Cost of Living in New York, NY, United States

RESTAURANTS

In New York City, mostly everything is expensive.

Food in restaurants, and drinks in clubs (count on paying around 15$–20$ for a cocktail), all can get very expensive.

Restaurants at all different price levels exist, as well.

High menu prices are not necessarily indicative of food quality.

MARKETS

Cooking will definitely bring down your meal costs – just remember that Whole Foods is probably the cheapest grocery store in NYC.

Your grocery run which may have been 40$ in California, in New York will be double that amount.

Grocery costs tend to be higher because this is such a popular city with so many people.

Count on all the regular chain stores and supermarkets.

TRANSPORTATION

A monthly pass for the subway runs around 120$, and factor in a handful of Uber or Lyfts on top of that (those start at around 8$ and go up from there).

For shorter distances, your best bet is to walk.

A single-ride MetroCard – costs 3$ and is good for one use.

Owning a car is also often more expensive in NYC than elsewhere, because if you don’t have an underground parking garage, you need to pay for parking constantly.

UTILITIES (MONTHLY)

Against all expectations, utilities in New York aren’t the least bit more expensive than utilities anywhere else in America.

They vary but you can calculate a rough $178 per month which includes paying for trash, water, and sewer.

Don’t forget that the price of utilities does depend on the amount of electricity you use and on the size of your apartment.

SPORTS & LEISURE

Many of the nicer/newer buildings will include gym access in your rent.

If you need to find a gym elsewhere, pricing starts at around 35$ a month.

You can also find a variety of boutique fitness and yoga/pilates classes for around 20-35$ per class.

Running outside is, of course, still free.

Entertainment like movies and theaters generally have higher costs in NYC than elsewhere.

CLOTHING & SHOES

New York is known as the fashion capital of the United States, and a major shopping destination for people around the world.

It has an unfathomable range of department stores, boutiques, and specialty shops.

Clothes from national chains cost the same as anywhere else.

Sample sales can also be a great way to score lovely pieces for 50-90% off retail, just be prepared to stand in line and dig.

NYC also has flagship stores for just about every luxury brand in existence.

RENT PER MONTH

If you want to live by yourself, studios in Brooklyn are running at 2400$ per month, and Manhattan is really expensive.

Queens and the Bronx are where people are moving, but even those parts of the city are expensive.

There’s an influx of citizens even up north on the Hudson river.

The general rule outside of NY is that your rent should be 1/3 of your income; the rule here is that it’s probably going to be 1/2 of your income.