Americans face vastly different retirement costs across states as Social Security cuts loom

Fox Business ^ | 6/20/25 | Aislinn Murphy

[Libloather]

That's a lotta loot. Wish me luck on my upcoming yuge lottery win. Should happen any day now...

[Libloather]

North Carolina ($86,857 cost of living per year): $1,737,146

North Dakota ($78,734 cost of living per year): $1,574,682

Ohio ($73,120 cost of living per year): $1,462,391

Oklahoma ($69,161 cost of living per year): $1,383,214

Oregon ($111,541 cost of living per year): $2,230,814

Pennsylvania ($78,582 cost of living per year): $1,571,642

Rhode Island ($109,811 cost of living per year): $2,196,222

South Carolina ($81,586 cost of living per year): $1,631,721

South Dakota ($81,949 cost of living per year): $1,638,979

Tennessee ($81,474 cost of living per year): $1,629,482

Texas ($81,985 cost of living per year): $1,639,693

Utah ($110,623 cost of living per year): $2,212,458

Vermont ($97,999 cost of living per year): $1,959,971

Virginia ($96,141 cost of living per year): $1,922,813

Washington ($126,952 cost of living per year): $2,539,048

West Virginia ($64,715 cost of living per year): $1,294,300

Wisconsin ($84,485 cost of living per year): $1,689,700

Wyoming ($88,792 cost of living per year): $1,775,841

[metmom]

People need to do serious financial planning when they’re young and that just isn’t on most young people’s radar.

My kids get it and have been putting money away for retirement for years already. I guess we taught them SOMETHING when they were growing up.

[hoosierham]

I’d do ok on half .

[napscoordinator]

I spend 4K a month in Florida. Not sure where they get the 100K from. I bring in 77K a year so 100K would require additional revenue. Seems very exaggerated.

[PAR35]

Simple enough solution. Move to rural Louisiana or rural Mississippi.

[bicyclerepair]

Same here. Lived in FL since a kid. Never made near that.

[Jonty30]

Lots of wide open wildnerness that you can drop a trailer and not be detected for years on end.

[ClearCase_guy]

Massachusetts ($136,626 cost of living): $2,732,517

I recently retired in MA.
I live in a big, expensive house. With enormous property taxes.
I'm currently budgeted for 7000 a month, and it's too much. I'm going to reduce my monthly allowance to 6000 which ought to be just fine. I'm not collecting social security yet, but will in a few months, and that will pay for more than half my needs.

I have no idea where this $136,000 figure is coming from.

[shelterguy]

“””Simple enough solution. Move to rural Louisiana or rural Mississippi.”””

Being retired I would love to live out in the boonies somewhere. But then you are far away from good medical facilities so you would be traveling all the time.

[DAC21]

California over three million!, only Hawaii is worst.

[Fledermaus]

Same. About 4k a month for 2. Make 120k a year. Bring home 7k a month.

[birdsman]

Some people have a different definition of comfortable than others.

[dfwgator]

Compound Interest is the 8th Wonder Of The World.

[Sacajaweau]

The numbers are ridiculous.

[crusty old prospector]

It sounds like you need to be eating more lobster and drinking champagne.

[Brian Griffin]

“Compound Interest is the 8th Wonder Of The World.”

Compound Inflation is the 9th.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Tell me about those looming social security cuts. I haven’t heard about them.

[Dr. Sivana]

Simple enough solution. Move to rural Louisiana or rural Mississippi.

My simple solution is, don't retire.

[PAR35]

Being retired I would love to live out in the boonies somewhere.

Well, Zimbabwe is cheaper than Mississippi, and parts of it aren't much different. Decent medical care if you live within range of Jackson, Memphis, or New Orleans, but there are large risks in going to any of those. Louisiana - decent medical care in New Orleans, Shreveport, or Baton Rouge. But same risks. Maybe the Florida parishes of Louisiana?