The 10 Best States for Older Workers

“It’s really an affordability issue that’s driving this,” says Rich Johnson, AARP’s vice president of financial security at the AARP Public Policy Institute. .

“We need to retire the word ‘retirement’ because it just doesn’t fit anymore,” says Gary Phelan, 65, an attorney based in Milford, Connecticut, who handles workplace disputes, including age discrimination.

Connected to their communities

In interviews with older workers in many of the best-ranked states for this article, AARP found that almost all cited proximity to family, access to strong health care facilities and opportunities to enjoy the outdoors among the reasons for where they live and work. Moreover, they are not eager to leave communities where they have built roots and contribute to the region’s economy and quality of life through their jobs.

David Heiby, 66, transitioned in 2022 from running a successful international auto tool business to becoming a public historian and tour operator focused on guided cemetery walks in Alexandria, Virginia, which ranks 10th on the list. Making his living operating Gravestone Stories is a natural fit for a man who has always had a passion for his community’s history and who previously led Civil War battlefield tours.

“My side gig became my full-time gig,” says Heiby, who is affectionately known as “Grave Dave.”

Heiby lives in his childhood home in Alexandria and is the superintendent at the church he’s attended his entire life. His parents are buried alongside Revolutionary and Civil War heroes in the same cemeteries that Heiby now leads tour groups to visit.

At this point, he has no plans to retire from his dream job in his home state. “It’s in my blood; it’s something I want to do,” says Heiby, noting the 90-minute tours encourage exercise and social activity, and were a chief motivating factor during his recovery from a serious pulmonary illness in 2025.

Morris Price, 63, of Denver, who has “forgotten more about philanthropy than most people will know,” feels a professional connection to the region, which has one of the highest concentrations of nonprofits per capita in the country. After 35 years with a variety of local organizations and educational institutions, Price opened his own consultancy firm in 2024.

He relies on his long-term networks across politics, nonprofits and education to attract and retain clients. Price credits deep involvement in civic life for strengthening his career longevity. “I made myself viable in the community,” he says.

Similarly, Phelan, 65, the Connecticut attorney, sees “no reason not to continue working” and has stayed where his clients are based. Plus, it’s home. “I’ve been here for 36 years. Why uproot and go elsewhere?” he says.

Working across generations

CareScout’s rankings come at a time when an unprecedented five generations are active in the workforce. Regardless of motivation, Americans are working later in life, often providing valuable skills to companies that may need to compensate for lower employment rates among younger generations. That mix of generations can help businesses and benefit workers of all ages.

Leslie Wells, 64, co-owner of Pizzeria Verità in Burlington, admits that relating to her younger staff can sometimes be a challenge, but she knows she could not run her business without them. “The age gap is over 40 years, and I can attest to the fact that we are not speaking the same language at times,” says Wells, who is set to open a new restaurant, Alimentari, this year. “But I feel very fortunate to have them taking good care of the restaurants.”

Chris Shinn, 67, pivoted to preschool teaching when his photography business lost too many clients. “I want to put off collecting Social Security until I am 70,” says Shinn, who lives in Arvada, Colorado, noting that people who wait until that age to claim Social Security receive more money than they would have if they started receiving payments at a younger age. He received training through the Early Childhood Service Corps, a program that supports older adults seeking career changes.

Shinn notes his students’ parents say his age has added a valuable perspective and counterbalance to the younger teachers on staff.

Age bias is still an issue

The CareScout list offers insights into how well each state supports its older working residents, but even a high ranking hardly means the state is free of workplace age bias. According to an AARP poll of 1,656 workers age 50-plus conducted last summer and published in late January 2026, 22 percent of older people felt they were being pushed out of work due to their age, and about two-thirds (64 percent) reported seeing or experiencing age discrimination in the workplace.

“The one thing people shouldn’t use the results of this [CareScout] study to do is say ‘I’ll move to that state and get a job,’” Johnson says.

For example, while Colorado has plenty of scenic beauty and four distinct seasons, and is ranked the second-best state in which to work from home in a recent WalletHub study, its high ranking from CareScout produced a snort" from Janine Vandenberg, 73, founder and owner of Encore Roadmap, which offers training and consulting for businesses, media and brands to become more age-inclusive.

Vandenberg, who splits time between Denver and rural Colorado, where her husband runs a vineyard, notes the state ranked 38th in age discrimination complaints in CareScout’s findings. Maryland (35) and Virginia (30) are other top-10 states with a high number of complaints.

“Age discrimination is real,” says Vandenberg. “It’s such a waste of human talent and potential.”

Andrea Kuwik, director of policy and research at the Bell Policy Center in Colorado, says progress fighting age discrimination requires moving beyond anecdotal evidence of older workers’ experiences to concrete information. Beyond data showing that 20.5 percent of the state’s population is 65 or older, there’s little additional information that specifically addresses the needs of individuals in the state who are working past traditional retirement age.

“There isn’t a lot of really great state-level, granular data,” laments Kuwik, who calls for greater representation of older workers on boards and commissions to develop systems that help build a more age-inclusive workforce.