Retirement is a hard-earned chapter of life where older people can escape the daily grind of a busy workweek to focus on their health, relaxation, and quality time with loved ones. While many potential retirees dream of warm weather and sandy beaches, they’re forced to make plans based on financial realities. Many people want to know where they can stretch their savings the farthest. Each state offers its own charms and advantages, but the team at Ooma presents the real financial situation with a ranking by affordability.

Click below to zoom.

A Stark Financial Divide

Ooma’s analysis reveals dramatic differences in cost across each statement in America. They’ve determined the minimum savings needed to get by, and the results ranged from a modest $713,000 in West Virginia to a huge sum of $2.2 million in Hawaii. Their research combined nine factors to create the 400-point scoring system. Categories included savings thresholds, assisted living costs, tax burdens, memory care expenses, healthcare expenditures, and home care rates. Combined, this score reflects the true cost of retirement.

We see Hawaii emerging as the most expensive state to retire in by far. Their geographic isolation drives up the cost of living, which is common for island life. Assisted living costs are staggering, too, at $139,807 per year, and memory care reaches $11,000 a month. These costs can suck up retirement savings fast. California was the second-most expensive state, followed by Massachusetts, which both prove how steep the price of a fun lifestyle or premium healthcare can be.

The Budget-Friendly States

At the opposite end of the spectrum lies Mississippi, the most affordable state to retire in. Assisted living costs about $54,943 a year and home care costs about $25 an hour, which creates a great option for budget-conscious retirees. Alabama and Oklahoma are also on the affordable end of the spectrum, combining low living costs with affordable healthcare and tax-friendly policies.

Tax Policy Makes a Powerful Impact

State tax policies create significant cost differences between states that affect basic living expenses. Seven states on the list earned a “very tax-friendly” status due to eliminating most retirement-related taxes. These states were Alaska, Florida, Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, Georgia, and Mississippi. These states don’t tax retirement income or Social Security benefits and have minimal property taxes. On the other end of the scale, California, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Minnesota, and Nebraska have the heaviest tax burdens which can eat up to 10.73% of income. These factors can’t be ignored when considering retirement costs.

Considering Healthcare Cost

Healthcare expenses are significant for aging people, and Utah has the most affordable healthcare, while New York has the most expensive healthcare. However, it’s important to consider that price often reflects healthcare quality. Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York have the most expensive healthcare but are also the highest rated.

Paying for a Lifestyle

Despite high costs, we can see on the chart that some of the most expensive states are the most popular. Hawaii, California, and Florida are the retirement dream for anyone seeking warm weather and beautiful beaches. Luckily, research like the data presented here can help people effectively plan for whatever retirement future they dream of.

Social media platforms connect billions of people worldwide every day, but these platforms aren’t uniform. They’re diverse micro-societies reflecting different age groups at different rates. Ooma’s new infographic analyzes social media usage patterns to deliver insights about generational preferences and a picture of the digital landscape’s influence on information spread.

The Ooma team used data from the Pew Research Center’s Social Media Fact Sheet and other reputable sources of social media demographics. Their approach gives us domestic and global information on platform usage numbers, which is valuable for researchers, marketers, and the digitally curious.

Click below to zoom.

A stand-out finding is YouTube’s enormous popularity across all American age groups. The platform brags 93% usage among 18–29-year-olds, 94% among 30–49-year-olds, 86% among 50–64-year-olds, and 65% among those 65 and older. YouTube is so widely used that it’s the second-largest search platform after Google. Anyone who wants quick video results can turn to YouTube to ask questions, but more than that, it’s a source of entertainment and education, too. With something for everyone, it’s no wonder YouTube is universally popular.

Facebook offered us some surprising data. It’s usually considered a platform for older generations, but the data defies this stereotype and shows us a platform with cross-generational appeal. 68% of people between 18 and 29 reported Facebook usage, and 78% between ages 30 and 49 did too. These numbers among younger people are nothing to sneeze at. Facebook has over 3 billion users worldwide, with a user base that clearly encompasses more than baby boomers and Generation X. Facebook’s staying power is impressive given the rise of up-and-coming apps like TikTok and Snapchat.

While YouTube and Facebook enjoy universal appeal, the infographic does reveal some age-based patterns for certain platforms. TikTok is certainly popular among younger users, with 59% of people aged 18 to 29 reporting that they use it, and only 10% of users over 65. TikTok’s user base tends to be young worldwide, with 30% of its users aged 18 to 24, and 21% between 13 and 17.

LinkedIn skews much older with usage peaking among 50- to 64-year-olds. This is no surprise as LinkedIn is primarily a professional platform made for business connections rather than entertainment or social sharing.

The data also reflects major shake-ups in a social media company that affect user bases. X, formerly known as Twitter, lost 2.7 million active users in just two months in December of 2024 after actions taken by CEO Elon Musk. The platform seems most geared toward people between 18 and 34, who comprise 34% of the user base.

These patterns show how age groups can affect social media usage and suggest what aspects of a platform attract different groups. The findings underscore how important it is for platforms of all kinds to adapt to changing culture and demographic needs or risk being left behind as exciting new platforms rise to take their place.

Many people find winters to be intolerably brutal, especially older people who have chronic aches and pains. The solution for many is to migrate south like the birds to soak in warmer weather and sunshine. Hence the term “snowbird!” Snowbirds escape the dreary northern weather months for the American Sun Belt. But there are many options in terms of states and counties to live in. That’s where a new study from the Florida Rentals team comes in. They created a careful analysis based on, first of all, weather, but also other important factors like cost of living and age demographics.

The study analyzed all 50 states and applied its scoring system to them. In the highest-scoring states, the team also scored specific counties in those states. The methodology weighed the weather the most heavily.

Click below to zoom.

Florida Has a Slam Dunk Snowbird Score

Florida took a healthy lead in snowbird scores, which comes as no surprise since it’s known as a snowbird paradise. The state scored 88.19 out of 100 thanks to sunshine and warm temperatures year-round, fairly low taxes, and a high population of people over 65. The Sunshine State population is 21.6% over 65, and the average winter temperatures are 59.4 degrees, and of course, no snow. These conditions draw around a million snowbirds to Florida every year, enough to increase the state population by 5% in the winter months.

As for other high-scoring states, another southern state rich in beaches, South Carolina, comes in second at 85.91 points. It’s followed by New Mexico and Arizona, both desert states, scoring 84.41 and 84.19, respectively. New Mexico and Arizona have the added bonus of low humidity, a great soother to people with chronic pain conditions like arthritis.

Choosing the Best Snowbird Counties

Many people are aware of which state they’d like to live in for the winter, but the team can help prospective snowbirds decide on a specific location with their county scores. Diving deeper into the data, we find that Florida has 60% of the top 10 high-scoring snowbird counties. Citrus County leads with a score of 88.12, a hidden gem with a high senior population, 6% sales tax rate, 60.9° F average winter temperatures, and roughly $3,563 monthly cost of living. Delve into the team’s other data to learn more about great snowbird counties.

Snowbird Scores Beyond Weather

While climate will always be the most important factor in a migration based entirely on temperature and weather, the team made sure to consider other key factors. Economics can play a huge role in a person’s decision to move. The county analysis helped in this consideration since Collier County, containing the city of Naples, Florida, is highly sought after, but the team shows us it’s also one of the most expensive locations.

Budget-conscious snowbirds might look to warm states with a low cost of living, like Arkansas, as a more affordable alternative to Florida or South Carolina. Overall, this is a comprehensive analysis of the best locations for snowbirds to flock to before the weather takes a turn for the chilly.