New Forbes list of top 25 places largely dominated by affordable mid-sized college towns
Forbes compared more than 950 cities across the country to come up with its recently released 15th annual list of the Top 25 Cities for Retirees. As usual, cities making the list tend to share many things in common aside from being relatively affordable, such as being known as college towns and being fairly similar in size (major metropolitan areas largely absent).
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The Forbes list—notably not ranked from 1-25 but rather listed simply alphabetically—highlights “surprisingly affordable gems” offering a high quality of life in the U.S. at a comparatively affordable price, with housing costs being a major factor. Other key factors included taxes, healthcare, air quality, crime, and climate change and natural hazard risk.
Here are a few notable takeaways from the 2025 list.
19 states represented
Six states—Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington and Virginia—had two cities make the top 25, while 19 states were included overall. No cities in California or New York made the list.
Two cold-winter locales continue to make the top 25. Fargo, North Dakota, is the only city appearing for all 15 years Forbes has compiled this list. Pittsburgh is another of perennial favorite, on the list for 13 of 15 years and for the eighth year in a row.
The Villages in Florida was the only specific retirement community to be included on the list, as well as being the only inclusion from the Sunshine State.
Greenville, S.C. gets the star treatment in the Forbes piece, with a median home price of just $317,000, 22% below the national median, contributing to an overall cost of living that’s 9% below average.
Next Page: College towns prevalent
College towns also retirement towns
College towns once again dominate the list, with Forbes mentioning 14 of the 25 as such. Among the ones with major state universities are Athens, Ga. (University of Georgia); College Station, Texas (Texas A&M); Columbia, Mo. (University of Missouri); Iowa City, Iowa (University of Iowa); Lawrence, Kan. (University of Kansas); Lexington, Ky. (University of Kentucky); Lincoln, Neb. (University of Nebraska); Madison, Wis. (University of Wisconsin); Newark, Del. (University of Delaware); Raleigh, N.C. (North Carolina State); and Tucson, Ariz. (University of Arizona).
Also named as “college towns” on the list were Pittsburgh, Pa. (Carnegie Mellon, Pitt, Duquesne); Bethlehem, Pa. (Lehigh); and Greenville, S.C. (Furman).
Next Page: Home prices
Home prices below national median
By design, 22 of the 25 places on Forbes’ new list have median home prices at or below the national median. The article notes that since 2020, the median price of single-family homes nationwide has jumped 50% to $404,000, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Four that made the list—Iowa City, Iowa; Lincoln, Neb.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; and San Antonio, Texas—are under $300,000. Only three honorees have a median home price above the national one, with the most expensive being Raleigh, N.C., at $440,000, 9% above the national median. The next highest, college town and state capital Madison, Wis., weighs in at $408,000, just 1% above the national median, while new-to-the-list Pasco, Wash., is $406,000.
Next Page: Population sweet spot
Population sweet spot under 250,000
The average size of the cities on the top 25 places to retire list about 245,000. The largest city on the list is San Antonio, Texas (population 1.5 million) as the only one with a population topping one million while the smallest is Winchester, Va., at 27,000—barely smaller than Newark, Del. (population 30,000).
Eight cities with populations under 100,000 made the list.
The second-largest city on it is Tucson, Ariz., at 550,000 followed by Raleigh, N.C. (497,000) and Virginia Beach, Va. (457,000). All others were below 400,000.
See the complete Forbes Best Places to Retire in 2025 list here.
SEE ALSO:
• 2025’s Best Places in the World to Retire
• Big Changes in U.S. News 2025 ‘Best Places to Retire’ List
• These Two East Coast States Took Top Ranks in Retirement Readiness