This Popular Southern Country Ranks As A Retirement Paradise For Seniors

Retirement is a time when you should get to live your best life, and many Americans are turning to one country in particular to make that happen. Mexico, just south of the U.S. border, offers a safe haven for retirees that has been gaining increasing popularity among Americans looking for a place to make their hard-earned dollars stretch as far as possible. In fact, it's the most popular country for expats (as of 2020) with countries like Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany trailing in the distance.

Mexico is close enough to home so American retirees can visit family often or have family visit them; it also offers beautiful weather year-round, an incredible culture that goes back centuries, and a fantastic cuisine that offers a variety of options for every taste and diet. And perhaps the most attractive quality of all, it has an extremely affordable cost of living that allows you to live life on your terms for much longer than you could elsewhere.

In Mexico, that low cost of living doesn't mean you have to skimp and pinch pennies. Due to the affordability of things like housing, health care, utilities, and food, you can afford a much higher quality of life, meaning luxury is often fully attainable. This is perhaps what makes Mexico such an attractive retirement option for most of the 800,000 Americans who have already made the move.

If you're considering retiring to Mexico, the first step is to determine when you plan to take the plunge. Giving yourself plenty of time, rather than rushing your decision, allows you to thoroughly plan and take the necessary steps to make your retirement a success. This includes avoiding mistakes that can quickly derail your plans, like not fully understanding what your expenses will be. You also want to be sure you're planning to retire at the right age and avoid retiring too early. That age can be different for everyone and vary based on things like income, health, job loss, and your desire to keep working.

The next step will be to decide where you want to live. Mexico's regions are as diverse as the United States, so you have plenty of choices like the lush jungle and crystal-clear waters of the Riviera Maya on the country's east coast and cultural hotspots like the Central Mexican state of Guanajuato, home of the popular San Miguel de Allende. Rather than just going off the experiences of others and online housing price reports, you'll want to invest some time in exploring the country to determine what is the best place for you.

When you know for sure that this is the right move for you, make an appointment with the Mexican consulate, which has more than four dozen locations across the U.S., to get started on the necessary steps to establish residency. Even if you plan to split your time between the U.S. and Mexico, you'll want to make sure you're doing everything legally so you can sit back and enjoy your golden years.

A 2024 Planning and Progress Study conducted by Northwestern Mutual revealed that Americans believe they need approximately $1.46 million to retire comfortably. This number seems to go up each year, as respondents in 2023 reported a need for $1.27 million and even earlier numbers from 2020 estimated a need for only $951,000. This trend indicates the number will likely continue to increase with each passing year.

There are plenty of models suggesting how much you should really save for retirement and how much to plan on spending once retired, such as the popular recommendation to save an amount equal to 10-12 times your preretirement salary. Another number to keep in mind is your replacement rate, which is equal to 75%-85% of what your income was prior to retirement. However, in Mexico, note that the cost of living is significantly lower than in the United States, thus even less than 10 times your preretirement salary may be more than enough to retire comfortably. Consider that the average monthly cost of living in Mexico is $1,537 per person or $2,298 for a couple, per calculations from International Living, while the average monthly expenses for a retiree living in the U.S. is $4,818, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (via SmartAsset).