Gretna, Papillion, Valley: These cities aren’t just some of the best places to live in Nebraska. They are also home to some of the richest people in the Cornhusker State.
Gretna in particular houses the richest residents in the state thanks, in part, to a median household income of $117,553 and a ridiculously low poverty rate of 2.9995539696699383%.
If you’re thinking of moving to one of these towns, you’ll probably need to start saving. The richest places in Nebraska share common characteristics such as having a genius level populous, sky high home prices, and a Pleasantville level of married couples.
How did we come up with these mega wealthy cities? We analyzed Census data from the 2018-2022 American Community Survey for the 48 places in Nebraska with more than 3,000 people.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
For more on how we calculated the top ten, read on or skip to the end for the full list of the richest cities in Nebraska.
Rich people not your cup of tea? Feel free to check out some more reading about Nebraska:
The 10 Richest Cities In Nebraska For 2024
1. Gretna
/10
Population: 9,019
Median Income: $117,553
Median Home Values: $416,052
More on Gretna: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
2. Papillion
/10
Population: 24,016
Median Income: $104,608
Median Home Values: $379,982
More on Papillion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
3. Valley
/10
Population: 3,032
Median Income: $80,319
Median Home Values: $409,091
More on Valley: Crime | Real Estate
4. Waverly
/10
Population: 4,289
Median Income: $103,373
Median Home Values: $320,113
More on Waverly: Data | Real Estate
5. Ashland
/10
6. La Vista
/10
Population: 16,713
Median Income: $77,748
Median Home Values: $286,712
More on La Vista: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
7. Blair
/10
Population: 7,813
Median Income: $74,058
Median Home Values: $322,377
More on Blair: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
8. Bellevue
/10
Population: 63,336
Median Income: $79,839
Median Home Values: $270,139
More on Bellevue: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
9. Seward
/10
Population: 7,667
Median Income: $76,755
Median Home Values: $271,510
More on Seward: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
10. Wahoo
Methodology: How We Determined The Richest Places In Nebraska For 2024
The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the richest places is simply identifying personal incomes. After all, rich people have really high salaries.
However, we don’t believe that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “richest places.” So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2018-2022 American Community Survey and applied Saturday Night Science:
- Median Home Values
- Median Household Income
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place is. And home values are a measure of wealth. The two combine to define a “Rich City.”
After we collected the data for all 48 places with more than 3,000 people in Nebraska, we ranked each place from 1 to 48 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the richest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Rich Score,” with the place having the lowest overall Rich Score, Gretna, crowned the “Richest City In Nebraska For 2024.”
The data has been updated for 2024. This is our tenth time ranking the wealthiest cities in Nebraska.
You can skip to the end to see the rankings for all 48 places.
Summary: The Wealthiest Places In Nebraska For 2024
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the richest places in Nebraska, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Nebraska.
The richest cities in Nebraska are Gretna, Papillion, Valley, Waverly, Ashland, La Vista, Blair, Bellevue, Seward, and Wahoo.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very top of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you’re curious enough, here are the poorest cities in Nebraska, according to data:
Poorest: Falls City
2nd Poorest: Fairbury
3rd Poorest: Sidney
For more Nebraska reading, check out:
- Most Dangerous Cities In Nebraska
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Nebraska
- Cheapest Places To Live In Nebraska
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In Nebraska
| Rank | City | RichScore | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gretna | 1.0 | $117,553 | $416,052 |
| 2 | Papillion | 3.0 | $104,608 | $379,982 |
| 3 | Valley | 3.5 | $80,319 | $409,091 |
| 4 | Waverly | 4.5 | $103,373 | $320,113 |
| 5 | Ashland | 5.0 | $78,966 | $381,241 |
| 6 | La Vista | 7.5 | $77,748 | $286,712 |
| 7 | Blair | 8.0 | $74,058 | $322,377 |
| 8 | Bellevue | 8.5 | $79,839 | $270,139 |
| 9 | Seward | 9.5 | $76,755 | $271,510 |
| 10 | Wahoo | 12.0 | $75,052 | $254,338 |
| 11 | Omaha | 12.5 | $70,202 | $268,796 |
| 12 | Kearney | 12.5 | $66,843 | $282,103 |
| 13 | Lincoln | 14.0 | $67,846 | $267,971 |
| 14 | Aurora | 17.5 | $66,328 | $232,392 |
| 15 | West Point | 17.5 | $66,771 | $231,219 |
| 16 | Columbus | 18.0 | $65,341 | $247,049 |
| 17 | Gothenburg | 19.0 | $84,615 | $177,230 |
| 18 | Plattsmouth | 19.5 | $58,989 | $284,852 |
| 19 | Schuyler | 19.5 | $71,275 | $190,114 |
| 20 | York | 19.5 | $68,794 | $196,159 |
| 21 | Ralston | 22.0 | $61,554 | $239,447 |
| 22 | Fremont | 23.5 | $62,226 | $227,388 |
| 23 | Crete | 24.0 | $62,468 | $220,582 |
| 24 | South Sioux City | 24.5 | $62,650 | $201,174 |
| 25 | Gering | 24.5 | $65,743 | $182,745 |
| 26 | Grand Island | 24.5 | $59,061 | $227,607 |
| 27 | Lexington | 26.5 | $63,939 | $180,138 |
| 28 | Minden | 27.5 | $65,345 | $175,321 |
| 29 | Norfolk | 28.0 | $57,479 | $225,933 |
| 30 | Nebraska City | 30.0 | $63,732 | $174,481 |
| 31 | O’neill | 30.0 | $63,867 | $170,336 |
| 32 | Ogallala | 31.0 | $57,045 | $192,368 |
| 33 | North Platte | 32.5 | $56,890 | $184,800 |
| 34 | Wayne | 33.0 | $51,399 | $202,182 |
| 35 | Hastings | 33.0 | $57,554 | $178,264 |
| 36 | Central City | 34.5 | $54,063 | $182,987 |
| 37 | Holdrege | 36.0 | $58,375 | $159,861 |
| 38 | Auburn | 37.5 | $59,167 | $136,016 |
| 39 | Chadron | 37.5 | $53,728 | $177,823 |
| 40 | Scottsbluff | 38.5 | $55,744 | $164,115 |
| 41 | Alliance | 38.5 | $58,214 | $153,789 |
| 42 | Mccook | 39.5 | $53,750 | $168,997 |
| 43 | Cozad | 41.0 | $54,485 | $154,020 |
| 44 | Beatrice | 43.5 | $49,537 | $157,701 |
| 45 | Broken Bow | 43.5 | $49,425 | $158,927 |
| 46 | Sidney | 44.5 | $49,866 | $146,360 |
| 47 | Fairbury | 47.0 | $47,518 | $101,773 |
| 48 | Falls City | 48.0 | $40,222 | $82,867 |