If you are nearing 65, you don’t have time to explore Indiana. You need to know the location of the best places to retire in The Hoosier State now.
So, let’s get down to it.
We did the research and created a list of the top ten best places in Indiana to retire for 2026.
How’d we determine the best places to retire in Indiana? We looked at important factors like cost of living, crime, amenities, rent,
and distance to the closest national airport for every place with over 10,000 residents. In total, we analyzed 66 cities.
We discovered that Indiana looks out for the best interest of their retirees. The state is one of thirty that does not tax Social Security benefits, and they do not have an estate or inheritance tax.
That’s a win for every retiree!
$781 median rent · $51,606 median income · #2 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Henry County, Indiana
New Castle is a city in Henry County, Indiana, 44 miles east-northeast of Indianapolis, on the Big Blue River. The city is the county seat of Henry County. New Castle is home to New Castle Fieldhouse, the largest high school gymnasium in the world. The city is surrounded by agricultural land. In the past, it was a manufacturing center for the production of sheet iron and steel, automobiles, caskets, clothing, scales, bridges, pianos, furniture, handles, shovels, lathes, bricks, and flour.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$1,123 median rent · $84,024 median income · #37 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Lake County, Indiana
Lowell is a town in West Creek and Cedar Creek townships, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 9,276 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$857 median rent · $55,033 median income · #10 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Montgomery County, Indiana
Crawfordsville is a city in Union Township, Montgomery County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 15,915. The city is the county seat of Montgomery County. It is home to Wabash College, which was ranked by Forbes as #12 in the United States for undergraduate studies in 2008.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$810 median rent · $68,817 median income · #6 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Dubois County, Indiana
Jasper is a city in, and the county seat of Bainbridge Township, Dubois County, Indiana, United States, located along the Patoka River. The population was 15,038 at the 2010 census making it the 48th largest city in Indiana. On November 4, 2007, Dubois County returned to the Eastern Time Zone, after having moved to the Central Time Zone the previous year. The land uses are mainly agriculture.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$828 median rent · $49,553 median income · #8 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Lawrence County, Indiana
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$732 median rent · $57,539 median income · #1 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Wells County, Indiana
Bluffton is a city in Harrison and Lancaster townships, Wells County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 9,897 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Wells County.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$1,151 median rent · $97,083 median income · #41 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Hendricks County, Indiana
Danville is a town in Center Township, Hendricks County, Indiana, United States. The population was 9,001 at the 2010 census, up from 6,418 at the 2000 census. By 2016 the estimated population was 9,676. The town is the county seat of Hendricks County.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$989 median rent · $131,467 median income · #23 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Lake County, Indiana
St. John is a town in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The town of St. John has homes in St. John Township, Hanover Township, and Center Township. St. John was founded in 1837. The population was 14,850 at the 2010 census. In 2009, St. John ranked 48th among CNN’s top 100 places to live in the United States. In 2014, St. John was ranked as the 4th safest place in Indiana by Movoto Real Estate.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$858 median rent · $50,331 median income · #11 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Daviess County, Indiana
Washington is a city in Daviess County, Indiana, United States. The population was 11,509 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Daviess County.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$854 median rent · $42,125 median income · #9 cheapest rent in Indiana
Located in
Lake County, Indiana
East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census. It is the home of Marktown, Clayton Mark’s planned worker community.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Indiana’s statewide median.
Indiana statewide median: $71,957
Indiana statewide median: $254,122
On the map
Where to retire in Indiana
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Places To Retire In the Hoosier State for 2026
To create our ranking of the best places in Indiana to retire, we used Saturday Night Science. We analyzed Census data to find all places in the Hoosier State — 680 cities and towns.
We then narrowed it down to places with at least 10,000 people that weren’t townships. This left us with 66 places from across the state.
