9 Differences Between 'RHONY' & 'RHONJ'

People are always hating on me for watching every series in the Real Housewives franchise. Aside from wondering how I could have so much time on my hands, the haters just don't seem to get that every one of the cities in the franchise is actually very different. These shows are not the same thing over and over again. Every city and its cast members are unique. For instance, Real Housewives of New Jersey and Real Housewives of New York City couldn't have more differences. Even though, the shows take place in two bordering states with casts members who are around the same age, they are almost nothing alike.

From the depiction of family life, marital status, and career aspirations, to the wardrobe choices, use of slang, and preferred fighting techniques, the tristate ladies handle their lives differently on RHONY and RHONJ. A quick run through of the specifics shows you that other than each lady saying a catchy tagline in the beginning, these shows are not at all alike. It means two very different things to be a Real Housewife in New Jersey than it does to be a Real Housewife in New York City. Here's why.

1. Setting

This is an obvious difference, but it's definitely something that needs to be addressed. RHONJ takes place over multiple cities in North Jersey and has more of a suburban tone. And as the name suggests, RHONY takes place in New York City with an emphasis on the Upper East Side and summers in the Hamptons.

2. Marital Status

The women in the NJ series are really housewives, whereas most of the women in New York are actually single or looking for a partner. These two different perspectives make for drastically different story lines.

3. Kids

The kids on RHONJ are instrumental to the story lines and provide some much needed comic relief. In NYC, we barely see kids unless there is a special occasion, but even then they are just chilling in the corner at a gala.

4. Trips

When the Jersey girls get out of town, they usually keep it domestic with trips to Atlantic City, Florida, and Napa. The city girls are all about traveling far away with international destinations like Morocco, Turks and Caicos, England, and the Virgin Islands.

5. Cast Relationships

The NYC girls love to brag about "being old friends for 20 years" and other that they're all just friends of friends. In New Jersey, it's all about family: siblings, in-laws, cousins, and twins have been a part of the show's cast.

6. Transportation

The New Jersey ladies all have giant SUVs to drive their families around. In New York City, they're almost always taking a car service to and from events. This allows the RHONY ladies to get some gossip and pregame drinking in, which always adds something to the plot.

7. Drinking

The NJ ladies have plenty of parties with alcohol, but you rarely see them getting trashed. In NYC, alcohol is like an honorary Housewife with all of them accusing each other being too sloppy and drunk.

8. Clothes

The New Jersey cast dresses to impress for big events, but they're more about keeping it real, with a healthy dose of animal print. The New York City women are all about dressing up and being fashion forward.

9. Arguments

The Jersey girls are not afraid to get tough in an argument, pushing, shoving, and even table flipping have become expected during conflicts. The New York ladies like to yell, but they are more about the cutting insults than the physical altercations.

Even though New Jersey and New York are just a bridge away from each other, they're totally different worlds — especially when it comes to their Real Housewives.

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