Thrifting has become a growing trend among Gen Z, offering a sustainable, cost-effective and fashionable way to shop. But differences in culture and affordability between cities can influence how shoppers approach thrifting. How do these factors shape the way Gen Z shops in New York City versus Boston? I asked three college student thrifters to find out.
The Racks: Clothing selection
People start thrifting for different reasons: to help the environment, save money or find stand-out clothes. How does the style of the clothes you find differ from city to city?
The New Yorkers I spoke with, Chloe Mei, 20, a third-year at Northeastern University, and Isis Lopez, 21, a third-year at Fordham University, thrift for different reasons. Mei started thrifting in high school because it was “a way to hang out with people,” while Lopez thrifts to “find unique clothing.”
Mei grew up in New York, giving her a different perspective than Lopez, who came to New York for school. Lopez said there is “definitely a lot more individuality in New York,” while Mei described a wide range of shops and styles, some trendy and some not. Lopez also said some New York stores “spoon-feed” thrifters with already curated selections.
Mei and Matt Lee, 20, a third-year at Northeastern, agree that Boston’s selection is much smaller than what New York has to offer. Boston’s thrifting scene offers fewer options that are farther apart, often requiring shoppers to travel outside of the city to find more variety. “There’s definitely fewer options in Boston,” Mei said. “Even with the options that there are, they’re a lot more spread out.”
The local scene relies heavily on pop-up events and temporary markets, such as Select Markets or Found Boston, rather than standalone secondhand shops. Lee said, “Hidden gems are easier to find at Goodwill in Boston than, say, New York because the Boston kids are trendy and they like the pop-ups instead.” He started thrifting as a way to curb his designer shopping habits and felt that, unlike New York, Boston lacks community-oriented vintage shops run by knowledgeable curators.
The Counter: Price and affordability
Thrifting has become an umbrella term for all secondhand shopping, but there are distinct types of resale stores, each with different pricing models. Vintage stores typically specialize in higher-end designer pieces that are between 20 and 100 years old. Thrift stores, such as Goodwill, primarily sell donated clothing items and other goods. Buy-sell-trade (BST) stores curate secondhand inventory by purchasing items directly from sellers and reselling them to customers at a marked-up price. Well-known resale chains such as 2nd Street and Buffalo Exchange operate under the BST model. These differences in sourcing and business design are also reflected in their prices.
Beyond the type of store, location can also shape price. New York has never been known to be an affordable place to live, and the price tags on secondhand clothing reflect that. Lopez said she has “gone to the Brooklyn flea market a lot. But prices are really high, so if you want a lower price, you’d go to those 2nd Street ones.” Mei, however, knows the ins and outs of finding cheaper offerings. She said there is a wide range of prices in New York: “You can find a bunch of cheap stores, but you can also buy high-end, secondhand designer stuff. That’s more expensive.”
Compared to New York, Boston’s lower cost of living helps explain why secondhand clothing prices follow a similar trend. Based on her limited experience in Boston, Lopez said the atmosphere at both pop-up events and thrift stores was “pretty similar to New York, but the prices were much lower.” Lee, who grew up in Boston, has noticed a change in pricing over time. “Things have gotten more expensive in general. And it’s just like a standard competitive price,” he said. “I think it happens more in Boston because they want to be like New York now.”
The Store: Experience and shopping culture
Thrifting is not just about seeking out cheap clothes anymore. It’s about the search itself: hanging out, joking about the ugly pieces you find and putting in hours of work for the catharsis of a great find.
Lopez described thrifting in New York as a full-day outing rather than a quick errand. She said that it is “a whole trip kind of thing,” with thrifters wandering between neighboring shops. “There’s a bunch of vintage stores down a street, and you’re going in this one, you’re going to that one,” she said. “It’s just like a whole trip, and it’s much more enjoyable.”
Lee echoed this sentiment: “New York is just better because of how it’s organized. Things are condensed … you could say it’s a higher quality experience.” He particularly values curated stores of the Lower East Side, where shopkeepers often share a personal connection to garment history. By comparison, he said that Goodwills are “more run-through” because vintage store owners scout them first.
Mei appreciated New York’s variety, ranging from cheap spots to high-end secondhand designer wear, though she avoids Goodwills because sorting through them is “so time-consuming.”
By contrast, Boston presents a spread-out, student-centric thrifting landscape with fewer centralized secondhand shops. Mei said options in the area are limited and “a lot of them are further out of Boston,” making standard basics “generally easier to find” than curated or vintage pieces. Lopez said that Boston’s pop-up events can feel like they are “only for college students.” Lee pointed to a similar dynamic, noting that local students often gravitate toward online-promoted pop-ups. In his view, this means fewer people with “real knowledge” visit Boston Goodwills, leaving more hidden gems for patient shoppers.
Conclusion
In the end, it comes down to trade-offs: New York offers density and curation at a higher price, while Boston’s more spread-out scene leaves shoppers to find the treasure themselves. No matter the city, shopping secondhand offers a more sustainable alternative to buying new, keeping clothing in circulation rather than adding to textile waste.