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Sep 20, 2026

14 Affordable West Coast Retirement Destinations With Low Monthly Costs

Written by Heather Taylor
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Edited by Brendan McGinley
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14 Affordable West Coast Retirement Destinations With Low Monthly Costs

Good news: Even though budgets are getting tighter at high speed, you can still reside comfortably on the West Coast if you have a decently sized monthly retirement budget, and plan to take Social Security. A recent MoneyLion analysis revealed there are 14 West Coast retirement destinations where the total cost of living with Social Security benefits is less than $5,500 per month for retirees.

MoneyLion found these spots from a larger study which analyzed the monthly costs of living in the nation’s most popular retirement cities. The cities found in the original study have 20% of the population ages 65 and over. The total cost of living calculated using mortgage and expenditure data with an additional 20% buffer added to find the comfortable cost of retirement. We pulled all West Coast-based cities where the total cost of living with benefits is under $5,500 per month.

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See which popular West Coast locales have the least expensive monthly retirement expenses.

1. Morro Bay, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 32.6%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,484

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,997

  • Livability: 56

2. Edmonds, Washington

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 23.6%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,469

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,979

  • Livability: 74

3. Lake Oswego, Oregon

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 23.5%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,456

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,964

  • Livability: 83

4. Loomis, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 20.7%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,455

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,962

  • Livability: 65

5. Ben Lomond, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 21.5%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,414

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,913

  • Livability: 68

6. San Dimas, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 20.3%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,406

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,903

  • Livability: 72

7. Valley Center, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 22.3%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,399

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,895

  • Livability: 51

8. Camarillo, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 23%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,392

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,887

  • Livability: 78

9. Petaluma, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 22.1%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,344

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,829

  • Livability: 82

10. El Dorado Hills, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 20.8%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,311

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,790

  • Livability: 60

11. Rosemead, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 20.8%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,300

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,777

  • Livability: 62

12. Raleigh Hills, Oregon

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 23.7%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,256

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,723

  • Livability: 89

13. Snohomish, Washington

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 20.1%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,237

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,700

  • Livability: 76

14. La Mirada, California

  • Percent of population 65-plus: 21.1%

  • Monthly cost of necessities: $5,176

  • Monthly cost of comfortable retirement: $6,628

  • Livability: 73

Methodology: For this study, MoneyLion analyzed the most popular retirement hotspots to find the cost of living in each location. First MoneyLion isolated retirement hotspots with a total population of at least 5,000 and with at least 20% percentage of the population ages 65 and over, sourced from the U.S. Census ACS. For each city the cost-of-living indices were sourced from Sperling's BestPlaces and using the national average expenditure costs for retired households, as sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey for retired consumer units, the average expenditure costs can be calculated. The average single family home value was sourced from Zillow Home Value Index. Assuming a 10% down payment and using the national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate of 6.53, as sourced from the Federal Reserve Economic Data, the average mortgage can be calculated for each city. Using the average mortgage and expenditure costs, the total cost of living was calculated for each city. To find the comfortable cost of retirement, MoneyLion added a 20% buffer to the total cost of living for necessities. The livability index was sourced from AreaVibes and included as supplemental information. The cities were sorted to show the most expensive cities first. All data is up to date as of June 1, 2026.

This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.

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Written by
Heather Taylor
Edited by
Brendan McGinley