"Should we get a Filipino, Indonesian or Myanmar helper?" is one of the first questions new employers ask. Opinions are everywhere; numbers are harder to find. We pulled together what governments and published data actually say for three places — Singapore, South Korea and Japan — and separated it clearly from what is only opinion.

Singapore: More Helpers Than Ever, but No Official Nationality Split

Singapore has the largest and most established domestic-helper workforce of the three. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) publishes the total number of Migrant Domestic Worker (MDW) Work Permits:

Reference date MDW Work Permits
Dec 2021 246,300
Dec 2022 268,500
Dec 2023 286,300
Dec 2024 301,600
Dec 2025 316,900
Jun 2026 323,800

That is roughly 77,500 more helpers in four and a half years.

What MOM does not publish is a breakdown by nationality. In Parliament in 2017, the Minister of State for Manpower said such detail "may create sensitivities among certain groups". So any figure you see claiming "X% of helpers in Singapore are Indonesian" is an estimate, not an official statistic. Most estimates name the same three main source countries — Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar — usually in that order.

What salary data shows

Pay is one place where nationality does show up in numbers. Two reference points:

  • The Philippines sets a minimum. For new contracts processed on or after 21 October 2025, the Philippine Migrant Workers Office requires at least S$650 (US$500) a month for a newly hired Filipino domestic worker. Singapore itself has no minimum wage for helpers; this floor comes from the Philippine side.
  • One agency's placement records. A Singapore agency published averages from 4,681 of its own placements (January 2022 to June 2026): Filipino S$886, Indonesian S$828, Myanmar S$702 a month. This is a single agency's data, not a market-wide survey, but it matches the pattern most employers report.

Indonesia also has its own registration requirements for new workers. Check the current figure with the Indonesian side (KDEI) or your agency rather than relying on a number from a blog.

Why families lean one way or another

There is no official survey of employer preferences in Singapore. What agencies consistently describe is this:

  • Filipino helpers are most often chosen for English, which matters for childcare, homework help and households where English is the only shared language. They also tend to cost the most.
  • Indonesian helpers are often chosen for cooking and general housework, and by Malay-speaking or Muslim households, where a shared language or faith makes daily life easier.
  • Myanmar helpers are increasingly chosen for lower cost and are often described as eager to learn. English is usually more basic at the start, so employers should expect to spend more time on training and communication.

What we hear from employers. Among the families we talk to — including many Korean families living in Singapore — Myanmar helpers come up more and more often. The reasons they give are the ones above: a lower salary, and a willingness to learn a household's way of doing things. This is our own observation, not a statistic.

One honest caveat: these are tendencies, not rules. An experienced Myanmar helper may speak better English than a first-time Filipino helper, and the best Indonesian cook you'll ever meet might come from a Christian family. Interview the person, not the passport. (See our interview red flags guide.)

South Korea: A Small Pilot That Ended

Korea does not have a Singapore-style helper scheme. Its main experiment was the Seoul foreign housekeeper pilot:

  • 100 Filipino workers arrived in August 2024 through Korea's Employment Permit System and began work in September 2024, first serving 142 households.
  • By January 2025, 98 workers were serving 185 households, with 795 households on the waitlist. 35 households had cancelled since launch, 24 of them in the first month.
  • On 22 December 2025, Korea's Foreign Workforce Policy Committee decided not to continue the scheme. Reports cited costs rising once the minimum wage applied, and concerns about competition with local workers. Existing workers were allowed to keep working under other work-visa arrangements.

Korea chose the Philippines for the pilot, so there is no Korean data comparing nationalities. The long waitlist does show real demand, but at Korean minimum-wage levels the cost was far above what Singapore employers pay.

Japan: Filipino Housekeepers in Special Zones Only

Japan allows foreign housekeeping workers only through the National Strategic Special Zones system, created by law in July 2015. According to the Cabinet Office, the zones that use it are Tokyo, Kanagawa, Osaka, Hyogo, Aichi, Fukuoka City, Kumamoto and Chiba (Chiba City).

Workers are employed by approved housekeeping companies, not by individual families, so Japanese households book a service rather than hire a live-in helper. The workforce has been overwhelmingly Filipino. One of the largest providers had taken in 695 Filipino workers by March 2020, according to the Tokyo Shimbun. We could not find an official national total.

The Three at a Glance

Singapore South Korea Japan
How helpers are hired Employer hires directly (Work Permit) Pilot only; service via providers Through approved companies only
Official total 323,800 (Jun 2026) 100 arrived (2024 pilot) No official national total found
Official nationality split Not published Filipino only (pilot) Not published; mainly Filipino
Status Growing every year Pilot ended (decision Dec 2025) Continuing in designated zones

Frequently Asked Questions

Which nationality of helper is most common in Singapore?

MOM does not publish a nationality breakdown. Estimates usually name Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar as the three main source countries, in that order.

Are Filipino helpers more expensive?

Usually, yes. The Philippines requires at least S$650 a month for new contracts from 21 October 2025, and one agency's 4,681 placements averaged S$886 for Filipino helpers against S$828 for Indonesian and S$702 for Myanmar helpers.

Why are Myanmar helpers becoming popular?

Employers mostly mention the lower salary and a willingness to learn. English is often more basic at first, so plan for more training time.

Can I hire a live-in helper in Korea or Japan like in Singapore?

Not in the same way. Korea's Seoul pilot used service providers and was not continued after December 2025. Japan only allows foreign housekeepers employed by approved companies in special zones.

How HelperMate Helps

Whichever nationality you choose, the first months come down to clear communication. HelperMate lets you share daily tasks with your helper and shows them in her own language, so a helper who is still learning English can follow the household routine from day one.

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