🇺🇸New York City
The city that never sleeps — Broadway marquees, a skyline you already know by heart, and a subway that gets you anywhere at 3am if you're patient.
Mid-range figures, per person
Per person, no flights — those are just below. The mid-range figure is researched; budget and comfort scale it, so treat the two as rough. The trip calculator and hotels below break the day down properly.
The US rows are domestic roundtrips on major routes — coast-to-coast sits at the top of the range, short hops at the bottom. Ranges are typical fares booked 1–3 months out, checked mid-2026 — school-holiday peaks run higher, and patient shoppers beat the bottom end.
Prices checked · how we work these out
Is New York City expensive to visit?
Yes, by the standards of the cities this site covers: a mid-range day in New York City costs $130–260 per person, and its $190 midpoint is 111% above the $90 median across all 127 cities here. Within United States it runs 15% above the $166 average of our 6 United States guides. That makes it pricier than 123 of the 127 cities, with a cheap meal at $5–12 and a mid-range hotel at $220–400 a night.
How much does a trip to New York City cost?
| Trip length | Budget | Mid-range | Comfort |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 days | $240–480 | $390–780 | $690–1,410 |
| 5 days | $400–800 | $650–1,300 | $1,150–2,350 |
| 7 days | $560–1,120 | $910–1,820 | $1,610–3,290 |
| 14 days | $1,120–2,240 | $1,820–3,640 | $3,220–6,580 |
Per person and before flights, 3 days in New York City costs $390–780 mid-range, five days $650–1,300, a week $910–1,820 and two weeks $1,820–3,640; a week costs about $560–1,120 on a budget and $1,610–3,290 travelling in comfort.
Per person in US dollars, flights not included. Each total is a daily range from the band above multiplied out: mid-range is the guide's researched figure and already includes a mid-range room; budget and comfort scale it by 0.6 and 1.8, so treat those two as rough. The trip calculator lets you set your own days and group size.
Entry & visa
Visitors from Visa Waiver Program countries (UK, most of the EU, Australia, and others) can apply for ESTA authorization online instead of a visa, valid for stays up to 90 days. Citizens of other countries need a standard US tourist visa — check current requirements for your passport well before booking.
Visa rules turn on your nationality and change often — always confirm the current requirement for your own passport with an official government source before you book.
Quick facts
Money & what things cost
Cards (and phone tap-to-pay) work essentially everywhere, including the subway — you can tap a contactless card or phone directly at the turnstile via OMNY, no MetroCard needed. Cash still helps for a few food carts and tipping in cash if you prefer. Sales tax (about 8.875%) is added at checkout, not included in listed prices, and tipping 18–22% at sit-down restaurants is close to mandatory culturally, not optional.
What locals earn
| Earnings | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Average monthly salary (NYC metro) | ≈ $5,800 | gross; take-home is significantly lower after federal, state, and city income tax |
| Minimum wage (NYC) | $16.50/hour | one of the highest in the US, reflecting the cost of living |
Food & drink
| Item | Local price | ≈ USD |
|---|---|---|
| Dollar slice of pizza | $1.50–3 | $1.50–3 |
| Food cart lunch (halal, hot dog) | $8–12 | $8–12 |
| Casual sit-down meal, per person (before tip) | $20–35 | $20–35 |
| Mid-range restaurant dinner, per person (before tip) | $50–90 | $50–90 |
| Coffee | $4–6 | $4–6 |
| Beer at a bar | $8–12 | $8–12 |
Transport
| Item | Local price | ≈ USD |
|---|---|---|
| Subway/bus ride (OMNY tap or MetroCard) | $2.90 | $2.90 |
| 7-day unlimited MetroCard | $34 | $34 |
| Yellow cab/Uber across Manhattan | $15–30 | $15–30 |
| JFK Airport → Manhattan (AirTrain + subway) | $10.90 | $10.90 |
| JFK Airport → Manhattan (taxi, flat rate) | $70 + tolls/tip | $70+ |
Where to sleep & what it costs
| Tier | Per night | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hostel dorm | $50–90 | Clustered in Chelsea, the Lower East Side, and Long Island City |
| Budget hotel | $140–220 | Small rooms are standard even at this tier — space is the real luxury in NYC |
| Mid-range hotel | $220–400 | Best value in Midtown West, the Financial District, or Long Island City |
| Luxury | $600+ | Central Park-adjacent and Fifth Avenue properties |
Been recently? Check our prices
One tap per figure. Check-ins reset whenever this guide is re-priced, so they only ever vouch for the numbers you see here.
