Moving to New York from California
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from California to New York — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from California to New York, you would find that New York is 7.9% cheaper than California. A $75,000 salary in California would need to be roughly $69,100 in New York to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — New York City averages 62°F vs 75°F in Los Angeles, making it significantly cooler. Los Angeles and New York City are about 2,450 mi apart.
Thinking of moving to New York? Get a shortlist of towns in New York that match your priorities: size, cost, taxes, safety, disaster risk, hospitals and transport. Find my towns →Is New York cheaper than California?
The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 5.8% less
Groceries
pay 6.1% less
Transportation
pay 2.4% less
Housing
pay 14.7% less
Childcare
pay 1.9% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 0.9% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
What salary do you need in New York?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $69,100
To maintain the same standard of living in New York
Calculate with your salary →Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in New York cost about 17% less than cities in California.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How California and New York stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
New York performs significantly better than California across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
California generally does better on health & wellbeing, though New York leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
New York generally does better on what about housing?, though California leads in homeownership rate.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
California performs better than New York across all infrastructure metrics.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
California generally does better on employment & economy, though New York leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
California generally does better on family life, though New York leads in bachelor's degree or higher.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
Weather in New York vs California
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Los Angeles | New York City |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 69°/49°F (21°/10°C) | 43°/30°F (6°/-1°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 75°/57°F (24°/14°C) | 70°/54°F (21°/12°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 83°/64°F (29°/18°C) | 81°/66°F (27°/19°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 73°/53°F (23°/12°C) | 54°/41°F (12°/5°C) |
View all months
| Month | Los Angeles | New York City |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 68°/48°F (20.1°/8.8°C) | 38°/27°F (3.5°/-2.8°C) |
| Feb | 69°/49°F (20.3°/9.6°C) | 42°/29°F (5.3°/-1.7°C) |
| Mar | 70°/51°F (21.2°/10.6°C) | 50°/35°F (9.8°/1.8°C) |
| Apr | 73°/53°F (22.6°/11.9°C) | 61°/45°F (16.2°/7.1°C) |
| May | 74°/57°F (23.6°/13.9°C) | 71°/54°F (21.6°/12.2°C) |
| Jun | 78°/60°F (25.6°/15.7°C) | 79°/64°F (26.3°/17.6°C) |
| Jul | 83°/64°F (28.4°/17.6°C) | 84°/69°F (28.9°/20.4°C) |
| Aug | 84°/64°F (29.1°/17.8°C) | 83°/68°F (28.1°/19.9°C) |
| Sep | 83°/63°F (28.4°/17.3°C) | 75°/61°F (24.0°/16.0°C) |
| Oct | 78°/59°F (25.8°/14.8°C) | 64°/50°F (17.7°/10.0°C) |
| Nov | 73°/52°F (22.7°/11.1°C) | 54°/42°F (12.1°/5.3°C) |
| Dec | 68°/47°F (19.8°/8.6°C) | 43°/32°F (6.1°/0.0°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in New York than California?
Generally yes: New York runs about 8% cheaper than California on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to New York?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $17,275 in New York for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is New York safe?
New York performs significantly better than California across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in New York compared to California?
California generally does better on health & wellbeing, though New York leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in New York compared to California?
The average high temperature in New York City is 62°F, compared to 75°F in Los Angeles. New York City receives around 49.9 in of rainfall per year, while Los Angeles gets 14.9 in.
