Summary

• The iconic show Sex and the City is still relevant today, with its characters and New York City setting crucial to its success.
• Each character's home reflects their personality and lifestyle, from Carrie's eclectic apartment to Samantha's colorful living spaces.
• The show not only explores romance and friendship but also showcases different neighborhoods and the luxury of living in New York City.

More than two decades have passed since the release of Sex and the City, and viewers are still obsessed with Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha. This is not a surprise, because the friends continue to be a reference on feminism, sexuality and fashion. However, as much as the show was lauded for its characters and core theme during its initial 1998-2004 run, its sense of place was just as important, with "the city" in its title being just as important as "the sex".

Sarah Jessica Parker's Carrie Bradshaw may be an incredibly endearing sitcom character, but her story wouldn't have been anywhere near as endearing if she wasn't living in The Big Apple, and New York is integral to Sex and the City's success. Many significant scenes occurred in emblematic places in New York, such as Magnolia Bakery, The Plaza Hotel, The New York Public Library and Loeb Central Park Boathouse. However, thanks to all the glamour surrounding the show and the lifestyle that Carrie and her friends enjoyed in Manhattan, the homes of the Sex and the City characters caused curiosity.

Sex and the City is available to stream on Max and Netflix.

John James Preston (Mr. Big)

The Ever-Evolving Abode Of A Manhattan Mogul

Mr. Big is Carrie's great love, but they had to go through a lot before they finally settled down together. Many fans belong to Team Big because of his voice, appearance and elegance, which is reflected in the place where he lives. It's never explained exactly what Mr. Big does for a living, but it's clear he's some kind of entrepreneur, and a successful one at that. This is evidenced both by his sense of style, and Mr. Big's flashy New York apartment complex.

The apartment has one bedroom, kitchen, living room and one bathroom.

Big resides in a luxurious building on the Upper West Side with a marble lobby and a doorman. The apartment has one bedroom, kitchen, living room and one bathroom. The decor is very classic and simple, with few colors except for the red wall in the room (which lasted only for a while). According to Realtor.com, apartments on the Upper West Side can go for a median of $1.8m. While this price is higher than during the shows' run due to inflation, it still hammers home the point that Mr. Big is a man of luxury, and his home reflects this.

Aidan Shaw

Rustic Charm Or City Convenience?

Many Sex and the City fans still consider themselves being on Team Aidan, as they consider him Carrie's best boyfriend. Despite this, they are not similar at all in some important aspects, and the integral differences between Carrie and Aidan are cleverly reflected in where Aidan lives. Carrie is a city girl. Aidan meets Carrie in New York and, there, they start one of the most important relationships in the series. Later, he moves in with her and starts renovating the apartment (a problem at the end of their relationship).

But the biggest differences were noticed when Carrie visits Aidan's country cabin, which is made of wood, very rustic, and not very glamorous for the style of the Sex and the City protagonist. This is thematically significant, as Aidan represents an opportunity for Carrie to have an off-ramp from her busy life in The Big Apple. However, as stressful as it can be for her at times, Carrie has no desire to say goodbye to the city, and ultimately, this is why Aidan's rural sensibilities and small-town outlook meant the pair would never have worked.

Aleksandr Petrovsky

Parisian Penthouse Or Global Globe-Trotting?

Mikhail Baryshnikov played one of Carrie's boyfriends (the Russian artist, Aleksandr Peskov) during Sex and the City season 6. The artist's personality is reflected where he resides, full of its masculine touches and dark tones. As with all of the set pieces in Sex and the City, Aleksandr's apartment represented his personality and lifestyle. For starters, it was notably bigger than Mr. Big's, which revealed that — despite Carrie's eventual husband's financial success — he wasn't the most affluent of Carrie's partners.

Not only did Aleksandr's apartment in Sex and the City speak for his success as an artist, but it also revealed a lot about who he was as a person.

Not only did Aleksandr's apartment in Sex and the City speak for his success as an artist, but it also revealed a lot about who he was as a person. Distinctive details are all over the place, and viewers will notice the unique, mysterious personality and individuality of the character. He not only owned the apartment, he also had a studio on the same floor, where he created his art. While Carrie and Aleksandr weren't meant to be, he was still one of her most interesting boyfriends, and his home definitely reflects this.

Jerry Jerrod (Smith)

From Restaurant Waiter To Upscale Abode

Samantha and Smith's romance began in New York, but in the first film, the two live in Malibu, California, in a contemporary beach house, which represented a big change for Samantha. It's one of several home in Sex and the City which isn't in New York, but that doesn't mean it's any less luxurious than many of the locations in The Big Apple that the characters find themselves in.

Samantha and Smith's Malibu home is more than likely just as expensive as Mr. Big's apartment on the Upper West Side, and possibly was worth even more than Aleksandr's place. According to Realtor.com, houses like Samantha and Smith's can go for $6M on average. The house has glass balconies, three levels, ocean views, five bedrooms, six bathrooms, a contemporary kitchen and is located on Malibu Road. The actual property was used for two weeks for Samantha and Smith's scenes, both inside the house and on the beach.

