The 10 Best Suburbs In Nebraska For 2024


The best suburbs in Nebraska are Gretna and Papillion for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Are you sick of being a city slicker?

Do you long for life in suburban Nebraska? Where you can drive an overly-large vehicle to the store for groceries and schlep the kids around to practices and appointments without worrying about a parking space.

We do, too.

If you wanted to move out to the suburbs of Lincoln, where would you go? And how would you decide on the ranking factors to help you pick which Nebraska suburb was best?

No worries. We got it all figured out here using Saturday Night Science.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


These are the 10 best suburbs in the Cornhusker State

  1. Gretna
  2. Papillion
  3. Bennington
  4. Hickman
  5. Ceresco
  6. Milford
  7. Arlington
  8. Waverly
  9. Ashland
  10. Seward

Gretna is the place to be when it comes to being a soccer mom in suburban Nebraska.

So if you’re thinking of packing up your mini van and making a move to a quiet place to live in Nebraska, we’ve got you covered.

Keep on reading for a detailed methodology. Or, check out the best places to live in Nebraska and the best places to raise a family in Nebraska.

Best Suburbs In Nebraska For 2024

Gretna, NE

Source: Wikipedia User Jared Winkler | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 9,019
Median Income: $117,553
Average Home Price: $416,052
More on Gretna: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Gretna is located 13 miles west of Omaha.

Papillion, NE

Source: Wikipedia User Atomic Energy505 | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 24,016
Median Income: $104,608
Average Home Price: $379,982
More on Papillion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Papillion is located 7 miles south of Omaha.

3. Bennington

Bennington, NE

Source: Flickr User cpoke | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 2,432
Median Income: $94,444
Average Home Price: $398,728
More on Bennington: Real Estate

Bennington is located 9 miles west of Omaha.

4. Hickman

Hickman, NE

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 2,697
Median Income: $96,984
Average Home Price: $357,807
More on Hickman: Real Estate

Hickman is located 13 miles south of Lincoln.

5. Ceresco

Ceresco, NE

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 1,414
Median Income: $96,125
Average Home Price: $328,053
More on Ceresco: Real Estate

Ceresco is located 17 miles north of Lincoln.

6. Milford

Milford, NE

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 2,530
Median Income: $77,422
Average Home Price: $274,444
More on Milford: Crime | Real Estate

Milford is located 19 miles west of Lincoln.

7. Arlington

Arlington, NE

Source: Wikipedia User John Phelan | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 1,519
Median Income: $85,938
Average Home Price: $326,949
More on Arlington: Real Estate

Arlington is located 20 miles west of Omaha.

Waverly, NE

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 4,289
Median Income: $103,373
Average Home Price: $320,113
More on Waverly: Data | Real Estate

Waverly is located 10 miles east of Lincoln.

Ashland, NE

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 3,130
Median Income: $78,966
Average Home Price: $381,241
More on Ashland: Data | Crime | Real Estate

Ashland is located 22 miles east of Lincoln.

Seward, NE

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 7,667
Median Income: $76,755
Average Home Price: $271,510
More on Seward: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Seward is located 22 miles west of Lincoln.

Methodology:How we crunched the suburb numbers for the Cornhusker State

We have to use Saturday Night Science and look at several metrics to give you the best suburbs in Nebraska. We want to measure the type of place around major cities that people arguing at a bar would say makes it the “best suburb.”

First, we had to define a suburb. Using U.S. Census data produced for the state of Nebraska, we looked at every town with at least 1,000 residents, and within 30 miles of a city that’s over 200,000 people.

In other words, suburbs.

We paid particular attention to the following criteria:

  • Median Home Values
  • Median Income
  • Population Density (Higher is Better)
  • Unemployment Rates
  • Commute Time
  • Education Levels
  • Health Insurance Coverage
  • Poverty Rates

We ranked each suburb in Nebraska across these criteria from one to 27, with one being the best.

We then took the average rank across all criteria, with the town posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title “Best Suburb To Live In Nebraska.”

The result is some of the safest, quietest, and ideal places to live in Nebraska.

Read on to see why Gretna is the ‘burb with the most, while Crete is probably not the best place to live in Nebraska.

Summary: There You Have It – The Best Suburbs In Nebraska

If you’re measuring the locations in Nebraska where there are lots to do, and everyone wants to live, this is an accurate list.

The best suburbs in Nebraska are Gretna, Papillion, Bennington, Hickman, Ceresco, Milford, Arlington, Waverly, Ashland, and Seward.

Here’s a look at the worst suburbs in Nebraska according to the data:

  1. Crete
  2. Weeping Water
  3. Fremont

For more Nebraska reading, check out:

The Best Suburbs In Nebraska

Rank City Population Median Income Median Home Price
1 Gretna 9,019 $117,553 $416,052
2 Papillion 24,016 $104,608 $379,982
3 Bennington 2,432 $94,444 $398,728
4 Hickman 2,697 $96,984 $357,807
5 Ceresco 1,414 $96,125 $328,053
6 Milford 2,530 $77,422 $274,444
7 Arlington 1,519 $85,938 $326,949
8 Waverly 4,289 $103,373 $320,113
9 Ashland 3,130 $78,966 $381,241
10 Seward 7,667 $76,755 $271,510
11 La Vista 16,713 $77,748 $286,712
12 Yutan 1,451 $84,531 $333,464
13 Valley 3,032 $80,319 $409,091
14 Bennet 1,098 $93,125 $390,488
15 Fort Calhoun 1,154 $75,900 $497,248
16 Springfield 1,555 $89,432 $252,695
17 Wahoo 4,832 $75,052 $254,338
18 Louisville 1,499 $93,897 $345,951
19 Blair 7,813 $74,058 $322,377
20 Bellevue 63,336 $79,839 $270,139
21 Wilber 1,967 $78,750 $195,601
22 Ralston 6,462 $61,554 $239,447
23 Syracuse 1,876 $66,250 $225,485
24 Plattsmouth 6,585 $58,989 $284,852
25 Fremont 27,230 $62,226 $227,388
26 Weeping Water 1,201 $63,507 $219,555
27 Crete 7,093 $62,468 $220,582
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.