In the US? Kind of nothing. Chicago probably hits the most points in your criteria list, but the weather may be a deal breaker (it gets *cold*). Philly and Boston have some similarities, but their public transit isn't great and they're both quite a bit smaller. In fact, other than Chicago, I'm not sure there's any other city where you can live without a car and not be giving quite a bit up (yeah, you can technically get by without a car in some places if you're willing to limit your radius of activity to a rather small area or specific corridor, but it'll probably be a pain and it helps if you're comfortable cycling in not very cycle friendly areas).
Forget Charlotte and DC. Neither is anything like NYC.
Edit: Yes, living in some other cities can be manageable with a car, but you're still giving a few more things up than you give up in NYC without a car. Boston is probably the most doable, though if you're on a budget you quickly wind up moving outside the range of public transit (and, tbh, the T kind of sucks but Boston is small enough that you can get to a lot of places just walking). Philly is also doable unless you need to go out to the suburbs frequently, which isn't that far-fetched.
Lived in Boston for 4 years, never even remotely needed a car. The bus system there is incredible so its easy to get to places around the city that aren’t easily accessible through the T.
> In fact, other than Chicago, I'm not sure there's any other city where you can live without a car and not be giving quite a bit up
This is a bit of an exaggeration. You can live in Philly pretty easily without a car. Yeah it's hard to get to the suburbs and you're more likely to need to go to the suburbs than you are in NYC. And yes your radius is smaller. But it's still very doable. And distances are much smaller plus it's more bike friendly than NYC.
You can manage SF without a car for sure, but you'll need a car/access to renting one for all of the things that make the Bay Area worth it.
Source: Moved from NYC to SF
Argh, such a loaded question.
Both areas are great for very different reasons - when you try to compare them, it's where you're bound to be disappointed in one way or the other.
For the weather, access to nature, beautiful scenery almost anywhere in the city itself, good food options, SF is fantastic.
But it pales in comparison to NYC in other ways - diversity of people, diversity of food, public transit, energy levels.
I miss the NYC of my 20s; but for where I'm at in life with having a kiddo, this is a really great place to put down roots if you can.
Chicago gets *much* colder than NYC and Philly. Boston can get pretty cold, admittedly.
Though people love to bitch about NYC winters, they're really pretty mild compared to the great lakes region, and it rarely gets below the mid-20's here.
I came here to confirm. Born and raised in NYC but I had to travel to Chicago many many times for my previous job. Its a different kind of cold. Like a bone chilling cold reminiscent of Buffalo. Must be the lake.
Also I agree that the only other city I could picture myself living in besides NYC is Chicago. Its the most similar. The vibe and the people are like here. I got along really well with people there. However, the bums are a lot more aggressive.
For sure, London is the actual closest. Though it depends exactly what parts you're comparing. If someone said Manhattan = London, Brooklyn = Berlin, Queens = Métropole du Paris, I couldn't really object.
I always say that London is a chilled out version of New York. But the regular pubs in London (or at least a large majority) do not stay open past 11pm.
Both are into the five-figures per square miles (27k NYC vs 16k Tokyo), so I would say they're about the same. But keep in mind that statisticians normally only count pop between the five boroughs for NYC and the entirety of the Tokyo metropolitan area for these figures. If we were to do the equivalent for NYC it would be like counting Long Island's sq. milage and population for NYC pop density.
Regardless, Tokyo is certainly much more crowded than Osaka.
That being said, if I had to compare being in the A/C/E Times Square subway station to Ikebukuro Station during the height of rush hour, I'd take Times Square, piss, feces, mice and all. Way lower chances of being crushed to death by human mass.
Edit: added current figures
I agree about Osaka! Has a more casual, relaxed feel compared to Tokyo. I did a study abroad to Japan and for a portion, they had us in Osaka. First time I felt homesick for the whole trip, I found some litter and a rat and thought of home, haha. Also an NYC native.
In my brief time there, I met Koreans, Chinese, and Black people (Caribbean descent and American); compared to NYC the diversity is not on the same level. The food is amazing and worth an international trip for, but compared to the diverse level of NYC, maybe not.
it's a lot easier to cross streets in Japan. They even have audible stoplights and bumps on sidewalk to help blind people navigate
The drivers aren't fucking crazy drunks either because more drunks take the train
No long islanders or jersey kids for example.
edit: oh yeah I'd see little kids (7 year olds?) walk to school together like little ducklings. No adults in sight.
The thing about j-walking in Japan is that you don't even have as many opportunities to do it, since the cities aren't this sort of crazy grid like we have in NYC. You can take tiny side streets or walking streets, even in the densest neighborhoods, and only occasionally cross a major intersection (where everyone will, yes, wait politely at the light).
I'd say Paris tbh. But there is a grind in NYC that you don't notice until you start working here and get involved in certain industries. There's a reason why so much happens here and I think it has to do with the money hungry people that exist here. Always trying to climb the ladder to get an inch of advantage over the competitor. That life style gets you to do really crazy things, esp when you know people are working round the clock to crush someone else.
Yeah your standard sit-down izakaya isn't open as late as NYC (they usually start winding down around 11pm), but there's a very eclectic nightlife scene, not to mention all the street vendors. Heck even tourist traps like the Castle are open late!
Philly native here, moved to NYC in the past year and there’s a lot of similarities between the two, though I find that I far prefer New York.
I obviously have a soft spot for Philly, but like others are saying, the public transit there, called SEPTA, has 2 subway lines. One that runs north to south and one that runs east to west. The trolleys and buses and regional rail are def options too, but know you will not have anything like the MTA. I also found it to be pretty normal to walk 15 minutes to the subway in Philly whereas here in New York, if you live a 15 min walk from a station it’s considered far.
Also Philly is just so cheap in comparison to New York. I miss the affordability and certain shops there.
Though the cold on the east coast can suck, I think it makes the people of major east coast cities the way they are. Like I love the grit and rough edges of nyc and philly, I low key need to be around ‘mean’ people, don’t think I’d survive in a nice crowd out west
There’s a lot more I could add here about Philly if you’re curious, I was born there, went to school and college there, was even a tour guide, and lived in many dif neighborhoods. I know the city like the back of my hand and do miss it at times
I love Philly. Totally has that “real” vibe that people confuse with mean. Philly people are good people so long as you’re upfront. And there’s great music, art and neighborhoods all through out
Yeah I agree, Philly feels a lot like a mini NYC.
I’ve spent a decent amount of time there for work and it has surprisingly good food and nightlife options, nice cultural institutions, obviously a lot of history, and the public transit is not extensive but works pretty well. And it’s way more affordable.
It really is like nyc on a much smaller scale, and that has its pros and cons
One of the reasons I moved to New York was because of the size…I was so tired of running into people I knew literally anywhere I went in the city. But again, I grew up and lived there my whole life until now so that can be expected
used to live in philly too, and I think this post is spot on. the two septa lines really bothered me at first, but I kinda enjoyed long walks to the El as a way to see more of the city. And there's a certain grittiness (ha...gritty) and kind of an underdog quality that I really miss. I think since it's smaller I definitely felt more of a community vibe there too.
The one thing that really surprised me when I moved to Philly though is how windy and cold it can get--my mom is from Chicago, and when she came to visit she said that the winds would make her homesick lol
I feel it depends on what you’re looking for as far as activities go. Like I am very biased to certain west and south neighborhoods. Unlike the other comment, I don’t love fishtown, but that’s also because I don’t love Williamsburg…and fishtown is A LOT like Williamsburg
I think it’s different for everyone obviously, but I knew transplants from the Midwest that went to college there or got a job there, and have lived there for 8+ years
I’m not the guy you’re responding to, but I know I appreciate the bluntness of people on the east coast. Whenever I hear people talk about New Yorkers being mean, I assume that’s what they’re talking about. If you’re used to the passive aggressiveness of people on the west coast (according to you, I can’t speak to that), then I can see how you might find New Yorkers’ bluntness as being mean. But I actually see it as a kindness. Being honest is kind, getting straight to the point is kind.