Steve Brady

Keeping It Real Downtown

Miranda has always been one of the more grounded of the main Sex and the City characters, something that's often reflected in her choice of partners — especially Steve. When Steve meets Miranda, he lives in a small apartment in Manhattan, consistent with his modest lifestyle. As the series progresses, he moves into Miranda's apartment, but later concretizes the big plans he had for his family.

Steve buys and remodels a townhouse in Brooklyn (Clinton Hill House) for his family to live comfortably and be happy. For that and many other reasons, Steve is one of the main male characters that became a fan favorite, as he represented a refreshing break from some of the extravagant-yet-bombastic men that Carrie, Miranda, Samantha, and Charlotte found themselves with. While Miranda and Steve ultimately divorced in the first season of And Just Like That...? his choice for a family home remains a sensible and applauded decision among many in the Sex and the City fanbase.

Richard Wright

Greenwich Village Luxury With A Rooftop Oasis

Richard's house is one of the most spectacular houses in the series, as he is a hotel magnate.

Richard was one of Samantha's most important lovers in Sex and the City. They fell in love despite trying to put their emotions aside, but after Richard's cheating, the relationship was not the same and Samantha broke up with him. Richard's house is one of the most spectacular houses in the series, as he is a hotel magnate. Steve lived in New York's Greenwich Village, where the average house price in 2024 has a median range of around $1.66m (according to Realtor.com).

Understandably, given his profession and income, Richard had an absolutely magnificent home, and one that rivals many of the hotels and luxury getaways he presided over. The apartment has a double staircase and the style is very elegant, but the most impressive part of the place is the rooftop pool. The Dandy building in Greenwich Village was chosen for the scenes in the pool.

Miranda Hobbes

Brooklyn Bridge Views Or Chic Downtown Digs?

Miranda lives on the Upper West Side (78th and Amsterdam) in a pre-war building. She is a successful lawyer with a good income, so she can afford to live in an elegant apartment decorated by an interior designer. Of all the Sex and the City characters, Miranda's living space perhaps best reflects her distinct personality. The attention to detail here is incredibly well planned, with Miranda's home being as simple-yet-elegant as she is.

For the TV show, the personalities of the characters were considered for the design of the apartments. Production designer Jeremy Conway was one of the creative team in charge of adding a bit of the characters' personality to the spaces where they lived. For Miranda, he looked for simple colors and some unusual pieces, like the black and white photographs and the mirror over the fireplace.

Samantha Jones

Living Large In A Sex And The City Dream Pad

Samantha lives on the Upper East Side during the first season, but she earns the hatred of her neighbors when her lovers are not to everyone's liking. She then moves to the Meatpacking District between Gansevoort and Greenwich, a place much more trendy and in line with her liberal lifestyle. Samantha is a public relations professional, and has enough of an income to live comfortably in various areas of New York.

The decor of Samantha's studio apartment is simple, but because she is one of the most sexual characters, the show puts the focal point on Samantha's bed, which is usually dressed in bright colors, like red. What's more, in comparison to Miranda's apartment, Samantha's home in Sex and the City is quite colorful, with many subtle visual details to clue viewers in to her personality.

Charlotte York

Uptown Elegance Or Brooklyn Brownstone Bliss?

In the early seasons of Sex and the City, the external scenes of Charlotte's apartment were shot at 275 Central Park West. After her divorce from Trey MacDougal, she was able to keep the apartment at 930 Park Avenue (Upper East Side), where she later lived with Harry Goldenblatt. Park Avenue is considerably more affordable than some of the other locations in Sex and the City, with the average house price under half a million dollars in 2024 (via Realtor.com).

White and cream tones were used for the decor, including antique furniture, and there were highlights of dark wood that showcased the residents' simplicity, elegance and good taste.

White and cream tones were used for the decor, including antique furniture, and there were highlights of dark wood that showcased the residents' simplicity, elegance and good taste. The luxurious and classic apartment is spacious (with three bedrooms and three bathrooms), high ceilings and very good lighting. These are subtle details that reflect Charlotte's openness and readiness to let love into her life — as evidenced by her adopting Lily at the conclusion of the show, and later having children of her own.

Carrie Bradshaw

Upper East Side Chic Or Cozy West Village?

The exterior of Carrie's apartment was shot at 66 Perry Street in the West Village, and the location has become something of a tourist hotspot for Sex and The City fans visiting New York, many of whom swing by to take photo opportunities. But Carrie's address is actually 245 East 73rd Street on the Upper East Side. This is actually one of the most economically varied districts inhabited by any Sex and the City characters, as Realtor.com lists properties for rent for as low as $2.7k, but there are also homes available for as high as $65m.

Carrie's personality is reflected in the apartment's decor. The designers of the show added a mix of classic and second-hand objects. She also has a library of fashion magazines and other details that reflect the creative side of the character. Since Carrie is the central character of Sex and the City, this is also one of the most frequently visited interiors in the entire show, so it's of course understandable that an incredible amount of thought went into the furnishings to ensure it reflected Sarah Jessica Parker's character.