Craigslist
Craigslist NYC apartments: search smarter
Craigslist looks dated, but NYC renters still post legitimate no-fee apartments and rooms there — especially late at night and on weekends. The site is useful when you treat it as one lane in a multi-source hunt, not your only lane.
When Craigslist wins
Direct landlord posts, older buildings without broker relationships, and spontaneous sublets often land on Craigslist first.
Duplicate posts are common; the same apartment may appear on Facebook an hour later.
Avoid classic scams
Skip wire transfers, "keys in the mail," and listings with stock photos at half market rent.
Tour in person. Google the address. If the poster refuses a video or in-person tour, walk away.
Combine with other sources
Rather than a Craigslist-only routine, let a unified board show Craigslist next to StreetEasy and Facebook with the same price and neighborhood filters.
Stoophunt includes Craigslist NYC rentals in the same feed so you do not maintain separate search URLs.