New York City Foot Traffic

The average monthly foot traffic for New York City in the last 12 months was 4,273, this is a 15.5% decrease from the previous 12 months. Though foot traffic in New York City is decreasing overall, zip code 10001 has seen a steady increase. Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen and The Garment District neighborhoods experienced the highest total foot traffic for New York City. These 3 neighborhoods constitute over 20% of the total foot traffic experienced from 06/01/2020-05/31/2022. Conversely, the Harlem, Roosevelt Island, and Battery Park neighborhoods experienced the lowest total foot traffic for the same period of time.

Methodology – New York City foot traffic data was pulled from the Foot Traffic Trend Value module on a monthly basis. The metric Person Count was averaged by zip code by month and simple linear regression was applied to generate trend lines for Foot Traffic. When visualizing the data, the total foot traffic by zip code was plotted on a map and colored by total foot traffic. To analyze specific points of interest, data is aggregated at the Census Block Group geographic level. Additionally, Census Track level data can be used to investigate the surrounding area to any point(s) of interest.

New York City saw the highest average monthly foot traffic (6,013) December 2020 through May 2021 with June 2020 having the lowest average foot traffic of 3,073 average visitors. May 2021 had the highest average foot traffic (6,805) for the total time frame analyzed (06/01/2020-05/31/022). When considering only the past 12 months, the foot traffic pattern changes displaying no seasonality. Further analysis would provide insights into this change in visitor behavior.

Methodology - The metric Person Count was summed by zip code by month to generate Foot Traffic. To analyze change in foot traffic by quarter, Person Count was summed by zip code by quarter and the percent change was calculated between quarters.

Utilizing the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes available in the foot traffic trend value module, consumers can gain valuable insights on 80 unique industry sectors found in New York City. The top industries include: Limited – Service Restaurants, Commercial Banking, Pharmacies and Drug Stores, Supermarkets, and Fitness Centers. While the industry specific foot traffic patterns generally mirror the overall foot traffic pattern of New York City, there is a notable difference in the hotel industry. While the foot traffic trend in New York City is decreasing, the hotel industry is experiencing an increase in average monthly foot traffic. Additionally, there was a larger than expected increase in foot traffic in the hotel industry in April 2022. Deeper analysis of foot traffic data for specific brands in the hotel industry could illuminate potential causes for this uptick.

Methodology – The NAICS codes were grouped to create broader Industry level classifications. The Person Count metric was then averaged by industry by month to calculate foot traffic. The data was then visualized for individual industries.

Foot Traffic data is available for 870 unique brands in New York City allowing consumers to create detailed brand analysis as well as head-to-head comparisons between two or more brands. The most highly trafficked brands in New York City include: Starbucks, Chase, Duane Reade, CVS, and Nathan’s Famous. Taking a deeper dive into the foot traffic data available for the 181 Starbucks locations in New York City, we find that 36% or 66 locations are experiencing an increase in foot traffic. For the time period 06/01/2020-05/31/022, The Bronx has the highest average foot traffic pattern with 36,916 visits per month. The Midtown area had the highest total foot traffic for New York City Starbucks locations with 2,226,078 visits. This can be explained by the zip code 10019 being home to 13 Starbucks locations in total. While the total foot traffic at the 177 Fort Washington Ave location is declining, it is the most visited Starbucks boasting approximately 5% of all Starbucks foot traffic in New York City. Conversely, the 518 Hudson Street location accounts for only 0.02% of the total New York City Starbucks foot traffic.

Methodology – The New York City data was filtered to only consider the brand Starbucks. The metric Person Count was summed by zip code by month to calculate Foot Traffic. To analyze change in Foot Traffic by quarter, Person Count was summed by zip code by quarter and the percent change was calculated between quarters. For location level data, Person Count was summed by Street Address. Foot Traffic Percentage was calculated by taking the sum of foot traffic for street address and dividing the resulting value by the total Foot Traffic for New York City in the selected date range.