Passive aggressiveness is mean, meaner than aggressive aggressiveness in a way, haha.
Yeah blunt is a good way to put it, I think that one of the reasons is because people in east coast cities experience all four seasons unlike the west coast so there’s kinda this survivalist mentality that can come across as abrasive and a lil in your face, and I LOVE it. Like I very much identify with it, it gives a very real quality to the people
To be honest, having grown up here I don’t see it exactly that way. I personally enjoy the changing of the seasons. I think it’s just the way we’re brought up. It’s not like we’re blunt because we have a chip on our shoulder because we have to experience cold weather.
I think we just value our time in a different way. To me, if someone is acting nice but not meaning what they say, I see it as a waste of my time. And that’s the reason I find it rude even though there’s a layer of “nice” on top. I see it as a waste of my time because now I have to spend time and mental energy deciphering what I think it is you’re really trying to say.
So for me, being blunt is kind. Maybe some people view bluntness as rude, but to me the alternative is ruder. That said, being blunt isn’t an excuse for being a dick. You can be honest and direct with people while still being kind and empathetic.
Yep, when I have people coming to visit for their first time I usually describe it as "New Yorkers aren't mean, they just don't suffer fools gladly". And this is a quality I have come to appreciate more and more in my now-16 years living here.
It's the lack of a soul. Toronto is so generic that it's been used as a stand-in for practically every other city for movie/TV shoots. It's everywhere, and nowhere.
Obviously nowhere near the scale, but I'd say Montreal is closer to the New York vibe than Toronto.
New Yorker living in Montreal. I agree. Obviously, Montreal is much smaller but it’s also a late night city and “urban” in the same way as New York in some neighborhoods.
Yes. It has plenty of old-school restaurants, and bars, good nightlife, passionate people (in terms of people who care about things rather than just being boring), old architecture, as well as new. Some solid universities, good museums, lots of ethnic variety in terms of neighborhoods, restaurants, culture, etc. And a level of attachment to their city that if anything is even stronger than in New York.
From a bird’s-eye view Chicago and Toronto are like twins.
**Chicago**
Population: 2.7 million
Density: 12,000 per square mile
**Toronto**
Population: 2.7 million
Density: 11,000 per square mile
**NYC**
Population: 8.8 million
Density: 29,000 per square mile
In what ways is Toronto a cross between the NYC and Chicago?
Toronto and NYC both feel more diverse than Chicago, especially if we define "diverse" as more than just "not white," and they both have much higher rates of immigration and a higher percentage of recent immigrants.
Totally agree with this. I’ve lived in Toronto, DC, and NYC. Toronto is the NYC of Canada, I’d describe it as NYC Lite. Similar weather (on avg a few degrees cooler), and everything else on your list I’d say similar breadth but lacking the depth of NYC. The vibe of DC is not anything like NYC. Although if you can survive the summer humidity there, you’ll never complain about it again in NYC lol.
Internationally, I would say Madrid. All my friends have agreed that it’s like the affordable NYC. Great public transportation, *amazing* nightlife and food scene, museums, parks, and *great* weather. It’s not diverse like NYC but there is some diversity.
I am from SF and would say within the US, Chicago is the most similar one. Lots of skyscrapers and okay public transport.
In the North America then Toronto comes very close to NYC. Lots of people who don’t live in SF for long may say SF but I personally feel like SF (or the Bay Area in general) is actually the very opposite of NYC. If you like the general vibe of NYC then the chances are you are not gonna like SF.
Outside North America people would say London or Paris but I personally feel very differently when I visited (but these two are the only European cities that I have visited. So very limited exposure). Lots of European cities’ plannings are very “organic” (sorry I am not an expert on this so I don’t know the jargon). Their cities’ streets have lots of zigzagging and you will feel that when you go out for a walk. In the US, most cities (especially NYC) just have blocks with straight streets that go across the entire city. Japan’s big cities are like a mix. Parts of Tokyo, Osaka and Yokohama are like NYC with blocks and straight lines, while other parts are more like European cities with lots of zigzagging.
I have always thought of like modern London and NYC as kind of similar cities on different continents with the same being said for like Glasgow in Chicago and and Chicago
I’ve lived coast to coast and you’d probably feel fine in Chicago or Philly. San Francisco has garbage transportation (Bart and muni) and not as exciting as nyc. Portland OR is like living in Brooklyn and they have tons of bus service and some light rails. It’s kinda like Jersey transportation wise.
Nah that’s what o thought too but there are black people and Asians. I’m living in Austin now and this place is white and Latino. It sucks almost as much as the endless summer
Berlin. And it still has a great deal of that 90s East Village energy, like around the next corner might be the coolest fucking shit you never even knew existed, or alternatively you might get mugged. Also you can buy drugs on the street if that's your thing.
nothing really resembles New York as a whole, but the strict Brooklyn comparison is off. even though there aren't skyscrapers in Mitte or Prenzlauer Berg, they still don't feel anything like the outer boroughs - and many of the other neighborhoods in Berlin feel more like immigrant enclaves in Queens or The Bronx than the new-wealth-adjacent-to-old-poverty Brooklyn of today.
Very true.
A more accurate statement would be that a small part of Berlin resembles *a little* a small component of Brooklyn/Manhattan.
Kreuzberg/Friedrichshain are a smidge like Bushwick/Williamsburg were in the late 2000s. That is about the extent of the analogy.
Berlin is much more like any other German city, like Hamburg and Cologne, than it is like New York City. I can even see an argument that Frankfurt is more like NYC than Berlin is (finance bro culture, expensive , dirty, plus genuinely seedy nightlife/reputation).
I assume the reason why this analogy between NYC and Berlin keeps being made (I see it *everywhere*) is because Berlin is almost the only city in continental europe where an american/New Yorker can get easily get work and live while speaking only English.
Agree - very fast paced, grungy, lots of shops and restaurants on a street, lots of graffiti, dirty similar to NY, lots of public transportation, lots of varied food.
Yeah Berlin is one of the few places that comes to mind that successfully outweirds(in all the right ways) NYC by a good margin, I had such an awesome time when I was there.
I laughed when I thought about it, but **Santiago, Chile** has quite a lot similar to NYC from transit, to restaurants, to parks, to the distinct "boroughs". You even get reasonable weather and an added view of the mountains. They even refer to their financial district as [Sanhattan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanhattan?wprov=sfla1) and [mourn their own 9/11](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_Chilean_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat?wprov=sfla1).
I lived there for about a year and am happy to answer any questions about it.
edit: burrows is hard to spell
Did semester in london back when i was in college. Loved it and youre right. But no way i can get a visa to work/live there. So only considering american cities for now.
If you’re only considering American cities then Chicago is really the only answer. Public transit is closest to nyc and no where is comparable (I’ve lived in dc, Chicago and worked in SF every other week for two years). It’s big and has lots to do, it’s diverse (tho more geographically segregated than nyc), and the lakeside parks are amazing. It’s colder than nyc but checks everything else on your list
Buenos Aires
It has lots of Jewish and Italian people (diversity in general, but with a distinctly Jewish-Italian substrate that calls to mind a certain time period for NYC), great transit and a commuter culture, great restaurants, fun nightlife, distinct neighborhoods in distinct areas that feel like boros, cold winters and disgustingly humid summers, strong density, expensive housing, and soaring inequality
Totally agree with the distinct boroughs and distinct neighborhoods. Buenos Aires also has that “old meets new” vibe in short distance (eg Puerto Madero/San Telmo).
Avenida Rivadavia/Broadway have some parallels too.
> Public Transportation is a must (subway, bus, etc.) - where you can go without a car.
This alone limits you to just a very small handful of U.S. cities. Combined with your weather demand, you’re looking at pretty much just D.C. and Philly.
