Best Places To Retire Outside U.S. For Financial Security, As Per Reports

Preveli gorge, Crete, in Greece, consistently ranks highly as one of the best places to retire.

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Retiring abroad is becoming an increasingly attractive option for Americans seeking financial security and a better quality of life. The 2025 Natixis Global Retirement Index highlights the best places to retire and ranks Norway, Ireland, and Switzerland as the best countries that provide all-around retirement security, thanks to their robust healthcare systems and high living standards.

For those on a smaller budget, destinations in Southeast Asia rank highly in a recent International Living report, offering affordable living without compromising on lifestyle. In Europe, Greece ranks in the top ten countries where Americans are currently retired, as per Social Security data, because of the high quality of life versus the low cost of living, and Portugal is still a firm favorite because it ticks all of the boxes.

Best Places To Retire—Why move outside of the US?

The 2025 Natixis Global Retirement Index (GRI) offers several reasons why more people are looking to move outside the U.S., namely, that people won’t have enough money to enjoy retirement, partly because savings have dwindled due to inflation. Plus, many people are worried that government benefits might be cut because of the growing public debt and the so-called old-age dependency ratio, which is increasing as people live longer.

But somewhere great to retire is not just about how far your money might go, but also the living conditions in a country.

The GRI methodology looked at life expectancy and health expenditure as well as the financing of retirement, which took into account inflation, old age dependency, government debt, and taxes. It assessed material well-being—income inequality, income per capita, and unemployment—and analyzed quality of life, so factors like happiness, air quality, and other environmental factors like water and sanitation.

The best all-rounders for the GRI survey for providing retirement security were:

Norway
Ireland
Switzerland.

Norway and Switzerland are not well-known for offering affordable lifestyles, but they both offer several entry points into the country through specific visa paths. Norway has a digital nomad visa that lasts two years, one year longer than the global average. Plus, unlike many, Norway’s digital nomad visa offers a pathway to citizenship. Norway also came in the top three digital nomad visas with the best quality of life in a recent survey of all 64 countries offering digital nomad visas by Global Citizen Solutions.

Ireland has a digital nomad visa that, unlike many, offers beneficial tax advantages for digital nomads. It also currently runs a program until 2033 that offers up to $98,000 towards the cost of renovation of one of its derelict houses on one of its sparsely populated islands if you make it your permanent home. Ireland also made it on Forbes’ list of the 25 Best Places To Retire Abroad In 2025.

In the survey, Canada ranks in 20th place and the U.S. in 21st.

Best Places To Retire—Global Destinations Below $1,200 Per Month

It might be surprising to know that there are still European destinations where you can retire and live on €1,200 a month for a rich and rewarding life. Albania, Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, and Romania are places that have topped inexpensive travel locations for the last five years and are seen as safe, culturally rich destinations where your money can go further. A recent report by International Living notes that in cities like Sibiu, Romania, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment would be under $400 per month.

In Latin America, Colombia, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Peru make the list. While in Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Bali, and Sri Lanka come out top. In Hanoi, Vietnam, for example, a one-bedroom furnished apartment with air conditioning would cost under $300 per month.

Thailand has been a firm retirement favourite for Americans because of its accessible healthcare at a fraction of the cost of the US. And because it has a retirement visa available to anyone over the age of 50, and you can live on a reasonably modest rental income from the U.S.

Incidentally, the report does highlight that the strategy for success in these low-cost locations relies on you living like a local, eating from fresh local markets, using the public transport system, and securing longer-term rentals that are outside the more expensive capital cities and away from the tourist hotspots.

Best Places To Retire—Greece, The Dark Horse, But Portugal Still The European Winner

Social Security Administration data is a good indicator of retiree populations because it tells us where Americans are claiming their retirement benefit from if they’re outside the country. Data from 2023 notes that while there were almost 27,000 Americans claiming retirement benefits from the U.K., there were just over 13,000 Americans claiming from Greece, which is more than in Portugal and in Spain.

This ranks Greece among the world’s top ten destinations for American retirees. And it isn’t hard to see why. It has a favorable climate, a healthy lifestyle, and a cost of living that can be up to 40% lower than in the U.S.

There are three pathways for Americans to become residents of Greece. For people who are still working, Greece’s digital nomad visa requires earnings of at least €3,500 a month ($2,300), and has a 7% flat tax on foreign pensions. If you are fully retired, you could try the financially independent person visa (FIP), where you would need a passive income of the same amount, around €3,500, and about 20% more for spouses.

You can use Greece’s Golden Visa Program, where you would need to invest €250,000 (about $270,000) in real estate, giving you a 5-year residency, renewable, and you could apply for citizenship after seven years.

In contrast, Portugal’s Golden Visa program, a global favorite, requires $500,000 investment, and the government has just voted to raise the residency requirement to 10 years before you can apply for citizenship.

It’s yet to be seen how much this recent legal change will impact migration into Portugal because it’s the one country that consistently tops all of the lists for the best retirement countries for British and American expats. Over the past 10 years, it’s had one of the fastest-growing expat communities globally, arriving for its low cost of living, its safety, accessibility of healthcare, education, and transport infrastructure, and the climate.

Portugal also came in first place in the Global Citizen Solutions report for the best places to retire abroad. In addition to the reasons stated above, Portugal also has the D7 passive income visa, which only requires an income of the equivalent of or above Portugal’s minimum wage, around $1,054 per month (€900 for a single person). While this increases with family size, it still makes the threshold incredibly appealing for U.S. expats. For expats still working or the semi-retired, Portugal ranked sixth globally in the 2025 digital nomad visa ranking.

Best Places To Retire Outside U.S. For Financial Security, As Per Reports

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