Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,527, settled in 1881.
The best of Wakefield’s subject grades is an A+ for cost of living; the weakest is a C for schools. 35% of residents are under 18 in Wakefield, above both the Nebraska town median (24%) and the median of U.S. towns (22%). On cost of living, just 13 of Nebraska’s 133 towns do better. Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Salem Church is on the National Register of Historic Places. Wakefield has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Wakefield beats most towns.
Where Wakefield’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Nebraska), ordered by how far Wakefield is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 755 in 1900, 1,522 in 2020. The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 1910 and 2 maps from 1967 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Wakefield, 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 Wakefield.
About one in 4 of Wakefield’s working residents works in town. At 19 minutes, Wakefield’s average trip to work is against 17 minutes in Nebraska’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. The median household income in Wakefield is $57,000.
| Wakefield | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 23% | 34% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $57,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 7.5% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Wakefield Public Schools. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wakefield Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 341 | C− |
| Wakefield High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 234 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NE on state tests and graduation
The typical Wakefield home is worth about $198,000, up 6.2% in a year, 29% below the Nebraska typical home. 59% of households own their home in Wakefield.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Wakefield has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. Among 58 Nebraska towns, just 1 have a lower July high than Wakefield.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Wakefield beats the Nebraska average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 14. 19% of Wakefield adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance. Only 2 of the 58 Nebraska towns we compare have a higher share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Wakefield.
| Wakefield | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 9.7% | 8.1% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 18% | 23% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 28% | 25% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 40% | 35% |
| What stands out | Wakefield | NE |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with depression | 14.8% | 18.3% |
| More uninsured adults | 18.5% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 54% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Graves Park | — | 14 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Wakefield
About 2 of every 100 Wakefield residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Nebraska.
City in Dixon and Wayne counties in Nebraska, United States
Wakefield is a city in Dixon and Wayne counties in Nebraska, United States. As of the 2020 census, Wakefield had a population of 1,522. The Dixon County portion of Wakefield is part of the Sioux City metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A+.