Lincoln surpasses 300,000 population mark according to census estimate

Nebraska’s capital city has reached a population of more than 300,000, according to the latest city population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

An estimated population of 300,619, as of July 1, 2024, places Lincoln as the 72nd largest city in the country. That’s one spot below where it was in 2023 after being passed by Durham, North Carolina.

Lincoln grew by 3.19% between 2023 and 2024, a much faster growth rate than many of its peer cities. The 165 Midwest cities with populations over 50,000 people grew at an average rate of 0.7%.

Lincoln Chamber of Commerce CEO Jason Ball said crossing the threshold of 300,000 people is a “big deal” for the city. He said population growth is an important metric to attract new businesses, particularly in retail.

“That's going to be a major factor that they use to evaluate where they want to make investments and when, because the more people there are in a community, the more they're going to see economic opportunity in locating a storefront there,” he said.

Ball expects population growth to continue around the state’s largest metros.

“I think the whole Lincoln, Omaha, I-80 corridor is going to continue to be poised for strong growth,” he said. “We're seeing the communities all along that corridor and near I-80 continue to see more investment.”

According to the latest estimate, Omaha has reversed several years of flat or negative growth, gaining around 2,500 people between July 1, 2023 and 2024. The city’s new population estimate of 489,265 is still lower than its 2020 estimate of 492,783, however.

Among the 10 largest cities in the state, none are growing as fast proportionally as Columbus. While many smaller cities across the state have struggled to keep up with the demand for housing, Columbus mayor Jim Bulkley said his city is expected to have 600 new housing units completed within the next two years, thanks to a utilization of tax-increment financing and city-purchased land for housing development.

“We've just learned that it takes some creative thinking to try to come up with some answers,” he said. “And knock on wood, we've been fortunate so far that we've found a few of these.”

Lexington had the highest percentage growth among cities with more than 5,000 people in the state, while McCook saw the largest percentage decline.