Is Nebraska America's Best Value?

What it costs to live here, and how good a place it is to live, in plain numbers.

Best place to live rank

#15

15th out of 50 states overall.

Above average for overall quality of life.

How we rank states ›

Cost to live here

#17

17th cheapest state, about 10% below average.

To live the way $75,000 affords in an average state, you would need about $67,400 here.

How we measure cost ›

Nebraska ranks 15th of 50 states for overall quality of life and 17th for affordability. It does best on healthcare, education, and cost, and struggles most with dog friendly, climate, and green space. A typical household earns about $72,800 a year, and the cost of living runs about 10% below average.

Why Nebraska ranks #15 for living

Our Best Life Rank scores every state on the things that shape daily life, from cost and climate to schools and safety. Here is how Nebraska scores on each, best to worst.

Healthcare
#15 of 50
Education
#15 of 50
Cost of living
#17 of 50
Safety
#17 of 50
Economy
#17 of 50
Air quality
#21 of 50
Walkability
#34 of 50
Dog friendly
#36 of 50
Climate
#43 of 50
Green space
#48 of 50

Each factor is ranked 1 (best) to 50 (worst) across all states. Green is strong, yellow is middling, red is weak.

Nebraska at a glance

Typical household income

$72,800

21st highest

Typical home price

$289,000

34th highest

Overall cost of living

10% below average

17th cheapest

Total taxes on a typical household

About 10%

26th highest income tax

Typical commute

About 19 min

one way

Taxes in Nebraska

See your real Nebraska take-home pay

Enter your salary and get your actual paycheck after Nebraska taxes.

Calculate my take-home pay ›
Sources: Cost and income from the U.S. Census and Bureau of Labor Statistics. Tax rates from the Tax Foundation. Best Life Rank factors from the Commonwealth Fund, NAEP, FBI, EPA, and NOAA. Cost measured by the BLISS Score, v1.3 method. Updated 2026.