STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A recent report has revealed that nearly half of all Staten Islanders are not meeting the funds they need to live within the five boroughs.

The first New York City True Cost of Living Measure report was released in March by Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office — and it offers some startling insights.

Staten Island stats

The first thing to know is that 18% of New Yorkers who live within the five boroughs meet the standard poverty level. On the other hand, 62% of New Yorkers don’t meet their true cost of living threshold, according to the analysis.

There are a bevy of reasons for this. Disability, age, borough, wage gaps, government interference, and racial and ethnic disparities are just a few of the things considered in the report.

Staten Islanders experience the least amount of resource gapping compared to the other four boroughs.

According to the report, overall, about 48% of Staten Islanders don’t meet their true cost of living threshold. In Manhattan, that figure rises to 56%; in Queens, it rises to 61%; in Brooklyn, it rises to 62%; and in the Bronx, it rises to 72%.

“The 27-percentage point difference between the Bronx and Staten Island highlights how economic security varies significantly by location. Notably, the Bronx has the lowest costs but also the least resources,” the report explained.

That 48% is a snapshot of all Staten Islanders, but if you look at just adults living on Staten Island, it sinks to 38.7%. However, if you look at Staten Island families with children, the amount of people not meeting their threshold slides up to 55.6%, the report stated.

This increase isn’t exclusive to Staten Island. Both Brooklyn and Queens experienced similar upheavals when it comes to true cost of living thresholds not being met by families with children. In fact, these families face “TCOL rates 15-20 percentage points higher than adults with no children,” according to the report.

Generally, a typical Staten Islander’s resource gap sits at about $39,861, the report stated.

Variety of factors

While many cities and states across the nation operate based on the federal poverty level to determine how many Americans are struggling to make ends meet, the true cost of living report analyzed a variety of factors to determine how many people actually earn the amount of money needed to live comfortably in New York City.

“The TCOL threshold represents the total annual costs a family must cover across eight categories: housing, food, health care, child care, transportation, taxes, savings, and other necessities,” the report explained.

For example, a family of adults under the age of 65 with their children would need to bring in a “median annual TCOL threshold” of $159,197.

What happens when that family doesn’t meet their threshold? They experience what the report called “a resource gap.”

The report stated: “A family faces a resource gap when their total resources, both market income and non-market support, do not meet these combined costs. The annual resource gap measures the dollar difference between a family’s total costs and total resources, representing the additional amount needed to reach economic security.”

These findings are based on the 2022 total cost of living measurements, but future iterations of the report will evaluate year-to-year changes, according to the city.