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 $123,992 and a ridiculously low poverty rate of 4.200853298326222%.
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 2020-2024 American Community Survey for the 50 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 2026
1. Gretna
/10
Population: 9,193
Median Income: $123,992
Median Home Values: $425,558
More on Gretna: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
2. Papillion
/10
Population: 25,244
Median Income: $111,679
Median Home Values: $409,004
More on Papillion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
3. Valley
/10
Population: 3,174
Median Income: $110,200
Median Home Values: $527,910
More on Valley: Crime | Movers
4. Waverly
/10
Population: 4,440
Median Income: $111,632
Median Home Values: $347,206
More on Waverly: Data | Movers
5. Hickman
/10
Population: 3,004
Median Income: $104,375
Median Home Values: $381,940
More on Hickman: Movers
6. Ashland
/10
7. Blair
/10
Population: 7,914
Median Income: $81,452
Median Home Values: $351,844
More on Blair: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
8. La Vista
/10
Population: 16,563
Median Income: $81,961
Median Home Values: $307,596
More on La Vista: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
9. Bellevue
/10
Population: 64,510
Median Income: $85,462
Median Home Values: $297,049
More on Bellevue: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
10. Wahoo
Methodology: How We Determined The Richest Places In Nebraska For 2026
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 2020-2024 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 50 places with more than 3,000 people in Nebraska, we ranked each place from 1 to 50 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 2026.”
The data has been updated for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the wealthiest cities in Nebraska.
You can skip to the end to see the rankings for all 50 places.
Summary: The Wealthiest Places In Nebraska For 2026
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, Hickman, Ashland, Blair, La Vista, Bellevue, 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:
- Cheapest Places To Live In Nebraska
- Worst Places To Live In Nebraska
- Best Places To Live In Nebraska
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In Nebraska
| Rank | City | RichScore | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gretna | 1.5 | $123,992 | $425,558 |
| 2 | Papillion | 2.5 | $111,679 | $409,004 |
| 3 | Valley | 2.5 | $110,200 | $527,910 |
| 4 | Waverly | 5.0 | $111,632 | $347,206 |
| 5 | Hickman | 5.0 | $104,375 | $381,940 |
| 6 | Ashland | 5.5 | $89,408 | $389,841 |
| 7 | Blair | 8.0 | $81,452 | $351,844 |
| 8 | La Vista | 9.0 | $81,961 | $307,596 |
| 9 | Bellevue | 10.0 | $85,462 | $297,049 |
| 10 | Wahoo | 10.5 | $89,457 | $284,195 |
| 11 | Plattsmouth | 13.5 | $73,929 | $306,415 |
| 12 | Aurora | 14.5 | $77,679 | $270,501 |
| 13 | Seward | 14.5 | $72,564 | $307,287 |
| 14 | Kearney | 15.0 | $69,724 | $309,677 |
| 15 | Omaha | 15.5 | $73,201 | $294,188 |
| 16 | Lincoln | 17.0 | $71,867 | $291,062 |
| 17 | Schuyler | 18.0 | $80,399 | $230,809 |
| 18 | Crete | 18.5 | $77,209 | $238,975 |
| 19 | Ralston | 21.0 | $69,403 | $264,641 |
| 20 | Fremont | 21.0 | $71,152 | $253,065 |
| 21 | Gering | 22.0 | $75,093 | $209,550 |
| 22 | West Point | 23.0 | $65,793 | $267,150 |
| 23 | Columbus | 24.0 | $64,626 | $269,083 |
| 24 | Gothenburg | 24.5 | $79,219 | $195,678 |
| 25 | Central City | 25.0 | $73,229 | $202,433 |
| 26 | South Sioux City | 25.5 | $68,223 | $228,788 |
| 27 | Grand Island | 27.5 | $63,795 | $252,574 |
| 28 | Norfolk | 28.0 | $58,884 | $256,016 |
| 29 | Minden | 29.0 | $68,449 | $201,595 |
| 30 | Lexington | 29.0 | $67,666 | $205,386 |
| 31 | David City | 29.5 | $65,573 | $209,441 |
| 32 | York | 30.5 | $63,265 | $219,747 |
| 33 | Nebraska City | 31.0 | $67,117 | $201,347 |
| 34 | Ogallala | 32.5 | $58,556 | $219,405 |
| 35 | Hastings | 34.0 | $64,048 | $200,240 |
| 36 | North Platte | 34.5 | $58,097 | $208,704 |
| 37 | Wayne | 36.0 | $53,702 | $234,128 |
| 38 | Alliance | 37.5 | $65,160 | $173,240 |
| 39 | Beatrice | 40.0 | $57,264 | $182,538 |
| 40 | Broken Bow | 41.0 | $60,129 | $166,342 |
| 41 | Holdrege | 41.0 | $55,789 | $194,781 |
| 42 | Mccook | 42.0 | $56,917 | $177,178 |
| 43 | Scottsbluff | 42.0 | $56,359 | $179,640 |
| 44 | O’neill | 42.0 | $56,510 | $177,650 |
| 45 | Chadron | 42.5 | $54,590 | $193,553 |
| 46 | Auburn | 43.5 | $57,531 | $162,442 |
| 47 | Cozad | 45.5 | $54,471 | $176,492 |
| 48 | Sidney | 45.5 | $54,734 | $168,006 |
| 49 | Fairbury | 49.0 | $52,995 | $113,056 |
| 50 | Falls City | 50.0 | $51,706 | $104,063 |