Cost of living comparison
compared to
New York City vs. District of Columbia Cost of Living Summary
New York City is 17.9% more expensive than District of Columbia.
- Restaurants
-
pay 0.6% less in New York City
- Groceries
-
pay 16.2% more in New York City
- Transportation
-
pay 26.0% more in New York City
- Housing
-
pay 19.5% more in New York City
- Childcare
-
pay 30.8% more in New York City
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 26.1% more in New York City
- Clothing
-
pay 7.5% more in New York City
New York City vs. District of Columbia Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New York City instead of District of Columbia, you would:
pay 0.6% less for restaurants
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$3.09
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$2.61
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - Cost of restaurants
pay 16.2% more for groceries
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$4.75
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$8.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$6.05
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$7.20
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$7.07
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$3.29
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$1.08
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.60
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.68
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$1.63
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.78
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - Cost of groceries
pay 26.0% more for transportation
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$3.47
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$132.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$36,344.69
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$22.39
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - Cost of transportation
pay 19.5% more for housing
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$67.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$4,037.06
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$2,496.67
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$151.98
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - Cost of housing
pay 30.8% more for childcare
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$3,154.10
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$57,250.00
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - Cost of childcare
pay 26.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$5.71
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$19.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$150.04
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$20.00
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 7.5% more for clothing
|
District of Columbia
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$67.80
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$49.94
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$115.58
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$168.76
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New York City - 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: October 2026
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