We've opted for sharing a local's review of Lincoln here since they seemed to capture it better than we ever could:

*I have lived in Lincoln Ne for most of my life. AS a short answer I would say Lincoln is Safe, Comfortable, Middle Class City, that is diverse, racially fair, midwestern city. It has an excellent public school system as well as excellent catholic, and Christian a,d Lutheran private schools as well as a community college, 2 well known private college, Diane, Wesleyan, and a Seventh Day Adventist College, Union College. LIncoln is the Capital of the state and there is much state and federal employment here as well as a lot of private industry and business employment. It is home to the University Of Nebraska, well know for its academics, research and several sports, Football, Baseball, Basketball, Women's Volleyball, Basketball,Softball and both men's and women's gymnastics. Taxation in Nebraska may seem to the outsider to be slightly higher than some other states but one of the main reasons is that we are not overcrowded population wise, either in the cities or rural areas of Nebraska.*

More from LookyLOO:

The downside of living in a city that often has the feel of a small town is that, well, Lincoln can very much have the feeling of a small town. Most residents have lived in Lincoln their whole lives as their parents did before them, and it can be difficult here to meet new people if you don’t already have a connection or two. Most of the social spots here revolve around those bars and breweries, and if that isn’t your scene, Lincoln can be isolating. 

While a great place to raise a family, the city can be a bit of a no man’s land for those too old for the college scene and too young to have a family, and Lincoln, and Nebraska more generally, is also not a great place to move if diversity is something important to you. It’s also still Nebraska, so the flat landscape, remnants of cowboy culture, and distance from mountains and large bodies of water can be tough if you’re coming from the coasts, great lakes, or the Rockies.

It’s A Legit City

LookyLOO Review of Lincoln

Lincoln is pretty much a dream come true place for families. Everyone’s nice, the neighborhoods are beautiful, community spirit is valued and there is a strong sense of work-life balance so at 5 pretty much everyone bolts to be with the kiddos. The downtown area is growing for those looking to go out but a decent percentage of the nightlife energy comes from the college student population and those who are out rooting for the school. Trust us, Nebraska football and sports overall will play a role in your life, even if you’d prefer they not. 

If you want to check out what locals do in Lincoln here is the [**calendar of events**](https://downtownlincoln.org/connect/downtown-events). 

Lifestyle 

Lincoln is the state capitol so plenty of government work is going on in Lincoln. Combine that with the massive university and public school education employers and you get a high percentage of employees as institutional-style workers. This contributes some to that culture of leaving work behind at the end of the day and creating family/life/work balance. The city is also known for a growing tech sector that is called “Silicon Prairie”. Overall the economy is strong in Lincoln with dependable professional jobs. Move here for a job and you can pretty much count on being able to stay. 


Worklife

[**Lincoln Public Schools**](lps.org)(LPS) are highly rated, receiving an ["A-" on niche.com. ](https://www.niche.com/k12/d/lincoln-public-schools-ne/). Grades are particularly high for Teachers, Clubs/Activities, and Diversity. 

Lincoln Public Schools are the primary draw in the city but parochial/religious and private are also popular. Magnets are very popular in the city, with elementary up through high school offering them as an option. 

The better-performing schools tend to be on the east and southern sides of the city. The big draws in the area include:

-[**Lincoln East High**](https://ehs.lps.org/) receives and ["A" on niche.com](https://www.niche.com/k12/lincoln-east-high-school-lincoln-ne/?map) and is the highest-rates school in the area. It gets high marks for Academics, Teachers, and Extracurriculars. 
-[**Southwest Lincoln High School**](https://www.lincoln.org/listing/lincoln-southwest-high-school/118/) is the #2 high school in the area and receives an [**"A" on niche.com**](https://www.niche.com/k12/southwest-high-school-lincoln-ne/). It receives the highest grades for the quality of the Teachers. 

Schools

To reiterate, the real estate prices here are great, especially for family homes. The job market is solid, public schools are great, and the people here are as well, once you get to know them. 


The Family-Friendly Life

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**Anonymous**
2y ago
🦉🦉🦉

I moved here for college from Illinois, and I was originally intending to leave this state after college but I met my wife and ended up staying. Lincoln and the state really grows on you and you have all of the creature comforts you are looking for. My friend graduated from the law school at Nebraska and he says that was the best decision he ever made. Also, the job market for lawyers/attorneys in this state is very good due to a lot of older generation lawyers in small towns are at the retirement age and looking for people to hand the keys to, which was what my friend did and now he is a county deputy attorney.

The amount of outdoor activities from spring to fall is great, the haymarket has a farmers market every Sunday in the summer. There are baseball games that are cheap to watch, the Lincoln zoo is great to walk around. Some people go to the sunken gardens to enjoy a taste of nature while working one school or to take a break. Plenty of small coffee shops dotted around town and the night life is great, O street is mostly for college students but the haymarket is for adults out of college so that depends on the crowd you want to be around.

I also would recommend not getting an apartment downtown or near downtown since its expensive and the law school isn’t near downtown but on the east campus.

Too Tight-Knit?

Reviews of Lincoln from Locals

**The Best Thing About Lincoln?** - It’s A Legit City

Please don’t read “Nebraska” and go back to looking at other cities. Here in Lincoln, there is more going on than cornfields and two lane highways. Lincoln is known for its food scene, music festivals, breweries, late night bars, and The University of Nebraska brings a college town vibe to the area around the University, with loyal fans located throughout the city (and state). As far as cities in the western Heartland of America go, there is as much to do, if not more, here as anywhere else. Lincoln is also included in what’s often referred to as “The Silicon Prairie,” where tech companies have relocated in order to avoid west coast price tags, and the city was named the best city for job-seekers as recently as 2015.

