Cost of living in Trenton, New Jersey

Trenton, New Jersey has about 90,338 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.

A typical home is worth about $160,700.

HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Mercer County is $2,242 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Trenton. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.

In the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area, prices sit at 103.2 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.

New Jersey taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 6.6% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Trenton's exact store tax.

In July 2026, a typical New Jersey home paid 25.19¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Trenton's bill.

EIA does not publish a New Jersey gasoline price. For the week of October 12, 2026, the Central Atlantic (PADD 1B) all-grades price was $4.470 a gallon. At 12,000 miles a year and 25 mpg, the index counts that as $2,145.60 a year. Those miles are our standard, not a Census figure, and every town in New Jersey shares this price.

Among 485 places we list in New Jersey with a rent figure, 432 have higher typical rent than Trenton.