Boston vs New York City - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Boston New York City
🚶 Cost of living one person
$3467
$4051
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$7682
$8925
🏠 One person rent
$2394
$2620
🏘️ Family rent
$3923
$4454
🍽️ Food expenses
$726
$807
🚐 Transport expenses
$146
$399
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$5787
$5777
😷 Air quality
Excellent
Good
✈️ Airport proximity
5 km
13 km
🎓 Higher education
100
100
😀 Quality of life
92
97
🏙️ Population
676K
8.8M

The cost of living in Boston is 14% less expensive than in New York City. Cities ranked 32nd and 5th ($3467 vs $4051) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 28th and 3rd in the United States.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.7 months in Boston compared to 1.4 months in New York City. Ranked 15th vs 2nd best cities to live in the United States, and 89th vs 13th among the best cities to live in the world.

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the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Boston vs New York City infographic

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Prices in Boston vs New York City

Prices for goods and services in Boston and New York City are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

Boston New York City
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$21.3
$24.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$93.5
$111
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$13.1
$12.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$8.4
$9.78
 Cappuccino
$5.78
$6.22
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.16
$3.16
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$2739
$2702
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$2042
$2361
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$4881
$5005
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$3321
$3996
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$144
$122
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$222
$187
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$68.4
$69.3
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
6.53%
6.73%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$11569
$19111
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6730
$3215
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.4
$2.88
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$90.4
$138
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$18
$27.1
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$0.95
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.21
$1.39
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$3.86
$4.43
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.86
$6.1
🥚 Eggs, x12
$4.16
$5.36
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$17.4
$16.6
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.3
$13.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$20.7
$19.2
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.07
$5.78
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.14
$2.13
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.77
$5.75
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.47
$5.74
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.73
$3.22
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.78
$3.62
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.76
$1.57
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.74
$2.88
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$15.1
$20.1
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.72
$3.49
🚬 Cigarette pack
$13.4
$17.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$5.76
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$8.03
$10
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$4.03
$7.97
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2
$2.36
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$81
$144
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$16.1
$19.8
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$164
$156
💇 Haircut, simple
$21.7
$25.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$60.7
$65.6
👟 Brand Sneakers
$100
$111
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$2437
$1717
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$25118
$20585

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Cities near Boston

Distance City Cost of living
4 km or 2.5 mi Cambridge
$3756
4.4 km or 2.7 mi Chelsea
$3040
4.5 km or 2.8 mi Somerville
$3647
5.6 km or 3.5 mi Everett
$2916
5.7 km or 3.5 mi Brookline
$3093
6.9 km or 4.3 mi Revere
$2932
7.4 km or 4.6 mi Malden
$3008
7.6 km or 4.7 mi Medford
$2349
10 km or 6.2 mi Belmont
$2951
10 km or 6.2 mi Arlington
$2847
10 km or 6.2 mi Watertown
$2913
11 km or 6.9 mi Melrose
$2826
12 km or 7.5 mi Milton
$2938
12 km or 7.5 mi Winchester
$2755
12 km or 7.7 mi Newton
$2790
13 km or 7.8 mi Saugus
$2897
13 km or 8.1 mi Quincy
$3122
14 km or 8.6 mi Stoneham
$2778
14 km or 8.9 mi Waltham
$2817
15 km or 9.4 mi Lynn
$3172
15 km or 9.5 mi Woburn
$2735
16 km or 9.6 mi Dedham
$2869
16 km or 10 mi Needham
$2797
16 km or 10 mi Lexington
$2746
16 km or 10 mi Wakefield
$2846
18 km or 11 mi Braintree
$2925
18 km or 11 mi Weymouth
$2920
19 km or 12 mi Reading
$2773
19 km or 12 mi Hingham
$2869
20 km or 12 mi Burlington
$2443
20 km or 13 mi Wellesley
$2798
21 km or 13 mi Norwood
$2804
22 km or 14 mi Peabody
$2878
22 km or 14 mi Randolph
$2848
22 km or 14 mi Salem
$3005
23 km or 14 mi Wilmington
$2607
23 km or 14 mi Marblehead
$2853
23 km or 14 mi Canton
$2815
25 km or 16 mi Natick
$2961
26 km or 16 mi Stoughton
$2803

Cities near New York City

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.6 mi Astoria
$2510
11 km or 6.8 mi Hoboken
$3280
11 km or 7.1 mi Jersey
$3002
13 km or 8.3 mi Union
$2857
14 km or 8.8 mi West New York
$2634
14 km or 8.9 mi Bayonne
$3168
15 km or 9.6 mi North Bergen
$2611
17 km or 10 mi Secaucus
$2701
17 km or 11 mi Cliffside Park
$2414
18 km or 11 mi Kearny
$2671
20 km or 12 mi Valley Stream
$2715
20 km or 13 mi Fort Lee
$2165
20 km or 13 mi Lyndhurst
$2605
22 km or 14 mi Newark
$2575
23 km or 14 mi Elizabeth
$2733
23 km or 14 mi Belleville
$2479
25 km or 15 mi Hillside
$2664
25 km or 15 mi Long Beach
$2722
25 km or 15 mi Nutley
$2493
25 km or 16 mi East Orange
$2635
25 km or 16 mi Irvington
$2622
26 km or 16 mi Rockville Centre
$2607
26 km or 16 mi Linden
$2762
26 km or 16 mi Hackensack
$2590
26 km or 16 mi Bloomfield
$2424
26 km or 16 mi Teaneck
$2641
26 km or 16 mi Carteret
$2778
26 km or 16 mi Passaic
$2646
27 km or 17 mi Roselle
$2760
27 km or 17 mi Hempstead
$2702
28 km or 17 mi Union Township
$2732
28 km or 18 mi Clifton
$2721
28 km or 18 mi Maplewood
$2691
29 km or 18 mi Montclair
$2454
29 km or 18 mi Bergenfield
$2586
29 km or 18 mi Mount Vernon
$2811
30 km or 18 mi Rahway
$2771
30 km or 18 mi Uniondale
$2578
30 km or 18 mi West Orange
$2553
30 km or 18 mi New Rochelle
$3108