What's special about lincoln, Nebraska?

This is not a definitive guide to all Lincoln has to offer, but we hope it will give you a glimpse into the vibe, economy, family life, food, shopping, arts & entertainment, nature, and sports in our town.

Vibe

Lincoln is a nonprofit dream town. Many nonprofit organizations are based here in order to use legislative lobbying advocacy when the Unicameral is in session. This means lots of volunteer and advocacy opportunities...and a mindset of generosity. Give to Lincoln Day, 24 hours of charitable giving, raised $9,501,701 in 2025. Check out their page to see the range of organizations serving the community:
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The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has approximately 24,000 young people adding their verve to the community. On football game days, you’ll either be exhilarated or exhausted by the influx of visitors. Our football stadium becomes the third largest population center on game days! In addition to the state university, Lincoln is home to Nebraska Wesleyan University and Union Adventist University as well as a robust community college system (link to SCC). 

Lincoln has pretty amazing diversity. It was the first city in Nebraska to be certified as a Welcoming Community. This means that Lincoln is uniquely positioned to 
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Cultural Centers of Lincoln link. Most city communications are now translated into 5 languages other than English.

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Economy

Lincoln is an extremely affordable city. The houses pictured at left illustrate the types of 4-bedroom, 2-bath home which can be purchased at various price points. According to Zillow: "The median rent price in Lincoln is $1,125. The median home value in Lincoln is $152,500. Lincoln home values have gone up 3.4% over the past year and Zillow predicts they will rise 3.4% within the next year. The median list price per square foot in Lincoln is $136. The median price of homes currently listed in Lincoln is $176,950."

Lincoln is not an economic utopia- but it might be considered close. Its unemployment rate is 3.00% with job growth predicted to be 37.66% in the next ten years. Lincoln’s sales tax rate is 7.25% and income tax is 6.84%. The income per capita, including all adults and children is $26,574 and the median income is $49,794. Since Lincoln is home to a major university and the state Capital there are many jobs related to those two anchors as well as plenty of companies in various industries that provide employment. There is also a large service sector which includes insurance, finance, health care.

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Family Life

Lincoln is a great town for younger children—it’s very safe, our schools are well rated with high graduation rates, and we’ve got a lot of fun activities for children. Private schools, pre-K through high school. Focus programs in the high schools with a wide variety of creative opportunities from the arts to the career academy. Link to LPS. 

The Lincoln Children’s Museum features year round interactive educational activities for kids age 18 months to 10 years. The Lincoln Children’s Zoo is an admittedly modest sized zoo but it is very friendly for smaller folks. Kid-friendly, family-friendly Lincoln Kids publication to help you find things to do.

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Food

Nebraskans love our food. Lincoln is no different, and you’re not just looking at meat and potatoes. You’ll find a wide range of locally owned restaurants in Lincoln, including over 30 Chinese, over 25 Mexican, 10 sushi, 7 Indian, 6 Vietnamese, 4 Mediterranean, 4 Thai, 3 Korean, 3 Iraqi, 1 Bosnian and 1 Ethiopian. 

Don’t forget the steakhouses—there are at least a dozen locally owned options—and remember Nebraska beef makes a lovely gift to ship to far away friends who wonder about your new home.

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Shopping

Lincoln has the same ubiquitous malls and big box stores you’ll find anywhere—we’re a small city but we do not lack shopping.  More interestingly, we have over 15 thrift shops, a vintage clothing boutique, and a couple of antique malls. Funky little shops await you at the historic Haymarket downtown, including the fair trade offerings at Ten Thousand Villages, a store devoted to olive oil and a store with only licorice.

One independent bookstore, A Novel Idea, is a woman-owned used bookstore with resident store cats that await your visit. Francie & Finch

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Arts & Entertainment

We’re super artsy in Lincoln—not in a “snobby nose in the air” way but in a “genuine enjoying creativity” way. The First Friday art walk on the first Friday of each month permits guiltless wandering into a large network of small galleries across the city or visiting a traveling exhibits of modern art at the Sheldon Museum of Art. Public art projects – such as the Illuminating Lincoln light bulb display – occur with some frequency to benefit local agencies.  Indie and foreign films play nightly at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center, which also partners to show Metropolitan Opera and National Theatre performance on the big screen.
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Choosing a venue for live entertainment can be difficult since there are multiple interesting opportunities begging for your attention nearly every night. Big name acts like Maroon 5, Hozier, and T-Pain have performed at the Pinnacle Bank Arena and you can find Bonnie Raitt and Bob Dylan at Pinewood Bowl. Blues are on tap at the internationally-famous Zoo Bar all week long. 


The Lied Center for Performing Arts brings us Broadway shows such as "Into the Woods” and "Mamma Mia,” rock shows such as John Mellencamp, dance troupes such as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, and classical performers such as the Canadian Brass and Yo Yo Ma.  

Musicals and plays abound at numerous theaters and local musicians can be heard on the stage with the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra and in the park with the Lincoln Municipal Band.

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