Cost of living comparison

Palo Alto (CA), United States

compared to

New York City (NY), United States

New York City vs. Palo Alto Cost of Living Summary

New York City is 18.3% more expensive than Palo Alto.

Restaurants: pay 7.8% more in New York City
Groceries: pay 4.0% more in New York City
Transportation: pay 15.5% more in New York City
Housing: pay 3.0% less in New York City
Childcare: pay 38.2% more in New York City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 26.4% more in New York City
Clothing: pay 39.5% more in New York City

The cost of clothing, childcare, entertainment and sports, transportation, restaurants, and groceries in New York City are more expensive than in Palo Alto.

New York City vs. Palo Alto Cost Breakdown

If you lived in New York City instead of Palo Alto, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 7.8% more for restaurants

	Palo Alto	New York City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$27.50	$30.00	+9.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$11.50	$12.00	+4.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.00	$3.22	+7.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.17	$2.39	+10.2%
Average			+7.8%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of restaurants

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pay 4.0% more for groceries

	Palo Alto	New York City
Bread 1 loaf	$5.22	$4.82	-7.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.45	$8.52	+0.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.33	$5.80	+8.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.50	$5.06	-8.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$7.75	$6.82	-11.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.30	$3.25	-1.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.90	$1.04	+15.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.60	$2.67	+66.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$3.00	$2.70	-10.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.89	$1.73	-8.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.66	$1.66	+0.1%
Average			+4.0%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of groceries

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pay 15.5% more for transportation

	Palo Alto	New York City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.85	$3.80	-21.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$90.00	$132.50	+47.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$30,530.00	$35,000.00	+14.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.41	$22.40	+21.6%
Average			+15.5%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of transportation

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pay 3.0% less for housing

	Palo Alto	New York City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$60.00	$68.20	+13.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$3,397.50	$4,097.13	+20.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$3,198.33	$2,883.17	-9.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$213.87	$136.26	-36.3%
Average			-3.0%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of housing

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pay 38.2% more for childcare

	Palo Alto	New York City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$2,705.00	$3,253.56	+20.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$37,770.00	$59,000.00	+56.2%
Average			+38.2%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of childcare

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pay 26.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Palo Alto	New York City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$8.00	$9.00	+12.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.10	$5.95	+16.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$11.00	$17.00	+54.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$120.00	$148.06	+23.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$15.99	$20.00	+25.1%
Average			+26.4%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 39.5% more for clothing

	Palo Alto	New York City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$45.00	$68.92	+53.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$36.12	$45.62	+26.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$80.00	$107.85	+34.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$117.22	$168.36	+43.6%
Average			+39.5%

Palo Alto vs. New York City - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: June 2025

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