$1M Is a Retirement Goal. Here’s How Long It Lasts in Every State.

A million dollars is an aspirational retirement-savings goal, celebrated in articles and Reddit threads about 401(k) millionaires.

But a million dollars is not what it used to be. Only 36% of American millionaires consider themselves wealthy today, according to 2025 research from Northwestern Mutual.

“A million dollars sounds like a cool number,” said Rudri Bhatt Patel, certified financial health counselor and retirement expert at GOBankingRates. But, she said, “we’re not living in the 1950s.”

A new report from the personal finance site GOBankingRates tabulates how long $1 million in retirement savings might last in 2026 in every U.S. state.

The short answer: Not long enough.

The analysis found that an average retiree will spend $1 million in less than 20 years in every state, based on average annual expenditures for retirees in each place.

And longevity research suggests many Americans will survive for at least 20 years after retiring.

How much retirement savings makes you ‘wealthy’?

Whatever “wealthy” might mean nowadays, surveys attest, it means having more than $1 million. In the latest Charles Schwab Modern Wealth Survey, from 2025, consumers set the wealth bar at $2.3 million in net worth.

Most retirees haven’t saved nearly that much. The average household in the 65-75 age range has about $200,000 in retirement accounts, according to the 2022 federal Survey of Consumer Finances.

If you want your money to last, GOBankingRates suggests, you’d be wise to retire in the Southeast, or perhaps in the Great Plains. The most affordable retirement states are Oklahoma and Mississippi, where $1 million will last roughly 19 years, followed by Alabama, where the money will stretch for 18.5 years.

“People don’t generally see Oklahoma or West Virginia or Kansas as places that garner interest from retirees,” Patel said. But all three rank among the five least expensive states for retirement, the study found.

The report uses annual average expenditures for people 65 and over, sourced from federal survey data, adjusted for each state according to local living costs. To see how far $1 million would go, researchers divided that sum by each state’s average annual expenses.

From an investor’s perspective, the estimates are conservative. They don’t account for how much you might earn on that $1 million in an IRA by investing in stocks and bonds. If your investment returns beat the inflation rate, then $1 million would last longer than the estimates in this report.

We should also note that many retirees do just fine with far less than $1 million in the bank. Plenty of households make do on Social Security alone.

Where do Americans retire? According to a 2025 report from AARP, these are the top five destinations for Americans who moved specifically for retirement in 2024: Massachusetts, followed by Florida, Illinois, Kentucky and North Carolina.

If you’re planning to retire to one of those states, here’s how long $1 million is likely to last in each one:

• Massachusetts: 10.8 years. With an annual cost of living of $92,639, Massachusetts is the second priciest state for retirees.
• Florida: 16.4 years. A Florida retiree faces annual costs of $61,125, placing it 31st among states for affordability.
• Illinois: 17 years. Illinois ranks 24th for affordability, with annual living costs of $58,913.
• Kentucky: 17.7 years. With annual costs of $56,456, Kentucky ranks 16th among states for retirement affordability.
• North Carolina: 16.7 years. North Carolina ranks 26th for affordability, with annual costs of $59,835.

Here are the 10 states where $1 million will last the longest in retirement, according to GOBankingRates, along with each state’s average cost of annual expenses overall and for housing, typically the largest category.

1. Oklahoma: $1 million will last 19.3 years. Annual expenses average $51,849. Annual housing costs average $8,824.
2. Mississippi: $1 million will last 19 years. Annual expenses average $52,524. Annual housing costs average $9,122.
3. Alabama: $1 million will last 18.5 years. Annual expenses average $53,999. Annual housing costs average $9,239.
4. West Virginia: $1 million will last 18.5 years. Annual expenses average $54,122. Annual housing costs average $9,200.
5. Kansas: $1 million will last 18.3 years. Annual expenses average $54,613. Annual housing costs average $10,071.
6. Missouri: $1 million will last 18.3 years. Annual expenses average $54,674. Annual housing costs average $10,110.
7. Arkansas: $1 million will last 18.2 years. Annual expenses average $54,859. Annual housing costs average $10,123.
8. Iowa: $1 million will last 18 years. Annual expenses average $55,473. Annual housing costs average $10,032.
9. Tennessee: $1 million will last 18 years. Annual expenses average $55,473. Annual housing costs average $10,786.
10. Indiana: $1 million will last 18 years. Annual expenses average $55,657. Annual housing costs average $9,902.

Here are the 10 states where $1 million goes the shortest distance in retirement.

1. Hawaii: $1 million will last 9.1 years. Annual expenses average $110,393. Annual housing costs average $38,803.
2. Massachusetts: $1 million will last 10.8 years. Annual expenses average $92,639. Annual housing costs average $30,265.
3. California: $1 million will last 11.9 years. Annual expenses average $83,978. Annual housing costs average $23,625.
4. Alaska: $1 million will last 12.8 years. Annual expenses average $78,449. Annual housing costs average $16,387.
5. New York: $1 million will last 12.9 years. Annual expenses average $77,773. Annual housing costs average $23,209.
6. Maryland: $1 million will last 13.7 years. Annual expenses average $73,043. Annual housing costs average $19,168.
7. New Jersey: $1 million will last 14.2 years. Annual expenses average $70,401. Annual housing costs average $18,141.
8. Maine: $1 million will last 14.3 years. Annual expenses average $70,155. Annual housing costs average $18,141.
9. Connecticut: $1 million will last 14.3 years. Annual expenses average $70,094. Annual housing costs average $16,127.
10. Washington State: $1 million will last 14.3 years. Annual expenses average $69,971. Annual housing costs average $15,607.

And here is how far $1 million will go in the other 30 states, ranked from longest to shortest:

Texas: 18 years

North Dakota: 18 years

Nebraska: 17.8 years

Georgia, South Dakota and Kentucky: 17.7 years

New Mexico, South Carolina and Louisiana: 17.6 years

Ohio: 17.5 years

Minnesota: 17.3 years

Michigan: 17.2 years

Wyoming: 17.1 years

Illinois: 17 years

Pennsylvania: 16.8 years

North Carolina and Wisconsin: 16.7 years

Nevada: 16.5 years

Idaho, Utah and Florida: 16.4 years

Virginia: 16.3 years

Colorado: 15.9 years

Delaware: 15.8 years

Arizona: 15 years

New Hampshire: 14.9 years

Montana: 14.8 years

Oregon: 14.6 years

Rhode Island: 14.4 years

Vermont: 14.3 years

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: $1m is a retirement goal. Here’s how long it lasts in every state.

Reporting by Daniel de Visé, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect