Okay, so if you’re retiring in 2026 and you want to hang onto your money, three states keep popping up: Wyoming, Florida, and Tennessee. Not because of the weather or the golf courses, but because the tax situation is just way better there. Like, noticeably better.
Let me give you an example. Say you’ve got $2,575 in state taxes. That same person, same money, living in New York? Almost eight grand. That’s over five grand a year just gone. Over ten, twenty years? You could buy a car with that difference. Or help your grandkids. Or just not stress as much.
Millions of Retirees Are Choosing These Three States
Let’s start with the beautiful state of Wyoming, where they don’t have a state income tax. Also no estate tax, no inheritance tax. They don’t touch your Social Security, your pension, your 401(k), nothing.
WalletHub actually just ranked Wyoming as the number one state for retirement, which surprised some people because Florida used to hold that spot forever. But yeah, Wyoming took the crown this year.
Once Again, Florida Is a Retirement Haven
Florida’s still solid though. I mean, it’s Florida. No income tax obviously. So every dollar from Social Security, your IRA, your pension—stays yours. They also don’t have estate or inheritance taxes, so that’s less headache if you’re trying to leave something behind.
Plus they’ve got this homestead exemption thing that lowers property taxes for people who qualify. And here’s something you don’t hear every day: Florida gets more federal money per senior citizen through the Older Americans Act than almost anywhere else. That pays for rides to appointments, meal deliveries, home care. So it’s not just low taxes—it’s actual help.
Tennessee, same deal: No state income tax
They used to have something called the Hall Tax that hit dividends and interest, but that went away in 2023. So now? Nothing. Social Security, pensions, 401(k) withdrawals—zero state tax. Property taxes are below the national average too. So if you saved up a bunch in a traditional IRA or a 401(k) and you’re planning to live off that, Tennessee is a pretty sweet spot.
States where retirees are taxed
As of 2026, only eight states still tax Social Security benefits. I’ll name them: Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, and Vermont. That’s it. West Virginia just finished phasing theirs out this year, so starting 2026, they’re done taxing it too.
Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska dropped theirs back in 2024. States are realizing retirees can just pick up and move if you squeeze them too hard. So they’re backing off.
The Tax Foundation did the math
Two identical retirees—same $$7,200 more per year in state taxes just by living in a different state. Over 25 years, that’s $180,000. That’s not a theory. That’s real money.
But look, any financial planner worth their salt will tell you: don’t just stare at the income tax number. Property taxes can sneak up on you. Sales taxes too. And estate or inheritance taxes. Take Texas—no income tax, yeah, but property taxes there are brutal. So you really gotta look at the whole picture. Don’t be the person who moves somewhere for the zero income tax and then gets hammered on your house.
