
State Comptroller Report: NYC Business Costs Grow Slower Than Rival Metro Areas Over the Past Decade
New York City remains one of the most expensive places in the country to start and operate a business, but several of its core operating costs have grown more slowly than in competing metropolitan areas over the past decade. That is the central finding of a new report from the Office of the New York State Comptroller, which analyzed wages, commercial rents, utilities, taxes, and regulatory burdens across the city and 13 peer metros from 2015 to 2025. The report attributes the moderated growth partly to the city’s already-elevated cost baseline and partly to rapid population-driven cost increases in Sun Belt and West Coast markets that have narrowed the gap. Key Takeaways The average private-sector salary in New York City was $129,030 in 2025, a 44.7% nominal increase from 2015, but only 6.5% after adjusting for inflation, compared to 10.1% nationally. Manhattan office rents averaged $73.19 per square foot in Q4 2025, the highest in the country,







































