Millennials and Gen Z Say These Are the Best States To Retire In
Written by
Gabrielle Olya
Edited by
Joe Evans
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For millennials and Gen Zers, retirement is still decades away but some are already thinking ahead about their ideal retirement.
A large proportion of both of these generations said they would like to retire in the South, according to a new GOBankingRates survey — 41% of Americans ages 18 to 24, 42% of Americans ages 25 to 34 and 43% of Americans ages 35 to 44 said the South is the part of the U.S. they would want to live in in retirement.
As for which states they prefer, there were some generational differences. Here’s a look at where millennials and Gen Z want to retire.
Key Findings
- The South and the West are the most popular regions for retirement among both generations. While the largest proportion of both generations prefer to retire in the South, a significant portion want to retire in the West — 21% of Americans ages 18 to 24, 23% of Americans ages 25 to 34 and 20% of Americans ages 35 to 44.
- Gen Z and millennials both want to retire in Florida. According to the survey, 20% of Americans ages 18 to 24, 28% of Americans ages 25 to 34 and 28% of Americans ages 35 to 44 would choose Florida if they retire in the South.
- Ohio is the most popular choice for millennials and Gen Z who want to retire in the Midwest. Seventeen percent of Americans ages 18 to 24, 18% of Americans ages 25 to 34 and 16% of Americans ages 35 to 44 would choose Ohio if they retire in the Midwest.
Gen Z’s Favorite States for Retirement
The GOBankingRates survey asked Americans of all ages where they would choose to retire in the South and the Midwest. Among Gen Z (ages 18 to 24), the top choices in the South are Florida (20%), Texas (18%), Georgia (12%) and Washington, D.C. (10%). In the Midwest, this generation prefers Ohio (17%), Illinois (15%), Michigan (12%) and North Dakota (8%).
Millennials’ Favorite States for Retirement
There’s some overlap between millennials’ and Gen Z’s preferred places to retire, but they don’t see eye-to-eye on everything. For younger millennials (ages 25 to 34), the preferred states to retire in the South are Florida (28%), Texas (17%), North Carolina (10%) and Georgia (9%). Older millennials (ages 35 to 44) prefer Florida (28%), Texas (14%), North Carolina (12%) and Tennessee (6%).
In the Midwest, younger millennials (ages 25 to 34) prefer Ohio (18%), Michigan (15%), Illinois (11%) and Missouri (8%). Older millennials (ages 35 to 44) prefer Ohio (16%), Missouri (13%), Michigan (12%) and Illinois (10%).
An Expert Weighs In
Since the youngest members of Gen Z and the millennial generation are four to five decades away from traditional retirement age, it’s hard to predict the best places for these generations to retire. GOBankingRates asked Todd Stearn, founder of The Money Manual, to weigh in with his predictions.
“According to Deloitte’s 2023 Gen Z and Millennial Survey, both generations rank the cost of living — especially housing affordability — and climate change among their top concerns,” Stearn said.
These factors could certainly influence where these generations spend their retirement years.
A separate Scholaroo study found the best places for millennials to live currently, and Stearn believes these could also be the best places for them to retire.
“Minnesota came in at No. 1 thanks to factors like affordability, political climate and quality of life,” Stearn said. “It was also named the least stressed state in a recent WalletHub study. Utah came in at No. 2 for millennials, and it was also named one of the lowest-stress states and had the highest volunteer rate. It was even named the happiest state in America by WalletHub.”
“Rounding out the top five were Massachusetts, Colorado and Vermont,” he continued. “The factors that make these great states for millennials to live in now — including quality of life, affordability and political climates in line with their ideals — are also factors that will likely make these great states for millennials to retire to, so long as these factors remain in place until then.”
The best states for Gen Z to retire in can be harder to pinpoint given how far away this generation is from the current traditional retirement age — and that age might be even older by the time Gen Z gets there.
“For Gen Z, currently ages 12 to 27, retirement age is likely to continue creeping slowly upward, but it’s hard to say how far it will move over the next 45-plus years,” Stearn said. “It would be difficult to predict how the states could change over that period, but we can look at how Gen Z’s differences from millennials could impact their retirement choices.”
One key difference between these generations is that Gen Z is more politically engaged, which could affect the states where they ultimately retire.
“A CIRCLE analysis of Census data reveals that Gen Z voted at a higher rate than previous generations did in their first elections, including millennials,” Stearn said. “If Gen Z continues to be more politically engaged, then they could be led more strongly by their political views in where they choose to retire than millennials will be.”
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