?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

New York, NY vs Phoenix, AZ

Compare the housing, tax, cost, income, safety, school, and climate facts that are available for both places. The table shows the numbers without declaring one city universally better.

A household earning $85,000 in New York needs about $37,500 in Phoenix to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from Phoenix, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $138,500 in New York.

A few differences

New York vs Phoenix · facet by facet
FacetNew York, NYPhoenix, AZ
Median home price$785,000$450,000
2-bedroom rent$4,300/mo$1,700/mo
Property tax rate0.9%0.6%
State & local income tax7.67%1.64%
Sales tax8.88%8.6%
Cost of living index168103
Groceries index116101
Utilities$195/mo$220/mo
Median household income$76,000$72,000
Unemployment rate5%3.9%
Crime index47/10052/100
School rating6.5/106.0/10
Sunny days / year224 days299 days

Data: Census ACS 2024 · BLS · Tax Foundation 2024 brackets · HUD/Zillow · NOAA 1991–2020 · FEMA NRI · Values are shown as reported; no universal winner is implied.

Full profiles: New York, NY · Phoenix, AZ
Questions & answers
Is New York cheaper than Phoenix?
Phoenix has the lower day-to-day cost index (103 vs 168 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in Phoenix equals $85,000 in New York?
A household earning $85,000 in New York needs about $37,500 in Phoenix to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of Phoenix lifestyle costs about $138,500 in New York.