Best States To Retire 2017: Florida Tops List While Rhode Island Ranks As Worst In New Study

The most popular state to retire is also the best for retirees, according to new analysis for 2017 released Monday by personal finance website WalletHub. Florida came top in terms of affordability and also ranked highly in quality of life while its rating as the 24th best state in terms of health care was still enough to beat Wyoming into second place.

While Florida, which gains about 55,000 movers aged 55 and over each year, is a predictable occupier of top spot, the positions of South Dakota and Iowa at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively, are more of a surprise. South Dakota ranked second for health care, a category that includes considerations like the number of general physicians, nurses and dentists as well as health-care facilities per capita. Iowa also scored highly for health care as well as ranking sixth for quality of life, which includes factors such as weather, share of the population aged 65 or over and the number of museums, theaters and golf courses.

But it was Florida that comfortably claimed top spot, aided by the fine weather and the community benefits of it being the state with the largest population of people aged 65 or over. Such support can be an important consideration for retirees, according to one of the experts consulted by WalletHub, Jim Mitchell, a professor of sociology and director of the Center for Diversity and Inequality Research at East Carolina University.

“Although tax liability is a consideration, for many it may be secondary to lifestyle considerations and realistic assessment of the suitability of a location in light of age-linked changes in functional ability and the availability of a network of formal and informal support,” Mitchell said.

However, another popular state to retire, Arizona, only ranked down in 13th position.

At the bottom of the list, by some margin, Rhode Island was ranked as the worst state to retire for 2017. The state received the lowest score for affordability, based in part on its high tax rates, and also scored poorly for quality of life. Washington D.C. and Alaska, the two lowest scorers for quality of life, were ranked 49th and 50th overall.