The 5 best — and worst — states to retire in 2023, ranked

Erin McDowellAug 1, 2023, 02:25 IST

Florida didn't make the top-five best states to retire in.Getty Images/Sean Gallup

A study by Bankrate analyzed the best — and worst — US states to retire in.
Iowa ranked as the best state to retire in thanks to its high affordability and low levels of crime.

You might think Florida is the best state to retire in, but you'd be wrong.

Bankrate recently released its report on the best states to retire in for 2023. Multiple factors were considered, including affordability, overall well-being, weather, quality and cost of healthcare, and crime.

These categories were weighted according to importance in the life of retirees: affordability was worth 40% of the final score, crime 5%, quality and cost of healthcare 20%, weather 10%, and overall well-being 25%.

Keep reading to see whether your state made the top-five best states to retire in — or the worst.

Iowa ranked as the best state to retire in thanks to its high affordability and relatively low levels of crime.

Iowa.Henryk Sadura/shutterstock

Delaware ranked as the second-best state to retire in due to its high well-being and weather scores.

Delaware.Collins93/Shutterstock

It was followed by West Virginia, which ranked highly as the most affordable state but had the most expensive healthcare costs.

West Virginia.shutterstock/Andriy Blokhin

Missouri came in fourth overall and fifth in terms of affordability.

Kansas City, Missouri.Edwin Remsberg/Getty Images

Mississippi came in as the fifth-best state to retire in, thanks to factors including its weather and affordability.

Gulfport, Mississippi.Richard T. Nowitz/Getty Images

Though beautiful, Alaska ranked as the worst state to retire in, according to the Bankrate study.

Alaska.Maridav/Shutterstock

New York was named the fourth-worst state to retire in due to its poor affordability and weather rankings.

New York.Alexander Spatari/Getty Images

Despite its high score for weather, California scored low on the list as the second-most expensive state.

Laguna Beach in California.TraceRouda/Getty Images

Washington also ranked low on the list, despite its high-quality healthcare.

Washington.shutterstock/EricLiu08

Massachusetts ranked low in the weather and affordability categories, ultimately being named the fifth-worst state to retire in.

Boston, Massachusetts.DenisTangneyJr/Getty Images

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The 5 best &mdash; and worst &mdash; states to retire in 2023, ranked