If you’ve worked hard your entire life, saved up enough cash to comfortably retire, and have finally hit that age where it just feels right to move on to the next step, then you’ve only got one more thing to consider: where will you live out your golden years? While the answer could really be anywhere you wish, there are a few destinations that are better than others who want to live more affordably and ensure they have great access to health care as they age.
In late July, Bankrate released its ranking of the best and worst states for retirement. It came to its conclusion by analyzing “dozens of data points for each U.S. state,” including each state’s living costs, health care costs, weather, crime stats, and overall well-being of its citizens. After looking at all the data, Delaware, which ranked second in 2023, came out on top of the 2024 list.
“The First State isn’t typically thought of as a retirement haven, but it has many strong selling points for retirees,” the findings noted. “Delaware is a tax-friendly state for retirees. It doesn’t have state or local sales tax, and it doesn’t tax Social Security benefits. It also has lower property taxes relative to the rest of the country, averaging roughly $1,939 annually.”
The findings also noted that Delaware ranked highly compared to the rest of the U.S. for racial and ethnic diversity, as well as for having a high number of arts and entertainment venues per 100,000 residents, providing it a fantastic overall well-being score.
“Compared to its population, it also has a high share of residents who are 62 and older,” it added. And the weather is rather predictable, too. “Earthquakes, tornados, and hurricanes are also rare, and the climate is temperate.”
Its only downside, Bankrate noted, is it is weaker for cost of living, crime, and cost of health care, but it was still strong enough to take home the No. 1 spot. “While Delaware is a pricier state to live in, it scores well in all other affordability metrics we considered in the ranking: property taxes, combined state and local sales tax, and homeowners insurance.”
Joining Delaware at the top of the list is West Virginia in second, followed by Georgia, South Carolina, and Missouri rounding out the top five.
But before you start packing bags, the experts at Bankrate say it’s critical to consider your personal finances and situation. “Most of us think that we actually know that [spending habits] just simply by looking and seeing what happens in our bank account,” David John, a retirement expert and senior policy advisor at AARP, added in the results. “But the reality is that in many cases, there are things that we buy, and they’re not necessarily expenses that we really need.”
To help you get there, Bankrate shared its retirement calculator, which you can use at bankrate.com, along with viewing how every state ranks in the 2024 retirement report.