44 Best Small Towns To Retire in America

As you near retirement age, you might dream of a quiet life in a small town. The kind of place where you can relax on your porch or find that a run-in with your neighbors in the town square becomes a late-night catching up. However, all small towns aren’t created equal.

Some small towns are better suited for retirees for many reasons, from lower cost of living to reduced crime rates and higher ratings for overall livability. To give you valuable insights into which small towns might be the best for you, GOBankingRates analyzed median incomes, cost of living, livability and crime rates to determine the 44 best small towns where you can set up your home sweet home after you retire.

• Monthly Cost of Living: $2,810
• Livability: 87
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 55.80

• Monthly Cost of Living: $2,840
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 9.68

Pictured: Nearby Pittsburgh

• Monthly Cost of Living: $2,937
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 7.43

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,036
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 33.86

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,084
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 50.27

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,143
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 15.97

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,185
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 12.95

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,255
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 9.912

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,333
• Livability: 83
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 72.47

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,343
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 61.24

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,347
• Livability: 86
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 8.677

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,356
• Livability: 92
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 9.386

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,379
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 8.925

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,383
• Livability: 86
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 6.455

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,417
• Livability: 83
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 52.33

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,500
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 13.86

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,542
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 5.862

Pictured: Nearby Lubbock

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,570
• Livability: 84
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 9.716

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,630
• Livability: 84
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 11.11

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,661
• Livability: 84
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 42.88

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,672
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 25.37

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,715
• Livability: 84
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 5.840

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,866
• Livability: 85
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 6.795

• Monthly Cost of Living: $3,917
• Livability: 87
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 7.170

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,066
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 11.73

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,066
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 11.73

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,289
• Livability: 88
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 12.15

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,349
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 45.10

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,408
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 6.169

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,419
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 21.43

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,454
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 27.69

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,527
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 7.729

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,610
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 3.126

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,618
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 19.08

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,823
• Livability: 82
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 13.19

Pictured: Nearby Ponte Vedra Beach

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,921
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 12.58

• Monthly Cost of Living: $4,966
• Livability: 87
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 7.795

• Monthly Cost of Living: $5,118
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 4.014

• Monthly Cost of Living: $5,258
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 34.05

• Monthly Cost of Living: $5,365
• Livability: 80
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 44.71

• Monthly Cost of Living: $5,378
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 6.151

• Monthly Cost of Living: $5,385
• Livability: 81
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 6.368

• Monthly Cost of Living: $5,785
• Livability: 85
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 32.37

• Monthly Cost of Living: $7,980
• Livability: 84
• Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents): 21.87

Jami Farkas contributed to the reporting for this story.

Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed small towns across the country to find the best small towns to retire. GOBankingRates started by finding all the towns with a population between 1,000 and 10,000 residents as sourced from the US Census American Community Survey, along with the total households and median household income. The average rental cost was found as sourced from Zillow Observed Rental Index. The cost of living indexes were found for each city as sourced from Sperlings BestPlaces. Using the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey for Retired Residents, the average expenditure cost can be calculated for each expenditure for each city. The expenditure cost was added to the rental cost to find the monthly total cost of living. Using the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer the number of reported crimes for each city can be found and using the population the crime rate per 1,000 residents can be calculated. The livability index was found from AreaVibes and all cities with a livability below 80 were removed as they have lower than ideal quality of life. All cities with data missing from any source were removed and the remaining 200 cities were scored. The household median income was scored and weighted at 1.00, the expenditure cost was scored and weighted at 1.25, the rent cost was scored and weighted at 1.25, the livability index was scored and weighted at 1.00, and the crime rate was scored and weighted at 1.00. All the scores were summed and sorted to show the best small town to retire in America. All data was collected and is up-to-date as-of May 17, 2024.