The Best Thrift Stores in New York City

Thrifting in New York is not what it was, and anyone who tells you otherwise has not been to a Saturday at a Williamsburg buy-sell-trade counter. The easy scores got picked over years ago by resellers with apps. What is left rewards people who know which store is fed by which closets, and who show up on a Tuesday.

Here is the short version of what we think: the best thrift in Manhattan is charity thrift, and the best of that is in Chelsea, Gramercy and the Upper East Side, where donations come from people with very good clothes and very small apartments. The best thrift in Brooklyn is volume thrift, where the prices are lowest and you pay in hours.

A note on terms, because New York blurs them. Thrift means donated goods, usually for charity. Resale or buy-sell-trade means the store buys recent clothes from customers. Vintage means curated, older and priced by someone who knows. For that last category, see our vintage store guide.

Every store below was confirmed operating in 2026.

The charity shops

This is the best value in the city, full stop. The money goes somewhere good, and the stock comes from neighborhoods where people give away cashmere.

Housing Works Thrift Shops

Chelsea · 143 W 17th St, plus locations citywide · $

Housing Works is the gold standard of New York charity thrift: furniture, clothing, books, art and housewares, with proceeds supporting the organization's work on HIV/AIDS and homelessness. The Chelsea flagship is the one to start with for its furniture and range. The Upper East Side shops at 1222 2nd Ave and 1730 2nd Ave are where the designer clothing turns up, and there are also stores at 157 E 23rd St in Gramercy, 245 W 10th St in the West Village, 2569 Broadway and 306 Columbus Ave on the Upper West Side, 150 Montague St in Brooklyn Heights and 266 5th Ave in Park Slope.

Go for: a mid-century chair and a wool coat on the same trip. Know before you go: the Housing Works Bookstore Cafe at 126 Crosby St in SoHo is a separate stop, and one of the best used bookstores in the city.

City Opera Thrift Shop

Chelsea · 513 W 26th St · $$

A high-end charity shop that benefits New York City Opera, with carefully organized stock that often looks close to new: designer clothing, couture, fine art, furniture, rugs and housewares. It sits a block from the galleries, so it pairs well with an afternoon on the West Side (our gallery guide has the route).

Go for: designer pieces and home decor at a real discount. Know before you go: open Monday to Saturday 11 to 6 and Sunday noon to 6; the 26th Street High Line entrance nearby has been closed for construction, so use 23rd or 28th.

Cure Thrift Shop

East Village · 91 3rd Ave · $

An airy, well-organized nonprofit shop with clothing, furniture, home goods, jewelry and records, benefiting Type 1 diabetes research. It is brighter and calmer than most thrift stores, and the housewares section is the reason to come.

Go for: glassware, lamps and a vintage dress or two. Know before you go: stock turns over quickly, so visit often if you are furnishing.

Vintage Thrift Shop

Gramercy · 286 3rd Ave · $$

A charity shop benefiting the United Jewish Council of the East Side, with a curated mix of vintage and quality secondhand clothing, jewelry, furniture and art. Donations are screened, which shows. It is one of the few shops where the jewelry case is worth your full attention.

Go for: costume jewelry and men's tailoring. Know before you go: check hours before a weekend trip, since they are not the same every day.

The budget thrift

These stores are for people who have more time than money and are fine with that.

AuH2O

East Village · 84 E 7th St · $

A small "thriftique" that blends secondhand, vintage and upcycled clothing, with permanent $5 and $10 racks and most everything else priced low. It is proof that thrift can be edited without getting expensive.

Go for: the $5 rack, seriously. Know before you go: open Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 7.

L Train Vintage: Urban Jungle

Bushwick · 118 Knickerbocker Ave · $

The big one. L Train Vintage is a family-owned chain that has been at this since 1999, and Urban Jungle is its warehouse: aisle after aisle of flannels, denim, jackets, army surplus and T-shirts at prices that make Manhattan look like a joke. The smaller, more curated L Train boutique is next door at 106 Thames St, and there is a two-floor store at 1377 DeKalb Ave.

Go for: a stack of flannels and a pair of Carhartts for less than one new item. Know before you go: new merchandise hits the floor at least three times a week, so frequency beats luck.

Monk Vintage Thrift Shop

Williamsburg · 496 and 500 Driggs Ave · $

Two stores around the corner from each other, one of them a deep basement packed with mostly contemporary secondhand and a good run of vintage T-shirts. It is loud, colorful and unapologetically cluttered, which is the appeal.

Go for: graphic tees and oddball jackets. Know before you go: donate clothes and you get 25 percent off your next purchase.

