Key Takeaways
- Large towns (population over 100,000) give you access to cultural attractions, health care, and recreation without big-city inconveniences, like sprawl, traffic, and a high cost of living.
- Spanning the Midwest, New England, the Southwest, and the Rockies, our four favorite large towns offer affordability, a rich local culture, strong health care networks, and year-round recreation.
- Toledo, Ohio, may be best if you want both urban and green spaces, while Springfield, Massachusetts, is attractive if you love to travel.
- Albuquerque, New Mexico, can be a good choice if you prioritize access to health care, and Pueblo, Colorado, may be attractive if you’re searching for a city with a small-town vibe.
When you’re planning where to live for your retirement, you may think you need to choose between small-town charm and big-city resources, but some big towns have the best of both worlds.
In this article, we look at towns with populations over 100,000 that offer the best combination of affordability, culture, and robust health care access.
This list is part of a bigger project Investopedia undertook with Travel + Leisure to identify the top 50 best places to retire in the U.S. We gathered and analyzed data on the cost of living across the U.S., as well as access to travel, health care, and arts and entertainment…