Cost of living comparison
compared to
New York City vs. Palo Alto Cost of Living Summary
New York City is 7.7% more expensive than Palo Alto.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.0% less in New York City
- Groceries
-
pay 4.1% less in New York City
- Transportation
-
pay 8.7% more in New York City
- Housing
-
pay 6.4% less in New York City
- Childcare
-
pay 24.0% more in New York City
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 15.2% more in New York City
- Clothing
-
pay 18.5% more in New York City
The cost of childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, and transportation in New York City are more expensive than in Palo Alto. Expenses including housing, groceries, and restaurants are lower in New York City.
New York City vs. Palo Alto Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New York City instead of Palo Alto, you would:
pay 2.0% less for restaurants
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$30.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.30
|
$3.09
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.44
|
$2.61
|
|
Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of restaurants
pay 4.1% less for groceries
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$5.06
|
$4.75
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$11.39
|
$8.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.85
|
$6.05
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.26
|
$7.20
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.63
|
$7.07
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.22
|
$3.29
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.18
|
$1.08
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$2.60
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.01
|
$2.68
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.94
|
$1.63
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$2.19
|
$1.78
|
|
Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of groceries
pay 8.7% more for transportation
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.84
|
$3.47
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$90.00
|
$132.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,753.89
|
$36,344.69
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.06
|
$22.39
|
|
Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of transportation
pay 6.4% less for housing
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.78
|
$67.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,600.00
|
$4,037.06
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$3,148.75
|
$2,496.67
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$179.63
|
$151.98
|
|
Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of housing
pay 24.0% more for childcare
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,823.00
|
$3,154.10
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$42,000.00
|
$57,250.00
|
|
Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of childcare
pay 15.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.83
|
$5.71
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.50
|
$19.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$206.33
|
$150.04
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.00
|
$20.00
|
|
Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.5% more for clothing
|
Palo Alto
|
New York City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.50
|
$67.80
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.00
|
$49.94
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.89
|
$115.58
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.00
|
$168.76
|
|
Palo Alto 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: December 2025
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