City · Red Willow County, Nebraska

McCook, Nebraska

McCook is a city in Red Willow County, Nebraska. It has 7,314 residents. McCook, Nebraska has a quality-of-life score of 69 out of 100 (high), ranking #4,798 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Nebraska it ranks #93 of 119 cities and towns. It ranks best on average commute time (low), distance to an Amtrak station (low) and violent crime rate (low). It ranks worst on distance to an airport (high), public EV charging ports (low) and food environment index (low).

69High

Quality-of-life score: #4,798 of 15,651 cities and towns
Nebraska: #93 of 119 in NE
Population: 7,314 (2020-2024)
Land area: 6 mi²
Density: 1,277.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 3129925

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety85#2,404/15,637
Economy29#11,123/15,631
Housing69#4,645/14,977
Health48#8,145/15,609
Healthcare59#6,364/15,650
Environment70#4,562/15,453
Education73#4,245/15,649
Infrastructure44#8,727/15,650
Community79#3,355/15,651
Leisure & amenities53#7,312/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where McCook, Nebraska ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Red Willow County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Average commute time · low9.1 min
100/100Nebraska 19.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Distance to an Amtrak station · low2 mi
100/100Nebraska 29 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauRed Willow County value
Violent crime rate · low21 /100k
100/100Nebraska 218 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationRed Willow County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Nebraska 6.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionRed Willow County value
Loneliness · low29.8%
99/100Nebraska 29.8%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Dentists · high115 /100k
95/100Nebraska 84 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRed Willow County value

Weaknesses

Distance to an airport · high217 mi
1/100Nebraska 65 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauRed Willow County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Nebraska 3.9 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyRed Willow County value
Food environment index · low6.3
6/100Nebraska 7.7United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRed Willow County value
Adult obesity · high42.7%
10/100Nebraska 39.8%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Average weekly wage · low$947
10/100Nebraska $1,213United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsRed Willow County value
Broadband subscriptions · low83.8%
11/100Nebraska 90.6%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Child poverty rateWorsening
9.6% (2015-2019) → 31.0% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
32.1% (2015-2019) → 52.6% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
23.4% (2015-2019) → 31.3% (2020-2024)
+7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Poverty rateWorsening
10.2% (2015-2019) → 17.3% (2020-2024)
+7.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
20.5% (2015-2019) → 25.5% (2020-2024)
+5 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Average commute timeImproving
11.8 min (2015-2019) → 9.1 min (2020-2024)
−23%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, McCook, Nebraska improved on 1 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 4. 8 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved1

Commute−2.7 min11.8 min → 9.1 min

Declined4

Child poverty+21 points9.6% → 31.0%
Poverty+7.1 points10.2% → 17.3%
Rent burden+21 points32.1% → 52.6%
Rent / income+7.9 points23.4% → 31.3%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of McCook, Nebraska between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	11.8 min2015-2019	9.1 min2020-2024	−2.7 min	Improved	77%
Bachelor's degree or higher	20.5%2015-2019	25.5%2020-2024	+5 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Broadband subscriptions	80.9%2015-2019	83.8%2020-2024	+3 points	Within the margin of error	20%
Child poverty rate	9.6%2015-2019	31.0%2020-2024	+21 points	Declined	4%
Effective property tax rate	1.41%2015-2019	1.15%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	68%
High school diploma or higher	93.6%2015-2019	92.0%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	18%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	2.7×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	51%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4292015-2019	0.4832020-2024	+0.053	Within the margin of error	15%
Median household income	$48,1332015-2019	$56,9172020-2024	+18%	Within the margin of error	30%
Poverty rate	10.2%2015-2019	17.3%2020-2024	+7.1 points	Declined	8%
Rent as share of income	23.4%2015-2019	31.3%2020-2024	+7.9 points	Declined	13%
Rent-burdened households	32.1%2015-2019	52.6%2020-2024	+21 points	Declined	8%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.7%2015-2019	15.1%2020-2024	+4.4 points	Within the margin of error	12%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like McCook, Nebraska five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of McCook, Nebraska in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, McCook, Nebraska itself moved −17.8 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

7,314 residents (±31)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

3,269 households (±195)

McCook, Nebraska
Nebraska share

Under $25k19%†627
$25k–50k26%862
$50k–75k14%†468

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

3,269 households (±195)

McCook, Nebraska
Nebraska share

Own66%2,168
Rent34%1,101

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

3,580 workers (±260)

McCook, Nebraska
Nebraska share

Drive alone85%3,046
Carpool3.2%†114
Public transit0.8%†27

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Red Willow County, the county holding most of McCook's residents.

Red Willow County has 400 employer establishments, 381 for every 10,000 residents (1.54× the US rate of 248; 1.34× Nebraska's), with 3,848 paid employees at an average annual pay of $44,981. The Census Bureau also counts 906 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 400; 906 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 381; US 248 · Nebraska 284
Paid employees: 3,848
Average annual pay: $44,981; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Red Willow County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	27	25.7	1.23×About typical	257	$54,230	33
Specialty trade contractors	26	24.8	1.60×More than typical	112	$48,598	92
Restaurants and other eating places	24	22.9	1.25×About typical	403	$20,409	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	12	11.4	2.27×More than typical	29	$37,621	18
Building equipment contractors	12	11.4	1.90×More than typical	56	$48,446	20
Insurance agencies and brokerages	12	11.4	2.60×More than typical	54	$64,944	26
Full-service restaurants	11	10.5	1.36×More than typical	180	$19,400	—
Truck transportation	11	10.5	2.07×More than typical	70	$51,729	26
Banks and credit unions	10	9.5	2.95×More than typical	125	$58,032	—
Limited-service restaurants	10	9.5	1.19×About typical	208	$21,928	—
Religious organizations	10	9.5	1.72×More than typical	49	$24,122	—
Lessors of real estate	9	8.6	0.70×Too few to compare	25	$24,520	117

Rank places for an industry Open Red Willow County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 10,495 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $691 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in McCook, Nebraska: $0.09 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $691; +712% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.09; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 12%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Bureau of Reclamation$691100%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

9KFY2017
5.7KFY2018
7.1KFY2019
18.2KFY2020
21.2KFY2021
9.7KFY2022
10.6KFY2023
3.9KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$39757%
Legal services · 5411$20930%
Communications equipment manufacturing · 3342$85.5312%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in McCook, Nebraska, so they do not add up across cities.

McCook, Nebraska's figures are part of those of Red Willow County, NE ($203.8K in FY2026), never added to them: 0.3% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: McCook is mostly in Red Willow County.

See federal money in Red Willow County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

McCook, Nebraska is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Adrian SmithR-NE-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 1.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Red Willow County87100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Red Willow County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/3129925

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends