Best places to retire abroad
The best cities for retirees — weighing affordability, mild climate and safety. Top pick: Swords, Ireland.
| # | City | Country | Retire score | Livability | Cost | Climate | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swords | Ireland | 75 | 77 | 52 | 98 | 83 |
| 2 | Dundalk | Ireland | 75 | 77 | 52 | 97 | 85 |
| 3 | Herceg Novi | Montenegro | 75 | 77 | 54 | 100 | 79 |
| 4 | Porto | Portugal | 75 | 76 | 54 | 100 | 77 |
| 5 | Bendigo | Australia | 75 | 76 | 50 | 100 | 82 |
| 6 | Galway | Ireland | 75 | 76 | 50 | 99 | 83 |
| 7 | Limerick | Ireland | 75 | 76 | 50 | 99 | 83 |
| 8 | Cetinje | Montenegro | 75 | 76 | 54 | 98 | 80 |
| 9 | Tivat | Montenegro | 75 | 76 | 56 | 98 | 78 |
| 10 | Santander | Spain | 74 | 76 | 49 | 100 | 81 |
| 11 | Donostia / San Sebastián | Spain | 74 | 76 | 49 | 100 | 81 |
| 12 | Hobart | Australia | 74 | 76 | 48 | 100 | 83 |
| 13 | Geelong | Australia | 74 | 76 | 48 | 100 | 82 |
| 14 | City of Port Phillip | Australia | 74 | 76 | 50 | 100 | 81 |
| 15 | Ballarat | Australia | 74 | 76 | 50 | 100 | 81 |
| 16 | Cork | Ireland | 74 | 76 | 49 | 100 | 82 |
| 17 | Waterford | Ireland | 74 | 76 | 51 | 99 | 81 |
| 18 | Budva | Montenegro | 74 | 76 | 54 | 98 | 78 |
| 19 | Albufeira | Portugal | 74 | 75 | 54 | 100 | 75 |
| 20 | Tavira | Portugal | 74 | 75 | 54 | 98 | 75 |
| 21 | Logroño | Spain | 74 | 75 | 49 | 98 | 82 |
| 22 | Caen | France | 74 | 75 | 50 | 98 | 81 |
| 23 | Dubrovnik | Croatia | 74 | 75 | 53 | 100 | 76 |
| 24 | Kotor | Montenegro | 74 | 75 | 57 | 92 | 79 |
| 25 | Punta del Este | Uruguay | 74 | 74 | 55 | 100 | 72 |
| 26 | Bilbao | Spain | 73 | 75 | 47 | 100 | 82 |
| 27 | Rouen | France | 73 | 75 | 50 | 95 | 83 |
| 28 | Angers | France | 73 | 75 | 49 | 98 | 81 |
| 29 | Le Mans | France | 73 | 75 | 49 | 97 | 81 |
| 30 | Perpignan | France | 73 | 75 | 50 | 100 | 78 |
| 31 | Southampton | United Kingdom | 73 | 75 | 48 | 98 | 81 |
| 32 | Tallaght | Ireland | 73 | 75 | 50 | 96 | 82 |
| 33 | Braga | Portugal | 73 | 74 | 48 | 100 | 78 |
| 34 | Coimbra | Portugal | 73 | 74 | 49 | 100 | 78 |
| 35 | Leiria | Portugal | 73 | 74 | 49 | 100 | 78 |
| 36 | Viseu | Portugal | 73 | 74 | 50 | 100 | 77 |
| 37 | Faro | Portugal | 73 | 74 | 51 | 100 | 75 |
| 38 | Lagos | Portugal | 73 | 74 | 52 | 100 | 74 |
| 39 | Tarragona | Spain | 73 | 74 | 49 | 100 | 77 |
| 40 | Lleida | Spain | 73 | 74 | 49 | 99 | 79 |
| 41 | Bordeaux | France | 73 | 74 | 48 | 99 | 80 |
| 42 | Rennes | France | 73 | 74 | 48 | 98 | 80 |
| 43 | Orléans | France | 73 | 74 | 50 | 95 | 81 |
| 44 | Tours | France | 73 | 74 | 49 | 96 | 81 |
| 45 | Limoges | France | 73 | 74 | 49 | 96 | 81 |
| 46 | Southend-on-Sea | United Kingdom | 73 | 74 | 48 | 97 | 81 |
| 47 | Plymouth | United Kingdom | 73 | 74 | 48 | 100 | 79 |
| 48 | Wollongong | Australia | 73 | 74 | 48 | 100 | 78 |
| 49 | Sokhumi | Georgia | 73 | 74 | 51 | 97 | 77 |
| 50 | Zugdidi | Georgia | 73 | 74 | 52 | 99 | 76 |
Climate real (WorldClim); cost real (World Bank); hazard tiers indicative. livability=0.35*cost+0.30*climate+0.35*safety; cost=country PPP index x city-size premium (real population); safety=0.55*disaster_safety+0.45*crime_safety - urban-crime penalty (city size); disaster_safety=100-sum(hazard_weight*tier)/5*100 over 8 hazards (real earthquake/heat/cold + modelled flood/storm/wildfire/drought/tsunami); crime_safety=100-homicide*3
FAQ
What is the #1 best places to retire abroad?
Swords, Ireland — see the full ranking of 1103 cities.
How is this ranked?
From open data: climate (WorldClim), cost (World Bank), disaster risk (USGS/FEMA/INFORM), combined into a livability score.