Big Reuse Bushwick

Bushwick · 378 Troutman St · $

The newest store on this list, opened in early 2026 by the environmental nonprofit Big Reuse, and built largely from salvaged materials. It takes smaller items: clothing, books, kitchenware, toys and home goods. The prices are low and the mission is real.

Go for: kitchen gear and books for your new apartment. Know before you go: it is a reuse center, not a curated shop; come with an open mind. For what else to do nearby, see our Bushwick guide.

Buy, sell, trade

These stores buy clothes from customers, which means stock is recent, sizes are consistent and you can pay for your haul with your old closet.

Beacon's Closet

Greenpoint · 74 Guernsey St · $$

The Brooklyn institution, open since 1997, with color-coordinated racks of recent and vintage clothing. Greenpoint is the biggest and oldest store; there are also locations at 92 5th Ave in Park Slope, 23 Bogart St in Bushwick and 10 W 13th St in Manhattan. Selling is walk-in, and you can take cash or store credit on the day.

Go for: mid-range designer pieces and good boots. Know before you go: items must arrive clean and laundered, and anything they do not take and you do not collect by closing gets donated. See our Greenpoint guide for a full afternoon.

Buffalo Exchange

Chelsea · 114 W 26th St · $$

The national chain, with New York stores at 114 W 26th St in Chelsea, 332 E 11th St in the East Village and 504 Driggs Ave in Williamsburg. Current trends, jeans, some designer and vintage, all at fair prices. The selling policy is the clearest in the city: 25 percent of the selling price in cash or 50 percent in trade, paid on the spot, no appointment needed.

Go for: jeans and trend pieces a season old. Know before you go: trade gets you double the value of cash, so plan to shop right after you sell.

2nd Street

Lower East Side · 180 Orchard St · $$

A Japanese resale company with a sharp eye for streetwear and designer labels, well organized by category. The Lower East Side shop is the best known; there is also a store at 187 Kent Ave in Williamsburg.

Go for: secondhand Supreme, Comme and designer basics. Know before you go: the organization makes it faster than most resale; sizes are easy to scan. Our Lower East Side guide has the rest of the block.

Two thrift crawls that actually work

The Manhattan charity loop. Start at City Opera Thrift Shop on West 26th Street when it opens at 11. Walk east to Buffalo Exchange on West 26th, then south to Housing Works on West 17th Street. Cut across to Gramercy for the Housing Works on East 23rd and Vintage Thrift Shop on Third Avenue, and finish at Cure on Third Avenue near 12th Street. It is about two miles on foot, all of it flat, and you can do it in an afternoon with a lunch stop. This loop is best for home goods, coats and anything tailored.

The Brooklyn volume day. Take the L to Morgan Avenue and start at Urban Jungle on Knickerbocker Avenue, then the L Train boutique next door on Thames Street. Walk to Big Reuse on Troutman Street and Beacon's Closet on Bogart Street. Get back on the L to Bedford Avenue for Monk and Buffalo Exchange, both on Driggs Avenue, and if you still have energy, walk north to Beacon's Closet in Greenpoint. This day is best for denim, flannel, band tees and cheap basics, and you will want a big tote bag and comfortable shoes.

The Upper East Side sweep. For designer clothing, walk Second Avenue from the Housing Works at 64th Street up to the one at 90th Street, then finish at Designer Revival on East 81st Street for consignment (it is in our vintage guide). Go on a weekday, when donations from the weekend are hitting the floor.

How to thrift in New York without losing your mind

Go early on a weekday. Weekend donations get processed Monday and Tuesday. Saturday afternoons are for people who like lines.

Know the neighborhood's closet. Upper East Side charity shops get tailored coats and designer bags. Chelsea gets furniture and art. Brooklyn gets band tees and everything that did not fit in a U-Haul.

Bring a bag and a plan. Many shops are tight on space. Know what you are hunting (a winter coat, a lamp, jeans in a specific size) or you will leave with six things you do not need.

Check the seams. Thrift is final sale almost everywhere. Look at armpits, zippers and hems before you pay.

Sell smart. Buy-sell-trade shops pay more in credit than cash. If you are going to shop anyway, take the credit.

Give back. The charity shops only work because people donate. Clean out your closet and drop it at Housing Works or City Opera before you shop.

The Shout NY take

If you have one morning, go to City Opera and Housing Works Chelsea, then walk to the West 26th Street Buffalo Exchange. If you have a whole day, take the L to Bushwick for Urban Jungle and Big Reuse, then drift to Williamsburg for Monk and Buffalo Exchange on Driggs. And if you would rather have new designer clothes at secondhand prices, the answer is not thrift at all. Read our sample sale guide.