We round up the best jazz clubs NYC has to offer including old standbys and cutting-edge jazz favorites.
So you’re looking to find a good jazz club in NYC?
The city is the home of some of the best jazz in the world and has been since the 1920s. But recently, they, along with so many live-music venues around the city, have gone through a rough patch with skyrocketing rent and cost increases. That’s why it’s important to enjoy a night out at these bastions of great music.
We’ve rounded up the top jazz clubs NYC has to offer from Greenwich Village, Manhattan to Gowanus, Brooklyn, touching on hallowed landmarks, swanky newcomers, cutting-edge outer-borough spots, no-frills joints, date-idea destinations and more.
RECOMMENDED: Full coverage of jazz in NYC
What is it? The flagship venue for midtown’s jazz resurgence.
Why we love it: Birdland takes its place among the neon lights of Times Square seriously. That means it’s a haven for great jazz musicians (Joe Lovano, Kurt Elling) as well as performers like John Pizzarelli and Aaron Neville. The club is also notable for its roster of bands-in-residence. Sundays belong to the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra.
Address: 315 W 44th Street
Minimum spend: $20 food or drink minimum per set, plus tickets.
What is it? After more than 80 years, this basement club’s stage—a small but mighty step-up—still hosts the crème de la crème of mainstream jazz talent (Billy Hart, Andrew Cyrille, Vijay Iyer). Plenty of history has been made here: John Coltrane, Miles Davis and Bill Evans have grooved in this hallowed hall.
Why we love it: Its 16-piece Vanguard Jazz Orchestra has been the Monday-night regular for more than five decades. It's a guaranteed good night out.
Address: 178 Seventh Avenue South
Minimum spend: There is a one-drink minimum per person, plus tickets.
What is it? Iridium lures upscale crowds with a lineup that’s split between household names and those known only to the jazz-savvy. In fact, Les Paul called this spot home for over 14 years.
Why we love it: The sight lines and sound system are truly worthy of celebration.
Address: 1650 Broadway
Minimum spend: It depends on the performer but some shows have a $25 food/drink minimum. Tickets are required, too.
What is it? This Upper West Side jazz club on Duke Ellington Boulevard, is one of New York City's premier live music venues.
Why we love it: It's renowned for offering top-notch programming of accessible, timeless jazz featuring legendary performers, modern masters, and rising stars, Smoke stands apart with its candlelit dining room, stellar acoustics, and classic American cuisine. An evening there offers a chance to hear modern-day jazz legends while dining in a supper club. No matter where you sit in in the intimate space, you'll be close enough to the stage to admire the incredible artistry at work.
What is it? The jazz arm of Lincoln Center is several blocks away from the main campus, high atop the Time Warner Center. It includes three rooms: The Rose Theater is a traditional midsize space, but the crown jewels are the Allen Room and the smaller Dizzy’s Club, with stages framed by huge windows overlooking Columbus Circle.
Why we love it: The venues feel like a Hollywood cinematographer’s vision of a Manhattan jazz club. Some of the best players in the business grace the spot, among them Wynton Marsalis, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s famed artistic director.
Address: Broadway at 60th Street, 5th Floor
Minimum spend: A food and beverage minimum of $21 per person, per set, plus tickets.
What is it? This beloved haunt, one of the city's premier incubators for progressive-jazz talent is set in a gallery-like space near the Flatiron Building. It's known for its Debut Series, featuring seasoned amd emerging artists who perform traditional and new jazz.
Why we love it: The intimate space is unpretentious with a diverse grouping of musicians you can watch from seats that give a good view of the stage regardless of where you sit.
Address: 1160 Broadway
Minimum spend: Just the price of the tickets, which varies—there are snacks and drinks but you can bring your own drink.
What is it? Smalls is a cozy basement space that feels like a speakeasy, or more specifically, one of those hole-in-the-wall NYC jazz haunts of yore over which fans routinely obsess.
Why we love it: The booking skews retro, yet not stubbornly so: you'll hear classic hardbop as well as more adventurous, contemporary-flavored approaches.
Address: 183 West 10th Street
Minimum spend: Advanced tickets are $35 Sunday through Thursday and $40 Friday and Saturday. Walk-in tickets are $25. There is a required one-drink minimum per person, per set. It is also customary here to leave a gratuity for the bar staff (which you should always do anyway).
What is it? An intimate piano room, conceived as a piano/bass duo room, just across Seventh Avenue from the Smalls, where the same world-class talent is presented.
Why we love it: It's more lowkey and romantic than Smalls. Just try to sit up close.
Address: 163 West 10th Street
Minimum spend: There's a required one-drink minimum per person, per set, plus your ticket price, which varies.
What is it? Composer and improviser John Zorn's nonprofit venue, which is now partnering with the New School, has one-of-a-kind curated lineups and a no-beverages-or-merch policy.
Why we love it: It's got an adventurous music program organized by world-class curators (Annie Gosfield and William Parker are among the names penciled in for residencies).
Address: 55 West 13th street
Minimum spend: $20 per set
What is it? An Alphabet City jazz outpost where only a blue light marks the spot. Inside, the crowd settles in for the offbeat jazz and avant-garde acts like owner Ilhan Ersahin’s Wax Poetic.