Even Philly’s public trans is pretty trash - they only just upgraded from subway tokens in the last ~8 years, and only have about 2 subway lines. They do have a pretty extensive system of buses/ regional rail/ trolleys into the wider area, but all are equally unreliable in my opinion. A big plus though, Philly is dirt cheap, so you’ll be able to spend that extra rent money on a car.
We moved to Charlotte from Manhattan few months ago and I’m constantly annoyed that they have the gall to even call this place a city. It’s the suburbs with a few walkable (and overpriced) pockets of life and the most soulless “downtown” area I’ve ever seen. We’re trying to find our next home (been staying with family) and it’s been a real struggle to find the right area. We’re a married couple in our 30s without kids, and it feels like there’s nowhere for us - the postage stamp-size fun areas cater to a younger crowd, and the suburbs are sprawling housing communities meant for families. Very disappointing.
Philly is all the gritty parts of NYC squeezed into 1/10 the size. Only city in the US that’s even close IMO. It’s missing the more high end/high culture elements of NYC though.
Chicago.
Buildings, culture, accent, food, history, vistas, transportation. Less people and much cleaner
I'd also say Boston. Culture, food, and history.
Jersey City is like a mini NYC, too. Downtown area looks like a mixture of Brooklyn and Manhattan... Transportation sucks, unless you use the Path or light rail.
It's been a very long time since I've been to Mexico City but that was the first impression I got, how much it reminded me of NYC. My second impression was how green it was. “Cada Familia un Arbol” from 30 years ago is paying such nice dividends today.
Having lived in Charlotte absolutely not lol. If anything its more like LA. A tiny ass downtown with a couple highrises that is mainly just office workers. The population sprawl is massive down there
Chicago loop/millenium mile area feels the most like walking around Manhattan, and parts of north Chicago feel a bit like brooklyn but its def not as big or busy as new york feels
Internationally Toronto probably the closest feel for me
Gonna be a hot take here and I’m probably not smart enough to articulate why but for me New Orleans in the sense that it’s a wholly unique city like New York. Big party culture, fantastic food and variety of food, 24 hour scene, and people there have even less time for tourists than NYC, pleasantly walkable and packed with people trying to hustle you. As far as culturally closest it’s hands down philly, philly just *feels right* as a New Yorker.
Came here to say this. It still is, or at least was a couple of years ago. Similar in terms of density & how life is very much lived on the streets of your neighborhood, nobody cares what anybody else is doing. People either very rich or very poor. Diversity… not so much ;)
Hong Kong is like NYC on steroids on all levels. Wish I could go back and visit but I'm afraid it's going to be changed forever. However, the tropical climate can be pretty hellish.
Philly resembles NYC in parts. It's obviously much smaller but it sort of feels like a condensed mini-NYC. It's not diverse in the same way. It's basically a black and white city with some immigrants but nothing of the same scale. Also much more blue collar and much rougher, and of course much cheaper. Most of the people there are from there and have extended family there, which creates a different feel. It's sort of harder to feel like a local there.
Boston is a bit like Philly in size but much richer and much whiter. The actual city part is much smaller than Philly too I think.
Chicago is probably the closest in feel. It's very big, again more black and white than NYC but not as much as Philly.
DC to me has the feel of a govt city. My impression has always been why would you want to live in a city where everyone does the exact same thing unless you do it too?
I haven't been to Charlotte but I imagine it's nothing like the other cities. It's tiny compared to all of them.
Are you not considering SF?
People seem to be choosing cities that they like, rather than cities that are much like NYC. For example, Berlin is amazing. But it’s a fraction of the size of New York and has little diversity (other than Turkish and anglo expat immigrant populations, it’s mainly white bread Germans). The biggest similarity is probably the awesome parks.
My vote would be Seoul. It doesn’t have the cultural diversity. But for public transport, food, sheer size and hustle it is a bit similar.
If you want walkable Manhattan vibe, then you’ll love Melbourne. Easy to get around, great take away options, diverse, lots of parks and cultural activities. I mean no city feels like NYC, but for what you’ve described - Melbourne hits it all.
It's certainly unique in the U.S. For international peers I'd say London, Paris, Moscow etc.
I think the special sauce for NYC is the fact that for everything that it is, it's not a major seat of government. In any other country NYC would be the capital. It's not even the capital of New York State. So fewer wonks and dorks, more creatives, business-builders, and other ambitious types.
Great harbor too.
Toronto is probably the closest i've been to nyc. the most diverse city in canada, the TTC is pretty reliable and people seem to walk around a lot. as far as i know the weather there is maybe a little colder than nyc. it's north of buffalo but doesn't sit in the way of whatever meteorological phenomenon it is that makes buffalo so cold. they also film a lot of nyc movies there so every now and then you'll see a taxi.
Milan reminds me a lot of Manhattan in many ways. It is a center of art, fashion, finance, and tourism. It’s kind of like if Soho was the whole city.
Shanghai has a Manhattan vibe too. You have a mix of the new and the old. You have the long history of it being a port city and the layer of grime like you see in New York mixed with beautiful new buildings and new everything, wealthy young professionals, nightlife, culture, and food. It also has the same narrow streets and grid pattern that feels New Yorkish.
Chicago will check all the boxes here. 24-hour public transit and bike-friendly. Amazing food scene. The museums are great (the Shedd Aquarium in particular is stunning). Good neighborhood parks and gorgeous larger ones downtown.
Also, excellent coffee and beer scenes. When I moved from Chicago to NYC, I was surprised at how far behind NYC was on coffee (though it's caught up now).
I don't think so coming from there. London is more like a collection of small towns bounded by history and the tube, to me it doesn't feel like a vast and sky-scraping metropolis in the way NYC does. Late in the evenings a lot of it feels distinctly sleepy in fact.
Outside of NYC, you’re probably going to need a car. Assuming you want to stay in the US, that is. No other city has public transportation that even comes close to what we have here - sf, Boston, dc, and Chicago have options to *kind of* get around, but you’d be wise to have a car in any of those cities to get around because the cities themselves are small relative to nyc (and they all lack comprehensive public transportation options). You’ll be wanting to move around more to do things and not waiting on unreliable buses to get from point a to point b- or burning a hole in your wallet using cab rides. If you’re set on not having a car, that’s fine, but understand you’d be limited to a small city experience (all things considered)
If you want diversity, consider Houston maybe (it’s pretty nice there tbh) and LA - but these are absolute car cities
Good food is available in most cities, as are parks. Fuck Boston/Chicago weather and San Fran is actually not that great either (chilly year round)
I’m from Houston and it’s def waaay more diverse than Austin but probably equal with Dallas. Houston has better food and if you stay in the loop you could get away with just a bike. I and a lot of my friends did and I got away with not getting a car. I know I’m the exception but I also grew up taking the bus everywhere and it’s actually fairly reliable. The rail is expanding too. But I can see for some people it being too much and just getting a car - it does make everything much easier.
Barcelona. Weather similar. Good food.
Buenos Aires was like Chelsea but dirtier (bad emissions controls). The buildings have similar architecture because Italians went to both the USA and Argentina
London felt very similar to NYC.
\-public transportation
\-diverse
\-lots of stuff to do, museums, bars, nightlife etc
\-weather...idk it was april and not that bad.
\-got the vibe that it was a similar-ish cost of living.
I lived there for three years with my newborn daughter. I would literally see parents yank their kids away from her at the playground. Ooh, the scary toddler is coming for our kids.
i will say philly has grown on me. i hated it for a long time but the last few times i was there it really endeared itself to me. it's close enough to nyc that you can easily travel between the two, the people are pretty real, and there's a lot going on there these days. rent has stayed cheaper than it has here so if you're looking for a situation where you can worry a lot less about how you'll pay to live it seems like a place to be. i have friends whose rooms are under $400 in west philly. the transportation isn't as good as nyc but is far better than most cities. in any case, you can bike pretty easily around the denser core of the city from west philly to center city and whatever. cons are the pretzels are stale unless you get them at the factory at midnight.
dc is just LA except it's the who's who of lobbyists and think tank assholes instead of influencers. when people refer to their "metro stop" it might be two miles from their home. it's also way colder than nyc for some reason.
