As the city reopens and apartments start to flood the market again, we’ve taken on the job of carefully hunting through various listings sites, newsletters, and Craigslist to find the very best deals out there. A good deal on a rental apartment, of course, can mean very different things for different people. So as we sorted through hundreds of listings, we kept our eye out for places that are worth their asking price, whether that’s an under-$2,000 one-bedroom (that really is a one-bedroom) or a $5,000 three-bedroom duplex, with crown moldings, a massive backyard, and an in-unit washer/dryer. 

If you’ve been considering upgrading to a (true) two-bedroom, this might be your moment: Several apartments from this week’s cull have two generously sized rooms, including a sunny unit in an Italianate townhouse around the corner from Fort Greene Park and a gut-renovated spot with French doors and parquet floors in the West Village. Meanwhile, if you want to get a sense of just how much of a renter’s market it is right now, consider the prices on these apartments: a Lenox Hill one-bedroom asking $200 less than it did in 2017; a two-bedroom on St. Marks Place that has been asking for over $3,000 since 2012 but now wants $2,394; and a Battery Park City unit still asking $2,500 like it did in 2009.

Our picks are organized by neighborhood in order of ascending price. Didn’t see anything from the neighborhood you’re interested in? We’ll try to include as wide a range of locations as new units come up. To keep this list fresh, we’re removing listings that have not been rented after two weeks (and will put an asterisk next to holdovers from the previous week). Check back every week for updated picks.

Battery Park City

$2,500: A big one-bedroom fronted by a rounded wall of windows, right in front of the Battery Park City Esplanade and listed at 2009 prices.

Bed-Stuy

$2,300: Extremely large one-bedroom (the living room could easily fit a six-person dining table) with plenty of built-ins (two elaborate mantels, hallway storage) right above the Utica Avenue A/C stop.

$2,300: A king-size bedroom with a floor-to-ceiling exposed brick fireplace, an equally spacious living room with wainscoting and another fireplace, plus an office leading out to a 50-foot-deep private garden, some of which is paved with stone.

$2,300*: One-bedroom-plus-office right above Fulton Street, with a lovely white mantel, moldings, and large windows in the kitchen and pristine-looking, marble-covered bathroom.

$2,395: A large brownstone bedroom plus a bonus office or closet near the Myrtle-Willoughby Avenue G train, with crown moldings, herringbone floors, two walls of exposed brick, and a separate windowed kitchen.

$2,950: Architect-designer couple’s totally monochrome two-bedroom renovation (including an all-black kitchen), with the exception of a bathroom tiled in emerald green.

Boerum Hill/Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill

$2,200*: Bright corner one-bedroom (there are four windows across the open kitchen and living room) with exposed brick walls, a black mantel, and a five-minute walk to Carroll Park and its Sunday farmers’ market.

$3,500*: A coveted master suite, plus two more similarly sized bedrooms, a second bathroom, and a kitchen with marble countertops and a washer/dryer, in a four-story building across from P.S.38.

$3,550: Corner two-bedroom next to Cobble Hill Park with a rather large living room, white mantel, and an updated kitchen with minimalist Scandi vibes (sleek white storage, gridded floors).

$4,500: 1,100-square-foot two-bedroom on 4th Place near Court Street that comes with heated concrete floors, and a balcony (with built-in seating) running the entire length of a glass wall.

Brooklyn Heights

$1,950 (net effective: $1,625): Bright studio with a separate, updated kitchen (a window and dishwasher included) just a minute from 2/3 trains and a three-minute walk to a Brooklyn Heights Promenade entrance.

Bushwick

$2,150*: Floor-through apartment with large bedrooms on each end (one of which includes an alcove) on a tree-and townhouse-lined street right between the Halsey Street and Gates Avenue J train stops.

Chelsea

$2,895: One-bedroom with a decked-out kitchen (there’s even a tiny wine cooler) in a lovely four-story brick building next to a block-long park.

$3,993 (net effective: $3,660): Massive floor-through loft that has two skylights in the bedroom and full-size stainless-steel appliances, on 6th Avenue edging on Nomad and Koreatown.

