Bangladesh among four cheapest countries to retire comfortably, study finds

Bangladesh is among the four cheapest countries in the world for Americans seeking to retire comfortably, with an estimated retirement cost of $190,000, according to a new analysis by Visual Capitalist. The estimate places Bangladesh third-cheapest among 95 countries assessed, behind Pakistan at $187,000 and India at $189,000. Egypt also comes in at $190,000.

The analysis, published by Visual Capitalist on August 14, is based on data from NetCredit and Numbeo. It models a retirement lasting 14 years and eight months, using the average US retirement age and life expectancy, and excludes taxes and healthcare costs.

For comparison, an American would need an estimated $738,000 to retire comfortably in the United States, making Bangladesh's modeled cost around one-quarter of the US figure. The analysis found that only four countries have estimated retirement costs below $200,000: Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Egypt.

Bangladesh among the world's lowest-cost retirement destinations

The estimated $190,000 required for retirement in Bangladesh is significantly lower than the costs in several other major destinations. Brazil is estimated at $268,000, while China and Colombia each require about $279,000. Russia comes in at $281,000, followed by Malaysia at $292,000 and Vietnam at $295,000.

The gap is even wider compared with North America and several European countries. Retiring comfortably in Canada is estimated to cost $598,000, while Mexico requires $356,000. Portugal and Spain are both estimated at $478,000, while Greece comes in at $406,000.

Singapore tops the ranking

Singapore is the most expensive country in the dataset for an American to retire comfortably, with an estimated cost of $1.1 million. Iceland ranks second at $893,000, followed by Switzerland at $859,000 and Luxembourg at $794,000. The United States ranks fifth at $738,000.

Other countries among the more expensive destinations include Ireland at $702,000, the UAE at $684,000, the Netherlands at $663,000, Israel at $642,000, the United Kingdom at $627,000, Denmark at $625,000 and Norway at $623,000.

Australia is estimated at $620,000, while Qatar and Canada require $606,000 and $598,000 respectively. Across Europe, estimated retirement costs range from $893,000 in Iceland to $267,000 in Belarus. The analysis found particularly large differences between Northern and Western Europe and countries farther south and east.

Montenegro is estimated at $395,000, Albania at $388,000 and Romania at $335,000. The analysis said the difference between the most and least expensive countries exceeds $900,000, highlighting the impact of local living costs on the purchasing power of retirement savings.

However, the figures are not personalised retirement targets. They also exclude healthcare and taxes, which can significantly affect the actual cost of retiring abroad.