The City of Falls Church has been ranked No. 2 in the entire U.S. by the highly-respected American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) as an ideal small community for seniors to live, according to the association’s 2025 rankings. Factors such as affordable housing, job market and walkability are included in its ranking index, although affordability remains Falls Church’s main challenge.
Overall, five Northern Virginia jurisdictions were top rated. In addition to Falls Church’s No. 2 ranking, its neighbors Fairfax County, Arlington County and Alexandria all ranked very high. Arlington, among mid-sized jurisdictions, was ranked No. 1 and Alexandria No. 2, and Fairfax County No. 5 among large jurisdictions of 500,000 or more in the entire U.S. The Town of Vienna was ranked No. 24 among small jurisdictions.
Arlington County took the top spot in the large category for the second year in a row, directly followed by the city of Alexandria at No. 2. One of Arlington’s strengths is its ADA-compliant bus system, which accommodates people with limited mobility, according to the ranking.
Other top cities in each category were San Francisco (very large); Cliffside Park, New Jersey (medium); and Great Neck Plaza, New York (small).
For each location, AARP’s Livability Index platform measured 61 indicators across seven different categories of livability: housing, neighborhood, transportation, environment, health, engagement and opportunity.
“There isn’t one size or one type of community that fits all,” said Rodney Harrell, one of the creators of the index and AARP’s vice president of family, home and community. “It’s about knowing how well your community will work for you today and into the future.”
Fairfax County came in at No. 5 in the very large communities category — places with a population of more than 500,000.
The 61-indicator rankings across seven different categories of livability breaks down for 2025 as follows:
Housing: This metric looks at the cost and availability of housing in an area, as well as the variety of housing options for people of all ages and abilities.
Neighborhood: Neighborhoods are scored based on their walkability, safety, and access to shops, groceries, restaurants, public transportation and a variety of jobs.
Transportation: The index measures a community’s access to various types of transportation, including public transit, walking, cycling and driving.
Environment: This category assigns scores based on things like a community’s pollution levels and its plans to address the impacts of extreme weather and natural disasters.
Health: Health scores are based on whether residents have easy access to quality health care and physical activity, and whether the community fosters healthy behaviors.
Engagement: Does an area encourage community involvement and diverse social interactions? The answer is measured via metrics like voter participation, nondiscrimination laws, and access to cultural venues, social outlets and high-speed internet.
Opportunity: The opportunity score (calculated by input from our technical advisory panel and using the Index) determines things like the availability of jobs with living wages, school-district performance and whether the community is multigenerational.
So the AARP rankings for four different sizes of cities includes the top 10 in each as follows:
Population of 500,000 and up, 1.San Francisco, California, 2. Montgomery County, Maryland, 3. Seattle, Washington, 4. Ramsey County, Minnesota, 5. Fairfax County, Virginia, 6. New York, New York, 7. Boston, Massachusetts, 8. Nassau County, New York, 9. Portland, Oregon, 10. Bergen County, New Jersey.
Population of 100,000 to 499,000, 1. Arlington County, Virginia, 2 Alexandia, Virginia, 3. Cambridge, Massachusetts, 4. Salt Lake City, Utah, 5. St. Paul, Minnesota, 6. Boulder, Colorado, 7. Minneapolis, Minnesota, 8. North Hempstead, New York, 9. Madison, Wisconsin, 10. Chittenden County, Vermont.
Population of 25,000 to 99,999, 1. Cliffside Park, New Jersey, 2. Fort Lee, New Jersey, 3. Portland, Maine, 4. Burlington, Vermont, 5. Rockville, Maryland, 6. Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 7. Somerville, Massachusetts, 8. Brookline, Massachusetts, 9. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 10. Belmont, Massachusetts
Population of 5,000 to 24,999, 1. Great Neck Plaza, New York, 2. Falls Church, Virginia, 3. Pella, Iowa, 4. Aspen, Colorado, 5. Knoxville, Iowa, 6. Los Alamos, New Mexico, 7. Takoma Park, Maryland, 8. Orange City, Iowa, 9. Salida, Colorado, 10. Williston Park, New York.
According to the AARP report, “Residents of small communities typically experience lower income inequality, more jobs per worker and greater age diversity compared to the national average. Multigenerational communities offer everyone the opportunity to thrive.
These small communities also score well in engagement, so residents have plenty of opportunities to socialize together, work together, build community together and effect positive change together.”
