How Long $250,000 Will Last in Retirement in Each State

It’s hard to plan for exactly how much money you’ll need in retirement, because it depends upon a number of factors, including where you live and what sort of expenses you have.

Some people are lucky to have a lot of money in their golden years — with retirees either giving thanks to their pensions or maybe it’s their well aimed retirement investments — while others may just be scraping by. To help you plan for your future retirement, GOBankingRates set out to find out how long $250,000 will last in every state.

Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2022 Consumer Expenditure Survey, GOBankingRates looked at the average annual cost of groceries, housing, utilities, transportation and healthcare for people 65 and older in every state. All data was collected on and up to date as of June 15, 2023.

Take a look at how long $250,000 will last in every state (and Washington, D.C.), ranked from the shortest amount of time to the longest. Keep reading to find out where you can get the most out of your retirement funds.

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 2 years, 8 months, 5 days
• Annual expenditure: $93,332

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 3 years, 2 months, 19 days
• Annual expenditure: $77,534

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 3 years, 2 months, 22 days
• Annual expenditure: $77,377

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 3 years, 6 months, 23 days
• Annual expenditure: $70,130

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 3 years, 9 months, 29 days
• Annual expenditure: $65,228

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 3 years, 10 months, 7 days
• Annual expenditure: $64,863

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 0 months, 4 days
• Annual expenditure: $64,863

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 2 months, 1 day
• Annual expenditure: $60,014

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 2 months, 1 day
• Annual expenditure: $60,014

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 2 months, 1 day
• Annual expenditure: $59,962

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 2 months, 1 day
• Annual expenditure: $59,910

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 2 months, 12 days
• Annual expenditure: $59,493

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 2 months, 26 days
• Annual expenditure: $58,971

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 3 months, 19 days
• Annual expenditure: $58,137

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 4 months, 3 days
• Annual expenditure: $57,616

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 5 months, 20 days
• Annual expenditure: $55,895

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 6 months, 7 days
• Annual expenditure: $55,322

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 6 months, 15 days
• Annual expenditure: $55,009

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 7 months, 14 days
• Annual expenditure: $54,070

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 7 months, 25 days
• Annual expenditure: $53,757

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 8 months, 1 day
• Annual expenditure: $53,497

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 8 months, 9 days
• Annual expenditure: $53,340

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 8 months, 19 days
• Annual expenditure: $52,923

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 8 months, 23 days
• Annual expenditure: $52,819

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 10 months, 2 days
• Annual expenditure: $51,620

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 11 months, 19 days
• Annual expenditure: $50,316

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 4 years, 11 months, 26 days
• Annual expenditure: $50,108

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 0 months, 18 days
• Annual expenditure: $49,534

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 0 months, 25 days
• Annual expenditure: $49,325

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 1 month, 2 days
• Annual expenditure: $49,117

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 1 month, 5 days
• Annual expenditure: $49,065

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 1 month, 5 days
• Annual expenditure: $49,013

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 1 month, 9 days
• Annual expenditure: $48,908

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 1 month, 9 days
• Annual expenditure: $48,908

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 1 month, 27 days
• Annual expenditure: $48,491

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 2 months, 0 days
• Annual expenditure: $48,387

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 2 months, 0 days
• Annual expenditure: $48,335

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 2 months, 14 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,970

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 2 months, 25 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,709

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 3 months, 8 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,448

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 3 months, 12 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,448

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 3 months, 19 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,135

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 3 months, 23 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,083

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 3 months, 23 days
• Annual expenditure: $47,083

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 3 months, 27 days
• Annual expenditure: $46,979

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 4 months, 7 days
• Annual expenditure: $46,770

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 4 months, 25 days
• Annual expenditure: $46,301

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 5 months, 2 days
• Annual expenditure: $46,093

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 5 months, 20 days
• Annual expenditure: $45,728

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 7 months, 0 days
• Annual expenditure: $44,841

$250,000 will last:

• Years, months and days: 5 years, 7 months, 14 days
• Annual expenditure: $44,476

Despite the magic retirement number being often cited as $1 million, that’s not necessarily what you’ll need to live a happy and fulfilling life during your golden years. If you have $250,000 saved for your retirement, this guide offers a look at how long that will last you — but it’s a good idea to consult with a financial advisor to find out what steps you can take to make that money last.

Jordan Rosenfeld contributed to the reporting for this article.

Methodology: In order to find how long $250,000 will last across the country, GOBankingRates first found (1) the national average annual expenditures for people 65 and older, sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2022 Consumer Expenditure Survey data. Then, GOBankingRates created (2) state-level annual expenditure estimates by multiplying the national figure by each state’s overall cost of living index score for the 1Q 2023 from the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center. Finally, GOBankingRates found (3) how many years $250,000 will last in each state by dividing $250,000 by each state’s average annual expenditures estimate. All 50 states and the District of Columbia were then ranked with No. 1 being the state where $250,000 will last the longest and No. 51 being the state where it will run out most quickly. GOBankingRates provided supplemental information on the average annual cost of groceries, housing, utilities, transportation and healthcare for people 65 and older in each state by again using MERIC’s cost of living indices for each category to factor out national estimates from the CES. All data was collected on and up to date as of June 15, 2023.

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