Trip cost calculator
$190 per person per day · 4 nights of lodging (Mid-range hotel)
A rough estimate, not a quote. The daily budget already includes a room, so one traveler pays exactly days × that budget; lodging is the room’s part of it, priced from the hotels below but never more than 45% of the trip. Extra travelers share the room and add only their own spending. Flights use the midpoint of the Getting there ranges above.
Getting around
- From the airport
- JFK connects via AirTrain + subway (~$10.90, 60–75 min) or a flat-rate yellow cab (~$70 + tolls/tip, ~45–60 min). LaGuardia (LGA) has no direct subway link — take the M60 bus to a subway connection or a taxi/rideshare (~$40–60). Newark (EWR), in New Jersey, connects via AirTrain + NJ Transit into Penn Station.
- Subway
- Runs 24/7 and covers the whole city — tap a contactless card or phone via OMNY directly at the turnstile, no need to buy a MetroCard first. It's the fastest way to get almost anywhere, if not always the cleanest or most predictable.
- Walking
- Manhattan's grid layout makes walking genuinely practical for exploring — many first-timers underestimate how much of the city is walkable, especially below 59th Street.
- Uber/Lyft/taxis
- Plentiful and metered/fixed-price, useful late at night or with luggage, but traffic can make them slower than the subway at peak hours.
- Citi Bike
- NYC's bike-share system is extensive and a great way to see the city, especially along the Hudson River Greenway or through Central Park.
Map
Drag to look around, or open Google Maps ↗ · Apple Maps ↗
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Neighborhoods to stay in
- Midtown Manhattan
- Walking distance to Times Square, Broadway, and Rockefeller Center — the classic first-timer base, if a bit touristy and pricey.
- Greenwich Village / West Village
- Charming, low-rise, tree-lined streets with great restaurants — a quieter, more residential feel close to downtown.
- Financial District (FiDi)
- Near the Statue of Liberty ferries and the 9/11 Memorial, good value on weekends when business hotels drop rates.
- Williamsburg, Brooklyn
- A short subway ride from Manhattan, with its own thriving restaurant and nightlife scene and often better hotel value.
- Long Island City, Queens
- One subway stop from Midtown, notably cheaper hotels, with skyline views across the East River.
Things to do
Nightlife
Restaurants
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Theater & shows
Tipping & etiquette
- New Yorkers walk fast and expect you to keep to the right on sidewalks and subway stairs — stopping suddenly to check your phone or take a photo mid-flow draws visible annoyance, not danger.
- On the subway, let people exit before you board, and offer your seat to elderly, pregnant, or disabled riders — these are taken seriously.
- 'New York rude' is mostly just directness and efficiency, not hostility — a brusque tone usually isn't personal.
- Jaywalking is technically illegal but extremely common and rarely enforced — cross carefully, since drivers don't always stop for it.
- Restaurant reservations for popular spots should be made well in advance, sometimes weeks ahead for the most in-demand tables.
How to spend a trip to New York City
The subway runs north–south far better than it runs east–west, so plan each day as a vertical slice of the island rather than criss-crossing it. Visitors lose more time to backtracking than to anything else.
One day is triage — this guide reckons on four to five. Take downtown and Midtown in one line up the island and accept that Brooklyn and the museums are not happening.
