Moving to Pennsylvania from New Jersey
What to Expect
Considering a move from New Jersey to Pennsylvania? Here's how the two compare on cost, climate, safety, and more.
If you moved from New Jersey to Pennsylvania, you would find that Pennsylvania is 18.7% cheaper than New Jersey. A $75,000 salary in New Jersey would need to be roughly $61,000 in Pennsylvania to maintain the same lifestyle. Newark and Philadelphia are about 80 mi apart.
Thinking of moving to Pennsylvania? Get a shortlist of towns in Pennsylvania that match your priorities: size, cost, taxes, safety, disaster risk, hospitals and transport. Find my towns →Is Pennsylvania cheaper than New Jersey?
How key spending categories compare
Restaurants
pay 6.7% less
Groceries
pay 14.9% less
Transportation
pay 12.1% less
Housing
pay 31.5% less
Childcare
pay 10.1% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 15.5% 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 Pennsylvania?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $61,000
To maintain the same standard of living in Pennsylvania
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 Pennsylvania cost about 22% less than cities in New Jersey.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
The numbers behind daily life in Pennsylvania compared to New Jersey.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
New Jersey performs better than Pennsylvania 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
New Jersey generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Pennsylvania leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Pennsylvania performs significantly better than New Jersey across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
New Jersey generally does better on infrastructure, though Pennsylvania leads in average commute.
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
New Jersey generally does better on employment & economy, though Pennsylvania leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
New Jersey performs better than Pennsylvania across all family life metrics.
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 Pennsylvania vs New Jersey
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Newark | Philadelphia |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 48°/27°F (9°/-2°C) | 46°/29°F (8°/-2°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 76°/51°F (24°/11°C) | 74°/54°F (23°/12°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 85°/63°F (29°/17°C) | 83°/66°F (29°/19°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 58°/36°F (14°/2°C) | 56°/39°F (13°/4°C) |
View all months
| Month | Newark | Philadelphia |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42°/24°F (5.6°/-4.4°C) | 40°/26°F (4.6°/-3.6°C) |
| Feb | 46°/26°F (7.7°/-3.2°C) | 44°/28°F (6.6°/-2.4°C) |
| Mar | 55°/32°F (12.7°/0.2°C) | 53°/34°F (11.5°/1.3°C) |
| Apr | 67°/42°F (19.4°/5.3°C) | 64°/44°F (17.7°/6.7°C) |
| May | 76°/51°F (24.6°/10.7°C) | 74°/54°F (23.2°/12.2°C) |
| Jun | 85°/61°F (29.5°/16.3°C) | 83°/64°F (28.2°/17.7°C) |
| Jul | 88°/66°F (31.2°/18.8°C) | 87°/69°F (30.6°/20.7°C) |
| Aug | 87°/65°F (30.4°/18.1°C) | 85°/68°F (29.6°/19.9°C) |
| Sep | 80°/57°F (26.5°/14.0°C) | 78°/60°F (25.6°/15.7°C) |
| Oct | 69°/45°F (20.4°/7.3°C) | 67°/48°F (19.2°/9.1°C) |
| Nov | 58°/36°F (14.2°/2.4°C) | 56°/39°F (13.3°/4.0°C) |
| Dec | 46°/28°F (7.8°/-2.2°C) | 45°/30°F (7.1°/-1.1°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Pennsylvania than New Jersey?
On average Pennsylvania is about 19% less expensive than New Jersey, with major cities narrowing the gap.
How much money do I need to move to Pennsylvania?
Budget about $15,250 for 3 months in Pennsylvania (based on a $75,000 comparable annual salary), then add the one-off costs: movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Pennsylvania safe?
New Jersey performs better than Pennsylvania across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Pennsylvania compared to New Jersey?
New Jersey generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Pennsylvania leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Pennsylvania compared to New Jersey?
The average high temperature in Philadelphia is 65°F, compared to 67°F in Newark. Philadelphia receives around 41.5 in of rainfall per year, while Newark gets 46.2 in.
