Living off Social Security alone has long been discouraged for retirees. This is particularly true of those retiring in large cities with high cost of living.
According to a recent GOBankingRates study, retirees in the nation’s 50 largest cities still have substantial living expenses to cover after Social Security. The lowest end is $24,788 in Jackson, Mississippi, while retirees in New York City are faced with as much as $85,913.
Key factors in the study include the average annual expenditure for people 65 and older, the annual Social Security income and remaining expenditures once this income is subtracted from the annual expenditure.
In alphabetical state order, here’s how much retirees can anticipate paying after Social Security in each state’s largest city. Curious about how much you’d need to retire without Social Security? We did the math for every state.
Huntsville, Alabama
- Total population: 218,814
- Annual expenditure: $59,730
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $36,265
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Anchorage, Alaska
- Total population: 289,069
- Annual expenditure: $73,236
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $49,770
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Phoenix
- Total population: 1,624,832
- Annual expenditure: $71,651
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $48,185
Little Rock, Arkansas
- Total population: 202,739
- Annual expenditure: $51,170
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $27,705
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Los Angeles
- Total population: 3,857,897
- Annual expenditure: $102,531
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $79,065
Denver
- Total population: 713,734
- Annual expenditure: $80,909
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $57,443
Bridgeport, Connecticut
- Total population: 148,012
- Annual expenditure: $87,883
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $64,418
Wilmington, Delaware
- Total population: 71,124
- Annual expenditure: $66,008
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $42,542
Jacksonville, Florida
- Total population: 961,739
- Annual expenditure: $60,681
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $37,216
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Atlanta
- Total population: 499,287
- Annual expenditure: $71,841
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $48,376
Honolulu
- Total population: 346,323
- Annual expenditure: $108,745
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $85,279
Boise, Idaho
- Total population: 235,701
- Annual expenditure: $75,836
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $52,370
Chicago
- Total population: 2,707,648
- Annual expenditure: $67,022
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $43,557
Indianapolis
- Total population: 882,043
- Annual expenditure: $54,341
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $30,875
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Des Moines, Iowa
- Total population: 212,464
- Annual expenditure: $54,911
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $31,446
Wichita, Kansas
- Total population: 396,488
- Annual expenditure: $52,502
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $29,036
Louisville, Kentucky
- Total population: 627,210
- Annual expenditure: $56,940
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $33,475
New Orleans
- Total population: 376,035
- Annual expenditure: $64,423
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $40,957
Portland, Maine
- Total population: 68,505
- Annual expenditure: $71,334
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $47,868
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Baltimore
- Total population: 577,193
- Annual expenditure: $58,716
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $35,250
Boston
- Total population: 663,972
- Annual expenditure: $95,619
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $72,154
Detroit
- Total population: 636,644
- Annual expenditure: $58,209
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $34,743
Minneapolis
- Total population: 426,845
- Annual expenditure: $67,973
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $44,508
Jackson, Mississippi
- Total population: 149,827
- Annual expenditure: $48,253
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $24,788
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Kansas City, Missouri
- Total population: 508,233
- Annual expenditure: $56,053
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $32,587
Billings, Montana
- Total population: 118,321
- Annual expenditure: $59,984
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $36,518
Omaha, Nebraska
- Total population: 488,197
- Annual expenditure: $57,574
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $34,109
Las Vegas
- Total population: 650,873
- Annual expenditure: $70,129
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $46,663
Manchester, New Hampshire
- Total population: 115,415
- Annual expenditure: $70,193
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $46,727
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Newark, New Jersey
- Total population: 307,188
- Annual expenditure: $85,601
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $62,135
Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Total population: 562,488
- Annual expenditure: $58,335
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $34,870
New York City
- Total population: 8,516,202
- Annual expenditure: $109,379
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $85,913
Charlotte, North Carolina
- Total population: 886,283
- Annual expenditure: $64,993
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $41,527
Fargo, North Dakota
- Total population: 129,064
- Annual expenditure: $57,448
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $33,982
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Columbus, Ohio
- Total population: 906,480
- Annual expenditure: $57,955
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $34,489
Oklahoma City
- Total population: 688,693
- Annual expenditure: $54,214
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $30,748
Portland, Oregon
- Total population: 642,715
- Annual expenditure: $80,972
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $57,506
Philadelphia
- Total population: 1,582,432
- Annual expenditure: $66,135
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $42,669
Providence, Rhode Island
- Total population: 190,214
- Annual expenditure: $68,988
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $45,522
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Charleston, South Carolina
- Total population: 152,014
- Annual expenditure: $71,017
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $47,551
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Total population: 197,642
- Annual expenditure: $57,511
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $34,045
Nashville, Tennessee
- Total population: 684,298
- Annual expenditure: $66,388
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $42,922
Houston
- Total population: 2,300,419
- Annual expenditure: $61,442
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $37,977
Salt Lake City
- Total population: 203,888
- Annual expenditure: $76,914
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $53,448
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Burlington, Vermont
- Total population: 44,649
- Annual expenditure: $71,271
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $47,805
Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Total population: 457,066
- Annual expenditure: $66,452
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $42,986
Seattle
- Total population: 741,440
- Annual expenditure: $100,248
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $76,782
Charleston, West Virginia
- Total population: 47,918
- Annual expenditure: $51,551
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $28,085
Milwaukee
- Total population: 569,756
- Annual expenditure: $55,799
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $32,333
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Cheyenne, Wyoming
- Total population: 64,976
- Annual expenditure: $63,598
- Yearly Social Security income: $23,466
- Annual expenditure after Social Security: $40,132
Explore more original studies and surveys in the GOBankingRates original research center.
Methodology: GOBankingRates found the most populous cities in every state from the 2023 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. GOBankingRates then found (1) the national average annual expenditures for people 65 and older, sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2023 Consumer Expenditure Survey data (which was adjusted to 2025 dollars using the BLS CPI inflation calculator) and (2) annual Social Security income as sourced from the Social Security Administration’s August 2025 data. Then, GOBankingRates created (2) city-level annual expenditure estimates by multiplying the national figure by each city’s overall cost-of-living index score from Sperling’s BestPlaces. All data was collected on Nov. 20, 2025.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Cost of Living After Social Security in the Largest City in Every State
