Assisted Living Cost in Nebraska
Nebraska is close to average on assisted living, then splits: adult day care here is the eighth most expensive in the country, while nursing home rooms sit well below the national medians. The state also publishes its Medicaid room and board share as a flat dollar figure, which is rare and useful: a waiver participant's housing share is $919 a month, not a percentage you have to guess at.
Sources: CareScout Cost of Care Survey 2025, released March 2026, ranked state tables and Cost of Care calculator, accessed November 2026; Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services Aged and Disabled Waiver and assisted living rate information; Nebraska Department of Veterans Affairs state veterans homes information.
Nebraska assisted living costs, against the national median
The table below is the CareScout 2025 survey for Nebraska, with the national median beside it. The survey collected more than 25,000 provider rates between July and November 2025 and reports medians, the middle price, not averages pulled up by luxury buildings. Assisted living figures are for a private one-bedroom apartment for 12 months of care.
| Care type | Nebraska median | National median |
|---|---|---|
| Assisted living, per month | $6,093 ($73,116 per year) | $6,200 ($74,400 per year) |
| Home care, non-medical caregiver, per hour | $36 ($82,368 per year at 44 hours a week) | $35 ($80,080 per year at 44 hours a week) |
| Adult day health care, per day | $162.50 ($42,250 per year at 5 days a week) | $95 ($24,700 per year at 5 days a week) |
| Nursing home, semi-private room, per month | $8,377 ($100,524 per year) | $9,581 ($114,975 per year) |
| Nursing home, private room, per month | $9,216 ($110,592 per year) | $10,798 ($129,575 per year) |
The assisted living cost Nebraska median runs $107 a month below the national median, which is $1,284 over a full year (74,400 minus 73,116). Home care at $36 an hour sits $1 above the $35 national rate. Adult day care at $162.50 a day sits $67.50 above the $95 national rate, ranking eighth most expensive in the country. A semi-private nursing home room at $8,377 sits $1,204 below the $9,581 national figure, and a private room at $9,216 sits $1,582 below the $10,798 national figure. For the full national picture, read how much does assisted living cost and how much does a nursing home cost.
Assisted living cost Nebraska by place
Place medians come from the same CareScout survey, through its Cost of Care calculator, which reports the closest survey region for each place. All figures are 2025 monthly medians for a private one-bedroom apartment. The spread runs from $4,682 to $7,650, a gap of $2,968 a month between the lowest and highest Nebraska place in this table. The Kearney figure maps to the non-metropolitan region of Nebraska, which the calculator reports for Kearney, so read it as the non-metropolitan region figure, not as a Kearney-specific survey.
| Place | Assisted living median per month, 2025 | Against the Nebraska median |
|---|---|---|
| Lincoln | $7,650 | $1,557 above |
| Omaha | $7,000 | $907 above |
| Grand Island | $6,048 | $45 below |
| Kearney | $4,682 | $1,411 below |
Two places in this table sit above the $6,093 state median and two sit below it, which tells you Nebraska's state figure is a genuine middle, not a number pulled down by one cheap region. Lincoln at $7,650 sits $1,557 above the state median, while Kearney at $4,682 sits $1,411 below it. Do not treat the state median as the price in any of these places: use the place figure, then replace it with three written quotes in that place, with apartment size and care level stated. For how to use competing quotes, read can you negotiate assisted living costs.
What the monthly bill includes, and what it leaves out
The median buys the building and the base service: a private apartment, meals, housekeeping, supervision, and activities, with staff on site around the clock. It does not buy every charge a resident actually pays. Care is priced in levels, and the level rises as help needs grow, so the second year costs more than the first even before any annual rate increase. Medication handling, a higher care level, and a second occupant are commonly billed on top of the base rate, and many buildings charge a one-time community fee at move-in.
Nebraska licenses assisted living facilities through the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Licensure Unit. Anyone providing assisted living services to four or more unrelated residents must hold an Assisted Living Facility license. One limit matters at the tour: an assisted living facility is not a nursing home and cannot provide routine care by licensed nurses. A resident whose needs rise to routine nursing care cannot be served in that setting. Ask at the tour, in writing, which services the base rate covers and which are billed as extras, and what each extra costs. The tour checklist on assisted living checklist groups those questions for you.
