Possible to do New York on a budget? Yes, if you follow our guide

It's one of the priciest cities in the United States, but a fun-filled visit to the Big Apple is still possible on a shoestring budget. The key is to follow the lead of locals to the best deals and money-saving hacks. With the Aussie dollar massively underperforming against the greenback (its value has dropped by almost 15 per cent in the past two years), it's more important than ever to seek out bargains to make your travel funds go further.

A delicious, satisfying meal in New York City for $US6 ($9): fact or fiction? Fact. Street food from mobile truck and cart vendors is the way to go, and you can do much better than a mediocre hot dog in Central Park. You'll pay $US6 for two takeaway tacos al pastor in Jackson Heights in the borough of Queens, compared to $US18 at most Mexican restaurants in Manhattan.

To eat from dozens of food trucks in one place, head to Smorgasburg in Brooklyn, the largest weekly open-air food market in the US, or Queens Night Market.

There are five boroughs in NYC and four of them offer cheaper accommodation deals than Manhattan. All corners of the city are well connected by subway and buses, so broaden your booking engine search to include parts of Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx that are close to Manhattan's perimeter. If you're still in a Manhattan state of mind, look for cheap deals at The Pod Hotels, Moxy hotels, Freehand and The Jane.

Just across the Hudson River, New Jersey is another accommodation option. Hotels in Hoboken offer an added bonus as they enjoy some of the best views of the NYC skyline.

If money is no object, you can spend like a Rockefeller at designer boutiques and department stores lining Fifth Avenue. For the rest of us, New York has an abundance of discount stores selling well-known brands at a fraction of the regular price. Look for branches of TJ Maxx, Lot-Less and Century 21, which reopened in May after closing all of its stores during the pandemic. Expect to find clothes, shoes, luggage and cosmetics at up to 80 per cent off retail prices.

Also worth checking out are "99c stores" found in most outer-borough neighbourhoods, though due to inflation, they should probably all be renamed "$1.50 stores".

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Love a steamy summer? Yearning for a white Christmas? There are four distinct seasons in NYC, each with plenty of appeal. For the most affordable travel season, look to January and February, when NYC Hotel Week runs for a month, offering deep discounts on stays at some of the city's most famous hotels.

At the same time, Restaurant Week is an event when hundreds of the best restaurants offer prix-fixe menus at lower prices. Combine this with Broadway Week, when participating shows offer two-for-one tickets, and you have one of the best-value opportunities to live large.

Take taxis or rideshare everywhere in NYC and you'll blow the budget in no time. The subway and bus network is affordable, efficient, fairly safe and easy to navigate. Most times, it will get you to where you're going faster than a taxi or Uber can.

There's absolutely no need to buy a MetroCard, just swipe a credit card at the turnstile when you enter the station. It's the same price ($US2.75) no matter how far you ride. After 12 swipes per rider on the same credit card (from Monday to Sunday), additional rides are free.

There's no need to spend a fortune on Broadway tickets. Unless it's for the hottest, hard-to-get show of the season, hold off on buying tickets until you arrive in the city.

Download the TodayTix app to nab discounts on all the best shows in town, or line up in person at the TKTS Times Square booth for that day's deals. Check out Playbill online (playbill.com) for a list of show policies on rush tickets (available day of performances), discount lotteries and Standing Room Only passes.

Try your luck on 1iota.com for free tickets to the taping of talk shows including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

With many museums now charging entry fees of $US25 and up, it pays to look for a loophole. Most of NYC's museums offer free or pay-what-you-wish days or during select hours each week. The entry fee to the Guggenheim, for example, is up to you on Saturdays from 6pm to 8pm. The Jewish Museum is free on Saturdays and MoMA is free the first Friday of every month from 4pm to 8pm, with advance reservations.

Some museums and attractions are always free, including the American Folk Art Museum and the Bronx Museum of the Arts.

Make like a moneyed art collector and hop around the galleries in the posh neighbourhood of Chelsea, where established and up-and-coming artists display their work for sale. There's no admission fee, though do check ahead for opening hours. Happen upon an opening night and you might also score a free glass of wine and nibbles.

Outdoor art is free and fabulous, in locations all over the city. Don't miss Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens, the High Line and various corners of Central Park where you'll find sculptures, special exhibitions and flower displays.

New Yorkers - just like Aussies - love a good happy hour deal. Whether it's one-dollar oysters, half-price bar snacks or two-for-one drinks, this can be the right time to imbibe and refuel for less. Take a look at 5 Napkin Burger's afternoon menu, available 3-6pm, Monday-Friday, and deals at Fish Cheeks, offered all week, 12-6pm.

Lunch prix-fixe menus are also popular, served at a typically less busy time when many restaurants, including Le Rock and Gramercy Tavern, try to entice diners with lower prices than they charge at dinnertime.

Finally, the best things in life - and New York City - are free all the time. Despite the great wealth enjoyed by many residents, this is a very democratic city, with no-cost programming and attractions available year-round. Check out the event schedule for Lincoln Center, which includes outdoor dances under a 10-foot disco ball and free performances by national ballet companies.

At Little Island, one of the newest public spaces in the city, expect to see everything from poetry slams to jazz concerts and stand-up comedy. Everybody's free to feel good. This is New York, after all.