Nearly one million people ages 60 and over in the U.S. crossed state lines to make a new home in 2023, according to the latest data from the Census Bureau. With a lower risk tolerance for market fluctuations, retirees may seek other ways to maximize their income and make the most out of life, including moving to places that better suit their budget, tax, and lifestyle needs.
In addition to seeking fulfilling and financially secure retirements, wider trends in migration among this demographic have potential implications for the local tax base, housing market, and business environment.
With this in mind, SmartAsset ranked 164 of the largest U.S. cities and all 50 states based on the net number of retirees — assumed to be people ages 60 and over — moving in.
Key Findings
- Southwestern cities are the most popular destinations for retirees. Mesa, AZ gained the most retirees studywide with a net gain of 2,044. In Nevada, North Las Vegas (+1,420); Paradise (+1,416); Spring Valley (+1,312); Henderson (+1,194) also made the top 10 cities retirees are flocking to, along with Scottsdale, AZ (+904).
- Despite a preference for Southwestern cities, Florida and North Carolina are the most popular states for retirees. Florida gained the most retirees over one year at a net of +44,504. North Carolina ranked second at the state level with a net gain of 20,369. Arizona was neck and neck with North Carolina at +20,203.
- Retirees are steering clear of New York City. In just one year, a net 17,084 retirees moved out of The Big Apple, after 23,874 individuals aged 60 and over moved out compared to only 6,790 moving in. Relative to population size, Ann Arbor, MI (-889) is losing retirees at the fastest rate.
- At the state level, California lost the most retirees. A net of 56,858 people aged 60 and over left California in 2023. In particular, Los Angeles (-3,187) and San Diego (-2,604) had large net losses, second and third only to New York City.
Cities Where Retirees Are Moving
Cities are ranked based on the net migration of people aged 60 and over in 2023.
1. Mesa, Arizona
- Net migration: 2,044
- Retirees who moved in: 4,941
- Retirees who moved out: 2,897
- Total population, all ages: 511,624
- Total population aged 60+: 131,562
- North Las Vegas, Nevada
- Net migration: 1,420
- Retirees who moved in: 2,443
- Retirees who moved out: 1,023
- Total population, all ages: 284,772
- Total population aged 60+: 52,082
- Paradise, Nevada
- Net migration: 1,416
- Retirees who moved in: 2,054
- Retirees who moved out: 638
- Total population, all ages: 177,413
- Total population aged 60+: 37,849
- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Net migration: 1,314
- Retirees who moved in: 2,599
- Retirees who moved out: 1,285
- Total population, all ages: 702,654
- Total population aged 60+: 132,318
- Spring Valley, Nevada
- Net migration: 1,312
- Retirees who moved in: 1,421
- Retirees who moved out: 109
- Total population, all ages: 198,326
- Total population aged 60+: 47,754
- Henderson, Nevada
- Net migration: 1,194
- Retirees who moved in: 3,578
- Retirees who moved out: 2,384
- Total population, all ages: 337,280
- Total population aged 60+: 90,764
- Durham, North Carolina
- Net migration: 1,117
- Retirees who moved in: 1,406
- Retirees who moved out: 289
- Total population, all ages: 295,845
- Total population aged 60+: 55,904
- Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Net migration: 1,054
- Retirees who moved in: 2,163
- Retirees who moved out: 1,109
- Total population, all ages: 425,142
- Total population aged 60+: 70,151
- St. Petersburg, Florida
- Net migration: 981
- Retirees who moved in: 2,294
- Retirees who moved out: 1,313
- Total population, all ages: 263,546
- Total population aged 60+: 79,785
- Scottsdale, Arizona
- Net migration: 904
- Retirees who moved in: 2,519
- Retirees who moved out: 1,615
- Total population, all ages: 244,421
- Total population aged 60+: 87,179
Top 10 Cities Retirees Are Moving Out Of
Cities are ranked based on the net migration of people aged 60 and over in 2023.
- New York, New York
- Net migration: -17,084
- Retirees who moved in: 6,790
- Retirees who moved out: 23,874
- Total population, all ages: 8,258,035
- Total population aged 60+: 1,940,556
- Los Angeles, California
- Net migration: -3,187
- Retirees who moved in: 4,196
- Retirees who moved out: 7,383
- Total population, all ages: 3,820,963
- Total population aged 60+: 763,361
- San Diego, California
- Net migration: -2,604
- Retirees who moved in: 1,541
- Retirees who moved out: 4,145
- Total population, all ages: 1,388,312
- Total population aged 60+: 273,581
- Washington, District of Columbia
- Net migration: -2,434
- Retirees who moved in: 2,710
- Retirees who moved out: 5,144
- Total population, all ages: 678,972
- Total population aged 60+: 120,177
- Denver, Colorado
- Net migration: -2,286
- Retirees who moved in: 1,801
- Retirees who moved out: 4,087
- Total population, all ages: 716,577
- Total population aged 60+: 125,676
- Oakland, California
- Net migration: -2,016
- Retirees who moved in: 379
- Retirees who moved out: 2,395
- Total population, all ages: 436,508
- Total population aged 60+: 88,080
- Arlington, Virginia
- Net migration: -1,703
- Retirees who moved in: 771
- Retirees who moved out: 2,474
- Total population, all ages: 234,162
- Total population aged 60+: 40,434
- Chicago, Illinois
- Net migration: -1,699
- Retirees who moved in: 3,612
- Retirees who moved out: 5,311
- Total population, all ages: 2,664,454
- Total population aged 60+: 533,029
- San Jose, California
- Net migration: -1,668
- Retirees who moved in: 656
- Retirees who moved out: 2,324
- Total population, all ages: 969,615
- Total population aged 60+: 200,684
- Anchorage, Alaska
- Net migration: -1,413
- Retirees who moved in: 355
- Retirees who moved out: 1,768
- Total population, all ages: 286,075
- Total population aged 60+: 53,946
Top 10 States Where Retirees Are Moving
States are ranked based on the net migration of people aged 60 and over in 2023.