Chinatown/East Village/Lower East Side/Two Bridges

$1,995: Rent-stabilized unit on St. James Place with a queen- and twin-size bedroom (or office), and a separate windowed kitchen (nothing fancy but more spacious than you’d expect).

$2,000: They describe this Delancey Street spot as a studio, but there’s a separate kitchen, a windowed room full of built-ins (a storage platform for a bed, desk, dresser, and shelves), and another bigger room with two windows, some exposed brick, and tons more built-in shelving.

$2,000: Mott Street two-bedroom with exposed brick in every room and a warmly updated kitchen featuring honey-colored cabinets, and white subway tile and counters.

$2,394 (net effective: $1,995): Two queen-size bedrooms and decorative fireplaces in a unit on St. Marks near Astor Place that had been asking for over $3,000 since 2012.

Clinton Hill/Fort Greene

$2,375: 800-square-foot top-floor brownstone unit with huge windows and a decorative fireplace in both the living room and bedroom, on Dekalb Avenue five minutes from Fort Greene Park.

$2,750*: 750-square-foot one-bedroom in a historic brownstone just off Myrtle Avenue that comes fully furnished with mid-century furniture, including an elliptical coffee table and Danish platform bed with integrated nightstands.

$2,800: Two real bedrooms in an 1856 Italianate townhouse around the corner from Fort Greene Park, with two big windows in a large eat-in kitchen and an especially airy bathroom with its own big window and a claw-foot tub.

$3,500 (net effective: $3,208): Two queen-size bedrooms each with its own bathroom and big closet, plus an open living room and kitchen with four big windows and spherical golden pendant lights, a block away from Fort Greene Park.     

Crown Heights/Prospect–Lefferts Gardens

$2,495*: King- and queen-size bedrooms in a renovated apartment with an eat-in kitchen and washer/dryer, just a five-minute walk to Prospect Park.

$2,900: Queen- and full-size bedrooms, plus an open kitchen with ample cabinets and a Caesarstone peninsula (which fits two seats) right across the street from Prospect Park and the Parkside Avenue Q train.

East Village/Little Italy/Lower East Side

$1,865 (net effective: $1,399)*: Studio right on Chrystie Street with an exposed brick wall and pink-tile bath, offering three months free.

$2,290 (net effective: $2,100)*: Two bedrooms in a corner unit near Clinton and Rivington Streets with French doors and lots of windows (including the kitchen and bath).

Flatbush

$1,706: One-bedroom just a three-minute walk to Prospect Park with slightly more uncommon tiling choices (graphic patterns in the bathroom and tiny white herringbone in the kitchen).

Flatiron

$1,899: A pretty small studio but the ceilings are high (ten-foot-seven), the kitchen is separate, and it’s literally around the corner from the Flatiron Building and R/M trains.

Gowanus

$3,400: Three-bedroom, two-bathroom duplex with an especially large kitchen (there’s a French door fridge) overlooking a private backyard surrounded by magnolia and dogwood trees.

Greenpoint

$2,495*: 800-square-foot two-bedroom with a living room that leads directly out to a big fenced backyard with multiple trees, in a residential chunk of Greenpoint, only two blocks from McGolrick Park.

$2,500 (net effective: $2,290)*: Two bright bedrooms a two-minute walk from the G train and six minutes from McCarren Park.   

Harlem

$2,200*: Rent-stabilized two-bedroom steps from Amy Ruth’s and the 2/3 trains at 116th Street, with a separate kitchen (dishwasher included) and updated, windowed bathroom.

$4,000*: Grand two-bedroom in a triangular Washington Heights prewar, steps from the 1 train, featuring a large foyer, equal-size living room and dining room, a long galley kitchen, ten-foot ceilings, and moldings in every room.

Jackson Heights/Woodside 

$1,850: Large one-bedroom basically in Astoria with a breakfast bar and huge windows overlooking the complex’s landscaped gardens.

$1,950*: 875-square-foot apartment on 35th Avenue in Jackson Heights with arched doorways, eat-in kitchen, sunken living room, and one huge bedroom with three windows.

