Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Carolina vs. New York City Cost of Living Summary
North Carolina is 32.5% cheaper than New York City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 26.8% less in North Carolina
- Groceries
-
pay 21.0% less in North Carolina
- Transportation
-
pay 21.6% less in North Carolina
- Housing
-
pay 29.4% less in North Carolina
- Childcare
-
pay 58.5% less in North Carolina
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 42.7% less in North Carolina
- Clothing
-
pay 27.4% less in North Carolina
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, housing, clothing, restaurants, and transportation are lower in North Carolina.
North Carolina vs. New York City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Carolina instead of New York City, you would:
pay 26.8% less for restaurants
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$17.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.00
|
$10.47
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.09
|
$2.28
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.61
|
$1.82
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - Cost of restaurants
pay 21.0% less for groceries
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.75
|
$3.79
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.89
|
$6.80
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.05
|
$3.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.20
|
$3.98
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.07
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.29
|
$2.47
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.08
|
$0.71
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.60
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.68
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.63
|
$1.74
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.78
|
$1.80
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - Cost of groceries
pay 21.6% less for transportation
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.47
|
$2.98
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$132.00
|
$60.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,344.69
|
$33,588.64
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.39
|
$19.99
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - Cost of transportation
pay 29.4% less for housing
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.59
|
$72.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$4,037.06
|
$1,488.15
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,496.67
|
$1,261.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$151.98
|
$132.31
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - Cost of housing
pay 58.5% less for childcare
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,154.10
|
$1,261.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$57,250.00
|
$24,633.15
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - Cost of childcare
pay 42.7% less for entertainment and sports
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$5.12
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.71
|
$4.82
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$19.00
|
$7.77
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$150.04
|
$48.40
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.00
|
$12.98
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 27.4% less for clothing
|
New York City
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.80
|
$49.30
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.94
|
$37.76
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$115.58
|
$88.37
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$168.76
|
$111.01
|
|
New York City vs. North Carolina - 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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