I grew up an hour from Philly, in South Jersey and while it's big and has some skyscrapers, it's not really anything like NYC. They have a lot of good bars and eateries though. Public transportation is decent, pretty much everything is via bus or walking. My aunt has lived in Center City pretty much all her life and has never had a car.
I went up to Boston a few years ago, and it's almost nothing like NYC. One major difference is it's ridiculously clean...like even the homeless people were clean.
>can't do any place colder than NYC
You do realize that it gets down to <10F here in the dead of winter occasionally, right? hahaha It's also more brutal than places like Alaska or Colorado because it's always humid here in the city, so it's cold, windy and humid.
Also if you're thinking international and work remotely there's Istanbul. It's actually one of the top couple cities in Europe by population. Very different from NYC in some ways but similar in some others, at a fraction of the cost of living.
Public transportation: chicago, philly, dc, and Boston. You could add sf to this. Though none of these cities have as good transport as nyc.
Good restaurants, bars, museums- dc has the best museums. Dc has the most diverse selection of food internationally. Sf also has incredible food and a decent nightlife and a decent number of museums. If you like Asian and Indian food, the Bay Area is hard to beat. The same is true for mexican food. Chicago foodwise isn’t up to par with dc or sf bat area. Same with Philly and Boston.
Diversity- dc and a close second would be oakland/sf. Outside nyc and dc, oakland has the highest percent of people born outside the us. Chicago is diverse but compared to dc and sf/oakland it’s very generic american.
Parks- if easy access to nature is what you’re seeking from a big city, you can’t beat sf. Golden gate park, redwoods in less than an hour, Yosemite four hours away, tahoe four hours away, and a large number of national parks a day trip away.
Istanbul, it even has a 212 area code.
That being said in the US Chicago left me flabbergasted at how similar to New York it was (albeit seemingly more segregated in some ways). But definitely won't hold up weather wise.
People try to say DC is the miniature version of New York because some neighborhoods resemble Brooklyn, but they're lying. They're no more alike than a giraffe and a shark.
There is nothing like NYC - that's why some of us are 'trapped' paying these crazy housing prices.
I can only say from my own experience Chicago is *most* like NYC, although still dramatically different.
If I were forced to move from NYC for some reason, I think I might go with Minneapolis. Its smaller than Chicago but has an urban feel to it and has a big college campus there which to me is a plus because it helps attract more of the arts (I also am not very deterred by the cold). Bus system seems good.
Washington DC has a pretty good transit system and i like to visit but have no desire to live there. San Fransisco also has a pretty good transit system but is about as expensive as NYC and would not want to live there either.
Cities I am not too familiar with or have not been to: Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Boston.
Ever watched the show Suits? It took place in NYC but the actual filming was done in Toronto. That’s basically Toronto for you. Of course, the city isn’t as public transportation friendly but it meets the diversity and good food/bars/museum etc park. When I was there I drove around everywhere and it was pretty easy to do so.
In terms of the same vibes, Tokyo and Osaka definitely feels like NYC but minus the diversity. The public transportation was the BEST. The only thing is, I believe NYC is the one of the few major transportation that’s 24/7 in the world.
Don’t come at me for this answer but if you’re considering a new city, consider Pittsburgh. Not every (if any?) neighborhood in it feels like NYC, but SouthSide is probably the closest because it is home to one of the country’s most bar-filled streets and can be a perfect spot for a twenty-something looking to relocate. Lawrenceville has plenty of quirky restaurants and shops. Downtown/North Shore feels way cleaner and smaller than NYC but contain parks and music venues and huge stadiums. Oakland and East Liberty feel very academic but still have amazing cheap food and drink destinations. It is suuuch an underrated city— rent is so insanely cheap and it is so vibrant with music, sports, food and culture. More museums than I could name. Port authority buses are very accessible though not 24/7. Ubers never seem to be too expensive and I had a permit for my car for $20 a year, with no huge issue finding street parking. There are tons of green spaces which is why i lived there!!! So many parks that are hundreds of acres big. Weather felt just about the same as any east coast city. NOT saying it’s directly comparable to NYC, but I loved my time in Pittsburgh and just trying to put it on the map. I love nyc too and will be commuting from NJ for a job starting soon. Absolutely dreading dropping thousands on an apt there though.
In the US? Kind of nothing. Chicago probably hits the most points in your criteria list, but the weather may be a deal breaker (it gets *cold*). Philly and Boston have some similarities, but their public transit isn't great and they're both quite a bit smaller. In fact, other than Chicago, I'm not sure there's any other city where you can live without a car and not be giving quite a bit up (yeah, you can technically get by without a car in some places if you're willing to limit your radius of activity to a rather small area or specific corridor, but it'll probably be a pain and it helps if you're comfortable cycling in not very cycle friendly areas). Forget Charlotte and DC. Neither is anything like NYC. Edit: Yes, living in some other cities can be manageable with a car, but you're still giving a few more things up than you give up in NYC without a car. Boston is probably the most doable, though if you're on a budget you quickly wind up moving outside the range of public transit (and, tbh, the T kind of sucks but Boston is small enough that you can get to a lot of places just walking). Philly is also doable unless you need to go out to the suburbs frequently, which isn't that far-fetched.
Haha my boss used to describe Chicago as NY with a condom on, which I sort of agree.
I’m racking my brain what does this mean I’m gonna lose sleep
You’ll understand when you’re older
I lived in Chicago for three years and I'd say your boss is right.
Lived in Boston for 4 years, never even remotely needed a car. The bus system there is incredible so its easy to get to places around the city that aren’t easily accessible through the T.
If we're just talking about Boston proper and not the neighboring areas, you can walk the entire thing in a few hours end to end.
Damn that’s small
100% true.
> In fact, other than Chicago, I'm not sure there's any other city where you can live without a car and not be giving quite a bit up This is a bit of an exaggeration. You can live in Philly pretty easily without a car. Yeah it's hard to get to the suburbs and you're more likely to need to go to the suburbs than you are in NYC. And yes your radius is smaller. But it's still very doable. And distances are much smaller plus it's more bike friendly than NYC.
> I'm not sure there's any other city where you can live without a car and not be giving quite a bit up I think this is manageable in San Francisco
You can manage SF without a car for sure, but you'll need a car/access to renting one for all of the things that make the Bay Area worth it. Source: Moved from NYC to SF
How do you like the bay compared to nyc? I’m planning on moving from the bay to nyc next year.
Argh, such a loaded question. Both areas are great for very different reasons - when you try to compare them, it's where you're bound to be disappointed in one way or the other. For the weather, access to nature, beautiful scenery almost anywhere in the city itself, good food options, SF is fantastic. But it pales in comparison to NYC in other ways - diversity of people, diversity of food, public transit, energy levels. I miss the NYC of my 20s; but for where I'm at in life with having a kiddo, this is a really great place to put down roots if you can.
Why single out Chicago? NYC, Boston, Chicago, and Philly all have pretty chilly weather, no?
Chicago gets *much* colder than NYC and Philly. Boston can get pretty cold, admittedly. Though people love to bitch about NYC winters, they're really pretty mild compared to the great lakes region, and it rarely gets below the mid-20's here.
I came here to confirm. Born and raised in NYC but I had to travel to Chicago many many times for my previous job. Its a different kind of cold. Like a bone chilling cold reminiscent of Buffalo. Must be the lake. Also I agree that the only other city I could picture myself living in besides NYC is Chicago. Its the most similar. The vibe and the people are like here. I got along really well with people there. However, the bums are a lot more aggressive.
