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The Best and Worst States to Retire in 2026
Retirement isn’t just about the size of your savings account — it’s about where those dollars go. Two retirees with identical nest eggs can end up with vastly different lifestyles depending on whether they settle in a state with a high cost of living or one that reflects today’s retirement migration trends toward affordability and overall value.
Choosing where to retire is one of the biggest financial and lifestyle decisions you’ll ever make. Beyond climate and scenery, it’s worth considering how your location will affect your long-term financial security, healthcare access, and day-to-day quality of life.
Florida has long been considered the gold standard for retirement, but increasingly, retirees are looking beyond warm weather to weigh important factors like safety, access to healthcare, and opportunities for recreation. Our 2026 rankings highlight several less obvious states that currently outperform traditional hubs by offering a more robust balance of affordability and social well-being.
To help you navigate these choices, the Retirement Living Research Team analyzed every state across three key categories: quality of life, affordability, and economic strength. Continue reading to see how your state ranks.
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Key Insights
Iowa is the best state to retire in in 2026, performing consistently well across affordability, quality of life, and economic strength.
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Wyoming ranks as the second-best state to retire in, falling from the top spot in our 2025 rankings.
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New Mexico is the worst state to retire in in 2026, with especially low quality-of-life and economic strength scores.
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Virginia made the biggest improvement from 2025, rising from No. 41 to No. 21 in our retirement rankings.
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Montana experienced the largest drop, falling from the fourth-best state for retirement in 2025 to No. 35 in 2026.
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Open Access
The Best States to Retire in 2026
Our 2026 analysis reflects a shift in where retirees can get the most value from their retirement years. This year’s highest-ranked states feature affordability and economic strength, rather than just the traditional appeal of warm weather. Iowa claims the top spot after climbing from No. 16 in 2025, followed by Wyoming, West Virginia, Delaware, and Pennsylvania.
Together, these five states span the Midwest, West, South, and Northeast, showing that a strong retirement destination isn’t defined by geography. Instead, today’s top-performing states offer large populations of seniors, lower costs of living and good economies. Wyoming, last year’s No. 1 state, remains near the top, while Pennsylvania joins the top five.
Explore the map below to see how all 50 states compare across our three-pillar scoring system of quality of life, affordability, and economic strength.
1. Iowa
Iowa claimed the top spot this year, leaping from No. 16 in 2025 to No. 1. Iowa’s rise comes from steady performance across each category.
Iowa ranks third in the nation for golf courses per capita, with roughly 49 courses per 100,000 seniors, helping keep retirees active. It’s also remarkably safe, with a property crime rate of just 13 crimes per 1,000 residents — ninth lowest in the nation. While the state’s 18-degree average winter high might be a deterrent for sun seekers, its affordability and low senior poverty rate make it a financially secure choice for many.
2. Wyoming
After claiming the top spot in 2025, Wyoming remains one of the country’s strongest retirement destinations. It continues to stand out for retirees who prioritize safety, financial security, and easy access to the outdoors. Wyoming ranks No. 8 for lowest property crime and has the fifth-lowest violent crime rate, giving retirees peace of mind.
Retirees in the Equality State enjoy a strong financial footing, as the state has the fourth-lowest senior poverty rate in the country, at 8.2%. For those who enjoy the outdoors, it’s important to note that 83% of residents live within a 10-minute walk of green space. Like Iowa, Wyoming’s biggest trade-off is its climate, with an average winter high of just 14 degrees.
3. West Virginia
For retirees focused on finding affordable states for retirement, West Virginia is the clear winner. The state ranks No.1 for affordability, offering the lowest housing costs in the nation, including a median monthly rent of just $643 for a one-bedroom apartment.
West Virginia is also home to one of the nation’s oldest populations, with adults 65 and older making up 21% of residents (fourth most). That often translates into communities and services geared toward retirees. It also has the country’s lowest share of seniors still participating in the workforce (13.7%), suggesting more residents are financially able to retire. The trade-off comes with healthcare access and broader social well-being, in which the state ranks No. 47 and No. 48, respectively.
4. Delaware
Delaware climbed one spot to No. 4 this year, including a rise to No. 1 in economic strength. It has the second-lowest senior poverty rate in the U.S., at 7.6%.
Beyond the financial benefits, Delaware offers easy access to outdoor recreation. It ranks No. 1 for green space access, with an impressive 99% of residents living within a 10-minute walk of one. While Delaware doesn’t rank as high as other states in safety (No. 30 in violent crime), it does have a high percentage of seniors and is more tax-friendly than most states.
5. Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania rounds out this year’s top five, improving from No. 7 in 2025. Much of its strength comes from quality-of-life measures, making it an appealing place for seniors to stay active, healthy, and engaged.
Pennsylvania ranks No. 3 in the nation for walkability and No. 4 for park access, with 85% of residents living near green space. It also holds a strong ranking in social progress (No. 11, according to the Social Progress Imperative), which measures access to basic needs and opportunities. While the cost of living is on the higher side, its combination of infrastructure, parks, and community amenities makes it a top-tier choice for seniors who want an active lifestyle.
The Worst States to Retire in 2026
Popular retirement destinations don’t always translate into the strongest retirement outcomes. This year’s five lowest-ranked states struggle in one or more of our broad categories measuring quality of life, affordability and economic strength. For retirees living on fixed incomes, those factors can place added pressure on both finances and day-to-day living.
