After the 2017 presidential election, which was reserved for candidates from the Malay community, this election would be open to candidates of all races.

Potential names floated included the likes of Lee Hsien Yang, the estranged younger brother of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, as well as former Foreign Minister George Yeo. Lee had told Bloomberg News on 3 March 2023 that he was mulling a run, although that did not eventually materialise. Yeo, on the other hand, reiterated that he was a 'free spirit', and would be 'temperamentally unsuited' for the presidency.

On 8 June 2023, Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam became the first candidate to throw his hat into the ring. He resigned from the People's Action Party, vacating his seat in Jurong GRC and ending his 22-year career in party politics, which saw him take up ministerial roles in education, finance, manpower, and trade and industry.

Four days later, businessman George Goh indicated his intention to vie for the presidency. The chairman of Harvey Norman Ossia initially cited his experience in being the top executive of multiple companies, saying he was 'confident' of being declared eligible to run.

'Turritopsis Dohrnii' Teo En Ming, an IT consultant, declared his intention to run on TikTok on 28 June 2023. Teo, better known to netizens for his self-portrayals of being a 'targeted individual' and aspiring Japanese adult video actor, went as far as to declare his aspiration to be Commander-in-Chief of the Singapore Armed Forces. Another aspirant, former woodwork teacher Seng Soon Kia, appeared at the Elections Department office on 13 June 2023. Seng claimed to have held the office of president in 1951, a year before he was born. He, like Teo, did not end up submitting applications for the Certificate of Eligibility, and was later revealed to have been sentenced to 2 years and 3 months' imprisonment in 2002 for threatening to kill his neighbour.

It would take almost a month before a third serious candidate would step up. Former chief investment officer of the Government Investment Corporation, Ng Kok Song collected his application forms on 19 July 2023. Ng would later submit his application for the Certificate of Eligibility through the public sector deliberative track.

A surprise was sprung on 30 July 2023 by second-time aspirant Tan Kin Lian. Tan, the former chief executive officer of NTUC Income, had previously come in last in the 2011 election, losing his deposit in the process. He told the press that he had submitted his forms back on 11 July, just five days after apparently debunking rumours of a potential renewed bid where he told a reporter via WhatsApp that a run would not be possible owing to 'leg pain'. His slogan was 'Bring Back Trust, Give Us Hope'.

Ng submitted his application for the Certificate of Eligibility on 2 August 2023 to no public fanfare, announcing it on the sidelines of another event the very next day. Goh appeared before the press at the Elections Department on 4 August 2023, dropping in his forms. Tharman held a press conference after he made his own submission on 7 August 2023, launching his campaign with the slogan 'Respect for All'. Tan formally kicked off his campaign on 11 August 2023, flanked by opposition figures including People's Voice leader Lim Tean and 2011 presidential candidate Tan Jee Say. 

In the end, a three-cornered fight was set up, with Ng, Tharman, and Tan all receiving certificates of eligibility on 18 August 2023. Goh was declared ineligible, resulting in him calling the outcome unfair. The Presidential Elections Committee issued a statement the next day, citing that the share equity of his list of five companies he ran did not satisfy the requirements set out in the Constitution, and that eligible candidates from the private sector track needed to have had a share equity of at least $500 million with a single company. Ng revealed his campaign slogan, 'United For Our Future' on the very next day.  

On Nomination Day, the three eligible candidates revealed their symbols. Ng's choice of a heart within the palm of a hand made it the third consecutive contested presidential election in a row where a heart was incorporated into a candidate's symbol, after President Ong Teng Cheong in 1993 and Tan Jee Say in 2011.

Tharman picked a pineapple as his symbol, making it the second time since the 1951 Legislative Council election that the pineapple was used, after Progressive Party founder Tan Chye Cheng first debuted it in his own contest in Tanglin. 

Tan's symbol was that of four figures reaching out towards a flower. This was a slight modification from an earlier version launched on 11 August 2023, where the four figures were seen reaching out towards a crescent and five stars.

Candidates Tharman and Tan opted to place posters islandwide, with the former also putting up banners. Ng was the only candidate to opt against putting up physical posters, following the practice of Chua Kim Yeow in the 1993 election. Ng's reason for not doing so was in view of 'environmental concerns'; he went with distributing flyers and campaigning online with the aid of ACCSS Digital and Gushcloud International.

Rallies were not encouraged, as indicated by the Elections Department. Ng was sizing up the potential opportunity to hold an online rally, a plan which did not materialise. Tan's initial idea to host a physical rally on 25 August 2023 also did not come to fruition. Tharman held what was referred to as a 'town hall' at Pasir Panjang Power Station, the second time in history that a presidential candidate chose to organise an election meeting indoors after Tan Cheng Bock did so at Changi Expo Hall 8 in 2011.

Just like the 1993 and 2011 presidential elections, all candidates were alloted airtime on television and radio for Presidential Candidate Broadcasts. However, the broadcasts were aired on the 3rd and 9th day of campaigning, compared to 2011 when they were aired on the 2nd day of campaigning and Cooling Off Day. This time round, there were no candidate profile broadcasts unlike in 2011, where each candidate had a six-minute long profile video made for them.

This was the first election where postal voting for overseas electors and voting in nursing homes were made available. It was also the first presidential election where results of the sample count were made public, since the last time a sample count for a contested presidential election was conducted in 2011, only candidates would know of the results on request.

Tharman's majority of 54.6% was the highest ever for a presidential election in Singapore. He also became the first candidate from a minority racial group to be elected to the presidency by popular vote.      

Overseas votes were counted 11 days after Polling Day, the longest gap between the two dates thus far for any election.