Best States to Retire in 2024 (2024)

Many people fear that retirement will mark the end of their financial security, and others worry they might never actually get to retire. That’s understandable when 28% of non-retired adults haven’t saved any money for retirement and Social Security benefits replace only about 37% of the average worker’s earnings.

Living in the right place after you retire can make your money go a lot further. To determine the best states to retire, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 46 key indicators of retirement-friendliness, from financial factors like tax rates and the cost of living to things like access to quality medical care and fun activities.

To supplement this report, WalletHub also released a retirement savings survey that examined Americans’ attitudes on retirement and the money they have set aside for it.

Main Findings

Best & Worst States to Retire

Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.

In-Depth Look at the Best States to Retire

Florida

Florida isn’t known as a retirement paradise for nothing – it ranks as the best state to retire due to its relatively low taxes for retired people, including no estate, inheritance or income taxes. The cost of adult day health care (health services for seniors who don’t need around-the-clock care) and homemaker services are also lower than in most other states.

In addition to financial factors, Florida provides an ideal environment for retirees. It has the second-most shoreline miles of any state, allowing for plenty of relaxing at the beach. It also ranks among the top states for adult volunteer activities, theater companies, golf courses and country clubs. There are plenty of ways for seniors to stay healthy and happy, which is reflected in the fact that Florida has one of the lowest death rates for people aged 65 and older in the country.

Unfortunately, the overall cost of living is pretty high in Florida compared to other states, but that doesn’t stop the Sunshine State from taking the top spot for retirees.

Colorado

Retirees who would prefer the cool air of the Rockies over the hot climate of Florida may find a great home in Colorado, the number-two ranked state. It offers similarly taxpayer-friendly conditions, with no estate or inheritance taxes.

Colorado is a great state for retirees’ physical and mental health. It has one of the lowest rates of social isolation for seniors, and very few residents above age 65 are in poverty. Colorado also boasts some of the best geriatrics hospitals in the country, and ranks extremely high when it comes to the share of seniors who are in good health and who are physically active.

Virginia

Virginia is the third-best state for retirement, in part because it has some of the best elder-abuse protections in the country. This makes seniors physically safer and less vulnerable to being taken advantage of financially. The state has high-quality geriatrics hospitals and a lot of doctors and dentists to choose from, too.

On the financial side, Old Dominion lacks an estate or inheritance tax and is the tenth most taxpayer-friendly state. Outside of that, though, it’s not a particularly cheap state to live in.

Virginia residents can also benefit from many miles of shoreline, a low violent crime rate and pretty good air quality.

Delaware

Delaware ranks as the fourth-best state for retirement, largely because it has one of the lowest overall tax burdens in the country, including no estate or inheritance taxes.

The First State has a larger population of seniors than most states, at nearly 20%. This contributes to Delaware having the second-lowest risk of social isolation for seniors, based on factors such as the share of people ages 65 and older who don’t live with a partner or who live alone, have a disability, have difficulty living independently or are in poverty. Delaware has the lowest rate of poverty among people ages 65 and older.

Wyoming

Wyoming comes in fifth place among the best states to retire, and one of the ways it stands out is by keeping seniors safe. Wyoming has very good protections against elder abuse compared to most states, as well as one of the lowest violent crime rates in the country and little crime overall. It has some of the cleanest air in the country, too, which is a big help to seniors with breathing issues.

In the Equality State, retirees also tend to give back to their communities, as evidenced by one of the highest senior volunteering rates in the nation. This might help explain why there’s a low risk of social isolation for seniors.

When it comes to financial factors, Wyoming also ranks among the states with the lowest tax burdens and doesn’t have an estate or inheritance tax.

Ask the Experts

In order to choose the best state to retire for you, you must carefully consider various factors such as your finances, health and how you plan to spend your time. For advice on these choices, we turned to a panel of experts in fields such as aging and taxes. Click on the experts’ profiles to read their bios and responses to the following key questions:

1. What is the most common mistake that retirees make when choosing where to live?
2. What are some tips for living on a fixed income in retirement?
3. What are the top factors retirees should consider when choosing a state for retirement?
4. The financial impact of high inflation has many Americans reevaluating their retirement plans. What are some new points of concern for future retirees in considering where to retire?
5. How might changes to the tax code influence retirement security?

Methodology

In order to identify the most retirement-friendly states, WalletHub compared the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Affordability, 2) Quality of Life and 3) Health Care.

We evaluated those dimensions using 46 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for retirement. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), we used the square root of the population to calculate the population size in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across states.

