Ask anyone where America's grandparents live and you'll hear the same answer. The data says something else โ and the reason why is a great lesson about shares.
The state with the largest share of people 65 and over is Maine โ with Vermont second. Famous-for-retirement Florida is only #3.
Basis: ACS 2023 share of population 65 and over, by state (this site's grandparents quiz)
Maine also has the highest median age of any state, and the smallest share of children. It is the oldest state by several different measures at once.
Basis: ACS 2023 median age and share of population under 18, by state (this site's median-age and kids quizzes)
So why isn't Florida first? A share is a fraction: older people on top, everybody on the bottom. Lots of retirees really do move to Florida โ but plenty of younger people move there too, and both numbers grow together. Maine grows more slowly, so its older share climbs. That's the likely story, though these numbers alone can't prove it.
โป A hypothesis is an idea that isn't proven yet.
๐ Sources for the rankings mentioned in this note (links to the original data and retrieval dates) are on each quiz page below.