- MorningWalk the Brooklyn Bridge early, from the Brooklyn side toward Manhattan so the skyline is in front of you, then the 9/11 Memorial.
- MiddayNorth through Greenwich Village on foot, with a slice at Joe's Pizza, which is about as cheap as lunch in this city gets.
- AfternoonMidtown: Rockefeller Center, Times Square in passing, then the south end of Central Park while there is still light.
- EveningA Broadway show. If you didn't book ahead, the TKTS booth in Times Square sells same-day seats at a discount.
Three days gives downtown, Midtown and one Brooklyn day a day each, which is the shape the city actually rewards. Still short of what the guide calls comfortable.
- Day 1Downtown: the Brooklyn Bridge, the 9/11 Memorial, the Financial District, then east to Katz's Delicatessen on the Lower East Side for an early dinner.
- Day 2Midtown and Central Park: one high view (the Empire State Building or Rockefeller Center — the second has the better photograph, because the first is in it), the park at walking pace, then Broadway.
- Day 3Brooklyn: Williamsburg on foot and by Citi Bike, dinner at Peter Luger if you booked it, Brooklyn Bowl if you didn't.
Five days is what this guide considers the honest minimum, and New York is one of the few cities where it still feels tight. The extra two days buy the ferry and the museums, both of which eat half a day whether you plan for it or not.
- Days 1–3The three-day plan above: downtown, Midtown and Central Park, and a Brooklyn day.
- Day 4The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ferry, booked online well ahead. It is a half day minimum with the queues, so leave the afternoon loose.
- Day 5A museum day, which is the thing every short trip drops first, then the West Village in the evening — Employees Only or the Blue Note, depending on the night you want.
- Any spare hoursThe Hudson River Greenway by Citi Bike, which is the cheapest good view in the city.
Safety & common scams
New York City is safe for a major world city, including for solo travelers, and violent crime affecting tourists is rare in the areas visitors actually spend time in. The real everyday friction points are pickpocketing in dense tourist crowds, subway platform awareness, and the general high cost of everything, rather than personal danger.
Scams to know
- Unofficial 'CD' or bracelet sellers near Times Square who pressure a purchase or 'donation' — decline firmly and keep walking.
- Costumed characters in Times Square who pose for photos then aggressively demand payment — agree to a tip only if you actually want the photo, and know it's expected if you engage.
- Unlicensed 'gypsy cabs' outside official taxi stands, especially at airports, quoting inflated flat fares — use the official yellow cab line or a rideshare app instead.
- Ticket scalpers for Broadway shows selling fake or wildly overpriced tickets — buy through the official box office, TodayTix, or the TKTS discount booth in Times Square.
Emergency numbers: 911 (police/fire/ambulance) — walk into any police precinct or ask an MTA subway employee for help if needed
Phone & internet
Most major US carriers (T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon) offer tourist eSIMs, or set one up in advance via Airalo or a similar service before you land — pay-as-you-go physical SIMs are also available at airport kiosks and phone shops. Coverage and Wi-Fi are strong throughout the city, including on many subway platforms (though not always mid-tunnel).
First-timer FAQs
How many days do I need?
Four to five days covers Midtown, Downtown, Central Park, and a Brooklyn neighborhood at a reasonable pace without feeling rushed. A week lets you slow down and add a museum day or two.
Is the subway safe and easy to use?
Yes — it's the fastest way around the city and runs 24/7. Stick to well-lit, populated cars late at night, keep bags zipped, and use a navigation app since signage can be inconsistent between lines.
Should I buy tickets for major attractions in advance?
Yes for anything popular — the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island ferry, the Empire State Building, and most Broadway shows sell out or have long walk-up lines; book online ahead of time.
Is New York as expensive as everyone says?
Yes, particularly for hotels and sit-down meals — but there's a real budget path through food carts, dollar pizza, free attractions (walking the Brooklyn Bridge, most parks), and the subway, so it's possible to visit without a Fifth Avenue budget.
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