Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. New York City Cost of Living Summary
United States is 30.1% cheaper than New York City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 19.2% less in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 25.9% less in United States
- Transportation
-
pay 21.0% less in United States
- Housing
-
pay 25.3% less in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 57.8% less in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 36.5% less in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 24.7% less in United States
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, groceries, housing, clothing, and transportation are lower in United States.
United States vs. New York City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of New York City, you would:
pay 19.2% less for restaurants
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$19.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.00
|
$11.12
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.09
|
$2.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.61
|
$2.00
|
|
New York City vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
pay 25.9% less for groceries
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.75
|
$3.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.89
|
$6.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.05
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.20
|
$4.27
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.07
|
$5.41
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.29
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.08
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.60
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.68
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.63
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.78
|
$1.38
|
|
New York City vs. United States - Cost of groceries
pay 21.0% less for transportation
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.47
|
$3.41
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$132.00
|
$65.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,344.69
|
$32,336.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.39
|
$17.61
|
|
New York City vs. United States - Cost of transportation
pay 25.3% less for housing
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.59
|
$68.97
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$4,037.06
|
$1,664.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,496.67
|
$1,416.15
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$151.98
|
$150.19
|
|
New York City vs. United States - Cost of housing
pay 57.8% less for childcare
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,154.10
|
$1,387.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$57,250.00
|
$23,196.46
|
|
New York City vs. United States - Cost of childcare
pay 36.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$5.84
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.71
|
$5.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$19.00
|
$9.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$150.04
|
$51.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.00
|
$13.64
|
|
New York City vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 24.7% less for clothing
|
New York City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.80
|
$51.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.94
|
$41.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$115.58
|
$87.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$168.76
|
$112.04
|
|
New York City vs. United States - 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
Change currency:
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about United States or New York City. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.