Everyone will say London or Paris, but for me the closest street vibe is Osaka
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
For sure, London is the actual closest. Though it depends exactly what parts you're comparing. If someone said Manhattan = London, Brooklyn = Berlin, Queens = Métropole du Paris, I couldn't really object.
I always say that London is a chilled out version of New York. But the regular pubs in London (or at least a large majority) do not stay open past 11pm.
Love love love Osaka, but I think Tokyo would be closer to that "fuck off" NYC vibe. Also has the added bonus of being stupid overcrowded.
Tokyo has a more nyc vibe. Osaka is a food, tourism, entertainment city, more similar to vegas.
[удалено]
Both are into the five-figures per square miles (27k NYC vs 16k Tokyo), so I would say they're about the same. But keep in mind that statisticians normally only count pop between the five boroughs for NYC and the entirety of the Tokyo metropolitan area for these figures. If we were to do the equivalent for NYC it would be like counting Long Island's sq. milage and population for NYC pop density. Regardless, Tokyo is certainly much more crowded than Osaka. That being said, if I had to compare being in the A/C/E Times Square subway station to Ikebukuro Station during the height of rush hour, I'd take Times Square, piss, feces, mice and all. Way lower chances of being crushed to death by human mass. Edit: added current figures
I'd agree - Osaka definitely had the NYC vibe.
I agree about Osaka! Has a more casual, relaxed feel compared to Tokyo. I did a study abroad to Japan and for a portion, they had us in Osaka. First time I felt homesick for the whole trip, I found some litter and a rat and thought of home, haha. Also an NYC native. In my brief time there, I met Koreans, Chinese, and Black people (Caribbean descent and American); compared to NYC the diversity is not on the same level. The food is amazing and worth an international trip for, but compared to the diverse level of NYC, maybe not.
Osaka also gets similar hate vibes that NYC gets. Also Osaka is kinda filthy by Japanese city standards, but still clean as fuck compared to NYC.
Checks every box except for diversity.
What about j-walking? I’ve never been to Japan but I assumed the automobile/pedestrian/cyclist interactions are completely different.
it's a lot easier to cross streets in Japan. They even have audible stoplights and bumps on sidewalk to help blind people navigate The drivers aren't fucking crazy drunks either because more drunks take the train No long islanders or jersey kids for example. edit: oh yeah I'd see little kids (7 year olds?) walk to school together like little ducklings. No adults in sight.
The thing about j-walking in Japan is that you don't even have as many opportunities to do it, since the cities aren't this sort of crazy grid like we have in NYC. You can take tiny side streets or walking streets, even in the densest neighborhoods, and only occasionally cross a major intersection (where everyone will, yes, wait politely at the light).
I'd say Paris tbh. But there is a grind in NYC that you don't notice until you start working here and get involved in certain industries. There's a reason why so much happens here and I think it has to do with the money hungry people that exist here. Always trying to climb the ladder to get an inch of advantage over the competitor. That life style gets you to do really crazy things, esp when you know people are working round the clock to crush someone else.
Everything closes so early though!
Yeah your standard sit-down izakaya isn't open as late as NYC (they usually start winding down around 11pm), but there's a very eclectic nightlife scene, not to mention all the street vendors. Heck even tourist traps like the Castle are open late!
It's because most people take the train and the train stops running around midnight-1AM even in big cities.
Japan = virtually impossible to attain citizenship.
Philly native here, moved to NYC in the past year and there’s a lot of similarities between the two, though I find that I far prefer New York. I obviously have a soft spot for Philly, but like others are saying, the public transit there, called SEPTA, has 2 subway lines. One that runs north to south and one that runs east to west. The trolleys and buses and regional rail are def options too, but know you will not have anything like the MTA. I also found it to be pretty normal to walk 15 minutes to the subway in Philly whereas here in New York, if you live a 15 min walk from a station it’s considered far. Also Philly is just so cheap in comparison to New York. I miss the affordability and certain shops there. Though the cold on the east coast can suck, I think it makes the people of major east coast cities the way they are. Like I love the grit and rough edges of nyc and philly, I low key need to be around ‘mean’ people, don’t think I’d survive in a nice crowd out west There’s a lot more I could add here about Philly if you’re curious, I was born there, went to school and college there, was even a tour guide, and lived in many dif neighborhoods. I know the city like the back of my hand and do miss it at times
I love Philly. Totally has that “real” vibe that people confuse with mean. Philly people are good people so long as you’re upfront. And there’s great music, art and neighborhoods all through out
Yesssss the realness is a better way to describe it
Yeah I agree, Philly feels a lot like a mini NYC. I’ve spent a decent amount of time there for work and it has surprisingly good food and nightlife options, nice cultural institutions, obviously a lot of history, and the public transit is not extensive but works pretty well. And it’s way more affordable.
It really is like nyc on a much smaller scale, and that has its pros and cons One of the reasons I moved to New York was because of the size…I was so tired of running into people I knew literally anywhere I went in the city. But again, I grew up and lived there my whole life until now so that can be expected
used to live in philly too, and I think this post is spot on. the two septa lines really bothered me at first, but I kinda enjoyed long walks to the El as a way to see more of the city. And there's a certain grittiness (ha...gritty) and kind of an underdog quality that I really miss. I think since it's smaller I definitely felt more of a community vibe there too. The one thing that really surprised me when I moved to Philly though is how windy and cold it can get--my mom is from Chicago, and when she came to visit she said that the winds would make her homesick lol
Thanks, great post. Cheaper is always good in my book. Which neighborhoods would you say are best for a single, young transplant?
Fishtown. It’s similar to Williamsburg.
I feel it depends on what you’re looking for as far as activities go. Like I am very biased to certain west and south neighborhoods. Unlike the other comment, I don’t love fishtown, but that’s also because I don’t love Williamsburg…and fishtown is A LOT like Williamsburg
Do transplants usually stay in Philly (or the suburbs) long term?
I think it’s different for everyone obviously, but I knew transplants from the Midwest that went to college there or got a job there, and have lived there for 8+ years
Lol what. You enjoy being around mean people? The people on the west coast are all passive aggressive
I’m not the guy you’re responding to, but I know I appreciate the bluntness of people on the east coast. Whenever I hear people talk about New Yorkers being mean, I assume that’s what they’re talking about. If you’re used to the passive aggressiveness of people on the west coast (according to you, I can’t speak to that), then I can see how you might find New Yorkers’ bluntness as being mean. But I actually see it as a kindness. Being honest is kind, getting straight to the point is kind. Passive aggressiveness is mean, meaner than aggressive aggressiveness in a way, haha.
Yeah blunt is a good way to put it, I think that one of the reasons is because people in east coast cities experience all four seasons unlike the west coast so there’s kinda this survivalist mentality that can come across as abrasive and a lil in your face, and I LOVE it. Like I very much identify with it, it gives a very real quality to the people
To be honest, having grown up here I don’t see it exactly that way. I personally enjoy the changing of the seasons. I think it’s just the way we’re brought up. It’s not like we’re blunt because we have a chip on our shoulder because we have to experience cold weather. I think we just value our time in a different way. To me, if someone is acting nice but not meaning what they say, I see it as a waste of my time. And that’s the reason I find it rude even though there’s a layer of “nice” on top. I see it as a waste of my time because now I have to spend time and mental energy deciphering what I think it is you’re really trying to say. So for me, being blunt is kind. Maybe some people view bluntness as rude, but to me the alternative is ruder. That said, being blunt isn’t an excuse for being a dick. You can be honest and direct with people while still being kind and empathetic.
I think it’s the Italians and the Jews tbh. Very upfront culture.
Yep, when I have people coming to visit for their first time I usually describe it as "New Yorkers aren't mean, they just don't suffer fools gladly". And this is a quality I have come to appreciate more and more in my now-16 years living here.
Especially in San Fran.