Why we love it: Excellent live Latin music and dancing are the draws on Wednesday nights. You're pretty much guaranteed a good night of live music here. On its second floor, Studio 151, you can enjoy sushi, drinks and vinyl.
Address: 62 Avenue C
Minimum spend: The price of a ticket, around $20.
What is it? The Blue Note prides itself on being "the jazz capital of the world." Bona fide musical titans rub against hot young talents, while the close-set tables in the club get patrons rubbing up against each other.
Why we love it: The late-night weekend sets and the Sunday brunches are the best bargain bets.
Address: 131 West 3rd Street
Minimum spend: $20 food and drink minimum, plus tickets.
What is it? The subterranean jazz club, with its vaulted ceilings and exposed brick walls, was modeled after the boîtes of Paris. The venue consists of two cocktail bars, open dining space and a stage for live performances with the ne plus ultra: a state-of-the-art Meyer Sound system.
Why we love it: The Django makes you feel like you’ve entered another world. Providing opportunities for rising stars, seasoned performers, and eager audiences to enjoy a range of jazz music seven nights a week complemented by a hand-crafted cocktail program and an elevated dinner menu.
Address: 2 Sixth Avenue
Minimum spend: Entry is $35 per person plus a two-drink minimum.
What is it? Jazz bassist Matthew Garrison's slick Gowanus performance space hosts nightly performances of live experimental music. During the day, the joint provides state-of-the-art rehearsal, recording and exhibition space to the neighborhood's artists. It just opened a new spot in Park Slope, too.
Why we love it: It doesn't stick to one genre, which means it has a diverse rotation of artists to sit in for.
Address: 18 Whitwell Place and now 837 Union Street
Minimum spend: Tickets start at $15 and depend on the show. There's no food/drink minimum.
What is it? This club, born in the 1990s, is a cozy, unpretentious spot to take in live tunes. Its present location was once a place called Club Cinderella, where Billie Holiday and Thelonious Monk used to perform and attracted such celebrities as Mae West and Frank Sinatra, according to its site.
Why we love it: It's a comfortable spot to take in live music up close. Just plan on spending a bit of cash on drinks.
Address: 82 West 3rd Street
Minimum spend: $30 cover fee.
What is it? Bill Saxton, a Harlem jazz icon, has performed with the biggest name in jazz for more than three decades. This is his club.
Why we love it: It's a chance to enjoy saxophonist Bill Saxton and the Harlem All Stars’ classic jazz every Friday and Saturday nights.
Address: 148 West 133rd Street
Minimum spend: Tickets are $36 and the show is BYOB (whatever type of bottle you want).
What is it? As the name says, this is parlor jazz. It takes place inside musician Marjorie Eliot's apartment every Sunday, 3:30 to 6pm.
Why we love it: It's a totally off-the-beaten spot to enjoy live music.
Address: 555 Edgecombe Avenue
Minimum spend: The concert is free, though donations are appreciated.
What is it? Swing 46 is the last remaining supper club in NY that offers live music, dancing, fine dining and more six days a week, with a focus on Jump Blues, Roots Rock N’ Roll, Rhythm & Blues, Swing, Cha Cha and more.
Why we love it: If jazz makes you wanna get up and dance, you actually can, and should!
Address: 349 West 46th Street
Minimum spend: Ticket + a $35 food/drink minimum per person for all guests seated at tables in the main room.
What is it? A tiny museum in the heart of Harlem that offers free online and in-person programming, including 100 free and highly subsidized jazz workshops, performances and events with hundreds of artists representing the broadest diversity of jazz.
Why we love it: You can celebrate jazz at a space that treasures the genre and contains the personal collection of Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis.
Address: 58 West 129th Street
Minimum spend: Free, but tipping is always appreciated.
What is it? Saxophonist Henry Minton's playhouse was established in 1938 to host exceptional musicians in an electric atmosphere.
Why we love it: This fun (and loud) spot has an Attentive staff, good food and cocktails.
Address: 206 West 118th Street
Minimum spend: Ticket prices vary.
What is it? The world's first vegan jazz club with three sets each night. Ornithology is also the headquarter business of the jazz-focused nonprofit, Gotham Yardbird Sanctuary.
Why we love it: The space hosts weekly vegan chef residencies focused on sustainability and minimal waste.
Address: 6 Suydam Street, Brooklyn
Minimum spend: $10 cover from Sundays to Thursdays $20 for Fridays and Saturdays (card/apple pay only) 6pm to midnight.
What is it? This casual Japanese bar & grill with a speakeasy vibe features live jazz.
Why we love it: It's a new, less-traditional way to take in jazz.
Address: 253 East 53rd Street
Minimum spend: $10 Music Cover Charge per person.
What is it? Located in the lobby of The Refinery Hotel, this spot is all about cocktails, Japanese bites and live jazz throughout the week.
Why we love it: The cocktails star alongside the music.
Address: 106 East 19th Street
Minimum spend: There's a $10 live music surcharge added per person to all checks Monday-Thursday and Saturday. It increases to $25 on Fridays to accommodate larger bands.
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