Boasting plenty of beaches, top-notch food, a wealth of nearby travel destinations, a lower cost of living and a pleasant warm climate — it’s not hard to see why American retirees are swapping out domestic locales like Florida, Georgia and South Carolina for Spain.
According to InterNations, an organization dedicated to building a global community of expats, Spain offers Americans the highest quality of life and the most abundant leisure activities — making it the top European country to move to.
Spain is also ranked among the top countries for travel, assimilation and health care — the country is ninth best on the 2025 Health Care Index, while the US is 39th.
Global Citizen Solutions specifically ranked Spain the No. 1 country for American retirees in its 2025 report, and estimates that the average monthly cost of living is around $2,000 to $2,500 — which often includes rent.
“I started investigating the residency requirements for moving to Spain. My pensions just met the financial threshold. I started gathering documents, ordered an FBI report and got an apostille. My doctor wrote a letter saying I had no infectious diseases, and I bought Spanish health insurance,” said an American retiree, Marsha Scarbrough, who detailed her Spain expat experience in an essay for Travel + Leisure.
“I printed bank statements, took passport photos, filled out forms and paid fees online. Finally, I had everything translated into Spanish by a certified interpreter.”
Given the impending social security cuts that many Americans are set to face, moving abroad to enjoy a high quality of life without the rising costs of living in the US seems to be a popular choice for retirees.
