the same gynae throughout, at a higher price.
There is no wrong answer. Many mums start subsidised and switch later, or the other way round. Our giving birth in Singapore section compares options, and our guide to the cost of giving birth in Singapore sets out typical 2026 bills, MediSave Maternity Package limits and what MediShield Life covers.

Eating well for two (without eating for two)
You do not need special superfoods, and you do not need to double your portions. A balanced plate plus a prenatal vitamin with folic acid and iodine, low-mercury fish two to three times a week, enough calcium and iron, and plenty of water in our tropical heat will cover most needs.
Our pregnancy nutrition guides are written with hawker centres in mind. Read what to eat during pregnancy for key nutrients, a sample day and healthy weight gain, and foods to avoid during pregnancy for raw foods, high-mercury fish, caffeine limits and hawker dishes to order with care.

Preparing for birth
From around the second trimester, it helps to start planning practical things: which hospital and ward class you prefer, how you will get there, who will be with you, and how you will pay. Check both parents’ MediSave balances, read your insurance policy for maternity exclusions, and ask your hospital for written estimates for both a normal delivery and a caesarean.
By about 34 to 36 weeks, have your bag ready. Our hospital bag checklist for Singapore covers what mum, baby and partner need, the documents to bring, and how birth registration works through LifeSG. It is also a good time to look at what you will need at home, with our newborn checklist.

Planning your confinement
Confinement traditions are an important part of many Singapore families’ postnatal care, whether Chinese zuo yue zi, Malay pantang or Indian confinement customs. Decide early what support you want, because good confinement nannies and popular centres get booked months ahead.
Our confinement section covers the options. Compare costs, MOM rules and questions to ask in confinement nanny vs confinement centre, and read our confinement food guide for traditional dishes across cultures and what the evidence says.

Money, leave and support
Singapore offers several forms of support for new parents, including the MediSave Maternity Package, the Baby Bonus Cash Gift and Child Development Account, and government-paid maternity leave for eligible working mums. The SG Child Support Package, announced at the National Day Rally 2026, will replace the Baby Bonus and Large Families schemes for Singaporean children born from 1 April 2027. See our Baby Bonus guide and maternity leave guide for what applies to you.
Throughout pregnancy, listen to your body. Heavy bleeding, severe abdominal pain, a severe headache with vision changes, fluid leaking, fever, or your baby moving less than usual all need prompt medical attention: go to your delivery hospital’s emergency or urgent O&G service, or call 995 in an emergency.