These Are The 10 Most Miserable Cities In Nebraska

Do you live in one of the most miserable places in Nebraska?

According to a Harris Poll taken in October of 2015, only a third of Americans say they are truly happy. That’s too bad, considering that Americans – especially folks in Nebraska – don’t really have it too bad, in the grand scheme of things.

But, we were curious – which Nebraska cities might be the most miserable? We’re about to find out, using science and data.

After analyzing the largest cities, we sadly present the most miserable cities in the Cornhusker State:

1. Omaha (Photos)
2. Crete (Photos)
3. Scottsbluff (Photos)
4. Lexington
5. Lincoln (Photos)
6. Wayne (Photos)
7. Central City
8. Schuyler (Photos)
9. Chadron (Photos)
10. Norfolk (Photos)

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked. If you have a smile on your face, you probably don’t live in one of these cities.

Oh, and by the way, Holdrege is the happiest place in Nebraska.

Or check out the Most Miserable Cities In America.

If you’re looking for something more positive, check out the best states in America or the best places to live in America.

How We Measured The Most Miserable Cities In Nebraska

In order to rank the unhappiest places in Nebraska, we had to determine what criteria makes people happy. It isn’t a stretch to assume that happy people earn great salaries, are relatively stress free, and have a stable home life.

So we went to the Census’s American Community Survey 2010-2014 report for the criteria, flipped the list, and it spit out the answer. Like magic.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:

• Percentage of residents with a college degree
• Average commute times
• Unemployment rates
• Cost of living
• % of married couples
• % of home owners
• Poverty rate

After we decided on the criteria, we gathered the data for the 108 places in Nebraska with over 2,000 people.

We then ranked each place from one to 49 for each of the seven criteria with a score of one being the most miserable (Any ties were given to the larger place).

Next, we averaged the seven rankings into a Miserable Index for each place with the lowest overall Miserable Index ‘earning’ the title ‘Most Miserable City In Nebraska’.

If you’d like to see the complete list of states, most miserable to happiest, scroll to the bottom of this post to see the unabridged chart.

1. Omaha

Population: 435,454
People Who Own Their Home: 53.49%
Married Adults: 44.29%

2. Crete

Population: 7,055
People Who Own Their Home: 52.32%
Married Adults: 43.19%

3. Scottsbluff

Population: 14,998
People Who Own Their Home: 53.71%
Married Adults: 44.91%

4. Lexington

Population: 10,189
People Who Own Their Home: 53.37%
Married Adults: 53.27%

5. Lincoln

Population: 265,811
People Who Own Their Home: 53.93%
Married Adults: 46.28%

6. Wayne

Population: 5,578
People Who Own Their Home: 49.57%
Married Adults: 40.84%

7. Central City

Population: 2,897
People Who Own Their Home: 60.31%
Married Adults: 50.0%

8. Schuyler

Population: 6,195
People Who Own Their Home: 63.03%
Married Adults: 51.34%

9. Chadron

Population: 5,829
People Who Own Their Home: 48.84%
Married Adults: 42.79%

10. Norfolk

Population: 24,364
People Who Own Their Home: 55.11%
Married Adults: 49.24%

There You Have It

Like we said earlier, trying to determine the most miserable cities in {state} is usually a subjective matter. But if you’re analyzing cities where people are not stable, where you’re stuck in traffic, and no one spent the time to go to college, then this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious enough, here are the happiest cities in {state}, according to science:
For more Nebraska reading , check out:

• These Are The 10 Snobbiest Places In Nebraska
• These Are The 10 Most Boring Places In Nebraska
• These Are The 10 Worst Places To Live In Nebraska

Detailed List Of Miserable Places In Nebraska

City	Rank	People Who Own Their Home
Omaha	1	53.49%
Crete	2	52.32%
Scottsbluff	3	53.71%
Lexington	4	53.37%
Lincoln	5	53.93%
Wayne	6	49.57%
Central City	7	60.31%
Schuyler	8	63.03%
Chadron	9	48.84%
Norfolk	10	55.11%
Fremont	11	57.7%
Kimball	12	53.23%
Ashland	13	62.58%
Kearney	14	54.54%
Alliance	15	52.68%
Ralston	16	61.14%
Fairbury	17	60.77%
Auburn	18	50.89%
Bellevue	19	63.02%
Milford	20	62.09%
Hastings	21	63.86%
Wahoo	22	62.92%
Plattsmouth	23	57.54%
Beatrice	24	54.98%
Ogallala	25	60.38%
Blair	26	63.17%
Cozad	27	60.18%
Seward	28	61.8%
York	29	53.04%
Madison	30	62.55%
Broken Bow	31	59.58%
Ord	32	60.15%
Columbus	33	63.83%
Minden	34	59.73%
Gering	35	66.88%
Valentine	36	63.01%
Mccook	37	63.07%
Gothenburg	38	71.17%
Sidney	39	56.68%
Geneva	40	60.74%
O’Neill	41	61.88%
West Point	42	63.64%
Papillion	43	66.26%
Chalco	44	68.01%
Gretna	45	64.86%
Aurora	46	64.57%
Waverly	47	74.58%
Imperial	48	72.65%
Holdrege	49	62.34%