10 best places to retire in the UK

Where to spend your retirement

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Planning on calling time on your career but not sure where to live? Here are the top 10 places to retire in the UK, according to the Prudential Quality of Retirement Index. We also highlight how much home you get for your money in each of the top 10, to give you a better idea if it’s the right place for you.

How the top 10 were identified

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But before we begin, here’s how the best destinations were identified. Prudential ranked 55 counties in England and Wales based on nine key factors. These were the size of the pensioner population living in the area, the number of pensioners moving there, access to healthcare, crime levels, healthy lifestyle data, pension income, disability-free life expectancy, weather and happiness. Counties were ranked for each category out of 55, and these were tallied to give an overall score.

10th place – Shropshire

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Shropshire is one of England's most rural counties, with the Shropshire Hills classed as an Area of Outstanding Beauty. The county ranked second in the country for the number of healthcare workers per 1,000 and this year entered into the top 10 for the best place to retire in 2018 overall.

Shropshire – average house price: £218,736

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The average house price in Shropshire is £218,736, and for just over that average you could buy this spacious three bedroom detached bungalow on the outskirts of the town of Telford.

9th place – Somerset

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Another new entry to the top 10, Somerset has risen 9 places to become the 9th top place to retire to in the UK. The county performed particularly well for disability-free life expectancy, as well as happiness where it ranked 7.

Somerset – average house price: £288,701

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If you fancy making the move this beautiful two bedroom cottage in the village of Bleadon, Weston-super-Mare within walking distance of the local post office, village shop and even a cafe is on the market for £300,000.

8th place – Oxfordshire

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Oxfordshire boasts the best overall health and lifestyle ranking (4th) out of the top 10. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the number of older residents is pretty low in the area, ranking 44th out of 55 on the proportion of pensioners. So if you’re keen to be around people of a similar age, there are probably better places out there. However, to make the move to Oxford you will need a fairly decent budget...

Oxfordshire – average house price: £502,817

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...because house prices are extremely high. An average home costing £502,817, according to Rightmove data. Assuming you can afford it, this two-bed bungalow in Iffley just outside of Oxford's centre is accepting offers in excess of £500,000.

7th place – Worcestershire

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Over to Worcestershire, which might not have the best weather (29th), but its ranking for life expectancy is hard to beat (3rd). With an average overall ranking at just over 19, it comes in at 7th on Prudential’s list.

Worcestershire – average house price: £260,485

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With homes typically selling for around the £260,000 mark, it's still one of the more affordable counties to make the list. This two-bed, detached bungalow in Kidderminster is currently on the market for just under the market average.

6th place – Devon

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The home of cream tea, beautiful beaches and plenty of sunshine makes this an attractive place to spend your golden years. And it seems new retirees agree: Devon is attracting more pensioners than anywhere else in England and Wales.

Devon – average house price: £259,393

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Fancy making the move? This 3-bed bungalow in the sleepy village of Braunton is on the market for just over the county's average at £270,000.

5th place – Norfolk

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In fifth place for the second year running, the coastal county of Norfolk enjoys low levels of crime, good weather, and high pensioner population density and net migration.

Norfolk – average house price: £248,416

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Anyone interested in moving there can expect to pay around £248,416 for a typical home. This two-bed, detached bungalow in the popular village of Little Fransham is going for offers in excess of that sum.

4th place – Isle of Wight

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According to Prudential, the Isle of Wight continues to be a magnet for retirees with the highest number of pensioners per head of population. It has risen four places since last year, and is now in 4th place.

Isle of Wight – average house price: £232,716

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Still keen? This two-bed, detached bungalow could be yours for £230,000.

3rd place – East Sussex

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Moving into the top three, we have East Sussex. The coastal county is already popular with retirees, coming in at 4th for the highest percentage of over 65s. However, the average price of a house is a little higher than other counties, at £339,809.

East Sussex – average house price:£339,809

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But if you have £339,809 burning a hole in your pocket, you could be living in this three-bed, detached house in Hailsham in no time.

2nd place – Dorset

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Dorset is one of only two counties to feature in the top 10 in five of the eight different categories. What’s something of a surprise is the fact its lowest rankings are for health and lifestyle (17th) and access to healthcare (26th).

Dorset – average house price: £318,415

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Prices are unsurprisingly well above the national average in this popular destination. But if it takes your fancy, this three-bed, detached house in walking distance of local shops in Poole is on the market with a guide price of £325,000.

1st place – West Sussex

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For the second year running south coast county of West Sussex has taken the top spot as the best place in the UK to retire to. With an overall ranking of 9.1 – the only county to rank under 10 – it’s not hard to see why. It scores strongly for pension income (9th), weather (4th) and disability-free life expectancy (4th). We reckon the castle might be a bit of a stretch, but you could buy...

West Sussex – average house price: £367,076

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...this end-of-terrace house in the sought-after village of Rustington. It’s on the market for £350,000, comfortably below the county average of £367,076.

How they all ranked

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So there you have it, the top 10 counties. If you wanted more info, above is the full breakdown of scoring for the top 10 counties from Prudential.