New Jersey vs Pennsylvania: Cost of Living, Taxes, Rent and Safety Compared
Weighing a move between New Jersey and Pennsylvania? Here’s how they compare on the numbers that decide most moves, from the same public data Locustep uses to rank all 50 states.
Rent: a typical two-bedroom is $740 a month cheaper in Pennsylvania ($1,528 vs $2,268) — $8,880 a year, 33% less.
Income tax: Pennsylvania’s top rate is 3.07%, against 10.75% in New Jersey.
State and local taxes: a median-income household would pay 9.0% of income in Pennsylvania vs 14.3% in New Jersey — income, property and sales tax together.
Everyday costs: groceries, transport and other everyday spending run lower in Pennsylvania (index 99.6 vs 104.9, U.S. = 100).
Pay: median household income is $104,294 in New Jersey and $77,545 in Pennsylvania.
Safety: New Jersey has the lower violent crime rate (217.7 vs 245.6 per 100,000).
Weather: winter afternoons average 43°F in Newark and 44°F in Philadelphia; summer afternoons 85°F and 86°F.
Shaded cells are the lower-cost, higher-income or lower-risk figure. Indexes: U.S. average = 100.
What it means for your budget
Rent alone: moving from New Jersey to Pennsylvania changes a typical two-bedroom rent by −$740 a month (−$8,880 a year); the move the other way flips the sign. Taxes, pay, insurance and the move itself shift too, and how much depends on your income, your household and the city you pick.
That’s exactly what Locustep’s Net-Impact Report works out: your take-home pay after state and local taxes in both places, rent or buy for your budget, insurance and moving costs, and the month the move pays for itself.
Which state fits you better?
On Locustep’s directional scores, New Jersey leads on schools. Which of those matters depends entirely on you.
Where people look in each state
New Jersey
Jersey City
$2,792/mo two-bedroom
Jersey City is dense, diverse and directly across the Hudson from Manhattan, with a PATH commute of minutes and skyline views. Expensive but cheaper than New York, with a strong food scene and rapid high-rise development.
Newark
$2,233/mo two-bedroom
Newark is New Jersey's largest city — a major airport and port, several universities, and the cheapest housing with genuine Manhattan train access. Gritty, diverse, and in the middle of long-running redevelopment.
Hoboken
$2,792/mo two-bedroom
Hoboken is a compact, walkable, young, expensive square mile on the Hudson with brownstones, bars and a fast PATH ride to Manhattan. Flood-prone, dense, and heavily populated by twenty- and thirty-somethings.
Philadelphia is a dense, walkable, historic city with extraordinary food, real neighbourhood identity and the cheapest housing of any major East Coast metro. It also has high poverty and crime rates that vary sharply by area.
Pittsburgh
$1,389/mo two-bedroom
Pittsburgh is a hilly, river-crossed former steel city now driven by universities, hospitals and robotics research. Cheap housing, striking bridges and views, grey winters, and a fiercely local culture.
Lancaster
$1,553/mo two-bedroom
Lancaster is a small city in Amish country with a surprisingly good food and arts scene and a walkable centre. Affordable, agricultural at the edges, and within reach of Philadelphia and Baltimore.
Is it cheaper to live in New Jersey or Pennsylvania?
On rent, Pennsylvania is cheaper: a typical two-bedroom is $1,528 a month against $2,268 (HUD FY2027). Everyday costs, housing excluded, index at 104.9 in New Jersey and 99.6 in Pennsylvania (U.S. = 100). Whether you come out ahead also depends on your pay and taxes in each state.
Which has lower taxes, New Jersey or Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania. A married couple on the U.S. median household income would pay about 9.0% of it in state and local taxes, against 14.3% in New Jersey (Locustep estimate). Top income-tax rates are 10.75% in New Jersey and 3.07% in Pennsylvania.
Is New Jersey safer than Pennsylvania?
By violent crime, New Jersey is lower: 217.7 per 100,000 residents against 245.6 (FBI, 2024). On natural hazards, FEMA puts New Jersey at the 54th percentile and Pennsylvania at the 23rd (lower is safer).
Which has better weather, New Jersey or Pennsylvania?
It depends what you want. Winter afternoons average 43°F in Newark and 44°F in Philadelphia; summer afternoons 85°F and 86°F (NOAA 1991–2020). New Jersey: four distinct seasons. Pennsylvania: four distinct seasons.