Washington 5th most expensive state to retire in, study shows
Nov 17, 2025, 3:01 PM
Vicki Phillips (L) and her friend Wendy Priest take advantage of senior shopping hours at a Safeway grocery store early in the morning on March 19, 2020 in Lynnwood, Washington. (Photo: Karen Ducey, Getty Images)
(Photo: Karen Ducey, Getty Images)
Looking to retire in Washington? It won’t come cheap.
A study by NetCredit revealed Washington is the fifth most expensive state to retire in.
It costs more than $950,000 to retire in Washington
Factoring in average retirement age, life expectancy, local costs, and 20% for breathing room — the cost to retire in Washington is $967,166.
The most expensive state to retire in was Hawaii, at $1,097,790, followed by Massachusetts at $1,059,811, California at $1,053,814, and New York at $1,011,425.
Meanwhile, the state with the lowest cost was West Virginia, at $712,921. Other states with low costs include Arkansas at $715,126, South Dakota at $724,669, North Dakota at $725,851, and Kentucky at $737,264.
Most and least expensive countries to retire in
Looking worldwide, the U.S. is the fifth most expensive country to retire in, at an average of $737,997. The most expensive country is Singapore at $1,146,232, followed by Iceland at $892,906, Switzerland at $858,950, and Luxembourg at $794,045.
The least expensive countries to retire in are Pakistan at $187,065, India at $188,901, Bangladesh at $189,625, and Nepal at $214,396.
“We live nicely in a way that I would have to have much more to live like this in the U.S.,” Albert Greenwood, who retired to Nepal from New York, said, as reported in the study. “But I know not everybody has success with these moves. If you have a big family, you miss them, and maybe that’s going to be a problem.”
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Saving for retirement
To save for retirement, NetCredit recommends setting savings goals, determining total assets and future earnings, automating savings, utilizing employer-sponsored retirement plans, and visualizing the benefits of saving for retirement.
“Seeing the life you want to live in detail can incentivize you to save more in order to live that life,” Mark Hebner, CEO of Index Fund Advisors, stated, as reported in the study.
Overall, NetCredit stressed the importance of identifying how much is needed to save for retirement and coming up with a plan to do so.
Contributing: Manda Factor, KIRO Newsradio
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