Top 10 Most Expensive & Cheapest Manhattan Neighborhoods to Rent for 2023

Manhattan may the city of dreams but it is also notorious for its high rent prices.

Many people interested in moving to New York City do not even consider renting in Manhattan because of this.

While some of the most expensive neighborhoods in the country are located here, there are also neighborhoods that make it possible to live here sustainably.

There was again a huge decline in rental prices in Manhattan at the beginning of last year, with the market nearly fully recovering and rebounding by year's end.

Even if the median rental prices slipped in Manhattan it actually didn't have a great effect on which neighborhoods could claim to be the most expensive and the most affordable.

In fact, rental asking prices are notably higher in November of last year than the current standing median price for the whole of last year.

This is significant as rental prices usually drop during fall and winter.

First off, here is a breakdown of the average rental prices for one, two and three-bedroom apartments.

Top 5 Manhattan Neighborhoods with the Priciest Rent

Manhattan zipcodes are known to have some of the country's most expensive real estate.

We will count down to the highest priced neighborhood in Manhattan.

PropertyNest's Salary Calculator makes it convenient for renters to find out what they need to earn to be able to afford to live in each neighborhood.

We took the average of all one, two, and three-bedroom rentals to extract the top 5 list.

Please keep in mind that the numbers are all averages within each respective neighborhood.

5. Chelsea

Chelsea is clearly one of the most desirable neighborhoods to live in in Manhattan, so it should not come as a surprise that Chelsea often ranks in the top ten priciest neighborhoods.

This area has a lot to offer its residents and visitors alike--a large array of great restaurants, bars, art galleries, and shops.

The Highline is an elevated urban park that runs the whole of Chelsea straight up to the Hudson Rail Yards.

Chelsea also has an amazing waterfront park as well as a complete sports and recreation facility.

The popular Little Island park can also be accessed at the south end of the neighborhood.

4. SoHo

When one imagines the most expensive neighborhoods of New York City, SoHo is one that comes to most people's minds.

Once the home to thousands of immigrants in tenement housing, this neighborhood has become synonymous with cool and posh.

Soho is known for the trendiest boutiques, fashion houses, galleries, and restaurants.

However, what put it on the map is the real estate. The whole area is chock full of historic cast-iron building facades and incredible sprawling loft spaces.

It continues to be a very desirable neighborhood for New York's wealthiest.

3. Midtown

Midtown is not usually what New Yorkers think of when it comes to the most exclusive neighborhoods.

As a matter of fact, Midtown is mostly known for commerce, the Theater District, and shopping.

While there are quite a number of attractions, most New Yorkers don't really think of it as a place to live, but a place to go to.

However, in the past decades, it has increasingly become a place to live, especially for people who need to work in the area.

Another attractive feature is the strategic location, being at the heart of everything. This means short commute times to uptown, downtown, Queens, and Brooklyn.

An increasing number of luxury hi-rises going up in the area, not to mention that Billionaires' Row is now a thing in Midtown, and have all contributed to the rising prices, and possibly why this area has the top spot.

While Midtown isn't exactly affordable, the prices are marginally better than much of the other top five spots in studios, one-beds, and even two-beds.

However, it's the larger apartments--the four-beds and up that price the competition out. The median price of these larger units is a whopping $32,425 a month!

2. Flatiron District

This neighborhood has got a lot going for it and it's understandable why this area has emerged as one of Manhattan's most desirable neighborhoods.

The Flatiron District hails its moniker from one of the most iconic buildings in New York City--the Flatiron Building, which is only one of many historic and notable buildings.

The area has a long history as commercial district and only saw its residential real estate's viability beginning in the mid-1980's.

Today there's plenty of good shopping, acclaimed restaurants, theaters, and museums within the beautiful aesthetic of beaux-arts architecture.

At the very heart of this neighborhood is Madison Square Park, which just happens to be the birthplace of the first Shake Shack.

1. Tribeca

Over the past decade Tribeca has risen to the top of the ranks now making it the hottest area in the city to live.

Many celebrities including Taylor Swift, Robert De Niro and Jay-Z & Beyonce call it home.

This small neighborhood has an industrial-meets-classic feel to it.

It is known for its sprawling loft and warehouse conversions.

The converted loft buildings have more spacious apartments, higher ceilings, and open floor plans.

The more "affordable" units tend to be in newly-constructed developments in the area.

It is a family-friendly area with gorgeous green spaces.

Residents also enjoy the neighborhood's trendy restaurants, unique boutiques, art galleries and gourmet coffee shops.

Honorable Mentions of Expensive Neighborhoods in Manhattan

Even though on average the monthly asking price dropped overall in 2021 in Manhattan, the top five did make a few changes.

SoHo got bumped up a spot, and the Flatiron District and Chelsea rounded out the top five, pushing out NoHo and NoMad.

NoHo remained in the top ten but NoMad's placement fell more considerably.

SoHo, Flatiron District, and Chelsea made the list because their rental prices were able to hold on and recover during the course of the year.

NoHo

It shouldn't be a surprise that this neighborhood is often listed as one of the most expensive neighborhoods as it is surrounded by some of the priciest areas of lower Manhattan such as Nolita, Greenwich Village, Soho, and the Union Square area.

SoHo, its southern neighbor definitely has a more widespread reputation as one the trendiest areas of New York City.

Noho is a quiet and exclusive haven wedged between the hustle and bustle of the East Village and the West.

While you can still find some affordable apartments in the area, the real prizes are the sprawling converted loft units that will price most people out.

NoMad

NoMad may not have the same celebrity cache as Tribeca or SoHo but make no mistake, this relatively new district has its fair share of high rollers.

Not quite Flatiron, Chelsea, or Midtown, NoMad has its own unique vibe that deserved its own moniker. Dubbed NoMad or North of Madison Square Park by the real estate industry, it's found significant success in this marketing strategy.

NoMad is a small neighborhood that abuts the north border of Flatiron, that packs a punch with its impressive array of restaurants, high-end hotels, museums, and shops.

Top 5 Cheapest Manhattan Neighborhoods for Rent

The two words "cheap" and "Manhattan", do not usually accompany each other in the same sentence.

Many people, even NYC residents, are not aware of the affordable living options available to them.

PropertyNest will unveil the not-as-talked-about neighborhoods that may convince readers that living in the city is possible!

It should come as little surprise to many that all of our most affordable neighborhoods reside in upper Manhattan.

While it may seem upper Manhattan is a forgotten area of the city, many of discovered not just cheap rents, but amazingly vibrant neighborhoods.

We will be counting down to the cheapest neighborhood in Manhattan to rent.

5. Harlem

Harlem is also a classic Manhattan neighborhood that's managed to stay affordable although prices have risen in the past few decades.

Manhattanville is a much lesser-known neighborhood of Harlem, sandwiched between Morningside Heights and Hamilton Heights.

Some may consider Manhattanville synonymous with West Harlem

The area is the lowest-located neighborhood of all the most affordable areas of the city, making average commute times to mid or lower Manhattan slightly faster than that of Hamilton Heights.

This is a bustling area with access to the A/B/C/D and 1 train lines, as well as many shops and restaurants, and easy access to the waterfront along the Hudson, and Riverbank State Park.

The area is popular for students and faculty attending and working at Columbia University, Union Theological Seminary, Teachers' College, Manhattan Music School, and City College, CUNY.

Just living here gives you savings over renting even in Morningside Heights which is just a stone's throw away.

4. Hamilton Heights

Many New Yorkers may not be entirely familiar with Hamilton Heights, which is located north of Manhattanville and west of Harlem.

The area is home to a two historic districts, buildings and sites, as well as gorgeous Riverbank State Park, City College of New York, and the Dance Theatre of Harlem.

Hamilton Heights has recently seen an influx of millenials who have discovered the beauty of this historic area and the rock bottom prices.

Low rental prices may not stay that way. Even this neighborhood has seen a rise on pricing for new leases.

A one-bedroom once ran on average well below $1,700. Today, although you can still find deals for $1,650 or $1,700, it's leveled around $2,070, with plenty of higher cost options.

