Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Carolina vs. New York Cost of Living Summary
North Carolina is 10.3% cheaper than New York.
- Restaurants
-
pay 9.0% less in North Carolina
- Groceries
-
pay 2.6% less in North Carolina
- Transportation
-
pay 11.8% less in North Carolina
- Housing
-
pay 8.6% less in North Carolina
- Childcare
-
pay 15.3% less in North Carolina
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 21.4% less in North Carolina
- Clothing
-
pay 3.7% less in North Carolina
Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, transportation, restaurants, housing, and clothing are lower in North Carolina.
North Carolina vs. New York Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Carolina instead of New York, you would:
pay 9.0% less for restaurants
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.39
|
$17.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.80
|
$10.47
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.45
|
$2.28
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.86
|
$1.82
|
|
New York vs. North Carolina - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.6% less for groceries
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.78
|
$3.79
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.84
|
$6.80
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.25
|
$3.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.76
|
$3.98
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.49
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.39
|
$2.47
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.88
|
$0.71
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.16
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.38
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.43
|
$1.74
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.63
|
$1.80
|
|
New York vs. North Carolina - Cost of groceries
pay 11.8% less for transportation
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.32
|
$2.98
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$95.86
|
$60.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,821.80
|
$33,588.64
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.88
|
$19.99
|
|
New York vs. North Carolina - Cost of transportation
pay 8.6% less for housing
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$65.63
|
$72.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,876.02
|
$1,488.15
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,567.68
|
$1,261.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$139.14
|
$132.31
|
|
New York vs. North Carolina - Cost of housing
pay 15.3% less for childcare
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,788.00
|
$1,261.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,966.76
|
$24,633.15
|
|
New York vs. North Carolina - Cost of childcare
pay 21.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.28
|
$5.12
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.14
|
$4.82
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$14.22
|
$7.77
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$63.27
|
$48.40
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.99
|
$12.98
|
|
New York vs. North Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 3.7% less for clothing
|
New York
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.49
|
$49.30
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.18
|
$37.76
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$85.00
|
$88.37
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$115.57
|
$111.01
|
|
New York 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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