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Compare towns

Sumner vs Cook

178 miles apart. The biggest differences: jobs per worker (4.1× in Sumner) and typical home built (23 yrs in Sumner).

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Sumner, NEKnown for its schoolsNebraska · 353 people
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Cook, NEHomes around $222KNebraska · 328 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

SumnerKnown for its schools
SchoolsBetter than 11%of NE districts All about Sumner →
CookHomes around $222K
Housing$222K typical home21% below the NE typical home All about Cook →
The biggest differences

Where they differ most

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Jobs per worker4.1×
Sumner is more of a job hub
Sumner 1.15Cook 0.28
Typical home built23 yrs
Sumner’s homes are older
Cook 1961Sumner 1938
Average commute7 min
Cook has the shorter commute
Sumner 27 minCook 20 min
Property tax bill+17%
Tax bills are bigger in Cook
Cook $1,523Sumner $1,305
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $810 more a month in Cook

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Sumner$610/mo
Typical home $96K (Census) · tax rate 1.36% · or rent about $891/mo · Housing →
Cook$1,420/mo
Typical home $222K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.38% · or rent about $615/mo · Housing →

The difference: $810 a month, about $9,700 a year, between Cook and Sumner.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Nebraska ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Schools
DSumnerBetter than 11% of districts in the state B−CookBetter than 45% of districts in the state
Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
SumnerCook
Snow a year25″21″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)76th78th
Community
SumnerCook
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

178 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

SumnerNECookNE
Sumner ↔ Cook178 miles apart
Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

SumnerCook
People
Population 353Highest 328Lowest
Median age 36.6±7.1Lowest about the NE average 41.8±9.6Highest 12% above NE
Cook and Sumner are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 28.3%±6.6Highest NE: 24.5% 23.8%±5.5Lowest NE: 24.5%
Sumner and Cook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 7.9%±5.2Lowest NE: 16.7% 19.5%±7Highest NE: 16.7%
Cook and Sumner are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 18.8%Lowest NE: 34.6% 21.8%Highest NE: 34.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 2.3%±3.2Lowest NE: 6.6% 4.3%±5.7Highest NE: 6.6%
Cook and Sumner are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $70,000±$46kHighest 8% below NE $65,714±$7kLowest 14% below NE
Sumner and Cook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $95,800±$8kLowest 60% below NE $110,400±$49kHighest 54% below NE
Cook and Sumner are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $891±$389Highest 17% below NE $615±$338Lowest 43% below NE
Sumner and Cook are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,305Lowest 63% below NE $1,523Highest 57% below NE
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 9.1%±34.1Lowest NE: 45.1% 13.2%±32.7Highest NE: 45.1%
Cook and Sumner are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 2%Lowest NE: 10.6% 10.7%Highest NE: 10.6%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 64.8%Highest NE: 66.5% 63.7%Lowest NE: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year 1938Lowest 37 yrs older than NE 1961Highest 14 yrs older than NE
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 27 minHighest 42% above NE 20 minLowest 4% above NE
Work from home 2%±2.8Lowest NE: 11% 4.7%±4.6Highest NE: 11%
Cook and Sumner are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 0.9%Lowest 2.6%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 17.8 miLowest 34.3 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.15Highest 0.28Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Kearney (14%)Lincoln (34%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in CookFew work in Sumner
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0% 0%
Trailsmapped miles 0.1 miHighest 0.0 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.3 miHighest 0.0 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 122Highest 117Lowest
Schools
School district SUMNER-EDDYVILLE-MILLER SCHSJOHNSON CO CENTRAL PUBLIC SCHS
High school in town Junior-Senior High at SumnerNone in town
Students per teacherat that high school 9.7 —
Nebraska average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Sumner neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Sumner’s Town Square.

Cook neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Cook’s Town Square.

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Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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