life after 65

New report on best U.S. cities to retire in shuns Dallas in favor of Fort Worth

Who wouldn't want to live out their twilight years here?

Photo courtesy of Dallas Horseshoe Project

Retirees relocate for a variety of reasons, but moving to a place with a lower cost of living (and more relaxed lifestyle) are the best reasons for moving to a place like Fort Worth, which was just named one of the best cities to put away those work boots. Dallas, on the other hand, lagged far behind every other city in Texas.

Fort Worth ranked No. 8 in SmartAsset's new national report, "Where Retirees Are Moving – 2024 Study," with the eighth highest rate of retirees flocking to the city.

To determine where retirement-age Americans are moving, the report relied on Census Bureau data from 182 large U.S. cities and all 50 state populations with people aged 60 and older. Net migration was determined by subtracting the number of retirees who moved out of their cities in 2022, and the number that moved into the respective cities from out-of-state.

The report found Fort Worth's population of retirement-age folks amounted to more than 158,000 people, representing 16.5 percent of the total population. A little more than 2,100 seniors moved into the city from out-of-state, and less than 1,000 moved out, showing a net migration of 1,130 retirees.

Retirement lifestyles don't seem to be as compatible with the status quo in Dallas, which landed far outside the top 100 cities as No. 157. Over 1,800 seniors from out-of-state that moved into Dallas in 2022, more than 2,605 moved out, creating a net migration loss of 772 retirees.

Dallas performed the worst out of all 18 Texas cities in the report, and its low national rank out of all 182 of the largest U.S. cities doesn't bode well for the city.

So, why are retirees picking Fort Worth over most other U.S. cities? Other than the city's affordability (especially in comparison to many other big Texas cities), Fort Worth has fairly favorable weather, and it's surrounded diverse neighbors (which Dallas can lay claim to), and has a thriving cultural arts scene to bring in crowds of all ages.

"As people retire, their goals shift, often causing them to reconsider where they’re living and how they spend their money," the report's author wrote. "Places with a high cost of living, high taxes and cold winters, for example, could influence retirees to move to warmer locations where they can stretch their retirement savings further and enjoy their free time."

Other Texas cities that earned spots in the top 10 are San Antonio (No. 2) and Houston (No. 7). San Antonio landed the silver medal as the second most attractive U.S. city for retirees, after more than 4,100 seniors moved into the city in 2022. Fewer than 1,200 made the opposite move, showing a net migration of 2,936 retirees.

Houston had a net migration of 1,139, with 4,675 seniors moving into the city and 3,536 moving out in 2022.

The top 10 U.S. cities that had the highest inflow of retirement-age folks are:

No. 1 – Mesa, Arizona
No. 2 – San Antonio, Texas
No. 3 – Henderson, Nevada
No. 4 – St. Petersburg, Florida
No. 5 – Murfreesboro, Tennessee
No. 6 – Chattanooga, Tennessee
No. 7 – Houston, Texas
No. 8 – Fort Worth, Texas
No. 9 – Atlanta, Georgia
No. 10 – Clearwater, Florida

Texas is an overall top destination for retirees
In a statewide comparison, Texas came out on top as the No. 4 top state for retirees. The Lone Star State's 60-plus demographic adds up to nearly 5.7 million people, making up 19 percent of the total population.

Less than 69,000 seniors moved into Texas in 2022, with a little more than 50,000 making the opposite move, creating a net migration of 18,742 retirement-age residents.

Texans may want to take the city-level findings with a grain of salt, as the report points out that its data doesn't factor in-state migration, only state-to-state migration. Plus, not all retirees are 60 years old, nor do they all live in one singular place.

"For example, if a person moved to Phoenix from Scottsdale, [Arizona,] they would not be factored into our data," the report added. "Some retirees might live in multiple places throughout the year; this is not reflected in our metrics."

The three states that outperformed Texas in the statewide analysis were Florida (No. 1), Arizona (No. 2), and South Carolina (No. 3). North Carolina rounded out the top five.

san antonio houston fort worth retirement smartasset reports austin dallas

Daring to care

Kindhearted Plano ranks among the 10 most caring cities in America

Visit Plano - Facebook

Plano is one of the happiest and most caring places to be.

Plano has some of the kindest, most generous residents in the country. So says a new report that ranks the Dallas suburb the No. 10 most caring city in the United States.

The personal finance website WalletHub compared 100 of the most populated U.S. cities across 38 metrics across three key dimensions for its study, "Most Caring Cities in America (2025)". They include caring for the local community, caring for the vulnerable, and caring in the workforce.

The north Dallas suburb made a big leap over its 2023 ranking as the No. 17 most caring American city.

Out of the three main categories, Plano performed the best for its "caring for the community" rank (No. 8), which was determined based on the city's crime rates, the civic engagement of its residents, the share of a household's income donated to charity, and more.

Plano also cares for its community in other ways, whether it's through maintaining its long-held family-friendly reputation or by maintaining a pristine park system. All of these reasons contribute to why so many people are choosing to live in the second-happiest city in the nation.

Plano also ranked fairly well in the overall "caring for the vulnerable" category (No. 12), which covers child and adult poverty rates, adoption rates, availability of paid family leave, the number of rehab centers per capita, pet shelters and rescue services, and the "disability-friendliness" of employers.

Plano still has plenty of work to do when it comes to caring for its workforce, however, as the city ranked No. 71 out of all 100 U.S. cities. This metric focused on the number of first responders, healthcare professionals, teachers, and counselors per capita.

WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo says there are many factors that make cities like Plano a true "caring" and supportive place for its residents.

"The most caring cities donate a lot of money to charity and have high volunteer rates, but being a caring city overall requires much more than just giving time or money," Lupo said. "In addition, the top cities have low crime rates, environmentally-friendly residents and low rates of poverty and homelessness."

But small steps are important, too. Community care is as simple as helping an elderly neighbor unload groceries from their car, keeping a vigilant eye out for porch pirates or suspicious activity, and spending quality time with loved ones.

Plano was once again the highest ranked Texas city in WalletHub's list. Other North Texas cities that earned spots in the report include Irving (No. 36), Garland (No. 39), Fort Worth (No. 54), Arlington (No. 58), and Dallas (No. 77).

Elsewhere in Texas, Austin ranked No. 45, while San Antonio (No. 89) and Houston (No. 91) barely skirted onto the list.

The top 10 most caring U.S. cities, according to WalletHub, are:

No. 1 – Virginia Beach, Virginia
No. 2 – Scottsdale, Arizona
No. 3 – Boston, Massachusetts
No. 4 – Gilbert, Arizona
No. 5 – Chesapeake, Virginia
No. 6 – Fremont, California
No. 7 – San Diego, California
No. 8 – Madison, Wisconsin
No. 9 – Colorado Springs, Colorado
No. 10 – Plano, Texas

wallethub plano community care top 10 cities plano