We then calculated each state’s weighted average across all metrics to determine its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Affordability – Total Points: 40

• Adjusted Cost of Living: Double Weight (~10.00 Points)
• General Tax-Friendliness: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
  Note: This metric is based on WalletHub’s "" ranking.
• Retired Taxpayer-Friendliness: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
  Note: This metric measures taxation on retirement income, property and purchases, as well as special tax breaks for seniors.
• Tax-Friendliness on Estate or Inheritance Tax: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Annual Cost of In-Home Services: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Annual Cost of Adult Day Health Care: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older Who Could Not Afford a Doctor Visit: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
  Note: This metric measures the share of the population aged 65 and older who needed to see a doctor in the past 12 months but were restricted due to cost.

Quality of Life – Total Points: 30

• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older: Double Weight (~2.50 Points)
• Risk of Social Isolation: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric considers the following six risk factors of social isolation in population aged 65 and older: a) Divorced, separated or widowed; b) Never married; c) Poverty; d) Disability; e) Independent Living Difficulty and f) Living alone.
  
• Elderly-Friendly Labor Market: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric takes into account both the share of population aged 65 and older working and the number of part time employees for every full-time employee for population aged 65 and older.
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older in Poverty: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Elderly Food Insecurity Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric refers to the share of the population aged 60 and older who faced the threat of hunger in the past 12 months.
• Expenditures Captured by the Administration on Aging per Population Aged 60 and Older: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: The Older Americans Act (OAA) is administered by the Administration on Aging. It funds “personal care, congregate meals, transportation and nutrition-education programs for seniors.”
• Access to Public Transportation: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric measures the share of commuters who use public transit as a proxy for the availability of public transportation.
• Mildness of Weather: Double Weight (~2.50 Points)
  Note: This metric is based on WalletHub’s "" ranking.
• Access to Scenic Byways: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric takes into account both the number of scenic byways and the length of scenic byways.
• Shoreline Mileage: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Museums per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Theaters per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Golf Courses & Country Clubs per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Bingo Halls per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Access to Adult Volunteer Activities: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric measures the number of rated charity organizations per capita*.
• Elderly Volunteer Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Share of Residents Who Do Favors to Their Neighbors (proxy for Neighborhood Friendliness): Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Violent-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Property-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Quality of Elder-Abuse Protections: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric is based on WalletHub’s "States with the Best Elder-Abuse Protections" ranking.
• Air Quality: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Drinking-Water Quality: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
  Note: This metric measures the share of the population potentially exposed to water exceeding a violation limit.

Health Care – Total Points: 30

• Family Medicine Physicians per Capita: Double Weight (~3.16 Points)
• Dentists per Capita: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Nurses per Capita: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Home Health Aides per Capita: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
  Note: Home health aides often help older adults who need assistance. In some states, home health aides may be able to give a client medication or check the client’s vital signs under the direction of a nurse or other healthcare practitioner.
• Share of Geriatricians Required to Meet Estimated Need (Geriatrician Shortfall): Double Weight (~3.16 Points)
• Top-Rated Geriatrics Hospitals: Double Weight (~3.16 Points)
• Health-Care Facilities per Capita: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Quality of Public Hospitals: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
  Note: This metric is based on Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ ranking of public hospitals.
• Well-Being Index for Population Aged 55 and Older: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older with Good or Better Health: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older with Poor Mental Health: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
  Note: This metric refers to the share of population aged 65 and older who reported their mental health was not good 14 or more days in the past 30 days.
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older with a Disability: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older Who Are Physically Active: Half Weight (~0.79 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older Who Are Obese: Half Weight (~0.79 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 and Older with Inadequate Sleep: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
  Note: This metric refers to the share of adults aged 65 and older who reported sleeping less than seven hours in a 24-hour period on average.
• Life Expectancy: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)
• Death Rate for Population Aged 65 & Older: Full Weight (~1.58 Points)

Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected as of December 20, 2023 from the U.S. Census Bureau, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Council for Community and Economic Research, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Kiplinger Washington Editors, County Health Rankings, Genworth Financial, United Health Foundation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Corporation for National and Community Service, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Great Nonprofits, American Board of Medical Specialties, Gallup Healthways, The Tax Foundation, America's Scenic Byways, Bingo Halls U.S.A., NOAA Office for Coastal Management, U.S. News & World Report and WalletHub research.

Supporting Video Files:

• YouTube - National (for web embedding)
• YouTube - Florida (for web embedding)
• Raw video files (for editing into clips)