The best and worst US states to retire in, ranked

The Villages, Florida. WalletHub ranked the best US states for retirees in 2026. Its report compared affordability, quality of life, and healthcare across states. Wyoming and Florida topped the list, while Kentucky ranked last. Retirement is full of decisions, and the state you choose to retire in could be the most important one. A recent WalletHub study pitted the 50 states against one another across three main categories — affordability, quality of life, and healthcare — to determine the best places for retirement. The three factors were assessed using 46 different metrics. To determine a state's affordability, metrics such as adjusted cost of living and retired taxpayer-friendliness were considered. Quality of life included metrics such as the risk of social isolation, the mildness of the weather, and even the number of bingo halls per capita, while the healthcare category considered metrics such as nurses, dentists, and health aides per capita, life expectancy, and more. "Retirement is supposed to be relaxing, but it can also be incredibly stressful given that it typically puts people on a fixed income, which may not be enough for them to live comfortably," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the study. "As a result, the best states for retirees are those that have low taxes and a low cost of living to help retirees' budgets stretch as far as possible." WalletHub used data from the US Census Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other sources. These are the states to retire in, ranked from worst to best. 50. Kentucky Louisville, Kentucky. Affordability rank: 34 Quality-of-life rank: 42 Healthcare rank: 47 With low rankings across all three categories, WalletHub found Kentucky to be the worst state for retirees in 2026. 49. Oklahoma Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Affordability rank: 31 Quality-of-life rank: 48 Healthcare rank: 43 48. Mississippi Jackson, Mississippi. Affordability rank: 9 Quality-of-life rank: 49 Healthcare rank: 49 47. West Virginia Shepherdstown, West Virginia. Affordability rank: 18 Quality-of-life rank: 41 Healthcare rank: 50 46. Hawaii Honolulu, Hawaii. Affordability rank: 49 Quality-of-life rank: 21 Healthcare rank: 11 45. New York New York City, New York. Affordability rank: 50 Quality-of-life rank: 12 Healthcare rank: 12 44. Arkansas Hot Springs, Arkansas. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 11 Quality-of-life rank: 50 Healthcare rank: 45 43. Washington Seattle, Washington. Affordability rank: 46 Quality-of-life rank: 17 Healthcare rank: 17 42. Rhode Island Providence, Rhode Island. Affordability rank: 40 Quality-of-life rank: 39 Healthcare rank: 21 41. New Mexico Santa Fe, New Mexico. Affordability rank: 30 Quality-of-life rank: 44 Healthcare rank: 36 40. Oregon Portland, Oregon. Affordability rank: 43 Quality-of-life rank: 27 Healthcare rank: 24 39. Louisiana Baton Rouge, Louisiana. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 12 Quality-of-life rank: 46 Healthcare rank: 46 38. Illinois Rockford, Illinois. Affordability rank: 42 Quality-of-life rank: 14 Healthcare rank: 30 37. Alabama Mobile, Alabama. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 8 Quality-of-life rank: 43 Healthcare rank: 48 36. Maryland Cumberland, Affordability rank: 41 Quality-of-life rank: 20 Healthcare rank: 22 35. New Jersey Newark, New Jersey. Affordability rank: 45 Quality-of-life rank: 30 Healthcare rank: 9 34. Connecticut New Haven, Connecticut. Affordability rank: 44 Quality-of-life rank: 23 Healthcare rank: 6 33. Texas Austin, Texas. Affordability rank: 25 Quality-of-life rank: 38 Healthcare rank: 39 32. Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee. Affordability rank: 4 Quality-of-life rank: 47 Healthcare rank: 44 31. Nebraska Lincoln, Nebraska. Affordability rank: 38 Quality-of-life rank: 28 Healthcare rank: 19 30. Vermont Montpelier, Vermont. Affordability rank: 47 Quality-of-life rank: 3 Healthcare rank: 10 29. Georgia Atlanta, Georgia. Affordability rank: 16 Quality-of-life rank: 40 Healthcare rank: 40 28. Nevada Reno, Nevada. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 5 Quality-of-life rank: 45 Healthcare rank: 42 27. Utah Salt Lake City, Utah. Affordability rank: 35 Quality-of-life rank: 18 Healthcare rank: 31 26. Kansas Topeka, Kansas. Affordability rank: 29 Quality-of-life rank: 31 Healthcare rank: 35 25. California Santa Barbara, California. Affordability rank: 39 Quality-of-life rank: 22 Healthcare rank: 8 24. Montana Bozeman, Montana. Affordability rank: 36 Quality-of-life rank: 10 Healthcare rank: 23 23. Massachusetts Waltham, Massachusetts. Affordability rank: 48 Quality-of-life rank: 2 Healthcare rank: 2 22. Indiana New Albany, Indiana. Affordability rank: 14 Quality-of-life rank: 35 Healthcare rank: 41 21. Michigan Manistee, Michigan. Affordability rank: 32 Quality-of-life rank: 16 Healthcare rank: 29 20. Ohio Akron, Ohio. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 22 Quality-of-life rank: 13 Healthcare rank: 38 19. Maine Camden, Maine. Affordability rank: 37 Quality-of-life rank: 4 Healthcare rank: 14 18. Arizona Phoenix, Arizona. Affordability rank: 27 Quality-of-life rank: 32 Healthcare rank: 16 17. South Carolina Charleston, South Carolina. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 6 Quality-of-life rank: 37 Healthcare rank: 34 16. Idaho Wallace, Idaho. Affordability rank: 21 Quality-of-life rank: 24 Healthcare rank: 26 15. Missouri St Charles, Missouri. Affordability rank: 10 Quality-of-life rank: 29 Healthcare rank: 32 14. North Dakota Bismarck, North Dakota. /iStockphoto Affordability rank: 28 Quality-of-life rank: 33 Healthcare rank: 7 13. North Carolina Charlotte, North Carolina. Affordability rank: 7 Quality-of-life rank: 26 Healthcare rank: 37 12. Virginia Williamsburg, Virginia. Affordability rank: 20 Quality-of-life rank: 15 Healthcare rank: 25 11. Wisconsin Milwaukee, Affordability rank: 24 Quality-of-life rank: 9 Healthcare rank: 18 10. Iowa Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Affordability rank: 17 Quality-of-life rank: 11 Healthcare rank: 28 9. New Hampshire Manchester, New Hampshire. Affordability rank: 23 Quality-of-life rank: 8 Healthcare rank: 20 8. Pennsylvania Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Affordability rank: 26 Quality-of-life rank: 5 Healthcare rank: 13 7. Delaware Wilmington, Affordability rank: 3 Quality-of-life rank: 36 Healthcare rank: 15 6. Alaska Anchorage, Alaska. Affordability rank: 13 Quality-of-life rank: 34 Healthcare rank: 5 5. Minnesota Minneapolis, Minnesota. Affordability rank: 33 Quality-of-life rank: 7 Healthcare rank: 1 4. Colorado Denver, Colorado. Affordability rank: 19 Quality-of-life rank: 19 Healthcare rank: 3 3. South Dakota Rapid City, South Dakota. Affordability rank: 15 Quality-of-life rank: 25 Healthcare rank: 4 2. Florida The Villages, Florida. Affordability rank: 2 Quality-of-life rank: 1 Healthcare rank: 27 1. Wyoming Casper, Wyoming. Affordability rank: 1 Quality-of-life rank: 6 Healthcare rank: 33 Wyoming barely edged out Florida for the overall No. 1 spot on WalletHub's ranking. WalletHub also reported the state had the 10th strongest elder-abuse protections and the fifth-lowest violent crime rate in the US. It also has the nation's seventh-lowest poverty rate among residents ages 65 and up. Read the original article on Business Insider

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