- Florida
- Net migration: 44,504
- Retirees who moved in: 143,378
- Retirees who moved out: 98,874
- Total population, all ages: 22,610,726
- Total population aged 60+: 6,515,453
- North Carolina
- Net migration: 20,369
- Retirees who moved in: 45,803
- Retirees who moved out: 25,434
- Total population, all ages: 10,835,491
- Total population aged 60+: 2,610,422
- Arizona
- Net migration: 20,203
- Retirees who moved in: 54,045
- Retirees who moved out: 33,842
- Total population, all ages: 7,431,344
- Total population aged 60+: 1,905,562
- South Carolina
- Net migration: 14,676
- Retirees who moved in: 34,738
- Retirees who moved out: 20,062
- Total population, all ages: 5,373,555
- Total population aged 60+: 1,408,424
- Georgia
- Net migration: 13,789
- Retirees who moved in: 37,145
- Retirees who moved out: 23,356
- Total population, all ages: 11,029,227
- Total population aged 60+: 2,370,455
- Texas
- Net migration: 10,050
- Retirees who moved in: 60,245
- Retirees who moved out: 50,195
- Total population, all ages: 30,503,301
- Total population aged 60+: 5,889,582
- Nevada
- Net migration: 5,782
- Retirees who moved in: 22,036
- Retirees who moved out: 16,254
- Total population, all ages: 3,194,176
- Total population aged 60+: 757,348
- Idaho
- Net migration: 5,182
- Retirees who moved in: 13,665
- Retirees who moved out: 8,483
- Total population, all ages: 1,964,726
- Total population aged 60+: 463,084
- Oklahoma
- Net migration: 4,940
- Retirees who moved in: 13,021
- Retirees who moved out: 8,081
- Total population, all ages: 4,053,824
- Total population aged 60+: 925,676
- Delaware
- Net migration: 4,519
- Retirees who moved in: 8,718
- Retirees who moved out: 4,199
- Total population, all ages: 1,031,890
- Total population aged 60+: 296,881
Top 10 States Retirees Are Moving Out of
Cities are ranked based on the net migration of people aged 60 and over in 2023.
- California
- Net migration: -56,858
- Retirees who moved in: 40,749
- Retirees who moved out: 97,607
- Total population, all ages: 38,965,193
- Total population aged 60+: 8,651,346
- New York
- Net migration: -39,123
- Retirees who moved in: 26,092
- Retirees who moved out: 65,215
- Total population, all ages: 19,571,216
- Total population aged 60+: 4,950,701
- New Jersey
- Net migration: -15,151
- Retirees who moved in: 17,097
- Retirees who moved out: 32,248
- Total population, all ages: 9,290,841
- Total population aged 60+: 2,279,626
- Illinois
- Net migration: -14,207
- Retirees who moved in: 22,260
- Retirees who moved out: 36,467
- Total population, all ages: 12,549,689
- Total population aged 60+: 3,031,809
- Maryland
- Net migration: -6,118
- Retirees who moved in: 17,243
- Retirees who moved out: 23,361
- Total population, all ages: 6,180,253
- Total population aged 60+: 1,481,299
- Pennsylvania
- Net migration: -4,829
- Retirees who moved in: 27,647
- Retirees who moved out: 32,476
- Total population, all ages: 12,961,683
- Total population aged 60+: 3,499,469
- Colorado
- Net migration: -4,648
- Retirees who moved in: 23,199
- Retirees who moved out: 27,847
- Total population, all ages: 5,877,610
- Total population aged 60+: 1,301,867
- Massachusetts
- Net migration: -4,544
- Retirees who moved in: 15,093
- Retirees who moved out: 19,637
- Total population, all ages: 7,001,399
- Total population aged 60+: 1,782,008
- Michigan
- Net migration: -4,161
- Retirees who moved in: 22,848
- Retirees who moved out: 27,009
- Total population, all ages: 10,037,261
- Total population aged 60+: 2,629,520
- Washington
- Net migration: -3,807
- Retirees who moved in: 21,417
- Retirees who moved out: 25,224
- Total population, all ages: 7,812,880
- Total population aged 60+: 1,822,469
Data and Methodology
To find both the states and cities where retirees are moving, SmartAsset analyzed data from the Census Bureau’s 2023 one-year American Community Survey.
This SmartAsset study considers the populations aged 60 and older (for these purposes, retirees) in 164 of the largest cities in the U.S. for which data was available, as well as all 50 states. Net migration for each city was determined by subtracting the number of retirees who moved out of the city or state from the number of people in that demographic who moved into the city or state. Cities were ranked by the highest net migration.
This story was produced by SmartAsset and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
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Not a head-scratcher… “Blue States” to “Red States”…. CYA!
California retirees who move to another state boost their spending power.
California’s high taxes and cost of living is why people are leaving the state.
Yeah, that is, of course, why our population is increasing.
Yeah, no. You’re missing the point of the article. Take a look at who’s coming and who’s leaving. That’s what this is about.