After putting in decades of hard work, we naturally expect to have financial security in our golden years.
But not all Americans can look forward to a relaxing retirement. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 2025 Retirement Confidence Survey, 67% of workers reported feeling at least somewhat confident that they will have enough money to retire comfortably. Still, only 24% said they were “very confident.”
If so many American workers are worried about their financial future, what other options provide a pathway to a comfortable retirement? For some, the only solution is to keep working. According to Gallup polling, workers in 2022 planned to retire at an average age of 66, compared to 60 in 1995. The alternative? Relocate to an area where you can stretch your dollar without sacrificing your lifestyle.
Retirement isn’t all about the money, though. Retirees seek to live in a place where they can enjoy safety and access to quality healthcare, particularly in light of significant inflation and economic uncertainty. The ideal city will also offer numerous opportunities for leisure activities, complemented by good weather.
To help Americans plan an affordable retirement while maintaining the best quality of life, WalletHub compared the retiree-friendliness of more than 180 U.S. cities across 45 key metrics. Our dataset ranges from the cost of living to the state’s health infrastructure and retired taxpayer-friendliness.
If you’re considering retiring out of state, make sure to check out WalletHub’s “Best & Worst States to Retire” ranking, too.
Top 5 Cities for Retirees
- Orlando, FL
- Scottsdale, AZ
- Minneapolis, MN
- Miami, FL
- Tampa, FL
Orlando, FL
Orlando, FL, is the best place to retire, living up to its reputation as a haven for seniors. One big reason for this is the lack of taxes, as Orlando is one of the most tax-friendly cities, and Florida does not have an estate or inheritance tax (or even income tax). In addition, while Orlando doesn’t have a particularly low cost of living, it is the ninth-cheapest city for homemaker services and the 20th-cheapest for adult day health care out of the more than 180 cities in our study.
Additionally, Orlando offers a wide range of recreational activities for retirees, ranking as the third-best city for recreation overall. It has an especially high number of music venues, fishing facilities, art galleries and adult volunteer activities.
Finally, Orlando ranks 19th in terms of gerontologists and is sixth-highest in home health care facilities per capita. It also has the seventh-best hospitals for geriatrics, allowing elderly residents to receive quality care.
Scottsdale, AZ
Scottsdale, AZ, is the second-best place to retire, largely due to its abundance of activities popular among retirees. For example, Scottsdale ranks at the top of the country when it comes to adult volunteer activities, art galleries, and public and municipal golf courses per capita, and it has the 55th-most museums and 15th-most book clubs per capita.
Tax-friendliness is another good reason to retire in Scottsdale. As it’s located in Arizona, it has no estate or inheritance taxes and no income taxes.
Additionally, Scottsdale ranks fourth in the nation for its mild weather and second among the most caring cities, offering residents a welcoming community and year-round comfort.
Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis is the third-best place to retire, and it has one of the most elderly-friendly labor markets in the country, meaning that it has a large percentage of jobs that are easy to perform even for elderly residents. Many retired people choose to continue to work for some extra income, or simply to have something to keep them occupied. There are plenty of opportunities to do that in Minneapolis, since over 22% of the working population is over age 65.
Minneapolis also provides a friendly environment for retirees, ranking as the 34th-most caring city in the U.S. It has the eighth-best hospital system, too, along with a high number of nursing homes and gerontologists per capita. Minneapolis ranks eighth in the nation for the number of recreation and senior centers, offering retirees ample opportunities for community engagement and activity.
Methodology
To help Americans find the best cities to spend their golden years, WalletHub compared the retirement-friendliness of 182 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across four key dimensions: 1) Affordability, 2) Activities, 3) Quality of Life and 4) Health Care.
We evaluated those dimensions using 45 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 (*), the square root of the population was used to calculate the population size in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across cities. Data for metrics marked with two asterisks (**) were available at the state level only.
Finally, we determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample. Our sample considers only the city proper in each case and excludes cities in the surrounding metro area.
With cost being a significant factor in retirement, our analysis assumes retirees will rely on a fixed income. The lower their expenses, the better retirees will fare in a particular city.