For these 66, we looked at the following criteria taken from the Census, the FBI’s Crime Report, National Weather Service, and OpenFlights:
- Low cost of living as measured by rent
- Low crime
- Things to do (Museums, Colleges, and Libraries in town)
- Nice weather
- Distance to the closest international airport
- Other retirees (High median age)
We then ranked each of these places for each criterion from one to 66, with the lowest number being the best.
Finally, we took the average rank across these criteria. The place, in this case New Castle, with the lowest average rank, was crowned the best of the best, a place for you to start your second career.
The report has been updated for 2026. This list reflects our eleventh time ranking the best places to retire in Indiana.
The full plate
Best Places To Retire In Indiana
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Retire Score | Population | Median Income | Average Home Prices | Median Rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Castle | 16.00 | 17,367 | $51,606 | $164,336 | $781 |
| 2 | Lowell | 20.20 | 11,073 | $84,024 | $329,211 | $1,123 |
| 3 | Crawfordsville | 20.80 | 16,491 | $55,033 | $219,773 | $857 |
| 4 | Jasper | 20.80 | 15,991 | $68,817 | $266,264 | $810 |
| 5 | Bedford | 20.80 | 13,837 | $49,553 | $207,924 | $828 |
| 6 | Bluffton | 21.40 | 10,529 | $57,539 | $183,603 | $732 |
| 7 | Danville | 22.10 | 11,714 | $97,083 | $337,029 | $1,151 |
| 8 | St. John | 22.80 | 22,567 | $131,467 | $450,806 | $989 |
| 9 | Washington | 23.30 | 12,367 | $50,331 | $147,888 | $858 |
| 10 | East Chicago | 23.80 | 26,022 | $42,125 | $128,171 | $854 |
| 11 | Greensburg | 23.90 | 12,229 | $62,655 | $261,666 | $859 |
| 12 | Zionsville | 24.50 | 32,095 | $172,024 | $680,117 | $1,792 |
| 13 | Logansport | 25.20 | 17,790 | $47,291 | $153,143 | $786 |
| 14 | Kendallville | 26.00 | 10,556 | $58,939 | $220,523 | $821 |
| 15 | Huntington | 26.80 | 17,030 | $56,520 | $192,024 | $879 |
| 16 | Auburn | 27.00 | 13,565 | $68,750 | $275,151 | $865 |
| 17 | Dyer | 27.30 | 16,400 | $107,159 | $355,530 | $1,225 |
| 18 | Vincennes | 27.90 | 16,586 | $53,637 | $164,630 | $793 |
| 19 | Crown Point | 28.80 | 34,393 | $101,686 | $354,995 | $1,485 |
| 20 | Marion | 29.40 | 27,531 | $43,343 | $136,313 | $805 |
| 21 | Shelbyville | 29.70 | 20,296 | $55,602 | $222,049 | $995 |
| 22 | Frankfort | 29.90 | 15,917 | $57,412 | $209,856 | $898 |
| 23 | Franklin | 30.20 | 26,168 | $82,380 | $279,168 | $1,186 |
| 24 | Columbus | 30.40 | 51,824 | $77,456 | $276,890 | $1,157 |
| 25 | Anderson | 31.20 | 55,367 | $46,909 | $135,174 | $925 |
| 26 | Kokomo | 31.30 | 59,122 | $55,360 | $180,398 | $939 |
| 27 | Valparaiso | 31.40 | 34,733 | $69,872 | $355,845 | $1,224 |
| 28 | Carmel | 31.50 | 101,651 | $141,505 | $563,458 | $1,712 |
| 29 | Bargersville | 32.30 | 10,752 | $114,231 | $442,137 | $1,379 |
| 30 | Cedar Lake | 32.40 | 15,295 | $83,381 | $328,156 | $1,350 |