3. Washington Heights

Similar to how Williamsburg is the hipster hangout in Brooklyn, the same can be said for Washington Heights in Manhattan.

Many millennials who can no longer afford to live in Bushwick and Williamsburg, are choosing to live here.

In addition to affordable rent; ethnic foods, green spaces, and a serene environment allures most people to take up residence in neighborhood.

If you're one of the residents lucky enough to live by the waterfront, you will enjoy a calming respite, great views, and access to either Fort Washington Park or Highbridge Park (depending on which side you like on).

Because the island narrows at Washington Heights, even if you live near either water's edge, you're still only a few minutes from a train station.

Although it seems somewhat removed from the rest of the city a commute to downtown doesn't take very long at all.

Furthermore, the apartments in this neighborhood are spacious and much more affordable.

2. Fort George

Like Inwood, Fort George is one of the hidden and undiscovered gems of Manhattan.

Fort George borders Inwood, Hudson Heights, and Washington Heights

It is known for being one of the hilliest and high elevation neighborhoods of the island. Some curved rising streets might even remind you of winding roads in European cities like Paris.

This tranquil neighborhood also borders Fort Tryon Park, where one can gain easy access to the Cloisters Museum.

The neighborhood has always been known for its affordability and it's no surprise that it's made the list for one of the cheapest neighborhoods to live in Manhattan.

Once troubled with crime, today's Fort George has a markedly different tone and has converted into an alternative for those who can't afford to live in popular areas of Manhattan and Brooklyn.

1. Inwood

Inwood is also known as "the last affordable neighborhood in Manhattan," and many don't know what they are missing out on!

Inwood is located at the northernmost tip of Manhattan.

It is a very community-oriented, low-key neighborhood bounded on three sides by the Harlem and Hudson Rivers.

Over half of its residents are foreign born.

The area used to be plagued by crime and violence, but has steadily gotten better since the 1990s.

The neighborhood's specific zoning restrictions limit building heights to seven stories.

Although it does not host the luxury apartments that can be found in Tribeca or Chelsea, it does have many spacious co-ops and low-rise walk-up tenements for a great value.

Honorable Mentions

If you were to name neighborhoods that just missed to top 5 picks, you could be there for a while listing all the expensive areas of the borough.

If living in lower Manhattan is preferable, you'll be able to find some deals in Chinatown, Little Italy, and even in the East Village.

These three neighborhoods have held onto lower averages with one-bedrooms averaging $2,950, $3,000, and $3,350, respectively.

This may be far a cry from the lowest 5 neighborhoods, but it's significantly lower than the surrounding neighborhoods in lower Manhattan.

Another lesser-known gem of Manhattan is Morningside Heights, which continually offers some of the most affordable prices in the borough.

This charming neighborhood is home to Columbia University and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine--the fifth largest Christian Cathedral in the world.

This neighborhood has access to Central Park, Morningside Park, and Riverside Park, and is home to plenty of great restaurants.

Being in lower Manhattan adjacent to trendy areas like the Lower East Side, Nolita, and SoHo makes it shocking that it's rounded out the cheapest five neighborhoods in Manhattan this year.

However, it's actually consistently in the top ten most affordable neighborhoods of Manhattan.

The studio and one-bedroom apartments tend to be very affordable for Manhattan prices and even the two bedrooms are significantly cheaper than their neighbors.

Chinatown is a quick walk to the trendier areas but has its own interesting shops and restaurants you won't find anywhere else in the borough--not to mention some of the best Chinese and Southeast Asian cuisine.

There are also great little parks and squares that dot the neighborhood that offer refuge from the heavy traffic of lower Manhattan.

Try the PropertyNest rent affordability calculator and find out what salary you should be making in order to rent in your desired Manhattan neighborhood.

Our Methodology

Stats for rental medians were aggregated from PropertyNest's proprietary data for all rentals in Manhattan from studio to four-plus bedroom listings. The data was collected over one calendar year to reflect seasonal changes. Some neighborhoods were not included or considered due to scarcity of rental data.