$4,965 Manhattan Rent: How It Compares Across 160 Cities
Manhattan's median rent on new leases reached $4,965 in October while listings fell 27.8% from a year earlier. Here is where New York sits in our 160-city rent table, next to San Francisco, Zurich and London.
By Director Han · Seoul ·
The news
Brick Underground, citing appraiser Jonathan Miller's rental report for The Real Deal, reported that Manhattan's median rent on new leases rose to $4,965 in October, the second-highest level on record. Listings were 27.8% below October 2025 and lease signings fell 9.8% year over year, while Corcoran put the borough's vacancy rate at 1.31%, its lowest for any month since March 2020.
Source: Brick Underground, Nov 12, 2026
1BR rent: how these cities compare in our data
In our data as of Oct 1, 2026 (estimate), New York ranked #1 of 160 cities for 1BR rent at $3,447/mo.
| City | 1BR rent (USD) | Rank | Data as of |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York(estimate) | $3,447/mo | #1 of 160 | Oct 1, 2026 |
| San Francisco(estimate) | $3,433/mo | #2 of 160 | Oct 1, 2026 |
| Zurich | $2,940/mo | #3 of 160 | Feb 7, 2026 |
| Geneva | $2,730/mo | #4 of 160 | Feb 7, 2026 |
| Singapore | $2,625/mo | #6 of 160 | Feb 7, 2026 |
| London | $2,310/mo | #11 of 160 | Feb 7, 2026 |
| Hong Kong | $2,205/mo | #12 of 160 | Feb 7, 2026 |
| Paris(estimate) | $1,899/mo | #18 of 160 | Sep 1, 2026 |
| Tokyo | $1,175/mo | #47 of 160 | Feb 7, 2026 |
Rank 1 = most expensive. Our figures are a dated snapshot, not live prices, and can differ from the figure in the news. Methodology
Director's take
Manhattan's $4,965 covers new leases on every apartment size, while our table uses a one-bedroom estimate rolled forward by the BLS metro-area rent index. Part of the gap is scope, so the two numbers measure different things; what they share is direction, with New York rent still climbing as vacancies all but disappear.
— Director Han, Seoul