When you’re deciding where you want to retire, you should focus on locations depending on what you value. It’s important to consider three main aspects: affordability, quality of life, and health care.

On a global scale, the United States is 24th on the list of the best countries for retirement. However, the U.S. is very large so you’re most likely going to have different experiences in different areas of the country. That being said, if you plan on staying in America, you may want to know which states are the best for retirement. WalletHub recently released their 2018 retirement rankings. Using 41 metrics in three broad categories, they were able to rank every state to find the best and worst places to retire.

For most people, Florida tends to be the first state that comes to mind when thinking of good places to retire. This is mainly because Florida has the highest percentage of elderly residents 65 and older, and because it ranks high in the overall affordability category.

The state of Hawaii has the highest life expectancy while the lowest is found in Mississippi. On the other hand, the cost of living is totally flipped with Mississippi coming in first and Hawaii ranked last.

If you are the kind of person that needs to constantly be entertained, retiring in New York may be a good option for you. Although New York can be very expensive and has a low overall rating for retirement, the Empire State has the most museums and theatres per capita.

It can be argued that retiring in Minnesota will give you the best quality of life and health care. However, its low score on the affordability measure prevents it from being one of the best overall states for retirement.

Check out how your home state ranks overall, as well as for each of the three categories: affordability, quality of life, and health care.

50. Kentucky

Affordability rank: 38

Quality of life rank: 47

Health care rank: 47

49. New Jersey

Affordability rank: 50

Quality of life rank: 28

Health care rank: 33

48. Rhode Island

Affordability rank: 48

Quality of life rank: 46

Health care rank: 22

47. Mississippi

Affordability rank: 10

Quality of life rank: 49

Health care rank: 50

46. Arkansas

Affordability rank: 20

Quality of life rank: 50

Health care rank: 45

45. West Virginia

Affordability rank: 16

Quality of life rank: 43

Health care rank: 49

44. Louisiana

Affordability rank: 17

Quality of life rank: 41

Health care rank: 46

43. New Mexico

Affordability rank: 39

Quality of life rank: 42

Health care rank: 35

42. Hawaii

Affordability rank: 49

Quality of life rank: 36

Health care rank: 3

41. Alabama

Affordability rank: 3

Quality of life rank: 48

Health care rank: 48

40. New York

Affordability rank: 46

Quality of life rank: 6

Health care rank: 28

39. Vermont

Affordability rank: 47

Quality of life rank: 16

Health care rank: 13

38. Maryland

Affordability rank: 44

Quality of life rank: 17

Health care rank: 14

37. Georgia

Affordability rank: 24

Quality of life rank: 37

Health care rank: 42

36. Oklahoma

Affordability rank: 7

Quality of life rank: 44

Health care rank: 43

35. Tennessee

Affordability rank: 5

Quality of life rank: 45

Health care rank: 44

34. Connecticut

Affordability rank: 45

Quality of life rank: 23

Health care rank: 7

33. Nebraska

Affordability rank: 41

Quality of life rank: 27

Health care rank: 10

32. Indiana

Affordability rank: 19

Quality of life rank: 35

Health care rank: 41

31. Illinois

Affordability rank: 40

Quality of life rank: 13

Health care rank: 32

30. Alaska

Affordability rank: 30

Quality of life rank: 39

Health care rank: 26

29. Michigan

Affordability rank: 33

Quality of life rank: 15

Health care rank: 31

28. North Carolina

Affordability rank: 25

Quality of life rank: 19

Health care rank: 36

27. South Carolina

Affordability rank: 6

Quality of life rank: 38

Health care rank: 40

26. Oregon

Affordability rank: 31

Quality of life rank: 25

Health care rank: 23

25. Delaware

Affordability rank: 15

Quality of life rank: 40

Health care rank: 24

24. North Dakota

Affordability rank: 35

Quality of life rank: 31

Health care rank: 8

23. Maine

Affordability rank: 36

Quality of life rank: 10

Health care rank: 15

22. Texas

Affordability rank: 9

Quality of life rank: 29

Health care rank: 38

21. Washington

Affordability rank: 34

Quality of life rank: 12

Health care rank: 18

20. Ohio

Affordability rank: 13

Quality of life rank: 18

Health care rank: 37

19. Massachusetts

Affordability rank: 43

Quality of life rank: 2

Health care rank: 5

18. Missouri

Affordability rank: 12

Quality of life rank: 34

Health care rank: 34

17. Kansas

Affordability rank: 27

Quality of life rank: 22

Health care rank: 27

16. Nevada

Affordability rank: 8

Quality of life rank: 26

Health care rank: 39

15. California

Affordability rank: 37

Quality of life rank: 3

Health care rank: 16

14. Pennsylvania

Affordability rank: 28

Quality of life rank: 4

Health care rank: 30

13. Montana

Affordability rank: 14

Quality of life rank: 33

Health care rank: 19

12. Wisconsin

Affordability rank: 32

Quality of life rank: 7

Health care rank: 11

11. Minnesota

Affordability rank: 42

Quality of life rank: 1

Health care rank: 1

10. Arizona

Affordability rank: 21

Quality of life rank: 21

Health care rank: 17

9. Utah

Affordability rank: 22

Quality of life rank: 24

Health care rank: 12

8. Idaho

Affordability rank: 11

Quality of life rank: 20

Health care rank: 25

7. New Hampshire

Affordability rank: 29

Quality of life rank: 14

Health care rank: 4

6. Wyoming

Affordability rank: 4

Quality of life rank: 30

Health care rank: 29

5. Virginia

Affordability rank: 18

Quality of life rank: 9

Health care rank: 21

4. Iowa

Affordability rank: 26

Quality of life rank: 11

Health care rank: 9

3. South Dakota

Affordability rank: 2

Quality of life rank: 32

Health care rank: 6

2. Colorado

Affordability rank: 23

Quality of life rank: 8

Health care rank: 2

1. Florida

Affordability rank: 1

Quality of life rank: 5

Health care rank: 20

It is important to plan out where you want to retire as well as determine what you value especially when it comes to affordability, quality of life, and health care. Most states in the U.S are a lot different from the next, so if you are undecided where you want to retire, you can use the rankings listed above to help narrow your search!

Do you agree with our list? Let us know in the comments. If you have any other finance questions, you can turn to our Travel Forum or connect with our partners at our Travel Directory.

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