After military personnel complete their service — some after serving in war zones and experiencing combat — they retire to civilian life. The needs of veterans are often considerably different than their civilian cohort, either because of their experiences, how they lived their lives in the military, or what their job was.
There were 16.2 million veterans in 2022, according to the Census Bureau. Of all veterans, over 4.2 million served since 2001, nearly 4 million served during the Gulf War between 1990 and 2001, about 5.4 million served during the Vietnam War, 664,000 served during the Korean War, and 142,000 served during World War II. There are also 1.3 million active-duty military members, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, and 200,000 retire every year, according to marketing platform Gitnux.
While veterans are entitled to a range of benefits when they leave the service, some states offer additional benefits or simply provide a better environment where veterans can get better health care, wider access to jobs, and better overall quality of life. Other states, however, provide worse services and environment. (Also see: states with the most veterans: all 50 states ranked.)
To determine the worst states for military retirees, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed WalletHub’s list of Best & Worst States for Military Retirees. The site scored the 50 states based on how they can provide a comfortable military retirement. To that end, WalletHub evaluated 28 metrics in three main categories — economic environment, quality of life, and health care — with measures ranging from veterans per capita to number of VA health facilities to job opportunities for veterans, using a variety of sources including government and non-governmental military websites. Listed here are the 25 worst states.
Among the specific considerations of the study were each state’s tax-friendliness, share of veteran-owned businesses, VA expenditures, housing affordability, share of veterans not receiving SNAP, share of homeless veterans, weather, physicians per capita, and mental health counselors per capita.
The study found that red states are more friendly to military retirees, while blue states are less friendly. The absolute worst state is Oregon, scoring just 38.7/100. (To compare, the top state, Florida, scored 61.1.) Three of four of Oregon’s neighbors also rank in the bottom 10. Nevada at No. 2 (from the bottom) with a 41.7/100 score, Washington at No. 5 with a 43.2/100 score, and California at No. 7 with a 45.6 score.
25. West Virginia
- Score: 50.62/100
- Economic environment rank: 7th best
- Quality of life rank: 7th worst
- Health care rank: 17th worst
24. New Jersey
Source: tbabasade / iStock via Getty Images
- Score: 50.37/100
- Economic environment rank: 21st worst
- Quality of life rank: 14th best
- Health care rank: 15th worst
23. Kentucky
- Score: 50.17/100
- Economic environment rank: 23rd worst
- Quality of life rank: 16th worst
- Health care rank: 16th best
22. Utah
Source: George Frey / Getty Images
- Score: 49.67/100
- Economic environment rank: 2nd best
- Quality of life rank: 17th worst
- Health care rank: 3rd worst
21. Hawaii
- Score: 49.65/100
- Economic environment rank: 14th worst
- Quality of life rank: 11th best
- Health care rank: 12th worst
20. Illinois
- Score: 49.48/100
- Economic environment rank: 18th worst
- Quality of life rank: 12th worst
- Health care rank: 11th best
19. Texas
- Score: 49.31/100
- Economic environment rank: 24th worst
- Quality of life rank: 20th worst
- Health care rank: 18th worst
18. Delaware
Source: senatorchriscoons / Flickr
- Score: 49.22/100
- Economic environment rank: 4th worst
- Quality of life rank: 12th best
- Health care rank: 14th best
17. Indiana
- Score: 48.71/100
- Economic environment rank: 20th best
- Quality of life rank: 8th worst
- Health care rank: 19th worst
16. Colorado
Source: marine_corps / Flickr
- Score: 48.61/100
- Economic environment rank: 8th worst
- Quality of life rank: 15th best
- Health care rank: 24th worst
15. Iowa
- Score: 48.37/100
- Economic environment rank: 17th best
- Quality of life rank: 19th worst
- Health care rank: 10th worst
14. Wisconsin
Source: 101561334@N08 / Flickr
- Score: 48.30/100
- Economic environment rank: 6th worst
- Quality of life rank: 22nd worst
- Health care rank: 13th best
13. New York
- Score: 48.19/100
- Economic environment rank: 2nd worst
- Quality of life rank: 4th worst
- Health care rank: 3rd best
12. Maine
- Score: 48.03/100
- Economic environment rank: 16th worst
- Quality of life rank: 14th worst
- Health care rank: 20th best
11. Nebraska
Source: usairforce / Flickr
- Score: 47.44/100
- Economic environment rank: 5th worst
- Quality of life rank: 25th worst
- Health care rank: 18th best
10. Rhode Island
- Score: 46.95/100
- Economic environment rank: 12th best
- Quality of life rank: 5th worst
- Health care rank: 9th worst
9. Georgia
Source: Jacqueline Nix / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
- Score: 46.85/100
- Economic environment rank: 20th worst
- Quality of life rank: 24th best
- Health care rank: 7th worst
8. Tennessee
- Score: 46.03/100
- Economic environment rank: 16th best
- Quality of life rank: 3rd worst
- Health care rank: 11th worst
7. California
Source: BWiatre / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
- Score: 45.63/100
- Economic environment rank: the worst
- Quality of life rank: 9th best
- Health care rank: 23rd worst
6. New Mexico
- Score: 45.17/100
- Economic environment rank: 9th worst
- Quality of life rank: 13th best
- Health care rank: 5th worst
5. Washington
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Score: 43.17/100
- Economic environment rank: 19th worst
- Quality of life rank: 21st worst
- Health care rank: the worst
4. Vermont
- Score: 42.01/100
- Economic environment rank: 3rd worst
- Quality of life rank: 9th worst
- Health care rank: 20th worst
3. Mississippi
- Score: 41.91/100
- Economic environment rank: 7th worst
- Quality of life rank: 18th worst
- Health care rank: 6th worst
2. Nevada
- Score: 41.67/100
- Economic environment rank: 13th worst
- Quality of life rank: 6th worst
- Health care rank: 4th worst
1. Oregon
- Score: 38.73/100
- Economic environment rank: 10th worst
- Quality of life rank: the worst
- Health care rank: 25th worst
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