Is Villanova or Rutgers closer to New York City?

The main tradeoff is simple: Rutgers is much closer to New York City in both distance and day-to-day access, while Villanova is outside Philadelphia and much farther from NYC. Rutgers-New Brunswick sits in central New Jersey on the Northeast Corridor, so train travel into Manhattan is straightforward. Villanova is on the Main Line near Philadelphia, which means getting to New York usually takes longer and often involves a more substantial regional rail or Amtrak trip.

If you mean Rutgers-New Brunswick, that campus is the clear winner for NYC access. You can get from New Brunswick to New York by NJ Transit, and plenty of students do trips into the city without it feeling like a major expedition. Villanova is closer to Philadelphia than to New York, so NYC is more of an occasional weekend destination than an easy spontaneous outing.

In pure geography, Rutgers is also closer. New Brunswick is roughly in the corridor between Philadelphia and New York, but much nearer to New York than Villanova is. Villanova is in suburban Pennsylvania, so even though both schools are in the broader Northeast, they are not equally convenient for NYC.

Rutgers is closer to New York City and has easier practical access.