Best Counties for Retirement

Counties scoring highest on health, disaster risk, weather, and property taxes — ideal for retirees.

Retirement planning goes far beyond finances — where you retire determines your access to healthcare, your exposure to natural disasters, your daily comfort with weather, and the tax burden on your fixed income. Our retirement rankings prioritize health scores, which encompass life expectancy, healthcare access, uninsured rates, and overall wellness metrics from CDC data. Counties that rank highest for retirees combine excellent healthcare infrastructure with low property taxes, minimal natural disaster risk, and comfortable climates. Florida and Arizona counties are popular retirement destinations, but our data reveals strong contenders in the Carolinas, Virginia, and Pacific Northwest that match or exceed them on health metrics. The best retirement counties also tend to have lower costs of living, stretching Social Security and pension income further. We recommend cross-referencing with our tax, weather, and disaster risk rankings to build a complete retirement shortlist.

Rankings sorted by health score — a key factor for retirees. Cross-reference with tax, weather, and risk rankings.

Showing top 100 of 3144 counties with data

#	County	Score	Tax	Cost	Income
1	Los Alamos County, New Mexico	99.6	77.6	8.9	99.7
2	Douglas County, Colorado	99.1	80.7	0.8	99.8
3	Nantucket County, Massachusetts	99.1	99.7	0.5	98.5
4	Carver County, Minnesota	99.1	36.3	5.2	98.9
5	Broomfield County, Colorado	98.8	72.6	1.8	98.7
6	Dallas County, Iowa	98.8	15.1	9.7	96
7	Middlesex County, Massachusetts	98.8	34.2	0.8	99.1
8	Howard County, Maryland	98.7	26.4	1.1	99.8
9	Washington County, Minnesota	98.6	37.9	4.6	98.1
10	Newport County, Rhode Island	98.3	41.4	3.9	95.6
11	Winneshiek County, Iowa	98.2	27.1	44.5	78.1
12	Norfolk County, Massachusetts	98	31.8	0.8	99.1
13	Hunterdon County, New Jersey	98	3.1	2.2	99.6
14	Dodge County, Minnesota	97.9	32.2	19.3	93
15	Delaware County, Ohio	97.8	8.5	5.3	99.3
16	Dukes County, Massachusetts	97.7	86.1	5.2	95.9
17	Nassau County, New York	97.7	12.1	0.3	99.8
18	Ozaukee County, Wisconsin	97.7	23	13.7	94.6
19	Marin County, California	97.6	60.9	0.1	99.7
20	Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, Connecticut	97.6	5.8	6.4	95.6
21	Saratoga County, New York	97.6	13.1	9.1	95.2
22	San Francisco County, California	97.5	65.1	0.2	99.7
23	Olmsted County, Minnesota	97.5	32	12.2	93.2
24	Washington County, Rhode Island	97.5	34.1	7.8	96
25	Addison County, Vermont	97.4	7.3	12.2	91.1
26	Dakota County, Minnesota	97.2	38.2	5.9	96.5
27	Putnam County, New York	97.2	1.7	1.6	99.1
28	Hamilton County, Indiana	97.1	46.6	6.2	98.4
29	Arlington County, Virginia	97	45.2	0.3	99.6
30	Waukesha County, Wisconsin	96.8	25.2	9.2	96.3
31	San Mateo County, California	96.6	72.9	0.1	99.9
32	Goochland County, Virginia	96.5	85.8	7.3	98.4
33	Calumet County, Wisconsin	96.5	12	22.1	90.7
34	Chittenden County, Vermont	96.4	9.2	4.6	93.6
35	Morris County, New Jersey	96.3	5.1	1.4	99.5
36	Bristol County, Rhode Island	96.3	17.8	6	97.7
