- Happiness during retirement depends not just on how much money you have saved, but also on where you live.
- Bankrate recently released a list of the best and worst states to retire in.
- You may want to think twice before retiring in these states, where costs are high, healthcare quality is subpar, and the weather is questionable.
Deciding on a place to retire is almost as hard as building the savings it takes to get there.
After all, you’ve been planning for the golden years your whole life (hypothetically, at least), so you don’t want to end up living in a place that doesn’t help you make the most of your money or your leisure time.
According to a 2017 Bankrate survey, 47% of Americans would consider moving when they retire. In light of this statistic, Bankrate recently released a list of the best and worst states for retirement. To determine this ranking, they looked at seven categories that affect retirees and compared them across every state with the help of multiple sources. Each ranking was weighted by their importance, determined by the survey respondents.
Turns out, not every state is a prime spot for a retiree. Those that ranked lower on the list generally had low rankings for cost of living, taxes, healthcare quality, and weather. Even if a state had a high ranking in one category, such as Louisiana, which ranked third for weather, it wasn’t always enough to compensate for low rankings in the other categories.
Below, see which states you may want to think twice about retiring in based on their costs, weather, and healthcare options.
24 (TIE). Vermont
Cost of living rank: 41
Taxes rank: 47
Healthcare quality rank: 2
Weather rank: 44
24 (TIE). Wisconsin
Cost of living rank: 21
Taxes rank: 38
Healthcare quality rank: 6
Weather rank: 42
23. Minnesota
Cost of living rank: 26
Taxes rank: 46
Healthcare quality rank: 1
Weather rank: 48
22. Arizona
Cost of living rank: 34
Taxes rank: 21
Healthcare quality rank: 27
Weather rank: 11
21. Kentucky
Cost of living rank: 9
Taxes rank: 33
Healthcare quality rank: 39
Weather rank: 15
20. Pennsylvania
Cost of living rank: 31
Taxes rank: 26
Healthcare quality rank: 21
Weather rank: 30
19. New Jersey
Cost of living rank: 42
Taxes rank: 50
Healthcare quality rank: 10
Weather rank: 24
18. West Virginia
Cost of living rank: 18
Taxes rank: 19
Healthcare quality rank: 43
Weather rank: 22
17. Rhode Island
Cost of living rank: 40
Taxes rank: 41
Healthcare quality rank: 16
Weather rank: 28
16. Connecticut
Cost of living rank: 44
Taxes rank: 44
Healthcare quality rank: 23
Weather rank: 31
15. Alaska
Cost of living rank: 44
Taxes rank: 3
Healthcare quality rank: 27
Weather rank: 50
14. Georgia
Cost of living rank: 15
Taxes rank: 36
Healthcare quality rank: 40
Weather rank: 6
13. Ohio
Cost of living rank: 5
Taxes rank: 45
Healthcare quality rank: 36
Weather rank: 26
12. Oregon
Cost of living rank: 37
Taxes rank: 10
Healthcare quality rank: 42
Weather rank: 35
11. Oklahoma
Cost of living rank: 7
Taxes rank: 32
Healthcare quality rank: 47
Weather rank: 10
10. South Carolina
Cost of living rank: 23
Taxes rank: 37
Healthcare quality rank: 27
Weather rank: 8
9. Nevada
Cost of living rank: 33
Taxes rank: 5
Healthcare quality rank: 47
Weather rank: 27
8. Washington
Cost of living rank: 38
Taxes rank: 17
Healthcare quality rank: 34
Weather rank: 36
7. Illinois
Cost of living rank: 36
Taxes rank: 29
Healthcare quality rank: 30
Weather rank: 23
6. California
Cost of living rank: 49
Taxes rank: 48
Healthcare quality rank: 19
Weather rank: 14
5. Arkansas
Cost of living rank: 2
Taxes rank: 39
Healthcare quality rank: 50
Weather rank: 9
4. Louisiana
Cost of living rank: 16
Taxes rank: 42
Healthcare quality rank: 44
Weather rank: 3
2 (TIE). Maryland
Cost of living rank: 47
Taxes rank: 43
Healthcare quality rank: 24
Weather rank: 20
2 (TIE). New Mexico
Cost of living rank: 22
Taxes rank: 34
Healthcare quality rank: 49
Weather rank: 21
1. New York
Cost of living rank: 50
Taxes rank: 49
Healthcare quality rank: 41
Weather rank: 39