Medicaid in Nebraska: Aged and Disabled Waiver
Nebraska's Medicaid help for assisted living runs through the Aged and Disabled Waiver, run by the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Medicaid and Long-Term Care. A waiver is the state program that pays for care services outside a nursing home. The assisted living service inside the waiver is called Supported Residential Living, provided in a licensed Assisted Living Facility, and it includes personal care, help with daily living tasks, health maintenance, medication assistance, housekeeping, laundry, transportation, and socialization, alongside shelter and food. The participant pays the room and board cost and any applicable Medicaid share of cost, and Nebraska publishes the number: the state fiscal year 2027 rate sheet sets the client share for room and board at a flat $919 a month, with a Medicaid share of $2,248 a month for single occupancy or $1,664 a month for multiple occupancy. Eligibility requires Nebraska Medicaid, age 65 or older or a disability, a nursing facility level of care, and a need for waiver services. No official Department of Health and Human Services page states a current waitlist for the waiver, so this page makes no waitlist claim. For the national Medicaid rules, read does medicaid pay for assisted living, and for the full payment map, read how to pay for assisted living. Medicare does not pay for assisted living room charges or custodial care; see does medicare pay for assisted living for the exact boundary.
VA resources in Nebraska
For a veteran parent, two Nebraska routes sit beside the private market. The first is VA Aid and Attendance, a monthly cash benefit added to a VA pension for a veteran or surviving spouse who needs help with daily living; the amounts and rules are on VA Aid and Attendance requirements and veterans affairs assisted living. The second is the state's own veterans homes. The Nebraska Department of Veterans Affairs operates four state veterans homes: Bellevue, Norfolk, Kearney, and Scottsbluff. The Kearney home, the Central Nebraska Veterans Home, replaced the old Grand Island home when it opened in January 2019. They are state veterans homes, not private assisted living communities, so treat them as a separate application track, not as a price comparison. For VA health care, use VA.gov to find the facility nearest your parent.
Nebraska against the national median, in one row
Assisted living cost Nebraska at $6,093 a month sits $107 below the $6,200 national median, home care at $36 an hour sits $1 above the $35 national rate, adult day care at $162.50 a day sits $67.50 above the $95 national rate, and a nursing home semi-private room at $8,377 a month sits $1,204 below the $9,581 national figure. Nebraska is a slightly cheaper state for assisted living and nursing home rooms, a slightly pricier state for home care, and a markedly pricier state for adult day care. At $8,377 a month, a semi-private nursing home room costs $2,284 a month more than the $6,093 assisted living median in the same state, so a parent whose needs are close to the nursing facility line should still price both settings in the same place.
Frequently asked questions
How much room and board does a Nebraska waiver participant pay?
A flat $919 a month. The Department of Health and Human Services state fiscal year 2027 rate sheet sets the client share for room and board at $919 a month, with a Medicaid share of $2,248 a month for single occupancy or $1,664 a month for multiple occupancy. The participant pays the room and board cost and any applicable Medicaid share of cost, so budget the $919 as a known fixed figure, not a percentage.
Why does Kearney share the $4,682 figure?
Because the CareScout calculator maps the Kearney entry to the non-metropolitan region of Nebraska, not to a Kearney-specific survey region. The $4,682 figure is the non-metropolitan region median, not a price measured in Kearney itself. Budget a Kearney move from that region figure until you hold written quotes from communities in Kearney itself.
Can an assisted living facility in Nebraska provide nursing care?
No, not routine nursing care. The Department of Health and Human Services states an assisted living facility is not a nursing home and cannot provide routine care by licensed nurses. A resident whose needs rise to routine nursing care needs a different setting, so ask at the tour what happens if your parent's needs grow past what the facility may legally provide.
Does the $6,093 median cover two people sharing one apartment?
No. The CareScout median is for a private one-bedroom apartment occupied by one person. A second occupant adds a second-person fee set by each community, on top of the median, not inside it. Couples should budget the median plus the community's written second-person fee, plus a care level for each spouse who needs help, since care is priced per person. See average cost of assisted living for a couple for how couples totals are built.
Your next step is to take the place median for the city where your parent will actually live, get three written quotes that state apartment size, care level, and every extra fee, and check Aged and Disabled Waiver and VA eligibility before you sign. Start with assisted living checklist and assisted living costs.