Los Angeles vs. New York
Cooks, Short Order. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 35-2015
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Los Angeles's median is 19.0% higher — but after local prices, Los Angeles still leads by 18.3%.
Los Angeles's median $43,680 buys $38,500 at national prices (price parity 113.6); New York's $35,360 buys $31,400 (112.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is New York against Los Angeles.
| Los Angeles | New York | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 12,410 | 9,990 | −19.5% |
| 10th percentile | $38,030 | $33,040 | −13.1% |
| 25th percentile | $40,060 | $34,820 | −13.1% |
| Median | $43,680 | $35,360 | −19.0% |
| 75th percentile | $44,990 | $44,060 | −2.1% |
| 90th percentile | $45,020 | $49,930 | +10.9% |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Price parity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
- Full pages
- Cooks, Short Order in Los Angeles · Cooks, Short Order in New York
Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.