Head-to-head
New York vs New Jersey
New Jersey's 2024 price level is 0.884 points above New York's (108.805 vs 107.921): New Jersey has higher rents and property taxes, New York higher utilities, and goods are effectively level.
Updated
| Measure | New York | New Jersey | First − second |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-items price level | 107.921 | 108.805 | −0.884 points |
| Rent price level | 122.168 | 134.292 | −12.124 points |
| Home value | $423,800±$1,627 | $454,400±$1,150 | −$30,600 |
| Two-bedroom gross rent | $1,620±$10 | $1,804±$9 | −$184 |
| Household income | $85,974±$402 | $103,556±$513 | −$17,582 |
| Real estate taxes paid | $6,582±$21 | $9,590±$25 | −$3,008 |
$4,000 of monthly spending in New York scales to $4,033 in New Jersey at the 2024 all-items price ratio.
BEA 2024 and ACS 2020–2024; ± marks the Census 90% margin. How to read a gap
New York vs New Jersey: the costlier side is not the one you might assume
New Jersey is the dearer state on the headline measure and on housing. Its rent parity is 134.292 against New York's 122.168, and its two-bedroom gross-rent median $1,804 against $1,620, $184 a month more. New York's utilities parity, 134.370, is 20.183 points above New Jersey's. Goods (107.254 against 107.066) and other services are almost identical.
Property tax is the sharpest difference. The median real estate tax paid is $9,590 in New Jersey, the highest in the country, against $6,582 in New York, a $3,008 gap. Owners with and without a mortgage both pay $274 a month more at the median in New Jersey. The median home value is $454,400 against $423,800.
Household incomes are higher in New Jersey, a median of $103,556 against $85,974, but real per capita personal income is nearly level, $64,153 in New York and $63,142 in New Jersey. Rent burdens match too: 31.2% and 30.9% of income.
The income taxes interact for commuters. New York's graduated tax has top rates from 9.65% to 10.90% through 2032, with a separate New York City tax for city residents. A New Jersey resident who pays New York nonresident tax claims New Jersey's credit for tax paid to other jurisdictions, limited as the note below explains. State collections were $6,563 per resident in New York and $5,662 in New Jersey; New Jersey's sales tax has been 6.625% since January 1, 2018, while New York's 4% state rate carries local and MCTD additions.
Both states have eased since 2020, New York from 110.130 and New Jersey from 110.722. For renters, compare the exact dwelling size and utility responsibility; a transit-accessible listing may look nothing like either statewide median.
Price levels by category
| Measure | New York | New Jersey | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| All items | 107.921 | 108.805 | −0.884 |
| Goods | 107.254 | 107.066 | +0.188 |
| Housing (rents) | 122.168 | 134.292 | −12.124 |
| Utilities | 134.370 | 114.187 | +20.183 |
| Other services | 104.067 | 103.529 | +0.538 |
| Real income per person (2017 $) | $64,153 | $63,142 | +$1,011 |
Two state tax mixes, FY2025
New York: $131.28 billion, $6,563 per resident. New Jersey: $54.07 billion, $5,662 per resident.
| Tax | NY share | NJ share | NY per resident | NJ per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Individual income | 46.6% | 38.9% | $3,060 | $2,200 |
| General sales | 15.5% | 27.4% | $1,020 | $1,554 |
| Property | not levied | 0.0% | — | $1 |
| Motor fuel | 1.2% | 0.9% | $77 | $49 |
| Other selective sales | 10.3% | 9.4% | $674 | $530 |
| Corporate income | 20.4% | 15.6% | $1,339 | $884 |
| Licenses | 1.5% | 5.1% | $96 | $289 |
| Severance | not levied | not levied | — | — |
| Other taxes | 4.5% | 2.8% | $297 | $156 |
Taxes on wages and purchases
| Tax | New York | New Jersey |
|---|---|---|
| Income tax | graduated; top rates 9.65% to 10.90% through 2032; New York City adds its own tax | Not summarised on this site; see the New Jersey Division of Taxation |
| State sales tax | 4% state rate plus local tax and 0.375% in the MCTD | 6.625% since January 1, 2018 |
Living in New Jersey, working in New York
New Jersey residents who pay New York nonresident tax on New York-source pay claim New Jersey's credit for tax paid to other jurisdictions on Schedule NJ-COJ. The Division of Taxation says the credit may use only the income New York actually taxed, not the worldwide-income column of New York's Form IT-203, because New York's nonresident method usually taxes less than the full New York-source amount. New York City's unincorporated business tax and the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Mobility Tax count as income taxes for business income that New Jersey also taxes.
How New York taxes nonresident commuters and telecommuters.
Sources, read : New Jersey Division of Taxation: GIT-3B, credit for tax paid to other jurisdictions (January 2026).
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