Can I live on my Social Security check or pension in each country?

Your monthly income. Before tax, in US dollars: one check, or all the pensions and Social Security you would receive together. The default is the average retired-worker check in 2026 (Social Security Administration).

What the income is. Social Security adds a note for places where it cannot be paid.

Money to bring, for how long. Used for the money-to-bring columns only.

When you stop working. The cost of each place is raised by US price rises until then.

Every place, nearest first. Monthly spending is for a typical city at the Comfortable level, rent included, for two people, in US dollars (the figures on the country pages, built 2026-10-11). Money to bring is the main calculator’s figure for 25 years, stopping work in 5 years. Money to bring for the gap alone is the same calculation with spending cut to the shortfall; it is none where your income covers the level. Income tax on your income and the Medicare premium are not taken off. The lowest-spending places show what local households spend, not what a newcomer needs. The Social Security Administration’s lists of places where payment is barred (Cuba, North Korea) or restricted (seven former Soviet states) hold none of the places in this table (publication 05-10137, read 2026-10-12).

Places your income covers, nearest to it first. The full bar is your income of US$2,071 a month. The strong bar is the place whose spending is nearest to your income from below.