**The Worst Thing About Lincoln?** - Too Tight-Knit?

The downside of living in a city that often has the feel of a small town is that, well, Lincoln can very much have the feeling of a small town. Most residents have lived in Lincoln their whole lives as their parents did before them, and it can be difficult here to meet new people if you don’t already have a connection or two. Most of the social spots here revolve around those bars and breweries, and if that isn’t your scene, Lincoln can be isolating. While a great place to raise a family, the city can be a bit of a no-man’s land for those too old for the college scene and too young to have a family, and Lincoln, and Nebraska more generally, is also not a great place to move if diversity is something important to you. It’s also still Nebraska, so the flat landscape, remnants of cowboy culture, and distance from mountains and large bodies of water can be tough if you’re coming from the coasts, great lakes, or the rockies.
	
**How You Living?** - With the Family… and the Dog.

The majority of neighborhoods here in the state capital (the area around the university excluded) are tailored for families. Housing prices are great, even in some of the more upscale neighborhoods. The city is known for being extremely dog friendly, with a ton of groomers, pet-friendly restaurants and businesses, and big backyards for Fido, that you might not be used to if coming from a larger cities. There are also apartment-style living options available, especially closer to downtown, and bike/ pedestrian friendly streets that make the area easily navigable. 

**Why You Should Move Here Now?** - The Family-Friendly Life

To reiterate, the real estate prices here are great, especially for family homes. The job market is solid, public schools are great, and the people here are as well, once you get to know them.


Lincoln is known for college kids and families not for being a bastion of young professionals. There is however a growing social scene in the Haymarket area of downtown Lincoln. It benefits from both being downtown, for walking to work, has ton of eating and drinking options, and is close to the University so if you consider that energy a positive then this is your place. Alternatively, look at the Havelock neighborhood in Northeast Lincoln if you want to be able to walk out at night or to shop during the day but its not as close to the University as Haymarket if you’d like things a bit less college-y. 
- Haymarket/Downtown
- Havelock/Northeast Lincoln


Young Professionals

Haymarket/Downtown

Downtown is the closest thing to an LGBTQ_ friendly neighborhood in Lincoln. While the city is considered community friendly it doesn’t really have a single neighborhood. As in many cities the downtown area is home to the bars and restaurants that are owned and cater to LGBTQ+ and so that is where more of the community gathers. Downtown houses much of the cultural and performing arts centers as well as PFLAG and Out Nebraska. 
- Downtown


LGBTQ+

Downtown

The aptly named Family Acres, is one of the most popular neighborhoods for families in Lincoln. Great homes, big yards, excellent public schools and plenty of parks and open spaces for the little beans to play. If you want to look at the schmanciest of neighborhoods check out Yankee Ridge. Home to a beautiful country club and lined with bigger homes and yards than most or all of the neighborhoods in the city.
- Family Acres
- Country Club
- Yankee Ridge


Families

Family Acres

Lincoln

**Katesashark**
2y ago
🦉🦉

I grew up in Boston, my husband is from Cincinnati. We moved here for his job as a professor with UNL and Lincoln was very much a culture shock for us. Everything I have read here rings true for my experience.

There aren’t any bad schools in Lincoln (former public teacher here ❤️) There are poorer performing schools but that has much more to do with confounding factors than it does the school system.

You can park downtown for $8 a day. Hear the symphony orchestra for $15. Take in a minor league ball game for $10.

We own a house near downtown, but the law school isn’t downtown; it’s on east campus. My mortgage for a four bedroom house - including insurance and interest - is less than my rent was for a one bedroom apartment in Boston.

Nebraska isn’t a place people want to visit and there isn’t a lot to do here apart from the stuff you can do anywhere in the US, cute coffee shops, movie theaters, live performances and concerts, sports galore… in the summer there are street festivals with live music and food…

**More_Cowbell_Fever**
2y ago
🦉🦉

My wife and I moved here from Phoenix. I’ve also lived in Orlando and Sydney. Lincoln isn’t all that bad to be honest. It’s safe, has a good park system, bike trails, good schools, all the stuff you might expect from a college town. There are also decent food options, especially southeast Asian food, but it’s not quite as good as a big city as far as range and quality.

The winters are kind of ruff for me, but summer is pretty nice to be honest, people here don’t really know what hot is. It’s moderately humid and averages in the low to mid 90s but is nice in the morning and evenings. I can let my dog out without a timer here in the summer, couldn’t do that in Phoenix, however I have had to use a timer in the winter a few times here.

Additionally Lincoln isn’t very far from Omaha, I think they might even be closer together than San Antonio and Austin. And Kansas City is only 3 hour drive. Between the three you can usually see any band on tour you can think of and find any stores you might need to go to.

**Adventurous-Rich2313**
1 yr ago
🦉


It’s not that great, IMO. Lincoln Reddit will mostly disagree. But I think you should hear both sides.

the summers are hot and humid. The city work on roads is pathetic.

Not much for affordable housing, there is even a program called neighbor-works, for low income residents, but with inflation I got told no, on multiple houses, I tried to buy with them, because it was over budget to get the house where it needs to be.

The food isn’t great. People here are fine accepting chain restaurants and tend to avoid local restaurants. Or aren’t willing to spend $30 on a dinner because “they might not like it” so chick-fil-a thrives and local restaurants struggle.

Generally a blue city living in a red state(I won’t get anymore political than that.

Taxes keep going up, some of the highest in the country I think number 9 for the state of Nebraska in property taxes.

The road infrastructure is pathetic, if you need to go across town, Almost every major road turns into a 1 lane each way at some point in the city. I think O street for about 20 blocks is 3 lanes each way.

Lincoln, Nebraska