Lincoln, NE vs Nashville, TN
Moving from Lincoln to Nashville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($304,242 → $455,958 median home) and taxes.
Lincoln vs Nashville 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 Lincoln, NE, you'd need about $105,584 in Nashville, TN (+$5,584).
Livability — Lincoln, NE: 68 · Nashville, TN: 63 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,793 sqft in Lincoln vs 2,193 sqft in Nashville ($179 vs $228 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Lincoln, NE | Nashville, TN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,128 | $21,576 | +$5,448 |
| Groceries | $4,827 | $4,715 | −$113 |
| Transportation | $3,300 | $3,130 | −$170 |
| Utilities | $1,440 | $1,608 | +$168 |
| Insurance | $3,600 | $2,200 | −$1,400 |
| Taxes | $11,420 | $5,231 | −$6,189 |
| Total | $40,715 | $38,459 | −$2,256 |
Side by side
| Metric | Lincoln, NE | Nashville, TN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.9 | 97.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.11% | 3.80% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.0% | 8.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 41 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.23 | $5.52 |
| Median home price | $304,242 | $455,958 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.3× | 5.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.1% | -0.9% |
| Price per square foot | $179 | $228 |
| Median rent | $1,344 | $1,798 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 7.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.97% | 9.55% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.20% | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.59% | 0.55% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.27% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 19 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,600 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 13.3 | 14.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.10 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 600 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 14 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |