Forty-seven percent of respondents to the 2026 Nebraska Rural Poll believe they are better off than they were five years ago, down from fifty-three percent last year.
Despite the increase in pessimism about their current situation, rural Nebraskans’ views of the future were about the same as last year, said Becky Vogt, poll manager. This year, forty-four percent of those surveyed believe they will be better off ten years from now, compared to forty-six percent last year. The Rural Poll—conducted by Rural Prosperity Nebraska with funding from Nebraska Extension— has asked about rural Nebraskans’ current well-being and outlook on the future for thirty-one years.
“Although there was a decline in people’s perceptions of their current situation, people still had similar expectations for the future,” said L.J. McElravy, associate professor of agricultural leadership at the University of Nebraska– Lincoln. “This may suggest that although well-being is lower than it was, it may be seen as a temporary low because respondents still expect to be better off in ten years.”
