Affordable Places to Retire With Four True Seasons in the U.S.

Some people retire to escape winter. Others can't imagine a year without one — the first cold snap, bright fall color, a snowy January, a spring that actually feels like spring.

If that's you, here's good news: four real seasons don't have to come with big-city prices. We found 18 U.S. places with a true winter and a true summer and an everyday cost of living at or near the national average — from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Rockies to the shores of Lake Michigan.

• Southern Appalachians: Asheville and Hendersonville, NC; Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Franklin, TN
• Ozarks: Branson, MO
• Great Lakes: Traverse City, MI, and Door County, WI
• Northern Rockies & Inland Northwest: Bozeman, MT; Boise and Coeur d'Alene, ID; Spokane, WA
• Colorado & Utah: Colorado Springs and Durango, CO; Park City, UT
• High-desert Southwest: Santa Fe and Taos, NM; Flagstaff, AZ

Plus one more worth a look: Prescott, AZ.

Open to going abroad? See our Affordable Places to Retire Abroad With Four True Seasons.

How we picked them

We used two simple tests. A place had to pass both.

Test 1: Four true seasons

We looked at 30 years of temperature records (1991–2020) from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). A place qualified if:

• its coldest month averages 40°F or colder — a real winter, and
• its warmest month averages 66°F or warmer — a real summer.

That's HomeAfterWork's definition, and it's the flip side of our Affordable Places to Retire With Mild Weather guide, which looks for winters that average 40°F or warmer. An average is just that — some days will be much colder or warmer — but it's a good picture of what a typical year feels like.

Test 2: An everyday cost of living at or near the national average

For this, we used the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the federal agency behind the country's GDP numbers. Each year it measures how much everyday life costs in different parts of the country compared with the national average, which is set at 100.

• Below 100 means everyday costs run lower than average. A score of 92 means about 8% lower.
• Above 100 means higher than average.

What it includes: groceries, clothing, gas, services like healthcare, utilities, and rent. What it doesn't include: home purchase prices, property taxes, or insurance.

We included every place scoring at or below 100, or within one point of it. Three places — Flagstaff, Spokane, and Colorado Springs — land just over 100, close enough that you'd never notice the difference in a monthly budget.

These are 2024 figures, the latest BEA has published. For smaller towns BEA doesn't measure on their own — Branson, Taos, Traverse City, Door County, Bozeman, Park City, and Durango — we used the figure for their state's rural areas, so treat those as a general guide.

How to read these two numbers

For every place, you'll see two different money numbers. They answer different questions.

Everyday cost of living tells you what day-to-day life costs — groceries, gas, a doctor's visit, utilities, rent.

Home prices tell you what homes are worth locally. We show the U.S. Census Bureau's county median value for owner-occupied homes (2020–2024), next to the national figure of $332,700. It's a county-wide number that includes every kind of home, so the town itself and specific neighborhoods can run higher or lower.

Which one matters more depends on how you'll live there:

• Buying with cash — say, after selling a home in a higher-cost market? Everyday cost of living may matter most, since you won't carry a mortgage.
• Buying with a mortgage? Weigh both. Home prices drive your monthly payment.
• Renting? Everyday cost of living already includes rent, and we show local median rent too.

Quick comparison

Temperatures: NOAA 1991–2020 monthly averages. Everyday cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 ("rural" = the state's non-metro average). Home values: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020–2024.

Southern Appalachians

Asheville, North Carolina

Asheville gives you the full Blue Ridge year: January averages about 38°F and July about 75°F — cool, crisp winters and warm (not scorching) summers. The Asheville metro's everyday cost of living is 96.5, about 3.5% below the national average. Buncombe County's median home value is $391,800, and median rent is $1,362. Explore Asheville →

Hendersonville, North Carolina

Just south of Asheville and part of the same metro, Hendersonville shares its 96.5 everyday cost of living. Winters average about 37°F in January, summers about 74°F in July. Henderson County's median home value is $351,400, and its median rent — $1,187 — is well below the national figure of $1,413. Explore Hendersonville →

Chattanooga, Tennessee

Chattanooga sits on the milder side of four seasons: January averages range from about 37°F up on Lookout Mountain to about 42°F in town, with July around 76–81°F. What stands out is the price: the Chattanooga metro's everyday cost of living is 91.5 — about 8.5% below average — and Hamilton County's median home value, $312,800, comes in below the national figure. Explore Chattanooga →

