Omaha vs Lincoln leftover
Moving to Lincoln costs you $101 a month
$2,535/mo leftover in Lincoln vs $2,636 in Omaha after tax and rent ($101 less). −$1,212 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Omaha leftover
$2,636
a month after tax and rent
Lincoln leftover
$2,535
−$101 vs Omaha
Compare Omaha to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Omaha.
Monthly gap
Omaha → Lincoln
$101
less / month in Omaha
$2,535 in Lincoln · $2,636 in Omaha · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 1,263 households moved Omaha → Lincoln (avg AGI $53,269). 1,715 went the other way. The whole move →
−$101 / mo
| Per month | Omaha | Lincoln | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,417 | $6,940 | −$476 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,813 | $1,647 | −$166 |
| Take-home pay | $5,604 | $5,294 | −$310 |
| Rent | $1,089 | $993 | −$96 |
| Getting around | $545 | $500 | −$45 |
| Groceries | $368 | $349 | −$19 |
| Healthcare | $414 | $393 | −$21 |
| Utilities | $230 | $218 | −$12 |
| Everything else | $322 | $306 | −$16 |
| Left over | $2,636 | $2,535 | −$101 |
To break even in Lincoln, you'd need to earn
$85,000
Household gross, versus $89,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Omaha does now.
The tax difference alone
+$297
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 24.4% in Omaha, 23.7% in Lincoln.
More about Lincoln
Omaha, NE in full
A 21-minute commute and one of the most stable job markets in the Midwest.
Lincoln, NE in full
State income tax topping out at 5.2%, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,182 and 228 sunny days; commutes average 19 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Lincoln on Lincoln wages.
Lincoln → Omaha →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Lincoln than Omaha?
A one-bedroom is about $1,089 in Omaha versus $993 in Lincoln. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $101 a month lower in Lincoln. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Lincoln have state income tax?
Lincoln is in Nebraska, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Omaha to Lincoln?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Nebraska tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Omaha and Lincoln moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.