| 31 | Munster | 32.90 | 23,733 | $110,187 | $347,952 | $1,507 |
| 32 | La Porte | 33.30 | 22,449 | $59,307 | $271,481 | $948 |
| 33 | Terre Haute | 33.40 | 58,427 | $43,126 | $155,802 | $922 |
| 34 | Beech Grove | 33.40 | 14,913 | $49,973 | $191,935 | $1,091 |
| 35 | Lebanon | 33.50 | 17,812 | $65,154 | $299,032 | $962 |
| 36 | Plainfield | 34.40 | 36,369 | $87,272 | $331,618 | $1,499 |
| 37 | Brownsburg | 34.50 | 31,215 | $102,235 | $356,184 | $1,486 |
| 38 | Schererville | 35.30 | 29,701 | $89,466 | $352,735 | $1,310 |
| 39 | Westfield | 36.20 | 54,677 | $122,789 | $468,588 | $1,667 |
| 40 | Jeffersonville | 36.50 | 51,043 | $70,930 | $251,611 | $1,148 |
| 41 | New Albany | 36.70 | 37,581 | $54,710 | $235,058 | $1,026 |
| 42 | Noblesville | 36.90 | 73,362 | $104,047 | $389,215 | $1,389 |
| 43 | Portage | 37.00 | 38,082 | $76,276 | $264,578 | $1,231 |
| 44 | McCordsville | 37.40 | 10,329 | $110,692 | $375,788 | $1,283 |
| 45 | Griffith | 37.60 | 16,273 | $76,636 | $247,099 | $1,235 |
| 46 | Seymour | 37.80 | 22,371 | $64,426 | $230,829 | $1,011 |
| 47 | Avon | 38.20 | 23,437 | $98,486 | $352,859 | $1,538 |
| 48 | Greenwood | 38.70 | 66,029 | $83,608 | $326,491 | $1,312 |
| 49 | New Haven | 38.70 | 15,698 | $70,970 | $240,073 | $998 |
| 50 | Speedway | 38.90 | 13,968 | $60,147 | $236,684 | $1,141 |
| 51 | Hobart | 39.00 | 29,558 | $75,160 | $238,196 | $1,206 |
| 52 | Evansville | 39.70 | 116,116 | $53,387 | $198,977 | $975 |
| 53 | Hammond | 39.70 | 76,768 | $55,504 | $170,817 | $1,134 |
| 54 | Muncie | 40.80 | 64,751 | $44,471 | $151,291 | $904 |
| 55 | Elkhart | 42.00 | 53,733 | $51,028 | $222,794 | $998 |
| 56 | Indianapolis | 42.90 | 885,860 | $66,219 | $229,209 | $1,156 |
| 57 | Lawrence | 44.20 | 49,517 | $74,022 | $268,725 | $1,178 |
| 58 | Fort Wayne | 44.30 | 268,589 | $61,422 | $242,385 | $999 |
| 59 | South Bend | 44.60 | 103,085 | $55,786 | $192,340 | $1,033 |
| 60 | West Lafayette | 44.90 | 45,159 | $34,891 | $363,861 | $1,225 |
| 61 | Lafayette | 45.30 | 71,159 | $53,716 | $262,731 | $1,079 |
| 62 | Clarksville | 45.60 | 22,016 | $60,467 | $203,069 | $1,110 |
| 63 | Bloomington | 45.90 | 80,049 | $50,465 | $313,960 | $1,200 |
| 64 | Warsaw | 46.00 | 16,768 | $61,035 | $271,691 | $1,066 |
| 65 | Mishawaka | 47.10 | 51,021 | $54,291 | $206,367 | $1,070 |
| 66 | Goshen | 48.60 | 34,420 | $59,184 | $275,120 | $1,093 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024, FBI UCR, OpenFlights. 66 cities with more than 10,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: Maybe You’re Not Ready To Retire In Indiana Yet…
So there you have it, the best place to retire in Indiana goes to New Castle.
The best places to retire in Indiana are New Castle, Lowell, Crawfordsville, Jasper, Bedford, Bluffton, Danville, St. John, Washington, and East Chicago.
If you’re not ready to hang up your office apparel yet, then these places might be up your alley.