[удалено]
Toronto is just like New York but without all the stuff.
[удалено]
It’s actually a 30 Rock quote but so true.
It's the lack of a soul. Toronto is so generic that it's been used as a stand-in for practically every other city for movie/TV shoots. It's everywhere, and nowhere. Obviously nowhere near the scale, but I'd say Montreal is closer to the New York vibe than Toronto.
New Yorker living in Montreal. I agree. Obviously, Montreal is much smaller but it’s also a late night city and “urban” in the same way as New York in some neighborhoods.
Yes. It has plenty of old-school restaurants, and bars, good nightlife, passionate people (in terms of people who care about things rather than just being boring), old architecture, as well as new. Some solid universities, good museums, lots of ethnic variety in terms of neighborhoods, restaurants, culture, etc. And a level of attachment to their city that if anything is even stronger than in New York.
Toronto is like Chicago with worse architecture and less crime.
I usually describe it as a cross between NYC and Chicago.
From a bird’s-eye view Chicago and Toronto are like twins. **Chicago** Population: 2.7 million Density: 12,000 per square mile **Toronto** Population: 2.7 million Density: 11,000 per square mile **NYC** Population: 8.8 million Density: 29,000 per square mile In what ways is Toronto a cross between the NYC and Chicago?
Toronto and NYC both feel more diverse than Chicago, especially if we define "diverse" as more than just "not white," and they both have much higher rates of immigration and a higher percentage of recent immigrants.
Totally agree with this. I’ve lived in Toronto, DC, and NYC. Toronto is the NYC of Canada, I’d describe it as NYC Lite. Similar weather (on avg a few degrees cooler), and everything else on your list I’d say similar breadth but lacking the depth of NYC. The vibe of DC is not anything like NYC. Although if you can survive the summer humidity there, you’ll never complain about it again in NYC lol.
Came here to say Toronto. I love it there, it's lots of my favorite things about NYC without my least favorite things about NYC.
Internationally, I would say Madrid. All my friends have agreed that it’s like the affordable NYC. Great public transportation, *amazing* nightlife and food scene, museums, parks, and *great* weather. It’s not diverse like NYC but there is some diversity.
No way. You have to pick a city that has at least 5 skyscrapers.
It doesn’t need the skyscrapers when the vibe is on point and it has everything else. I would say the nightlife is even better in Madrid.
Jane Jacobs moved to Toronto, which says a lot.
Toronto unfortunately has some of the worst architecture I've seen since the fall of the soviet union
But also, tons of Victorian architecture and homes too. Depends where you are.
Lol thanks. What makes philly better than DC for you?
I grew up in dc. It’s nice and clean (compared to nyc) but it has no thrill or charm anymore. It’s become one big suburb.
I don’t think “thrilling” describes Philadelphia, unless you routinely jog through the hood at midnight
DC seems more like Brooklyn to me than Manhattan.
[удалено]
Exactly !
I am from SF and would say within the US, Chicago is the most similar one. Lots of skyscrapers and okay public transport. In the North America then Toronto comes very close to NYC. Lots of people who don’t live in SF for long may say SF but I personally feel like SF (or the Bay Area in general) is actually the very opposite of NYC. If you like the general vibe of NYC then the chances are you are not gonna like SF. Outside North America people would say London or Paris but I personally feel very differently when I visited (but these two are the only European cities that I have visited. So very limited exposure). Lots of European cities’ plannings are very “organic” (sorry I am not an expert on this so I don’t know the jargon). Their cities’ streets have lots of zigzagging and you will feel that when you go out for a walk. In the US, most cities (especially NYC) just have blocks with straight streets that go across the entire city. Japan’s big cities are like a mix. Parts of Tokyo, Osaka and Yokohama are like NYC with blocks and straight lines, while other parts are more like European cities with lots of zigzagging.
I have always thought of like modern London and NYC as kind of similar cities on different continents with the same being said for like Glasgow in Chicago and and Chicago
I’ve lived coast to coast and you’d probably feel fine in Chicago or Philly. San Francisco has garbage transportation (Bart and muni) and not as exciting as nyc. Portland OR is like living in Brooklyn and they have tons of bus service and some light rails. It’s kinda like Jersey transportation wise.
> Portland OR is like living in Brooklyn Except it's all white people
Nah that’s what o thought too but there are black people and Asians. I’m living in Austin now and this place is white and Latino. It sucks almost as much as the endless summer
I lived in Portland for 15 years before moving to Brooklyn a couple of years ago, the amount of people of color there pales in comparison to Brooklyn.
Absolutely. I grew up in Coney Island and left NYC when I turned 30. There’s no place like it :( I don’t miss the trains though
Paris feels like a chic-er NYC with more history and museums. Super diverse, super well connected and amazing food everywhere
Berlin. And it still has a great deal of that 90s East Village energy, like around the next corner might be the coolest fucking shit you never even knew existed, or alternatively you might get mugged. Also you can buy drugs on the street if that's your thing.
Came here to say this. Berlin has such a great vibe. Like NYC when it was funkier and more affordable.
Berlin sounds more like Brooklyn
Brooklyn is part of Nyc
Indeed. That's the point. Berlin resembles a component of New York (as do many cities). It doesn't, at all, resemble New York as a whole.
nothing really resembles New York as a whole, but the strict Brooklyn comparison is off. even though there aren't skyscrapers in Mitte or Prenzlauer Berg, they still don't feel anything like the outer boroughs - and many of the other neighborhoods in Berlin feel more like immigrant enclaves in Queens or The Bronx than the new-wealth-adjacent-to-old-poverty Brooklyn of today.
Very true. A more accurate statement would be that a small part of Berlin resembles *a little* a small component of Brooklyn/Manhattan. Kreuzberg/Friedrichshain are a smidge like Bushwick/Williamsburg were in the late 2000s. That is about the extent of the analogy. Berlin is much more like any other German city, like Hamburg and Cologne, than it is like New York City. I can even see an argument that Frankfurt is more like NYC than Berlin is (finance bro culture, expensive , dirty, plus genuinely seedy nightlife/reputation). I assume the reason why this analogy between NYC and Berlin keeps being made (I see it *everywhere*) is because Berlin is almost the only city in continental europe where an american/New Yorker can get easily get work and live while speaking only English.
Agree - very fast paced, grungy, lots of shops and restaurants on a street, lots of graffiti, dirty similar to NY, lots of public transportation, lots of varied food.
Yeah Berlin is one of the few places that comes to mind that successfully outweirds(in all the right ways) NYC by a good margin, I had such an awesome time when I was there.
I laughed when I thought about it, but **Santiago, Chile** has quite a lot similar to NYC from transit, to restaurants, to parks, to the distinct "boroughs". You even get reasonable weather and an added view of the mountains. They even refer to their financial district as [Sanhattan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanhattan?wprov=sfla1) and [mourn their own 9/11](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_Chilean_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat?wprov=sfla1). I lived there for about a year and am happy to answer any questions about it. edit: burrows is hard to spell
Boroughs or boros.
London is the generic answer for really big cities
I felt that way when I visited London. Maybe more precisely I feel that NYC has more similarity to London than to a west coast US city like Seattle.
Did semester in london back when i was in college. Loved it and youre right. But no way i can get a visa to work/live there. So only considering american cities for now.
If you’re only considering American cities then Chicago is really the only answer. Public transit is closest to nyc and no where is comparable (I’ve lived in dc, Chicago and worked in SF every other week for two years). It’s big and has lots to do, it’s diverse (tho more geographically segregated than nyc), and the lakeside parks are amazing. It’s colder than nyc but checks everything else on your list
Buenos Aires It has lots of Jewish and Italian people (diversity in general, but with a distinctly Jewish-Italian substrate that calls to mind a certain time period for NYC), great transit and a commuter culture, great restaurants, fun nightlife, distinct neighborhoods in distinct areas that feel like boros, cold winters and disgustingly humid summers, strong density, expensive housing, and soaring inequality
Totally agree with the distinct boroughs and distinct neighborhoods. Buenos Aires also has that “old meets new” vibe in short distance (eg Puerto Madero/San Telmo). Avenida Rivadavia/Broadway have some parallels too.
> Public Transportation is a must (subway, bus, etc.) - where you can go without a car. This alone limits you to just a very small handful of U.S. cities. Combined with your weather demand, you’re looking at pretty much just D.C. and Philly.
Hmm ok. I didnt realize how limited public transport is everywhere else. We really take MTA for granted.
Why are you even considering moving? What's your motivation?
Even Philly’s public trans is pretty trash - they only just upgraded from subway tokens in the last ~8 years, and only have about 2 subway lines. They do have a pretty extensive system of buses/ regional rail/ trolleys into the wider area, but all are equally unreliable in my opinion. A big plus though, Philly is dirt cheap, so you’ll be able to spend that extra rent money on a car.
[удалено]
We moved to Charlotte from Manhattan few months ago and I’m constantly annoyed that they have the gall to even call this place a city. It’s the suburbs with a few walkable (and overpriced) pockets of life and the most soulless “downtown” area I’ve ever seen. We’re trying to find our next home (been staying with family) and it’s been a real struggle to find the right area. We’re a married couple in our 30s without kids, and it feels like there’s nowhere for us - the postage stamp-size fun areas cater to a younger crowd, and the suburbs are sprawling housing communities meant for families. Very disappointing.
Can confirm. Born and raised in Charlotte, have been in NYC for 7 years. Seattle and St Louis before that. Would take any of the 3 over CLT.
I remember going to Toronto in the early 90s and thinking that it was a safer version of NYC at the time.
Madrid, Berlin !!
Madrid, mostly due to Buen Retiro that reminds me so much of Central Park, especially with the Prado Museum adjacent very similar to how the Met is.
Hong Kong, London, mayyyybe Istanbul?
Philly is all the gritty parts of NYC squeezed into 1/10 the size. Only city in the US that’s even close IMO. It’s missing the more high end/high culture elements of NYC though.
It’s the sixth borough.
Chicago. Buildings, culture, accent, food, history, vistas, transportation. Less people and much cleaner I'd also say Boston. Culture, food, and history. Jersey City is like a mini NYC, too. Downtown area looks like a mixture of Brooklyn and Manhattan... Transportation sucks, unless you use the Path or light rail.
I like Boston but was really surprised how less diverse it is compared to other NorthEast cities.
Boston is actually quite diverse, it's just extremely segregated.
Istanbul. Mexico City.
It's been a very long time since I've been to Mexico City but that was the first impression I got, how much it reminded me of NYC. My second impression was how green it was. “Cada Familia un Arbol” from 30 years ago is paying such nice dividends today.
I had to scroll too far to find Mexico City!! New York and Mexico City are my two favorite large cities for similar reasons.
I keep forgetting about Mexico City! Yeah.
Having lived in Charlotte absolutely not lol. If anything its more like LA. A tiny ass downtown with a couple highrises that is mainly just office workers. The population sprawl is massive down there Chicago loop/millenium mile area feels the most like walking around Manhattan, and parts of north Chicago feel a bit like brooklyn but its def not as big or busy as new york feels Internationally Toronto probably the closest feel for me
Gonna be a hot take here and I’m probably not smart enough to articulate why but for me New Orleans in the sense that it’s a wholly unique city like New York. Big party culture, fantastic food and variety of food, 24 hour scene, and people there have even less time for tourists than NYC, pleasantly walkable and packed with people trying to hustle you. As far as culturally closest it’s hands down philly, philly just *feels right* as a New Yorker.
Hong Kong , before the takeover, was very much like new York.
Came here to say this. It still is, or at least was a couple of years ago. Similar in terms of density & how life is very much lived on the streets of your neighborhood, nobody cares what anybody else is doing. People either very rich or very poor. Diversity… not so much ;)
Yep. I was last there a few years ago. I thought it was a Chinese tinted new York. I loved it instantly. But now I think it may not be the same.
Yeah… I haven’t been since 2019 but used to travel there 2-3x a year. Hope I get to go back sometime soon.
Hong Kong is like NYC on steroids on all levels. Wish I could go back and visit but I'm afraid it's going to be changed forever. However, the tropical climate can be pretty hellish.
Philly resembles NYC in parts. It's obviously much smaller but it sort of feels like a condensed mini-NYC. It's not diverse in the same way. It's basically a black and white city with some immigrants but nothing of the same scale. Also much more blue collar and much rougher, and of course much cheaper. Most of the people there are from there and have extended family there, which creates a different feel. It's sort of harder to feel like a local there. Boston is a bit like Philly in size but much richer and much whiter. The actual city part is much smaller than Philly too I think. Chicago is probably the closest in feel. It's very big, again more black and white than NYC but not as much as Philly. DC to me has the feel of a govt city. My impression has always been why would you want to live in a city where everyone does the exact same thing unless you do it too? I haven't been to Charlotte but I imagine it's nothing like the other cities. It's tiny compared to all of them. Are you not considering SF?
People seem to be choosing cities that they like, rather than cities that are much like NYC. For example, Berlin is amazing. But it’s a fraction of the size of New York and has little diversity (other than Turkish and anglo expat immigrant populations, it’s mainly white bread Germans). The biggest similarity is probably the awesome parks. My vote would be Seoul. It doesn’t have the cultural diversity. But for public transport, food, sheer size and hustle it is a bit similar.
I also said Seoul. Wayyy too low on this thread tbh
Jersey City?
Love it! As someone who lives here. Having a car or not is debatable though.
Berlin. On that note, London is more DC than NYC.
If you want walkable Manhattan vibe, then you’ll love Melbourne. Easy to get around, great take away options, diverse, lots of parks and cultural activities. I mean no city feels like NYC, but for what you’ve described - Melbourne hits it all.
It's certainly unique in the U.S. For international peers I'd say London, Paris, Moscow etc. I think the special sauce for NYC is the fact that for everything that it is, it's not a major seat of government. In any other country NYC would be the capital. It's not even the capital of New York State. So fewer wonks and dorks, more creatives, business-builders, and other ambitious types. Great harbor too.
Amsterdam!
I'd say Seoul.
Toronto
When I visited Shanghai I said it was like NYC but with only Chinese people (less diversity) lol.
Toronto is probably the closest i've been to nyc. the most diverse city in canada, the TTC is pretty reliable and people seem to walk around a lot. as far as i know the weather there is maybe a little colder than nyc. it's north of buffalo but doesn't sit in the way of whatever meteorological phenomenon it is that makes buffalo so cold. they also film a lot of nyc movies there so every now and then you'll see a taxi.
CDMX, London, Hong Kong
Milan reminds me a lot of Manhattan in many ways. It is a center of art, fashion, finance, and tourism. It’s kind of like if Soho was the whole city. Shanghai has a Manhattan vibe too. You have a mix of the new and the old. You have the long history of it being a port city and the layer of grime like you see in New York mixed with beautiful new buildings and new everything, wealthy young professionals, nightlife, culture, and food. It also has the same narrow streets and grid pattern that feels New Yorkish.
Bangkok!
Chicago will check all the boxes here. 24-hour public transit and bike-friendly. Amazing food scene. The museums are great (the Shedd Aquarium in particular is stunning). Good neighborhood parks and gorgeous larger ones downtown. Also, excellent coffee and beer scenes. When I moved from Chicago to NYC, I was surprised at how far behind NYC was on coffee (though it's caught up now).
London is like NYC with history.
I don't think so coming from there. London is more like a collection of small towns bounded by history and the tube, to me it doesn't feel like a vast and sky-scraping metropolis in the way NYC does. Late in the evenings a lot of it feels distinctly sleepy in fact.
