Here’s why Illinois was just named one of the top 10 safest states for retirees
Illinois was recently named one of the safest states in the nation for retirees by one analysis, which considered crime rates, scam reports and more.
The report from CareScout, a network of long-term care providers, compared all 50 states and Washington D.C. and found Illinois was the No. 9 safest state to retire in 2026.
To compile the ranking, CareScout considered metrics such as rate of fraud reports, property crime, law enforcement staffing compared to senior population, fall-related death rates, fatal car crash rates for people age 65 and older and hospital capacity relative to Medicare beneficiaries. Data sources included the FBI, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and more.
“The analysis also found that reported crimes involving older adults have increased over the past decade, underscoring why planning for later life means looking beyond traditional retirement factors,” CareScout’s report reads. “While serious incidents remain relatively uncommon, the findings reinforce the importance of choosing communities that support safety, access to care and healthy aging.”
CareScout reported property crimes against adults age 60 and older have increased nationally over the past decade, citing FBI data.
New Jersey took the top spot for the No. 1 safest state to retire, while Arizona was in last place.
What made Illinois perform well?
Illinois’ strongest performance was in police staffing, ranked 7th place, followed by 12th place for hospital capacity and the 17th-lowest fall-related death rate.
The Land of Lincoln was near the average for violent and property crime rates, as well as fatal car crashes.
The weakest-performing category for Illinois was the rate of adults age 60 and older reporting falling victim to scams. The Illinois Attorney General’s Office reported in 2024 the most common types of consumer complaints included construction/home improvement scams, identity theft, consumer debt, motor vehicle/used auto sales and schemes such as phone scams, lottery scams or phishing.
While Illinois performed well for retiree safety, the state has previously landed in the bottom in multiple analyses on retirement, particularly for affordability issues and high tax rates.
Top 15 safest states to retire
Here’s how the top 15 safest states to retire in 2026 compared, according to CareScout’s analysis:
- New Jersey
- New York
- Rhode Island
- Connecticut
- Nebraska
- Louisiana
- Pennsylvania
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- Maine
- Mississippi
- Massachusetts
- Delaware
The lowest-performing states in CareScout’s report were Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon and Colorado. Missouri landed around the middle of the pack, in 27th place.
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