Cost of living comparison
compared to
New Jersey vs. Albany Cost of Living Summary
New Jersey is 14.8% more expensive than Albany.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.3% less in New Jersey
- Groceries
-
pay 9.6% more in New Jersey
- Transportation
-
pay 21.1% more in New Jersey
- Housing
-
pay 15.8% more in New Jersey
- Childcare
-
pay 37.5% more in New Jersey
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 10.0% more in New Jersey
- Clothing
-
pay 17.6% more in New Jersey
The cost of childcare, transportation, clothing, housing, entertainment and sports, and groceries in New Jersey are more expensive than in Albany.
New Jersey vs. Albany Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New Jersey instead of Albany, you would:
pay 8.3% less for restaurants
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$24.00
|
$19.95
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$14.25
|
$12.40
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.71
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.02
|
$2.04
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of restaurants
pay 9.6% more for groceries
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.93
|
$4.17
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.62
|
$8.09
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.94
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.68
|
$5.24
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.74
|
$5.96
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.27
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
|
$0.98
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.63
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.17
|
$2.62
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
|
$1.44
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.60
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of groceries
pay 21.1% more for transportation
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.44
|
$3.24
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.00
|
$116.02
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,787.68
|
$32,841.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.15
|
$19.75
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of transportation
pay 15.8% more for housing
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$80.55
|
$62.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,426.00
|
$2,279.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,280.00
|
$1,885.98
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$161.67
|
$126.74
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of housing
pay 37.5% more for childcare
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,766.67
|
$2,023.96
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$17,000.00
|
$27,267.62
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of childcare
pay 10.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.50
|
$6.95
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.80
|
$5.20
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$14.75
|
$12.79
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.60
|
$52.90
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$16.52
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 17.6% more for clothing
|
Albany
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$54.80
|
$57.64
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.77
|
$49.26
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$86.67
|
$99.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$107.83
|
$136.81
|
|
Albany vs. New Jersey - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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