Ryder spent his later years at Nice, where he died on 4 February 1775 from the effects of a fall from his horse. He was buried on 6 February in a ground near the shore, purchased for Protestant burials by the British consul. The area was later eroded by the sea.
His daughter Catherine married a John Hamilton and, travelling on the Continent, met and became a dear friend of Yekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova-Dashkova, a major figure of the Russian Enlightenment. Princess Dashkova came to Ireland and spent time with the family. Two of John Ryder's relations, Martha and Katherine Wilmot went to Russia to renew the friendship.[2]