Minneapolis named among best cities to retire in 2025

By FOX 9 Staff
Published  September 2, 2025 12:38pm CDT
FOX 9

The Minneapolis skyline.  (FOX 9)

The Brief

    • WalletHub has named Minneapolis as the third-best city to retire in 2025.
    • The metro was edged out by warmer cities, including Scottsdale and Orlando.
    • St. Paul is the only other Minnesota city on the list, coming in at No. 21.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minneapolis has been named as the third-best U.S. city to retire in 2025 by WalletHub. 

Minneapolis among top places to retire

The backstory:

The Best and Worst Places to Retire in 2025, published Tuesday, names the best cities in the country for people to retire, including Minneapolis. 

WalletHub says when determining the list, it compared more than 180 U.S. cities for retiree-friendliness across 45 key metrics, including the cost of living, tax policies and the state’s health infrastructure.

Here are the top 10 cities for retirees: 

  1. Orlando, Florida
  2. Scottsdale, Arizona
  3. Minneapolis
  4. Miami, Florida
  5. Tampa, Florida
  6. Atlanta, Georgia
  7. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
  8. Cincinnati, Ohio
  9. Madison, Wisconsin
  10. Casper, Wyoming

The only other Minnesota city to make WalletHub’s list was St. Paul, which ranked 21st overall. 

Of the 182 cities ranked, here are the bottom five cities for retirees: 

  • No. 178 Newark, New Jersey
  • No. 179 is Bakersfield, California
  • No. 180 Rancho Cucamonga, California
  • No. 181 Stockton, California
  • No. 182 San Bernardino, California

What they're saying:

The publication described Minneapolis, saying it "provides a friendly environment for retirees, ranking as the 34th-most caring city in the U.S. It has the eighth-best hospital system, too, along with a high number of nursing homes and gerontologists per capita. Minneapolis ranks eighth in the nation for the number of recreation and senior centers, offering retirees ample opportunities for community engagement and activity." 

WalletHub also states Minneapolis has "one of the most elderly-friendly labor markets in the country" with over 22% of the working population over the age of 65. 

Here’s how WalletHub ranked Minneapolis in some key areas:

  • No. 7 in activities
  • No. 13 in health care
  • No. 70 in quality of life
  • No. 96 in affordability

Earlier this year, WalletHub named Minnesota as the second-best state to retire in 2025. 

Neighboring states on the list

Dig deeper:

Other cities in Minnesota's neighboring states that made the list include: 

  • No. 13 Sioux Falls, South Dakota
  • No. 22 Bismarck, North Dakota
  • No. 35 Fargo, North Dakota
  • No. 47 Rapid City, South Dakota
  • No. 66 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • No. 69 Cedar Rapids, Iowa
  • No. 85 Des Moines, Iowa

The Source: This story uses information from WalletHub's Best and Worst Places to Retire article, published on Sept. 2, 2025.

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