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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
The 30% rule — spending no more than 30% of gross income on housing — is the most widely cited benchmark for affordability. On a $40K salary, 0 cities (0%) meet this threshold. That's a tough market. We ran the numbers on 2 cities in Nebraska using 2026 census, rent, and salary data. Lincoln comes o…
294,757 residents · Nebraska
In plain English: Why Lincoln ranks #1: the numbers tell a clear story. At 76 on the cost index, residents save roughly 35% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,293/month while the median household pulls in $69,991/year. The Housing category is particularly strong at 76, though Healthcare (95) lags behind. Home prices average $285,359 — $182,011 below the national median.
483,335 residents · Nebraska
Why Omaha ranks #2: the numbers tell a clear story. At 82 on the cost index, residents save roughly 29% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,403/month while the median household pulls in $72,708/year. The Housing category is particularly strong at 82, though Healthcare (96) lags behind. Home prices average $288,850 — $178,520 below the national median.
#1 Ranked: Lincoln — cost index 76, rent $1,293/mo, income $69,991
0 of 2 cities keep rent under 30% of $40K
0 of 2 cities keep rent under 30% of $40K gross income
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
The 30% rule — spending no more than 30% of gross income on housing — is the most widely cited benchmark for affordability. On a $40K salary, 0 cities (0%) meet this threshold. That's a tough market. We ran the numbers on 2 cities in Nebraska using 2026 census, rent, and salary data. Lincoln comes out on top — here's the full ranking and analysis.
A closer look at Lincoln: the cost index of 76 breaks down to a Housing index of 76 (strongest category) and a Healthcare index of 95 (weakest). Median rent is $1,293/month — 32% below the national median — while household income sits at $69,991, meaning locals spend about 22% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
Quick aside: when housing takes less of your income, the secondary effects are real — less financial stress, more discretionary spending, better local businesses.
If you're ready to act on this, three things to do next: 1) Click into the city pages for the top 3 and check rent trends — direction matters more than the snapshot. 2) Run your income through the salary calculator for a personalized cost comparison. 3) Compare your top two picks head-to-head on our comparison page. The data is here; the decision is yours.
| City | State Tax | Sales Tax | Property Tax | Est. Take-Home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1Lincoln | 5.84% | 6.94% | 1.54% | $30,036 |
2Omaha | 5.84% | 6.94% | 1.54% | $30,036 |
We model what a $40K salary looks like after taxes in each city: federal income tax (marginal brackets), FICA (7.65%), and state income tax. Then we compare take-home against local rent and costs to determine where the salary stretches furthest. All data is sourced from federal agencies and verified research institutions. Cost of living indices are normalized to 100 (national median) using Zillow rent as the primary signal, with sub-category adjustments derived from regional BLS price data. Rankings are updated monthly as new data is released.
Lincoln ranks #1 in Nebraska for this analysis with a cost index of 76 and median income of $69,991.
Yes. On a $40K salary in Lincoln, rent would consume about 39% of your gross monthly income. Financial experts recommend keeping rent under 30%. It's tight — consider a roommate or nearby suburb.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
Lincoln (ranked #1) has a cost index of 76 and rent of $1,293/mo, while Omaha (ranked #2) has a cost index of 82 and rent of $1,403/mo — a 6-point difference in cost of living.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Lincoln is $1,293/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $602 below the national median of $1,895/month.
After federal taxes, FICA (7.65%), and 5.84% state income tax, estimated take-home on $40K in Lincoln is approximately $30,036/year ($2,503/month). After median rent of $1,293/month, you'd have roughly $14,520/year for all other expenses.
The median home price in Lincoln is $285,359, which is 4.1× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
Nebraska has a 5.84% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 6.94%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.54%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.