37	Somerset County, New Jersey	96.2	4	1.3	99.5
38	Barnstable County, Massachusetts	96.1	62	5.2	93.6
39	Wabasha County, Minnesota	96.1	32	41.8	84
40	Placer County, California	96	48.9	1.3	98.2
41	Clinton County, Michigan	96	23.3	21.6	89.2
42	Franklin County, Massachusetts	95.9	12.3	14.8	72.9
43	Loudoun County, Virginia	95.9	46.4	0.3	100
44	Livingston County, Michigan	95.8	39	11.3	95.7
45	Wright County, Minnesota	95.8	38.2	9.5	96.7
46	Monroe County, Illinois	95.7	7.1	20.3	95.8
47	Story County, Iowa	95.7	14.1	21.3	64.2
48	Rockingham County, New Hampshire	95.7	8.9	3.4	98
49	Washtenaw County, Michigan	95.6	10.4	7.8	90.3
50	Hampshire County, Massachusetts	95.5	14.7	8.5	89.7
51	Dane County, Wisconsin	95.4	6.7	7.6	91
52	St. Croix County, Wisconsin	95.4	24.1	10.2	96
53	Scott County, Minnesota	95.3	33.3	5	98.5
54	Johnson County, Iowa	95.2	10.2	14.8	76.9
55	Westchester County, New York	95.2	10.1	1.1	98.4
56	Williamson County, Tennessee	95.1	92.1	2.3	99.4
57	Ouray County, Colorado	94.8	99	22.3	88.2
58	Ottawa County, Michigan	94.8	34	17.6	90.2
59	Washington County, Wisconsin	94.8	25.7	14.4	94.1
60	Sarpy County, Nebraska	94.7	5.2	8.8	95.7
61	Boulder County, Colorado	94.6	82.4	2.5	96.1
62	Gilpin County, Colorado	94.6	99.5	7.3	91.4
63	Nicollet County, Minnesota	94.6	30	25.8	84.2
64	Tompkins County, New York	94.5	1.2	10.5	74
65	Montgomery County, Pennsylvania	94.5	16.9	4.2	97.8
66	King County, Washington	94.5	50	0.9	98.8
67	Oldham County, Kentucky	94.3	43.7	12.1	98.7
68	Santa Clara County, California	94.1	62.5	0.1	100
69	Anoka County, Minnesota	94.1	41.7	8.2	95
70	Loving County, Texas	94.1	N/A	N/A	16.8
71	El Dorado County, California	94	62.8	3.2	96.6
72	Oakland County, Michigan	94	20	10.1	94
73	Washington County, Nebraska	94	13.9	23	92.1
74	Orange County, Vermont	94	6	16.4	80.4
75	Ontario County, New York	93.9	1.9	18.7	83.6
76	Sherburne County, Minnesota	93.8	38.4	11.7	96.2
77	Madison County, Iowa	93.7	10.7	23.9	91.8
78	Johnson County, Kansas	93.6	27.8	6.8	96.8
79	Grundy County, Iowa	93.5	33.2	49.6	87.4
80	Steele County, Minnesota	93.5	25.4	21.8	87.3
81	Chester County, Pennsylvania	93.5	19.3	3	98.8
82	Calvert County, Maryland	93.4	47.1	3	99.4
83	Falls Church city, Virginia	93.4	38.5	0.2	99.9
84	Loup County, Nebraska	93.3	53.4	78.2	39.5
85	Chisago County, Minnesota	93.2	29.8	13.1	94.8
86	Hennepin County, Minnesota	93.2	28	6.1	94.4
87	Dutchess County, New York	93.2	3.6	4.6	94.7
88	Bremer County, Iowa	93.1	18.9	40.5	87.1
89	Keweenaw County, Michigan	93	42.5	80.4	22.6
90	Lincoln County, South Dakota	92.9	26.5	10.8	94.5
91	Jackson County, Minnesota	92.8	44.2	69.3	66.2
92	Iowa County, Wisconsin	92.8	10.4	27.3	87.2
93	Alameda County, California	92.5	56.4	0.2	99
94	DuPage County, Illinois	92.5	2.4	4.1	97.6
95	Union County, Ohio	92.5	23	11.4	97.4
96	Albany County, New York	92.4	4.2	11.3	87
97	Monroe County, New York	92.4	0.2	17	76.4
98	Lyon County, Iowa	92.2	43.8	48.3	73.7
99	Marion County, Iowa	92.2	21.2	35.5	81.6
100	Washington County, Vermont	92.2	4.4	15.2	83.7

Data: U.S. Census ACS, FBI UCR, CDC, FEMA NRI, NCES, EPA SDWIS. Scores are 0-100 (higher is better).