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Quick Summary
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The average retired household in the U.S. brings in about $2,302 a month, but where you live makes a major difference. Some states average well above $3,000 a month, while others sit closer to $1,700, often leaving little margin beyond Social Security.
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If you’re trying to figure out whether your retirement income will actually stretch where you live or plan to retire, it can help to walk through the numbers with a financial advisor. SmartAsset lets readers take a short quiz and connect with financial advisors for free.
Retirement income looks very different depending on where you live. In some places, the typical retired household has enough income to comfortably cover basics plus travel and discretionary spending.
In others, the margin is much thinner, with many households leaning heavily on Social Security.
Analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey data shows the average retired household retirement income nationally is $27,617 per year, or about $2,302 per month.
That’s an average, not a target, and it includes a wide mix of households, from retirees living primarily on Social Security to higher-income households drawing from pensions and investment income.
At the top end of the range, Washington, D.C. at $43,080 per year and Alaska at $36,023 per year stand out. Indiana with $20,542 per year, and West Virginia $21,118 per year rank are among the lowest.
The takeaway “average” retirement income is often as much about local economics and benefit structures as it is about individual planning. Higher wage histories can translate into larger Social Security checks, certain regions have more pension prevalence, and cost-of-living differences influence where retirees settle.
For a lot of households, Social Security is the foundation. As of November, the average monthly benefit for retired workers was about $2,013, according to a Congressional Research Service summary of Social Security data.
That matters because many states in the table below have average monthly total retirement income in the ballpark of $1,700 to $2,300. If your household income in retirement is close to the Social Security average, you may have less room for rising healthcare costs, housing shocks, or helping adult kids than you think.
If you’re trying to understand whether your retirement income will actually cover your costs where you live, it can help to walk through the numbers with a financial advisor. You don’t need a specific net worth or a finished plan. SmartAsset lets readers take a short quiz and connect with financial advisors for free.
State
Avg annual retirement income
Avg monthly equivalent
Alabama
$24,896
$2,075
Alaska
$36,023
$3,002
Arizona
$28,725
$2,394
Arkansas
$21,967
$1,831
California
$34,737
$2,895
Colorado
$32,379
$2,698
Connecticut
$32,052
$2,671
Delaware
$31,283
$2,607
District of Columbia
$43,080
$3,590
Florida
$30,158
$2,513
Georgia
$27,961
$2,330
Hawaii
$32,294
$2,691
Idaho
$24,752
$2,063
Illinois
$31,223
$2,602
Indiana
$20,542
$1,712
Iowa
$22,308
$1,859
Kansas
$23,294
$1,941
Kentucky
$24,419
$2,035
Louisiana
$26,512
$2,209
Maine
$25,545
$2,129
Maryland
$35,732
$2,978
Massachusetts
$31,198
$2,600
Michigan
$24,389
$2,032
Minnesota
$26,385
$2,199
Mississippi
$23,347
$1,946
Missouri
$24,125
$2,010
Montana
$25,463
$2,122
Nebraska
$23,821
$1,985
Nevada
$31,171
$2,598
New Hampshire
$26,395
$2,200
New Jersey
$30,660
$2,555
New Mexico
$29,707
$2,476
New York
$30,326
$2,527
North Carolina
$25,324
$2,110
North Dakota
$23,347
$1,946
Ohio
$26,316
$2,193
Oklahoma
$23,963
$1,997
Oregon
$28,565
$2,380
Pennsylvania
$24,392
$2,033
Rhode Island
$27,118
$2,260
South Carolina
$26,227
$2,186
South Dakota
$24,020
$2,002
Tennessee
$23,715
$1,976
Texas
$27,471
$2,289
Utah
$28,632
$2,386
Vermont
$24,870
$2,073
Virginia
$35,306
$2,942
Washington
$29,351
$2,446
West Virginia
$21,118
$1,760
Wisconsin
$25,378
$2,115
Wyoming
$26,465
$2,205
Retirement income doesn’t rise and fall randomly across the map. It tends to follow the same forces that shape paychecks during people’s working years, and then gets amplified by local retirement systems and migration patterns. A financial advisor can help you understand whether your income will stretch where you plan to retire.
One big driver is earnings history. Social Security is based on what you earned over your career, so states with more high-wage industries and higher lifetime pay often show higher retirement income even before you factor in investments or pensions.
Another driver is pensions and public-sector concentration. Places with larger shares of retired government workers or legacy employers with defined-benefit plans can have a higher baseline of predictable retirement income. In other states, retirees rely more heavily on Social Security plus whatever they managed to save in a 401(k) or IRA.
Then there’s who moves where. Some states attract higher-income retirees who arrive with bigger portfolios and paid-off homes. Others keep more lifelong residents who may not have had the same wages, the same access to employer plans, or the same ability to build assets.
The important nuance is that a higher number isn’t automatically better. States with higher retirement incomes often also have higher housing costs, insurance costs, and everyday expenses.
A monthly budget that feels comfortable in one part of the country can feel tight somewhere else, even with the same income.
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This article The Average Monthly Retirement Income in Every State — How Does Yours Stack Up? originally appeared on Benzinga.com
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