Retiring to Craig County, OK: pros and cons
For Americans thinking of retiring to Craig County, Oklahoma, from another state or instead of a move abroad.
Not a US citizen or resident? The US has no retirement visa, and Medicare and these tax figures assume US residency. What applies to you →
Pros and cons of retiring in Craig County, Oklahoma
Each figure against every US county holding the same figure: a pro is better than most, a con worse than most, and a figure within 5% of the middle gets no verdict. Every figure is sourced and dated.
Pros
- Among the fifth of US counties with the lowest tax on a retired couple: State and local tax on the example retired couple in Craig County, Oklahoma comes to USD $2,068 a year, lower than 80% of the other 3110. The state's published 2025 income-tax rules, the county's own local income tax where one is levied, and the county's Census ACS property-tax ratio, applied to the example household · 2025-12-31
- Lower state sales tax than most states: Oklahoma's state sales-tax rate is 4.5%, lower than 77% of the other 30 states with a rate on file; local rates can add to it. Oklahoma Tax Commission, 2025 Form 511 Packet · 2026-10-26
- Pension income partly or fully exempt: Oklahoma lets retirees exclude up to USD $10,000 per person of pension or retirement income from its income tax (2025 rules), one of 21 states with such an exclusion. Oklahoma Tax Commission, 2025 Form 511 Packet · 2026-10-26
Cons
- Among the fifth of US counties with the highest natural-hazard risk: Natural hazards are expected to cost USD $2.62 per USD $1,000 of buildings a year in Craig County, Oklahoma, higher than 90% of the other 3143. FEMA, National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), county expected annual loss to buildings (EAL_VALB) · 2025-12-01
- Fewer mild-weather months than most US counties: Craig County, Oklahoma has 4.0 months a year with a mean daily high of 64–84 °F (18–29 °C), fewer than 61% of the other 3143. CHELSA V2.1 monthly maximum temperature, 1981-2010 (~1 km), averaged over the county, Karger et al. · 2010-12-31
Craig County has 14,518 residents, 3,116 of them aged 65 or older (21.5 %) (US Census Bureau, county population estimates by age, 1 July 2025). Largest places: Vinita, Welch, Ketchum (Census, 1 July 2024).
Last updated
Where Craig County stands, on the six criteria
Craig County's own figures, each against every US county that has the same figure. Cost of living is its area's: the Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes no price level for a single county.
| Criterion | Craig County |
|---|---|
| Cost of living BEA price level, all items (US = 100); lower is better |
83.6 Cheaper than 92% of the other 3,142 US counties
Every county in the area shares this figure. BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, all items, Oklahoma nonmetropolitan portion · figure for 2024 · checked 2026-10-28
|
| Taxes on a retired couple state and local tax on the example retired couple, USD a year; lower is better |
USD $2,068 (90% margin USD $1,803–$2,333) Lower than 80% of the other 3,110 US counties
The state's published 2025 income-tax rules, the county's own local income tax where one is levied, and the county's Census ACS property-tax ratio, applied to the example household · figure for 2025
|
| Healthcare access share of residents 65+ living in a county with a 4- or 5-star CMS hospital; higher is better |
No hospital in the county rated 4 or 5 stars by CMS A fact for this county, not a ranking: a county without such a hospital may sit near one next door.
CMS, Hospital General Information (Care Compare), hospital overall star rating, release of 13 Aug 2026 · figure for 2026 · checked 2026-10-27
|
| Safety homicides per 100,000 a year, 2020–2024, by state of residence; lower is better |
no data Craig County had fewer than 20 homicides in 2020–2024: CDC WONDER publishes no reliable rate below that. |
| Climate months a year whose mean daily high is 18–29 °C (64–84 °F), 1981–2010; more is better |
4.0 months a year More than 7% of the other 3,143 US counties
CHELSA V2.1 monthly maximum temperature, 1981-2010 (~1 km), averaged over the county, Karger et al. · figure for 2010 · checked 2026-10-27
|
| Natural-hazard risk expected yearly loss to buildings from natural hazards, per USD $1,000 of buildings; lower is better |
USD $2.62 per USD $1,000 of buildings Lower than 10% of the other 3,143 US counties
FEMA, National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), county expected annual loss to buildings (EAL_VALB) · figure for 2025 · checked 2026-10-28
|
Taxes on a retired couple in Craig County, Oklahoma
The published example couple's state and local tax in Craig County for tax year 2025, in its three parts. Only the income tax is the same across Oklahoma; the property tax uses Craig County's own Census figures.
| State income tax Oklahoma's 2025 rules — the same in every Oklahoma county |
USD $154 |
|---|---|
| Local income tax none in this calculation: a county income tax is held only for Maryland and Indiana |
USD $0 |
| Property tax on a USD $350,000 home Craig County's own median taxes paid ÷ median home value |
USD $1,914 |
| State and local tax, a year | USD $2,068 |
Sources: Oklahoma Tax Commission, 2025 Form 511 Packet; US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25103, county.
How Oklahoma taxes each kind of retirement income, line by line
What Medicare costs in Craig County, Oklahoma
For the published example couple, both 67 and married: what Medicare premiums cost a year for two in Craig County, Oklahoma, and the most a bad year can cost. What care itself costs depends on a person's health, so it is not estimated here.
Medicare Advantage, with drug coverage
USD $4,870 a year for two in premiums (from USD $4,870)
At most USD $18,220 in a bad year (from USD $16,270), with each person's in-network out-of-pocket maximum
The middle of the 16 plans offered here; "from" is the lowest premium among them.
Original Medicare, with a drug plan
USD $5,830 a year for two in premiums (from USD $4,997)
Medigap: no federal price list — not in this total.
No yearly maximum on Original Medicare alone.
Part B for two, plus the middle of the 9 standalone drug plans offered in the state.
The 2027 Part B premium is not yet published (CMS usually publishes it in November); 2026's is used.
Source: CMS, Medicare Advantage and Part D Landscape, plan year 2027; CMS, 2026 Medicare Parts A & B Premiums and Deductibles (fact sheet, 14 Nov 2025).
The largest places in Craig County
By population in the county; a place split across counties counts only the part in Craig County. We do not cover these places in depth yet.
- Vinita: 5,376 residents
- Welch: 638 residents
- Ketchum: 449 residents
US Census Bureau, Vintage 2024 sub-county population estimates (SUB-EST2024), 1 July 2024.
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