Climate
Minneapolis logs 145 frost days a year to New York City's 53 — New York City wins by 92. New York City also leads on outdoor-dinner months by 1.
Minneapolis
Feels-like °C
Dinner outside
New York City
Feels-like °C
Dinner outside
Cost of Living
Minneapolis is $2135/mo cheaperMinneapolis runs about $3,280/mo for a balanced lifestyle against New York City's $5,415/mo — Minneapolis comes in $2,135 cheaper each month, roughly 65% less.
Minneapolis
$3,280monthly · balanced
New York City
$5,415monthly · balanced
Mobility
Minneapolis and New York City score neck-and-neck on mobility (3.6 vs 3.6, 0–5 scale).
Culture
New York City's culture score of 4.8 sits well above Minneapolis's 3.9, with the biggest gap on arts & culture.
Nature & Outdoors
Minneapolis's nature & outdoors score of 4.3 sits well above New York City's 4.0, with the biggest gap on lakes & rivers. New York City still holds an edge on sea access.
Safety
Minneapolis's safety score is ~1.4× New York City's — in the middle of the scale, while New York City lands below average, with the biggest gap on flooding safety.
Career
New York City's career score of 5.0 sits well above Minneapolis's 4.0, with the biggest gap on startup ecosystem.
Social & Community
New York City's social & community score is ~1.3× Minneapolis's — in the upper band, while Minneapolis lands in the middle of the scale, with the biggest gap on expat-first community.
Food & Dining
On food & dining, New York City scores 5.0 vs Minneapolis's 3.4 (0–5 scale), with the biggest gap on restaurant variety.
Family
On family, New York City scores 4.3 vs Minneapolis's 3.4 (0–5 scale), with the biggest gap on international schools. Minneapolis still holds an edge on playgrounds.
Healthcare
On healthcare, New York City scores 3.5 vs Minneapolis's 2.1 (0–5 scale), with the biggest gap on private healthcare quality.
Air Quality
Minneapolis averages 7.9 µg/m³ (good) PM2.5 annually versus New York City's 8.6 µg/m³ (good) — Minneapolis breathes ~8% cleaner air (0.7 µg/m³ lower).
Minneapolis
New York City
PM2.5 annual average
WHO classification
City Scale
Both maps at the same real-world scale — 1 cm on either map is the same distance.
Minneapolis (1.2M) and New York City (14.2M) are 12x in population — New York City is the larger metro, Minneapolis the smaller; on land area New York City spans roughly 5.0x more ground.
New York City is roughly 7.6x the scale of Minneapolis
Combined population & area comparison
New York CityMinneapolisCity Scale Rankings
New York City14.2M12xMinneapolis1.2M1xNew York City3,031 km²5.0xMinneapolis611 km²1xMinneapolis
New York City
Who Thrives Here
Minneapolis favours the crowd avoider, while New York City suits the ocean lover. Both cities work well for the english speaker.
Also compared
Frequently asked about Minneapolis vs New York City
▶Which is cheaper, Minneapolis or New York City?
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▶Is Minneapolis or New York City safer?
▶Should I move to Minneapolis or New York City?
The best city depends on what matters to you
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