Is New York City Good for FIRE?
New York City, NY, Cost of Living, Housing & Early Retirement Guide
This page looks at whether New York City is likely to help or hurt a financial independence plan based on housing costs, tax drag, and how much room may be left in the budget after essentials.
Housing costs in New York City
New York City is rarely considered FIRE-friendly from a cost perspective because housing and overall living costs can push the required portfolio much higher.
The city can still work for FIRE if income is unusually strong, but the math is much less forgiving than in lower-cost metros.
NYC is a difficult market for expense control, and even high salaries can disappear quickly once rent and taxes are accounted for.
Can you reach FIRE in New York City?
Financial independence in New York City is possible, but the more useful question is whether the city helps or hurts the math relative to your income. A city becomes FIRE-friendly when your recurring expenses stay low enough that you can both save aggressively and retire on a smaller portfolio.
In practice, that means looking at housing first, then taxes, then how much flexibility remains in your monthly budget. New York City is not automatically good or bad for FIRE in absolute terms. It depends on whether your income is strong enough to support the city’s cost structure.
New York City is usually most relevant as a baseline comparison city rather than a pure destination for cost-efficient FIRE planning.
Frequently asked questions about FIRE in New York City
- Is New York City a good place to retire early?
- It depends on your income and spending pattern. The city is more favorable when housing costs are manageable relative to your take-home pay and when the rest of your recurring expenses stay under control.
- How much do I need to retire early in New York City?
- Your real FIRE number depends on your full annual spending, not housing alone. A rough first-pass approach is to estimate total yearly expenses in New York City and multiply by 25 using a 4% withdrawal rate.
- How does moving to New York City affect my FIRE timeline?
- If New York City lowers your recurring expenses relative to your current city, it can both reduce the portfolio you need and increase how much you save each month. Those two effects together can materially shorten the path to FIRE.
- What should I look at first when evaluating New York City for FIRE?
- Start with housing costs, then look at tax drag and your expected income. That gives a much more useful signal than broad rankings alone.
Compare New York City with other FIRE cities
Explore a smaller set of FIRE-focused city pages instead of a broad low-value inventory.
Model your FIRE timeline in New York City
Use the relocation calculator to estimate your post-move budget in New York City, then plug that number into the FIRE calculator to see how relocating may change your timeline.
New York City at a glance, single filer on $100,000
2026 taxes on $100,000 in New York City
| Tax on $100,000 | New York City |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $13,170 |
| Social Security and Medicare | $7,650 |
| New York income tax | $4,860 |
| City income tax | $3,441 |
| State payroll programs | $443 |
| Take-home pay | $70,436 |
| Share of pay paid in tax | 29.6% |
Single filer, wages only, standard deduction, no 401(k) contribution. Federal figures follow IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32; state and city rules are on the methodology page.
What is left to save in New York City at every salary
| Salary | Take-home a year | Take-home a month | After typical rent a month | Rent share of take-home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $38,497 | $3,208 | $854 | 73.4% |
| $75,000 | $55,312 | $4,609 | $2,255 | 51.1% |
| $100,000 | $70,436 | $5,870 | $3,516 | 40.1% |
| $150,000 | $99,679 | $8,307 | $5,953 | 28.3% |
| $250,000 | $157,538 | $13,128 | $10,774 | 17.9% |
Take-home is after 2026 federal, state, local and payroll tax. Rent is the typical Census figure for recent movers. Food, transportation, insurance and other costs are not subtracted.
