Retire Here, Not There: WalletHub’s 2023 Best & Worst Places to Retire

Brian Anderson

1 year ago

Cities in Florida dominate the top of WalletHub’s just-released 2023’s Best & Worst Places to Retire report, with Tampa claiming the No. 1 spot and Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Miami ranking 3-5.

Scottsdale, Ariz. broke up Florida’s monopoly at the top of the list with its second-place rank.

The first big surprise on the list comes at No. 6 with Casper, Wyo., while Denver, Cincinnati, Charleston, S.C., and Atlanta round out the top 10.

On the other end of the spectrum, WalletHub also highlighted the 10 “Worst Cities to Retire” in its new report. Stockton, Calif., bottomed out the rankings at No. 182.

Next worst was Newark, N.J. at 181, followed by Bakersfield, Calif., San Bernadino, Calif., and Detroit. Rounding out the “bottom 10” were 177 Bridgeport, Conn., 176 Wichita, Kan., 175 Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Vancouver, Wash., and Baltimore, Md.

To help Americans plan for a comfortable retirement without breaking the bank, WalletHub’s annual study compared 182 U.S. cities across 45 key measures of affordability, quality of life, health care and availability of recreational activities. The data set ranges from the cost of living to retired taxpayer-friendliness to the state’s health infrastructure. Key metrics beyond taxes and elderly-friendliness included things to do and property crime rates.

Source: WalletHub

Deeper dive into the rankings

Tampa, Fla. Image credit: © Sean Pavone | Dreamstime.com

Interestingly, Tampa and Charleston switched places in this year’s rankings compared to 2022’s rankings, which had Charleston No. 1 and Tampa No. 9.

Tampa racked up a top overall score of 59.93 thanks to placing fifth overall for activities and 26^th for quality of life. Those categories helped it overcome ranking 40^th for affordability and 79^th for health care.

Scottsdale ranked a very close second overall with a score of 59.87, led by ranking sixth for quality of life and 20^th for activities. The Phoenix neighbor ranked 24^th for health care and 61^st for affordability.

Fort Lauderdale (total score 58.17), Orlando (58.09) and Miami (57.47) were all buoyed by top-15 ranks for activities even though none ranked in the top 49 for quality of life, the top 29 for affordability, or the top 40 for health care.

Affordability vaulted Casper to the sixth overall rank with a total score of 57.22. The energy-based economy feeding the second-biggest city in Wyoming with a population of just 55,316 ranked second overall in affordability out of the 182 cities ranked. Montgomery, Ala., ranked No. 1 for affordability but just 136^thoverall thanks to finishing near the bottom of the rankings in activities (158), quality of life (164) and health care (180).

Washington, D.C. ranked top overall for activities but 169 for affordability, leading to a 38^th overall ranking with a total score of 51.24.

Pearl City, Hawaii, near Honolulu, finished at the top of the rankings for quality of life, but rankings of 166, 165 and 138 in affordability, activities and health care led to an overall score of 44.90 and a 128 overall ranking.

South Burlington, Vt., ranked No. 1 for health care but just 137^th overall with a total score of 44.04.

Stockton, Calif. Image credit: © Wirestock | Dreamstime.com

As far as the bottom-ranked cities are concerned, Stockton’s low score of 35.33 was largely the result of ranking 180 for activities and 175 for health care. The 58^th largest city in the U.S., about 83 miles east of San Francisco, ranked 130 for quality of life and 113 for affordability.

New York City ranked dead last for affordability, pulling it down for 135 overall with a score of 44.08 despite ranking in the top 20 for activities (19) and quality of life (20).

Modesto, Calif., ranked dead last for activities and 148^th overall. For quality of life, Detroit ranked dead last. The Motor City didn’t crack the top 100 in any category.

Columbus, Ga., ranked dead last for health care, pulling it down to a 151 ranking despite ranking 18^th for affordability.

Best vs. Worst

• Pearl City also has the highest share of the population aged 65 and older, 25.5%, which is 3.2 times higher than in Irving, Texas, the city with the lowest at 8%.

• Brownsville, Texas, has the lowest adjusted cost-of-living index for retirees, 75.39, which is 2.4 times lower than in Honolulu and Pearl City, the cities with the highest at 182.16.

• Plano, Texas, has the highest share of workers aged 65 and older, 26.73%, which is 2.4 times higher than in Gulfport, Miss., the city with the lowest at 11.10%.