1. New Mexico
New Mexico remains at the bottom of our list, with bad quality-of-life indicators. The state suffers from the highest property crime rate in the nation (27.5 crimes per 1,000 residents) and the second-highest violent crime rate.
Financial challenges compound those concerns; the state has one of the highest senior poverty rates, at 13.4% (third highest). While a high percentage of the population is at least 65 (19.3%), this bright spot is overshadowed by low scores in healthcare facility access and overall social progress.
2. California
California’s spot in the bottom five is due to its extreme lack of affordability. It ranks dead last in that category largely because of the highest median home price ($750,646) and the highest median rent ($1,835 for a one-bedroom) in the country.
Retirees are also hit hard by the state’s 13.3% top marginal income tax rate, the highest in the U.S. While California offers excellent healthcare facility access (No. 3) and walkability, the cost of living makes it difficult for many retirees to maintain their standard of living without substantial savings.
3. Washington
Washington’s struggles with affordability are what make it the third-worst state to retire in. Like California, the housing market here is a major barrier. The median home price exceeds $600,000, and the median monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $1,641. Crime is another concern; Washington ranks third worst for property crime, with a rate of about 25 crimes per 1,000 residents.
While the state performs well in a score of social progress (No. 11), its lower senior population density (No. 42) and high living costs make it a challenging environment for those looking to settle down permanently.
4. Nevada
Even though Nevada is the most tax-friendly state for retirees, it has lower scores in quality-of-life metrics, including ranking sixth worst for property crime and 16th worst for violent crime. And in the summer, it’s one of the hottest states in the U.S.
Economic strength is another weak point, as the state has a senior poverty rate of 10.8%. For many, the lack of community safety and economic security outweighs the benefit of having low taxes.
5. Texas
Texas rounds out the bottom five, finishing with low scores in metrics like the percentage of seniors in the population (13.4%), property and violent crime, and walkability. It also ranks 46th in social progress.
In addition, retirees must contend with an average summer high of 94 degrees, second highest in the U.S. Texas also has one of the highest poverty rates among seniors in the U.S., at 12.1%. There is, however, good access to healthcare, and gas prices are among the cheapest.
See Where Your State Ranks for Retirement
Retirement trends don’t stand still, and neither do the factors that shape them. Housing markets, crime rates and other conditions can shift from year to year, dramatically changing how states compare. Virginia made this year’s biggest jump, climbing from No. 41 to No. 21, while Montana experienced the steepest decline, falling from No. 4 to No. 35.
Florida remains one of the country’s most recognizable retirement destinations, but in 2026 it lands squarely in the middle of the rankings, at No. 22, down from No. 3 last year. Although the state still benefits from warm winter weather and no state income tax, it finishes in the middle of the rankings in each of the three scoring components.
Ultimately, the best place to retire depends on what matters most to you — whether that’s affordability, healthcare, safety, recreation, or staying close to family. Use the full rankings below to see how every state measures up.
Methodology
Retirement Living ranked all 50 states using a 100-point scoring system across three categories: quality of life, affordability, and economic strength.
- Quality of life (60 points): This category includes each state’s rank in the Social Progress Index from the Social Progress Imperative (20 points), the percentage of residents 65 and older (10 points), the number of healthcare facilities per 1,000 seniors (9 points), the average summer and winter high temperatures (3 points each), the property and violent crime rates per 1,000 residents (3 points each), the Walk Score (3 points), the percentage of residents living within a 10-minute walk of a green space (3 points) and the number of golf courses per 100,000 seniors (3 points). The Social Progress Index measures overall well-being using indicators related to basic needs, foundations of well-being and opportunity. Data comes from the Social Progress Imperative (2025), the U.S. Census Bureau (2023 to 2024), Weather Spark (2025), NeighborhoodScout (2025), Walk Score (2025), NYU Langone Health (2025) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025).
- Affordability (30 points): This category uses each state’s overall ranking from Retirement Living’s Most Affordable States to Retire analysis (May 2026), which scored states based on the median rent, the median home price, grocery spending, gas prices, the average Medicare Advantage premium, whether Social Security benefits are taxed, the top marginal state income tax rate and the effective property tax rate.
- Economic strength (10 points): This category includes the senior poverty rate (5 points) and the percentage of residents 65 and older who are still working (5 points). Data comes from both the U.S. Census Bureau (2024).
For each metric, the top-performing state received the maximum number of points, while all other states received a proportional number of points based on their performance. We summed the metric scores to calculate category totals, then combined the three category scores to produce a final score out of 100.
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Article Sources
Retirement Living writers primarily rely on government data, industry experts and original research from other reputable publications to inform their work. Specific sources for this article include:
- Social Progress Imperative, “The U.S. Social Progress Map.” Accessed July 21, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, “Explore Census Data.” Accessed July 21, 2026.
- Weather Spark, “The Weather Year Round Anywhere on Earth.” Accessed July 21, 2026.
- NeighborhoodScout, “NeighborhoodScout.” Accessed July 21, 2026.
- Walk Score, “Live Where You Love.” Accessed July 21, 2026.
- NYU Langone Health, “City Health Dashboard.” Accessed July 21, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment and Wages Data Viewer.” Accessed July 21, 2026.