Midwest · Updated October 2026
Nebraska in numbers, from the same public data Locustep uses to rank all 50 states: rent, pay, taxes, safety, disaster risk and weather, plus the cities worth a look.
Two-bedroom rent
$1,260/mo
U.S. average $1,759
HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (40th percentile, population-weighted across the state)
Rent vs. income
19.8%
of median household income for a year of two-bedroom rent
HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 ÷ 2024 ACS 1-year estimates (Census B19013)
State income tax
4.55%
top marginal rate, single filer
State revenue departments, 2026 income tax rates (sources listed per state)
Property tax
1.42%
effective rate on owner-occupied homes
Everyday costs
93.4
index, housing excluded (U.S. = 100)
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (released February 2026), housing and utilities removed
Natural disaster risk
53rd
percentile, FEMA expected annual loss (lower is safer)
Where Nebraska stands out: the 9th smallest rent-to-income bite and the 4th lowest everyday costs among the 50 states.
What to weigh: the 7th highest property taxes.
Overall, a married couple on the U.S. median household income would pay about 8.0% of it in state and local income, property and sales tax here, the 19th highest of the 50 states.
Average afternoon highs and overnight lows in Omaha (Omaha Eppley Airfield station), NOAA 1991–2020 normals.
| Season | High | Low |
|---|---|---|
| Winter (Dec–Feb) | 37°F | 18°F |
| Spring (Mar–May) | 64°F | 41°F |
| Summer (Jun–Aug) | 86°F | 66°F |
| Fall (Sep–Nov) | 65°F | 43°F |
$1,450/mo two-bedroom · $1,219 one-bedroom (Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA HUD Metro FMR Area)
Omaha is an underrated Midwestern city — Berkshire Hathaway and Union Pacific money, a good zoo and steakhouse culture, short commutes and low housing costs. Cold winters, flat surroundings and a stable job market.
$1,230/mo two-bedroom · $1,009 one-bedroom (Lincoln, NE HUD Metro FMR Area)
Lincoln is Nebraska's capital and the University of Nebraska's town, with very low unemployment, cheap housing and a football-centred social calendar. Safe, tidy, and quieter than Omaha.
$1,097/mo two-bedroom · $904 one-bedroom (Buffalo County, NE)
Kearney is a small central Nebraska city on the Platte River with a state college and an agricultural economy. Extremely affordable, very flat, and famous for the spring sandhill-crane migration.
$1,210/mo two-bedroom · $972 one-bedroom (Hall County, NE HUD Metro FMR Area)
Grand Island is a central Nebraska agricultural and meatpacking town with a notably diverse immigrant workforce and some of the lowest living costs in the country. Small, practical and remote.
$1,082/mo two-bedroom · $866 one-bedroom (Madison County, NE)
Norfolk is northeast Nebraska's regional centre, with manufacturing, healthcare and farm trade. Very affordable and safe, with a small-city pace.
$1,099/mo two-bedroom · $840 one-bedroom (Lincoln County, NE)
North Platte is a western Nebraska railroad town, home to the world's largest rail yard. Very cheap, remote, and a long way from any big city.
$1,023/mo two-bedroom · $782 one-bedroom (Scotts Bluff County, NE)
Scottsbluff is a small city in the Nebraska Panhandle beside Scotts Bluff National Monument on the Oregon Trail. Very cheap and scenic in a high-plains way, and very remote.
Rents: HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (40th percentile, population-weighted across the state) (metro areas). City notes: Locustep.
Closest on Locustep’s match factors: cost, housing, taxes, safety, jobs, schools, healthcare, outdoors, disaster risk and climate.
Ranks compare the 50 states. Locustep updates these figures when the agencies publish new data.
Yes. Nebraska’s top marginal income-tax rate for a single filer is 4.55% (Nebraska tax law, 2026). Counting property and sales tax too, a married couple on the U.S. median household income would pay about 8.0% of income in state and local taxes (Locustep estimate, 2026).
A typical two-bedroom rents for about $1,260 a month and a one-bedroom for about $1,036, using HUD’s FY2027 Fair Market Rents averaged across the state by population. That is $499 less than the U.S. average of $1,759. Rent in the bigger metros can be well above the state figure.
Leaving housing aside, everyday prices (goods and services other than housing) index at 93.4 against a U.S. average of 100 (BEA, 2024), and the median home value indexes at 73.0 against the U.S. median (Census, 2024). Two-bedroom rent takes 19.8% of the state’s median household income of $76,376.
Nebraska recorded 220.5 violent crimes per 100,000 residents in 2024 (FBI), the 12th lowest rate of the 50 states. Crime varies a lot between and within cities, so check the specific area you’re considering.
The main hazards are tornadoes. On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Nebraska’s expected yearly loss from natural hazards sits at the 53rd percentile nationally (lower is safer). Risk differs sharply by county, so look up the county too.
Places people most often weigh include Omaha, Lincoln, Kearney, Grand Island and Norfolk. Each has a different cost, climate and character; Locustep compares their rent, disaster risk, weather and pay side by side.