Survey Says: The Most Age-Friendly States

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Mar 07, 2023, 09:30 ET

Results from the first and largest of its kind ratings & reviews platform reveal the likelihood of older adults to recommend their communities to other older adults
States gain ability to measure results from their master plans for aging with ongoing sentiment data from older residents
Residents of "First State" Delaware rate it first in the country on "age-friendliness"

WALTHAM, Mass., March 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- In the minds of older residents, how is your state faring when it comes to age-friendly living? In a first-of-its-kind survey of older adult satisfaction regarding the community they live in, the Age Friendly Institute collected more than 60,000 submissions from older residents across America. On the AgeFriendly.org platform, a consumer reviews site that aggregates all things age-friendly, older residents rated their own town on a number of dimensions of "age-friendliness", using a structure defined by the World Health Organization combined with net promoter score (NPS) survey methodology.

The survey is ongoing, giving visibility to how consumer sentiment changes over time, and enabling leaders to track future progress on key metrics, and set new targets. The Age-Friendly Institute compiled responses at the state level. Delaware earned the highest ratings by its older residents, followed (in order) by Idaho, Hawaii, Arkansas, New Jersey, Maine, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Alabama and Louisiana (see full list). "We celebrate these states, their leadership and those older Americans contributing [to the survey] to make their places better places in which to live and to age," said Alana Officer, Unit Head, Demographic Change and Healthy Ageing at World Health Organization. She continued: "Until now, there has been no option for older people to provide continuous feedback to local leaders about the age-friendliness of their cities and communities. So today, I want to join you to celebrate a local revolution led by the Age-Friendly Institute."