Cost of living comparison
compared to
New Jersey vs. New York City Cost of Living Summary
New Jersey is 20.9% cheaper than New York City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 15.6% less in New Jersey
- Groceries
-
pay 13.6% less in New Jersey
- Transportation
-
pay 10.0% less in New Jersey
- Housing
-
pay 23.0% less in New Jersey
- Childcare
-
pay 44.1% less in New Jersey
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 27.4% less in New Jersey
- Clothing
-
pay 12.3% less in New Jersey
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, housing, restaurants, groceries, and clothing are lower in New Jersey.
New Jersey vs. New York City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New Jersey instead of New York City, you would:
pay 15.6% less for restaurants
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$19.95
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.00
|
$12.40
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.09
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.61
|
$2.04
|
|
New York City vs. New Jersey - Cost of restaurants
pay 13.6% less for groceries
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.75
|
$4.17
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.89
|
$8.09
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.05
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.20
|
$5.24
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.07
|
$5.96
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.29
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.08
|
$0.98
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.60
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.68
|
$2.62
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.63
|
$1.44
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.78
|
$1.60
|
|
New York City vs. New Jersey - Cost of groceries
pay 10.0% less for transportation
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.47
|
$3.24
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$132.00
|
$116.02
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,344.69
|
$32,841.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.39
|
$19.75
|
|
New York City vs. New Jersey - Cost of transportation
pay 23.0% less for housing
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.59
|
$62.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$4,037.06
|
$2,279.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,496.67
|
$1,885.98
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$151.98
|
$126.74
|
|
New York City vs. New Jersey - Cost of housing
pay 44.1% less for childcare
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,154.10
|
$2,023.96
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$57,250.00
|
$27,267.62
|
|
New York City vs. New Jersey - Cost of childcare
pay 27.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$6.95
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.71
|
$5.20
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$19.00
|
$12.79
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$150.04
|
$52.90
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.00
|
$16.52
|
|
New York City vs. New Jersey - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 12.3% less for clothing
|
New York City
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.80
|
$57.64
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.94
|
$49.26
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$115.58
|
$99.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$168.76
|
$136.81
|
|
New York City 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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