Moving to New York from Iowa
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Iowa to New York — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Iowa to New York, you would find that New York is 30.7% more expensive than Iowa. A $75,000 salary in Iowa would need to be roughly $98,355 in New York to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Iowa to New York.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $98,355
To maintain the same standard of living in New York
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 10.5% more
Groceries
pay 29.2% more
Transportation
pay 52.7% more
Housing
pay 54.6% more
Childcare
pay 43.6% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 22.3% more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
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 31% more than cities in Iowa.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Iowa 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
Iowa performs better than New York 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
Iowa generally does better on health & wellbeing, though New York leads in adult obesity rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Iowa performs better than New York across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Iowa generally does better on infrastructure, though New York leads in internet access.
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
Iowa generally does better on employment & economy, though New York leads in gdp per capita.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
New York performs significantly better than Iowa across all family life metrics.
Data: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, OECD Regional Demography, US Census Bureau (American Community Survey)
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Des Moines | Albany |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 39°/21°F (4°/-6°C) | 37°/19°F (2°/-7°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 72°/52°F (22°/11°C) | 68°/47°F (20°/8°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 82°/62°F (28°/17°C) | 78°/58°F (26°/14°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 48°/31°F (9°/-1°C) | 48°/31°F (9°/-1°C) |
View all months
| Month | Des Moines | Albany |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31°/14°F (-0.6°/-9.8°C) | 31°/15°F (-0.8°/-9.7°C) |
| Feb | 36°/19°F (2.3°/-7.3°C) | 35°/17°F (1.4°/-8.2°C) |
| Mar | 49°/30°F (9.4°/-1.3°C) | 44°/26°F (6.9°/-3.5°C) |
| Apr | 62°/41°F (16.8°/5.1°C) | 58°/37°F (14.6°/2.9°C) |
| May | 72°/52°F (22.4°/11.2°C) | 69°/47°F (20.8°/8.4°C) |
| Jun | 82°/62°F (27.6°/16.7°C) | 78°/56°F (25.5°/13.6°C) |
| Jul | 86°/67°F (29.8°/19.3°C) | 82°/61°F (27.9°/16.3°C) |
| Aug | 84°/65°F (28.8°/18.2°C) | 80°/60°F (26.9°/15.5°C) |
| Sep | 76°/55°F (24.5°/12.9°C) | 72°/52°F (22.3°/10.9°C) |
| Oct | 63°/43°F (17.3°/6.1°C) | 60°/40°F (15.4°/4.2°C) |
| Nov | 48°/31°F (8.8°/-0.8°C) | 48°/31°F (8.8°/-0.3°C) |
| Dec | 34°/18°F (1.1°/-7.8°C) | 36°/21°F (2.1°/-6.0°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in New York than Iowa?
Day-to-day costs in New York run about 31% higher than Iowa on average; specific cities can swing further.
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 $24,589 in New York for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is New York safe?
Iowa performs better than New York across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in New York compared to Iowa?
Iowa generally does better on health & wellbeing, though New York leads in adult obesity rate.
What's the weather like in New York compared to Iowa?
The average high temperature in Albany is 58°F, compared to 60°F in Des Moines. Albany receives around 39.4 in of rainfall per year, while Des Moines gets 36.0 in.