Murray Hill

$1,450: Tudor City studio with casement windows, exposed beams, and a rather cleverly integrated Murphy bed that doesn’t actually take up the whole living space.

Park Slope

$1,875*: Very cute top-floor studio on Montgomery Place with a mantel, built-in shelves, and a skylighted bathroom.

$2,135: A well-lit not-so-studio studio (the living, sleeping, and kitchen areas are all separated) on the second floor of a brownstone a block and a half from Prospect Park.

$2,350: A small but efficient one-bedroom right next to the park on Montgomery Place that comes with a private 150-square-foot patio in the back.

$4,500: Renovated two-bed, two-bath on Degraw Street right off Fifth Avenue with an especially lovely open living area fronted by bay windows, white-painted exposed brick, and marble bathroom floors with honey-colored veining rather than the usual gray streaks.

St. George

$3,950: A whole five-bedroom, four-bath landmarked 1920 house with a fireplace, six-burner stove, deck, large landscaped backyard with a pavilion, and driveway, within a mile of the Staten Island Ferry.

Upper East Side

$2,089*: Brownstone one-bedroom with a spacious living room and separate kitchen, just a block from Q and 4/5/6 trains.

$2,100 (net effective: $1,925): Bright rent-stabilized one-bedroom just around the corner from Whole Foods, with moldings and an eat-in kitchen.

$2,300*: Bright two-bedroom with an eat-in kitchen and French doors on the quiet East 83rd Street.

$2,395 (net effective: $2,195): Just a very lovely one-bedroom with big rooms and bright separate windowed kitchen that in as recently as 2017 was listed for $2,600.

$2,650 (net effective: $2,429): One-bedroom only a block and a half from the Met, with a foyer big enough to be turned into a dining area and big windows looking out to townhouses and treetops.

Upper West Side

$2,250 (net effective: $2,065): King-size garden one-bedroom in the 70s with a dishwasher and more kitchen cabinets than usual, plus a private, ivy-covered backyard.

$2,400: High ceilings and exposed brick in an apartment with two lofted sleeping areas and a private balcony overlooking West 82nd Street (you can get a peek of Central Park to the left).

$2,450: 550 square feet in the Ansonia with crown moldings (even in the kitchen), a decorative fireplace, and herringbone floors.

$2,400 (net effective: $2,200)*: Sparkling brownstone one-bedroom on West 71st Street right by Central Park with huge windows, crown and base moldings, a lovely fireplace mantel, and two entire walls of exposed brick.

$4,900*: 781 square feet at an almost Billionaires’ Row address, with sweeping views of Central Park from the 50th floor.

West Village

$3,150: A fifth-floor walk-up, but this one-bedroom on Leroy Street has everything else: south-facing windows, exposed brick, gas fireplace, washer/dryer, and dishwasher.

$3,900 (net effective: $2,925): Two Queen-size bedrooms, French doors, shiny parquet floors, and a windowed galley kitchen, with the option to pay net-effective rent all 12 months.

$4,800: Huge renovated one-bedroom on Sheridan Square with exposed beams, an arched doorway, and casement windows everywhere (even in the bathroom).

Williamsburg

$2,600*: Rent-stabilized corner two-bedroom near the J/M/Z trains at Marcy Avenue that has a window or two in every room, plus an ever-so-slight breakfast bar.

$2,900: 900 square feet in a floor-through parlor-level apartment around the corner from Aska, with 11-foot ceilings, moldings, big windows in the kitchen and bath, and wider-than-normal wide-plank wood floors.

$3,095*: 1,000-square-foot three-bedroom with ten windows, one inordinately large bedroom, plus a relatively spacious living room and airy eat-in kitchen, right under Metropolitan Avenue.

$3,575*: Second-floor two-bedroom near the Bedford L train with acid-stained radiant heat concrete floors instead of the usual hardwood, plus a long private terrace.

$4,700*: Two-bed, two-bath in the Soda Factory Lofts (a two-minute walk to McCarren Park) that will come furnished with, among other things, a cozy picnic-style dining-set table and curved sofa and ottoman.