BarsList

9 Best Jazz Bars in Singapore (2026)

Discover 9 of the best jazz bars and live-music venues in Singapore, from intimate listening rooms and hotel jazz lounges to long-running live-band haunts.

By: Amir Wahab
Edited by: Amir Wahab
Published: 26 Sep 2026
Reading time: 5 min read

An intimate jazz club stage with an upright double bass, grand piano and brass instruments under warm spotlights, a cocktail on a foreground table

The best jazz bars in Singapore are less about background music than about putting the band front and centre. This guide gathers nine established jazz and live-music venues, each checked against its own website or current listings, spanning intimate listening rooms, plush hotel jazz lounges, a waterfront jazz club and long-running live-band haunts. Treat it as a shortlist to explore rather than a strict ranking, and check each venue's current performance nights, cover charge and any dress code before you head out.

1. Maduro

Maduro puts live jazz first and everything else second. Founded by pianist Peter Ng, a fixture of Singapore's jazz scene, the room is styled like a plush living room of velvet couches and armchairs gathered around a baby grand piano, double bass and drum kit. It pairs regular sets from local and visiting musicians with a whisky-and-cigar bar. Now housed at Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa, it suits listeners who want the music at the centre rather than as background.

Sentosa
Visit website ↗WhatsApp ↗Email View on map ↗

2. Blu Jaz Cafe

A long-running fixture in Kampong Glam, Blu Jaz Cafe is a multi-level cafe, bar and live-music haunt tucked along Bali Lane. It has been a grassroots gathering point for Singapore's musicians and artists for well over a decade, with a rotating programme that runs from jazz jams to funk, soul and other club nights across the week. Casual and unpretentious, it draws a mixed crowd of regulars and newcomers, and many of its recurring jam sessions are open to walk-ins rather than ticketed.

Kampong Glam
Visit website ↗View on map ↗

3. The Whiskey Library & Jazz Club

Set inside the boutique Vagabond Club hotel on Syed Alwi Road, The Whiskey Library & Jazz Club pairs live jazz with an extensive whisky collection. The room leans opulent, with red velvet banquettes, art and handcrafted furniture, and the venue says it stocks over a thousand bottles from around the world. Jazz-and-whiskey evenings run toward the end of the week, when performances share the space with the bar's pours. It is a dressed-up, intimate option for a slower night built around the music and a good dram.

Jalan Besar
Visit website ↗WhatsApp ↗Email View on map ↗

4. Cool Cats

Cool Cats is an intimate live-music lounge inside The NCO Club at South Beach, done up in a New York speakeasy style with low lighting and close-set seating. The venue programmes live sets several nights a week, spanning jazz, blues, funk and soul from regional and visiting musicians, and its cocktail list nods to moments in jazz history. With only a small number of seats, it trades on proximity to the stage rather than scale, making it a good pick for a music-forward night near the city centre.

Beach Road
Visit website ↗View on map ↗

5. The Whisper Room

Perched high in CapitaGreen as part of the COTU complex, The Whisper Room is a cocktail bar and jazz lounge with floor-to-ceiling views over the central business district. The venue runs early-evening live jazz on weekdays before shifting to late-night DJ sets later in the week, so the mood moves from mellow sundowners to something livelier as the night goes on. Art Deco touches and skyline windows give it a polished, after-work feel; it suits a dressed-up drink with the city laid out below.

Raffles Place
Visit website ↗Email View on map ↗

6. Simply Jazz by Tin Box

Simply Jazz by Tin Box is a music-first room at Marina at Keppel Bay, curated by longtime jazz figures Mario Serio and Tama Goh. Rather than treating the band as background, it books nightly sets from Wednesday through Saturday that move across straight-ahead jazz, bebop, Latin and contemporary styles, with Sunday jam sessions giving newer players a stage. An eclectic kitchen and cocktail list round out the experience, but the draw is the calibre of the musicians and the attentive, listening-room atmosphere by the waterfront.

Keppel Bay
Visit website ↗View on map ↗

7. Bob's Bar

Bob's Bar at Capella Singapore channels a 1950s Havana mood, with lounge chairs, plenty of open space and a Cuban-leaning drinks list built around rum and fresh sugar-cane mojitos. A Latin jazz band plays on several evenings midweek, and the bar has hosted local jazz stalwarts over the years, giving its Sentosa hillside setting a warm, unhurried soundtrack. It leans toward relaxed sunset sessions rather than a late-night crowd, and works well as a laid-back, music-tinged stop within the island's resort belt.

Sentosa
Visit website ↗View on map ↗

8. Timbre @ Gillman

Part of the homegrown Timbre group that has championed local live music for years, Timbre @ Gillman sits in the leafy, art-gallery surrounds of Gillman Barracks. The venue is built around a stage, with indoor and alfresco areas, a bar and a kitchen known for thin-crust pizzas, and it programmes live bands playing covers and originals across pop, rock and more. The open-air, greenery-framed setting makes it a relaxed spot to catch Singaporean acts over dinner and drinks rather than a formal jazz club.

Gillman Barracks
Visit website ↗Email View on map ↗

9. Wala Wala Cafe Bar

A Holland Village institution since the early 1990s, Wala Wala Cafe Bar is one of Singapore's best-loved live-band venues. The ground floor works as a casual restaurant and bar, while the upper level is given over to live music, with resident and guest bands playing covers that range across decades of pop, rock and soul most nights of the week. It is loud, lively and unpretentious, a neighbourhood mainstay for after-work drinks that tip into a late night around a live band.

Holland Village
Visit website ↗Email View on map ↗

How to choose

Decide whether you want the music front and centre or as a backdrop: dedicated listening rooms and jazz clubs put the band first, while some lounges and live-band bars are built for socialising with music alongside. Match the venue to how much you actually want to listen.
Check the performance schedule before you go. Live programming varies by night — some venues run jazz only on certain evenings, others switch to DJs later in the week — so confirm who is playing and the set times rather than assuming there is a band every night.
Ask about cover charges, minimum spends and reservations. Intimate rooms with limited seating often take bookings and may apply a music charge or minimum order for table seating, especially on weekends and for headline acts.
Consider the neighbourhood and mood: a Sentosa resort bar, a CBD skyline lounge and a Holland Village live-band haunt offer very different evenings. Factor in travel, closing times and last orders, which can be earlier than the stated closing hour.
Confirm any dress code and age policy. Some hotel and members-style venues lean smart-casual and are strictly for adults, while neighbourhood live-music bars are far more relaxed about attire.

Update history

Published 26 Sep 2026. No changes recorded since.

About the author

Amir Wahab

Founder and Editor

Amir Wahab is the founder and editor of LocalRank, an independent Singapore rankings and local guides publication.

Report an error on this page