Cleveland, OH vs Lincoln, NE
Moving from Cleveland to Lincoln? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($252,210 → $304,242 median home) and taxes.
Cleveland vs Lincoln at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Cleveland, OH, you'd need about $100,539 in Lincoln, NE (+$539).
Livability — Cleveland, OH: 71 · Lincoln, NE: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,270 sqft in Cleveland vs 2,793 sqft in Lincoln ($153 vs $179 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Cleveland, OH | Lincoln, NE | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,532 | $16,128 | −$1,404 |
| Groceries | $4,830 | $4,827 | −$3 |
| Transportation | $3,025 | $3,300 | +$275 |
| Utilities | $2,100 | $1,440 | −$660 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $3,600 | +$2,300 |
| Taxes | $9,518 | $11,420 | +$1,902 |
| Total | $38,305 | $40,715 | +$2,410 |
Side by side
| Metric | Cleveland, OH | Lincoln, NE |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.4 | 91.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.88% | 3.11% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.8% | 5.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.20 | $5.23 |
| Median home price | $252,210 | $304,242 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.3% | 4.1% |
| Price per square foot | $153 | $179 |
| Median rent | $1,461 | $1,344 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.24% | 6.97% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.50% | 5.20% |
| Property tax rate | 1.84% | 1.59% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.27% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 19 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.5 | 13.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 3.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 300 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 14 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |