Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,430, founded in 1882.
Gothenburg gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $197K, 2.8 years of the Lexington area’s $71K median household income. It grades A overall, ranked 9th of 57 in Nebraska. On the plus side, it reports less crime per resident than 92% of U.S. towns. 48% of working residents work locally in Gothenburg, against 33% in Nebraska’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. On walkability, just 11 of Nebraska’s 132 towns do better. Gothenburg has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Midway Stage Station and Ernest A. Calling House.
Where Gothenburg beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Nebraska), ordered by how far Gothenburg is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 535 in 1890, 3,478 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1942 and 3 maps from 1902 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Gothenburg, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Gothenburg.
Gothenburg pairs an A overall with homes cheaper than the Nebraska norm and has seen reported crime fall by about half.
Reported crimes fell from 22 to 8 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 0 reported in 2025, 0 per 1,000 residents.
Among 45 Nebraska towns, just 1 have a lower violent crime rate than Gothenburg. Gothenburg’s property crime rate is 2.3 per 1,000 residents.
| Gothenburg | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.3 per 1,000 residents | 8 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Gothenburg Public Schools. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Gothenburg Secondary School, with 353 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dudley Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 416 | C+ |
| Gothenburg Secondary SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 353 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NE on state tests and graduation
| Gothenburg | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.2% | 3.6% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. E G West Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Gothenburg grades A overall with a typical home of about $197K, below the Nebraska typical value; only 8 of the 18 Nebraska towns graded A− or better can say that.
The typical Gothenburg home is worth about $197,000, about the same as a year ago, 29% below the Nebraska typical home. The median rent in Gothenburg is $883 a month.
| Gothenburg | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 75% | 67% | 73% |
| Median rent | $883 a month | $921 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Gothenburg beats the Nebraska average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 17% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Gothenburg.
| Gothenburg | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 18% | 23% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 31% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 14% | 17% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 33% |
| What stands out | Gothenburg | NE |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.9% | 77.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.1% | 8.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Gothenburg has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 14° and about 31 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The top destinations are Cozad (7%), Lexington (5%) and North Platte (5%). Half commute less than 2 miles.
| Gothenburg | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $79,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 56% of U.S. communities. Since 2010, 6 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Gothenburg.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Gothenburg; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Gothenburg residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Nebraska.
3 places in Gothenburg on the National Register of Historic Places.
6 notable people were born in Gothenburg.
City in Nebraska, United States
Gothenburg is a city in Dawson County, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Lexington, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, Gothenburg had a population of 3,478.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Gothenburg grades A overall, better than 89% of U.S. towns and #9 of 57 in Nebraska. It grades B+ for health, A for safety and B− for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
6 notable people were born here, including Ben Kuroki and Milan Creighton.
