World's Cheapest and Safest Retirement Countries
March 18, 2020
More people each year choose to retire abroad for a number of reasons. Which countries might you consider for your retirement?
More people each year choose to retire abroad to find a change of scenery, new experiences, and a lower cost of living. Even if staying within a tight budget is your biggest retirement focus, safety is likely to be another top consideration.
To help you find the best of both worlds, below are 10 of the cheapest countries for retirement that scored well on the 2018 Global Peace Index, which ranks 163 nations according to their relative peacefulness.
- Austria - Considered by many as the “Swiss alternative,” Austria offers all the stunning natural beauty of Switzerland at a price that’s easier on the budget.
- Australia - Thanks to a strong U.S. dollar, Australia is gaining traction as an affordable retirement destination.
- The Czech Republic - The expat community is growing but still fairly small: about 6,000 Americans have permanent or temporary residency here.
- Portugal - A low cost of living attracts expats from around the world to retire to Portugal’s sunny shores.
- Slovenia - Expect incredible scenery - mountains, lakes, and emerald-green rivers - plus plenty of medieval castles.
- Spain - 3,000-plus miles of sunny coastline, snow-capped mountains, mild weather, and friendly locals.
- Malaysia - This multicultural island nation has good housing options for retirees, excellent health care and, of course, miles of beautiful beaches.
- Chile - An established community of expats enjoys Chile’s high standard of living, natural beauty, cosmopolitan cities, and welcoming locals.
- Costa Rica - Costa Rica was one of the first countries to offer a special benefits package specifically aimed at expat retirees.
- Uruguay - Expat retirees enjoy the stable economy, mild climate, sunny beaches, and colorful culture.
Read this article for each country's ratings and retirement visa requirements.
Stout Bowman regularly posts important and interesting information on our blog. Current topics include credit/debit/loans, estate planning, insurance, investing, Medicare, retirement, Social Security and taxes, as well as general information that we think you might find of interest. 
We have been publishing an email newsletter for our clients and friends since 2016. Links to all of the newsletters can be found on our newsletter page, with the most recent listed first. We try to keep our emails short, so there are typically only three articles in each one, most of which link to other articles in the financial and mainstream press. 
We also have a page on our site for the latest news about our company, notice of any upcoming events, and a market commentary to discuss what our advisors and other financial industry experts conclude about the previous investment performance and what we might expect the markets and the economy will do in the coming months. 
Many news organizations offer what is called a Rich Site Summary (RSS) feed, a listing of the latest changes to their site's content. We have subscribed to several of these news feeds and present a list of their latest ten articles on a page on this website to save our clients the hassle of going to multiple websites just to see what is available. Currently, we subscribe to 
At Stout Bowman every investment client is first a financial planning client; it's important to go through that process before we make any professional investment recommendations. Therefore, we strive to make financial planning understandable and comfortable every step of the way. One way to do that is to provide our clients access to financial education resources. To that end, we have subscribed to educational websites to receive their news feeds and present a list of their latest ten articles on a page on this website. Currently, we subscribe to