What New York City costs compared with the U.S.
| Measure | New York City | U.S. | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall price level (U.S. = 100) | 112.6 | 100.0 | +12.6 |
| Housing price level | 148.6 | 100.0 | +48.6 |
| Utilities price level | 127.0 | 100.0 | +27.0 |
| Goods price level | 110.3 | 100.0 | +10.3 |
| Typical rent (monthly) | $2,354 | $1,411 | +$943 |
| Typical home value | $818,300 | $375,900 | +$442,400 |
| Median property tax paid (yearly) | $6,547 | $3,119 | +$3,428 |
| Residential electricity (cents per kWh) | 29.38 | 18.19 | +11.19 |
Price levels are BEA Regional Price Parities for the metro area (2024 Regional Price Parities (Bureau of Economic Analysis, released February 2026)); housing, utilities and goods levels are shown against the U.S. average of 100. Rent, home value and property tax are U.S. Census Bureau figures (2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates (Census Bureau, released December 2025)); electricity is the New York residential price, year-to-date through july 2026.
Renting and buying in New York City
| Measure | New York City |
|---|---|
| Income to rent the typical home (30% rule) | $94,160 |
| Monthly cost to own the typical home (20% down) | $4,861 |
| Income to buy the typical home (28% rule) | $208,320 |
Owning cost is the mortgage payment on the typical home with 20% down, a 30-year loan at 6.5% (the calculator's starting rate, not a quote), the city's typical property tax rate and $150 a month for insurance. HOA fees and maintenance are not included.
Who moves to and from New York
In the latest IRS migration data (2022-23), 192,240 households filed in New York after filing in another state the year before, and 264,227 did the reverse: a net loss of 71,987 households.
Where people moving to New York come from
- New Jersey: 26,793 households
- Florida: 22,011 households
- California: 20,595 households
- Pennsylvania: 14,412 households
- Massachusetts: 11,027 households
- Connecticut: 10,486 households
- Texas: 9,433 households
- North Carolina: 6,906 households
Where people leaving New York go
- New Jersey: 43,699 households
- Florida: 43,187 households
- Pennsylvania: 20,643 households
- California: 18,440 households
- Connecticut: 15,535 households
- North Carolina: 13,811 households
- Texas: 12,961 households
- Massachusetts: 10,479 households
Source: IRS Statistics of Income state-to-state migration files. The IRS publishes state totals, not city totals, and counts only people who filed a return in both years.
Where to go next
- Compare a move: see what a change of city does to rent, taxes and take-home pay.
- See the FIRE impact: enter your numbers and use the Move tab to see the change in your timeline.
- Plan it in detail: model withdrawals, taxes and Social Security year by year (Beta).
New York City questions
- How much do I keep of a $100,000 salary in New York City?
- A single filer on $100,000 keeps about $70,436 a year ($5,870 a month) in New York City after 2026 federal, state, local and payroll tax. That is 29.6% of pay paid in tax.
- Is New York City expensive?
- Overall prices in the New York City area are 12.6% higher than the U.S. average (BEA Regional Price Parities). Typical rent is $2,354 a month, 67% higher than the national figure of $1,411.
- How much income do I need to rent or buy in New York City?
- To keep rent at 30% of income, about $94,160 a year covers the typical rent of $2,354. Owning the typical home with 20% down costs about $4,861 a month, which takes about $208,320 a year at 28% of income.
- Are people moving to New York?
- IRS migration data for 2022-23 show 192,240 households moving into New York from other states and 264,227 moving out, a net loss of 71,987 households. These are state totals, not city totals.
- How much can I save in New York City on $100,000?
- After taxes and the typical rent of $2,354, a single filer on $100,000 has about $3,516 a month left before food, transport, health care and everything else. How much of that you can save depends on those costs.
Sources and limits
Written and maintained by Relocation By Numbers. Figures were generated on 2026-10-13 from the sources below; tax rules are for tax year 2026. Full methodology
- IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 tax brackets and standard deduction
- IRS Publication 15 (2026): payroll tax rates
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates (Census Bureau, released December 2025))
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities (2024 Regional Price Parities (Bureau of Economic Analysis, released February 2026))
- IRS Statistics of Income, state-to-state migration data
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.B
- State and city income tax rules, by state
Not included
- Itemized deductions, tax credits and dependents; the figures are for a single filer on wages.
- Neighborhood-level rent and home prices, which can differ widely from a city median.
- Moving costs, car costs, health insurance, child care, food and sales tax.