London vs New York City
The short answer
New York City is the cheaper trip, by roughly 17% a day — $130–260 against $180–280 mid-range per person. Both are at their best in May–Jun, Sep, so one trip can take in both.
Side by side
Mid-range, per person, in US dollars. Both guides were costed the same way — see how we work these out.
| 🇬🇧 London | 🇺🇸 New York City | |
|---|---|---|
| Daily budgetmid-range, per person | $180–280 | $130–260cheaper |
| Cheap meallocal staple | $10–18 | $5–12cheaper |
| Mid-range hotelper night | $190–320cheaper | $220–400 |
| Transit ridesingle trip | $3.70 | $2.90cheaper |
| Avg. monthly salarylocal, for context | ≈ $3,700 | ≈ $5,800 |
When to go
Filled months are the ones each guide recommends; hollow ones it warns off.
What you'd actually do
A few of each guide's picks, one per category before seconds — the full lists are on the guides themselves.
🇬🇧 London
Two thousand years of city stacked on itself — Roman walls under glass towers, world-class museums that cost nothing, and a pub on every corner that's older than your country.
- British Museum$Museums & galleries
- Shakespeare's Globe$Theater & shows
- Borough Market$$Markets & food
- Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese$Nightlife
- Tate Modern$Museums & galleries
🇺🇸 New York City
The city that never sleeps — Broadway marquees, a skyline you already know by heart, and a subway that gets you anywhere at 3am if you're patient.
- Please Don't Tell (PDT)$$$Nightlife
- Katz's Delicatessen$$Restaurants
- Radio City Music Hall$$$Theater & shows
- Employees Only$$$Nightlife
- Peter Luger Steak House$$$Restaurants
Practicalities
| London | New York City | |
|---|---|---|
| Language | English — though a quarter of a million Londoners speak something else at home first. | English, though few cities on earth are more multilingual — you'll hear dozens of languages on any given subway car. |
| Currency | Pound sterling (£). US$1 ≈ £0.79 | US dollar (USD/$) |
| Time zone | GMT (UTC+0, UTC+1 in summer) | Eastern Time (ET), UTC-5 / UTC-4 with daylight saving |
| Power | Type G plugs, 230V — the big three-pin ones; nothing else fits | Type A/B plugs, 120V — bring a converter if you're arriving from a 220V country |
| Tap water | Safe everywhere — restaurants must give you free tap water if you ask | Safe to drink — NYC tap water is famously good, straight from upstate reservoirs |
| Emergency | 999 or 112 · 111 for non-emergency medical advice | 911 police/fire/ambulance |