U.S. News & World Report this week revealed the best places to retire in 2026.
The study examines over 850 cities across the U.S., scoring them based on factors like housing affordability, quality of life, and proximity to health care.
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“For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, quality of life scored higher than affordability in the U.S. News weighting survey,” the report reads. “Today’s retirees value overall well-being and connection to community over cost alone.”
According to the researchers, Florida was a prominent state among the top-ranked cities in the latest report, featuring three locations in the top 10 alone.
“This year’s new senior population/migration metric captures Florida’s enduring popularity among older Americans. The Sunshine State has three cities in this year’s top 10.
Quiet Homosassa Springs (No. 3), surrounded by the wildlife reserves and waterways of the Gulf Coast, scores high for tax favorability (No. 3) and senior population/migration (No. 12). Spring Hill (No. 7), 50 miles north of Tampa, offers suburban affordability (No. 119).
And on the bustling Atlantic coast, south of historic St. Augustine, Palm Coast (No. 9) lures retirees with its warm winters, low taxes (No. 15) and booming senior population (No. 14).”
U.S. News & World Report
However, the highest-ranked city on last year’s list, Naples, didn’t fare quite as well this time around, dropping all the way down to No. 18.
Meanwhile, this year’s ranking of the top 100 cities is as follows:
| Rank | City | State | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Midland | MI | 6.8 |
| 2 | Weirton | WV | 6.6 |
| 3 | Homosassa Springs | FL | 6.6 |
| 4 | The Woodlands | TX | 6.5 |
| 5 | Spring | TX | 6.5 |
| 6 | Rio Rancho | NM | 6.4 |
| 7 | Spring Hill | FL | 6.3 |
| 8 | Altoona | PA | 6.3 |
| 9 | Palm Coast | FL | 6.3 |
| 10 | Lynchburg | VA | 6.3 |
| 11 | Bismarck | ND | 6.2 |
| 12 | Victoria | TX | 6.2 |
| 13 | Palm Harbor | FL | 6.2 |
| 14 | Rochester Hills | MI | 6.2 |
| 15 | Troy | MI | 6.2 |
| 16 | Sioux Falls | SD | 6.2 |
| 17 | Pearland | TX | 6.2 |
| 18 | Naples | FL | 6.2 |
| 19 | Pensacola | FL | 6.2 |
| 20 | Conroe | TX | 6.2 |
| 21 | Cape Coral | FL | 6.2 |
| 22 | Bonita Springs | FL | 6.1 |
| 23 | Fishers | IN | 6.1 |
| 24 | Port Charlotte | FL | 6.1 |
| 25 | League City | TX | 6.1 |
| 26 | Paducah | KY | 6.1 |
| 27 | Greenwood | IN | 6.1 |
| 28 | San Angelo | TX | 6.1 |
| 29 | Noblesville | IN | 6.1 |
| 30 | Jacksonville | FL | 6.1 |
| 31 | Farmington Hills | MI | 6.1 |
| 32 | Carmel | IN | 6.1 |
| 33 | Pinellas Park | FL | 6.1 |
| 34 | West Des Moines | IA | 6.1 |
| 35 | Columbus | IN | 6.1 |
| 36 | Largo | FL | 6.1 |
| 37 | Flower Mound | TX | 6.1 |
| 38 | Owensboro | KY | 6.1 |
| 39 | Cheyenne | WY | 6.1 |
| 40 | Punta Gorda | FL | 6.1 |
| 41 | Wyoming | MI | 6.0 |
| 42 | Lexington | KY | 6.0 |
| 43 | Zephyrhills | FL | 6.0 |
| 44 | Ankeny | IA | 6.0 |
| 45 | Apex | NC | 6.0 |
| 46 | Palm Bay | FL | 6.0 |
| 47 | Livonia | MI | 6.0 |
| 48 | Crestview | FL | 6.0 |
| 49 | O’Fallon | MO | 6.0 |
| 50 | St. Charles | MO | 6.0 |
| 51 | Cary | NC | 6.0 |
| 52 | Clermont | FL | 6.0 |
| 53 | Brandon | FL | 6.0 |
| 54 | Moore | OK | 6.0 |
| 55 | Broken Arrow | OK | 6.0 |
| 56 | Edmond | OK | 6.0 |
| 57 | Eau Claire | WI | 6.0 |
| 58 | Leander | TX | 6.0 |
| 59 | Casper | WY | 6.0 |
| 60 | Greenville | SC | 6.0 |
| 61 | Wheeling | WV | 6.0 |
| 62 | Round Rock | TX | 6.0 |
| 63 | Clearwater | FL | 6.0 |
| 64 | Pinehurst | NC | 5.9 |
| 65 | St. Peters | MO | 5.9 |
| 66 | Sugar Land | TX | 5.9 |
| 67 | Weston | FL | 5.9 |
| 68 | Missouri City | TX | 5.9 |
| 69 | Riverview | FL | 5.9 |
| 70 | Rapid City | SD | 5.9 |
| 71 | Elizabethtown | KY | 5.9 |
| 72 | Meridian | ID | 5.9 |
| 73 | Newton | MA | 5.9 |
| 74 | Idaho Falls | ID | 5.9 |
| 75 | Pflugerville | TX | 5.9 |
| 76 | McAllen | TX | 5.9 |
| 77 | Harrisonburg | VA | 5.9 |
| 78 | Niles | MI | 5.9 |
| 79 | High Point | NC | 5.9 |
| 80 | Bay City | MI | 5.9 |
| 81 | Charleston | WV | 5.9 |
| 82 | Traverse City | MI | 5.9 |
| 83 | Surprise | AZ | 5.9 |
| 84 | Council Bluff | IA | 5.9 |
| 85 | Palm Beach Gardens | FL | 5.9 |
| 86 | Sterling Heights | MI | 5.9 |
| 87 | Smyrna | GA | 5.9 |
| 88 | Melbourne | FL | 5.9 |
| 89 | Ellicott City | MD | 5.9 |
| 90 | Ormond Beach | FL | 5.9 |
| 91 | Tampa | FL | 5.9 |
| 92 | Lakeland | FL | 5.9 |
| 93 | Novi | MI | 5.9 |
| 94 | Johnson City | TN | 5.9 |
| 95 | South Bend | IN | 5.8 |
| 96 | Alafaya | FL | 5.8 |
| 97 | Winston-Salem | NC | 5.8 |
| 98 | Sammamish | WA | 5.8 |
| 99 | Joplin | MO | 5.8 |
| 100 | Pharr | TX | 5.8 |