Franklin, Tennessee

South of Nashville, Franklin brings about 39°F Januaries and 80°F Julys. The Nashville-area metro's everyday cost of living is 96.3. Williamson County's median home value is $751,900, and median rent is $1,969. Explore Franklin →

Knoxville, Tennessee

Knoxville pairs about 37°F Januaries and 77°F Julys with one of the lower everyday costs on this list: 92.6, about 7.4% below average. Knox County's median home value, $320,900, is below the national figure, and median rent is $1,261. Explore Knoxville →

Ozarks

Branson, Missouri

Branson has the lowest everyday cost of living in this guide: 83.9 for rural Missouri, about 16% below the national average. Taney County also has the guide's lowest median home value ($218,800) and lowest median rent ($926). Seasons are real but gentle — about 36°F in January and 79°F in July. Explore Branson →

Great Lakes

Door County (Sturgeon Bay), Wisconsin

If you want a real winter, Door County delivers: January averages about 18°F, the coldest on this list, followed by pleasant lake summers around 68°F in July. Rural Wisconsin's everyday cost of living is 89.6, and Door County's median rent — $1,086 — is well below the national figure. Median home value: $342,600. Explore Door County →

Traverse City, Michigan

On Grand Traverse Bay, Traverse City pairs snowy winters (about 22°F in January) with comfortable summers (about 69°F in July). Rural Michigan's everyday cost of living is 89.0, about 11% below average. Grand Traverse County's median home value is $339,400, close to the national figure. Explore Traverse City →

Northern Rockies & Inland Northwest

Boise, Idaho

Boise brings about 32°F winters and warm 77°F summers. The Boise metro's everyday cost of living is 98.4. Ada County's median home value is $512,300, and median rent is $1,577. Explore Boise →

Bozeman, Montana

Bozeman is true mountain-winter country — its coldest month averages about 24°F — with mild summers around 67°F. Rural Montana's everyday cost of living is 91.6, about 8% below average. Gallatin County's median home value is $667,600. Explore Bozeman →

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Coeur d'Alene sees about 31°F winters and 70°F summers. The Coeur d'Alene metro's everyday cost of living is 98.3. Kootenai County's median home value is $518,700, and median rent is $1,492. Explore Coeur d'Alene →

Spokane, Washington

Spokane pairs about 31°F winters with 72°F summers. Its everyday cost of living is 100.3 — right at the national average. Spokane County's median home value is $410,700, and median rent, $1,283, is below the national figure. Explore Spokane →

Colorado & Utah

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Colorado Springs has about 32°F winters and 72°F summers along the Front Range. Its everyday cost of living is 100.7, within a point of the national average. El Paso County's median home value is $461,000. Explore Colorado Springs →

Durango, Colorado

Durango gets snowy winters (about 26°F in January) and mild 69°F summers. Rural Colorado's everyday cost of living is 97.5. La Plata County's median home value is $591,500. Explore Durango →

Park City, Utah

Park City is a genuine winter town — about 24°F in January — with comfortable 67°F summers. BEA doesn't measure Park City on its own; rural Utah's everyday cost of living is 93.1, and Park City itself likely runs higher than that. Summit County's median home value is $1,067,700. Explore Park City →

High-desert Southwest

Flagstaff, Arizona

Flagstaff turns Arizona's desert reputation upside down: its coldest month averages about 30°F, and July averages a pleasant 67°F. Its everyday cost of living is 100.3 — right at the national average. Coconino County's median home value is $448,000. Explore Flagstaff →

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Santa Fe offers about 30°F winters and 71°F summers. The Santa Fe metro's everyday cost of living is 98.8. Santa Fe County's median home value is $446,300, and median rent is $1,389. Explore Santa Fe →

Taos, New Mexico

Taos combines about 27°F Januaries with 70°F Julys, and rural New Mexico's everyday cost of living is 85.9 — about 14% below average. Taos County's median home value is $382,800, and median rent is $1,034. Explore Taos →

Worth a look: Prescott, Arizona

Prescott has four real seasons — its coldest month averages about 38°F and July about 75°F — with far less snow than Flagstaff: about 10 inches a year versus 90, based on NOAA's 30-year averages. Rents run about 15% lower than Flagstaff's ($1,395 vs. $1,645, U.S. Census), and home prices are in the same range. It isn't on the main list only because there's no current federal cost-of-living figure for Prescott, so we couldn't run our second test. Explore Prescott →

Find the four-season place that fits you

Temperatures and prices are a great place to start, but they're not the whole picture. Healthcare, outdoor life, community size, and how close you want to be to family all shape the right fit.