As others have mentioned, living in NYC has a very high cost of living… everything costs more there. The safer the neighborhood – whether in the city or in the suburbs – the higher the cost of living. One could ‘get by’ on a salary that you suggest, but only if they are willing to have several roommates and live in a less-desirable area.
I live about an hour outside of NYC when there is light-to-moderate traffic. Rents this far outside of the city are still near $1000.00 per month for a small one-bedroom apartment and the daily commute in rush hour takes 3–4 hours out of your day on average, so you are out of your home ~12 hours a day.
Depending on what field you work in, someone with a college degree and little experience probably won’t make half that, and the competition for jobs is very tight. With a Master’s Degree and 22+ years experience, I make about what you propose, but choose to only work 4 days, so 32–35 hours per week instead of 40+. The reduced hours is only an option because I live with my fiancĂ©, who makes more than I do but has been with his company for 20 years. Were I on my own, I would have to work 40+ hours and still would struggle to make ends meet – my job is not in the city, though. I travel further distance but in the opposite direction, so I am on the road ~2 hours a day on average and the cost is less than public transit into the city would be.
A recruiter contacted me the other day about a job in one of the boroughs of NYC that was full-time but only paid about what I was making. I scoffed and told her they’d have to offer well over $100,000/year for me to even consider dealing with that hassle.