We all know things cost more these days, and we're so inundated by that wearisome message, and our wallets so pained, that sometimes it's easier to just move on. We get it.
So does an intrepid freelance journalist, who brings it all right back home by contextualizing it in what might be the most relatable way possible to those who live and work in the New York City area.
He made it about pizza.
Liam Quigley, who has written for local outlets like Gothamist and AMNY, among others, according to his website, says he tracked the price of every New York City slice he ate for the last eight years. He started in 2014, he says, and now delivers findings based on a total of 464 pizza slices -- plain, pepperoni and other -- he consumed through 2022.
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During those eight years, Quigley says he spent a total of $1244.22 on New York City pizza -- $955.09 on plain, $202.28 on pepperoni, $51.76 on other and $35.09 on $1 slices (he left the latter out of his calculation on average cost). For research purposes, Quigley left $1 slices out of his average price calculation.
According to Quigley, the average price of a plain slice in the city jumped 19% in that span, from $2.52 in 2014 to $3.00 in 2022. Pepperoni lovers have it worse, with the average cost of those slices spiking 37.5%, from $3.33 in 2014 to $4.58 in 2022. The most expensive pepperoni slice he found? $6.53. Of that one's caliber, Quigley says, "it was fine."
See more on his calculations, including fun charts, where he thinks pizza has suffered the most and which New York City joints have the best slices on his website here. And check out his Instagram, which tracks his journey in photos.