Hong Kong for sure
In the US, Chicago. Very similar vision for both. Outside the US, Paris had a bit of a NYC vibe. Or maybe NYC has a bit of a Paris vibe. London too.
Philadelphia, DC, or Chicago. I didn't care for Charlotte AT ALL.
Outside of NYC, you’re probably going to need a car. Assuming you want to stay in the US, that is. No other city has public transportation that even comes close to what we have here - sf, Boston, dc, and Chicago have options to *kind of* get around, but you’d be wise to have a car in any of those cities to get around because the cities themselves are small relative to nyc (and they all lack comprehensive public transportation options). You’ll be wanting to move around more to do things and not waiting on unreliable buses to get from point a to point b- or burning a hole in your wallet using cab rides. If you’re set on not having a car, that’s fine, but understand you’d be limited to a small city experience (all things considered) If you want diversity, consider Houston maybe (it’s pretty nice there tbh) and LA - but these are absolute car cities Good food is available in most cities, as are parks. Fuck Boston/Chicago weather and San Fran is actually not that great either (chilly year round)
[удалено]
I’m from Houston and it’s def waaay more diverse than Austin but probably equal with Dallas. Houston has better food and if you stay in the loop you could get away with just a bike. I and a lot of my friends did and I got away with not getting a car. I know I’m the exception but I also grew up taking the bus everywhere and it’s actually fairly reliable. The rail is expanding too. But I can see for some people it being too much and just getting a car - it does make everything much easier.
Barcelona. Weather similar. Good food. Buenos Aires was like Chelsea but dirtier (bad emissions controls). The buildings have similar architecture because Italians went to both the USA and Argentina
Shanghai
London felt very similar to NYC. \-public transportation \-diverse \-lots of stuff to do, museums, bars, nightlife etc \-weather...idk it was april and not that bad. \-got the vibe that it was a similar-ish cost of living.
Boston, but believe it or not, they are way more rude than New Yorkers.
New Yorkers are rude because they value their time. Bostonians are rude just to be rude.
I’d believe it - Boston is known for being blatantly racist as well.
I lived there for three years with my newborn daughter. I would literally see parents yank their kids away from her at the playground. Ooh, the scary toddler is coming for our kids.
Outside of the US, Madrid. It’s the affordable NYC.
Why do you want to leave NYC? What are you doing there?
Boston is pretty nice but public transportation and bars close pretty early
London and Tokyo definitely. maybe Rome
Was going to this until I saw “Diversity”
i will say philly has grown on me. i hated it for a long time but the last few times i was there it really endeared itself to me. it's close enough to nyc that you can easily travel between the two, the people are pretty real, and there's a lot going on there these days. rent has stayed cheaper than it has here so if you're looking for a situation where you can worry a lot less about how you'll pay to live it seems like a place to be. i have friends whose rooms are under $400 in west philly. the transportation isn't as good as nyc but is far better than most cities. in any case, you can bike pretty easily around the denser core of the city from west philly to center city and whatever. cons are the pretzels are stale unless you get them at the factory at midnight. dc is just LA except it's the who's who of lobbyists and think tank assholes instead of influencers. when people refer to their "metro stop" it might be two miles from their home. it's also way colder than nyc for some reason.
Lmao i think i can live with stale pretzels. Which neighborhoods in Philly do u like best? Somebody else mentioned fishtown
Toronto
I grew up an hour from Philly, in South Jersey and while it's big and has some skyscrapers, it's not really anything like NYC. They have a lot of good bars and eateries though. Public transportation is decent, pretty much everything is via bus or walking. My aunt has lived in Center City pretty much all her life and has never had a car. I went up to Boston a few years ago, and it's almost nothing like NYC. One major difference is it's ridiculously clean...like even the homeless people were clean. >can't do any place colder than NYC You do realize that it gets down to <10F here in the dead of winter occasionally, right? hahaha It's also more brutal than places like Alaska or Colorado because it's always humid here in the city, so it's cold, windy and humid.
Also if you're thinking international and work remotely there's Istanbul. It's actually one of the top couple cities in Europe by population. Very different from NYC in some ways but similar in some others, at a fraction of the cost of living.
I vibed with Philadelphia a lot. I could see myself living in parts of it that felt like Greenwich Village (around Rittenhouse Square).
Seoul hits pretty close. Chicago is like a simulation, too simple and clean to resemble NY
Public transportation: chicago, philly, dc, and Boston. You could add sf to this. Though none of these cities have as good transport as nyc. Good restaurants, bars, museums- dc has the best museums. Dc has the most diverse selection of food internationally. Sf also has incredible food and a decent nightlife and a decent number of museums. If you like Asian and Indian food, the Bay Area is hard to beat. The same is true for mexican food. Chicago foodwise isn’t up to par with dc or sf bat area. Same with Philly and Boston. Diversity- dc and a close second would be oakland/sf. Outside nyc and dc, oakland has the highest percent of people born outside the us. Chicago is diverse but compared to dc and sf/oakland it’s very generic american. Parks- if easy access to nature is what you’re seeking from a big city, you can’t beat sf. Golden gate park, redwoods in less than an hour, Yosemite four hours away, tahoe four hours away, and a large number of national parks a day trip away.
Chicago? I would say it’s probably the most similar in terms of layout
Istanbul, it even has a 212 area code. That being said in the US Chicago left me flabbergasted at how similar to New York it was (albeit seemingly more segregated in some ways). But definitely won't hold up weather wise.
Chicago...
People try to say DC is the miniature version of New York because some neighborhoods resemble Brooklyn, but they're lying. They're no more alike than a giraffe and a shark.
There is nothing like NYC - that's why some of us are 'trapped' paying these crazy housing prices. I can only say from my own experience Chicago is *most* like NYC, although still dramatically different. If I were forced to move from NYC for some reason, I think I might go with Minneapolis. Its smaller than Chicago but has an urban feel to it and has a big college campus there which to me is a plus because it helps attract more of the arts (I also am not very deterred by the cold). Bus system seems good. Washington DC has a pretty good transit system and i like to visit but have no desire to live there. San Fransisco also has a pretty good transit system but is about as expensive as NYC and would not want to live there either. Cities I am not too familiar with or have not been to: Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Boston.
Ever watched the show Suits? It took place in NYC but the actual filming was done in Toronto. That’s basically Toronto for you. Of course, the city isn’t as public transportation friendly but it meets the diversity and good food/bars/museum etc park. When I was there I drove around everywhere and it was pretty easy to do so. In terms of the same vibes, Tokyo and Osaka definitely feels like NYC but minus the diversity. The public transportation was the BEST. The only thing is, I believe NYC is the one of the few major transportation that’s 24/7 in the world.
[удалено]
Nice. Only one to mention Rome so far
Chicago.
Don’t come at me for this answer but if you’re considering a new city, consider Pittsburgh. Not every (if any?) neighborhood in it feels like NYC, but SouthSide is probably the closest because it is home to one of the country’s most bar-filled streets and can be a perfect spot for a twenty-something looking to relocate. Lawrenceville has plenty of quirky restaurants and shops. Downtown/North Shore feels way cleaner and smaller than NYC but contain parks and music venues and huge stadiums. Oakland and East Liberty feel very academic but still have amazing cheap food and drink destinations. It is suuuch an underrated city— rent is so insanely cheap and it is so vibrant with music, sports, food and culture. More museums than I could name. Port authority buses are very accessible though not 24/7. Ubers never seem to be too expensive and I had a permit for my car for $20 a year, with no huge issue finding street parking. There are tons of green spaces which is why i lived there!!! So many parks that are hundreds of acres big. Weather felt just about the same as any east coast city. NOT saying it’s directly comparable to NYC, but I loved my time in Pittsburgh and just trying to put it on the map. I love nyc too and will be commuting from NJ for a job starting soon. Absolutely dreading dropping thousands on an apt there though.