Howard County, Nebraska
Howard County, NE: non-irrigated cash rent $132 an acre (2026); land and buildings $4,372 an acre in the 2022 census; median corn yield 183.6 bu/ac. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 31093. Figures as of 2026-09-20.
Irrigated cropland covers 67 percent of harvested acres in Howard County, and irrigated cash rent for 2026 is $245 per acre against $132 per acre for non-irrigated ground. The irrigated multiple has moved from 2.34 in 2008 to 1.86 in 2026, direction falling. Crop insurance indemnities from 1989-2025 total $86.8 million, with heat and drought the largest cause at 40 percent; that share was 10 percent in 1989-1999, 51 percent in 2000-2009, 37 percent in 2010-2019, and 44 percent in 2020-2025. The county held 300 of 1357 weeks in severe drought or worse from 2000-2025, with 2023 the worst year at 52 weeks, and 114 of those weeks fell in 2021-2025. Census land value sits at $4,372 per acre in 2022, up 25.2 percent from 2017.
NE median $141 · tied for 35th lowest of 80
NE median $272 · 27th lowest of 78
NE median $4,499 · 45th lowest of 93
NE median 179.3 · 24th highest of 67
NE median $4.74 · 45th lowest of 90
NE median 49% · 19th lowest of 93
Cash rent
Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.
Land value
Corn yield
Bushels per acre, USDA NASS county yields, all practices. The dashed line is the median of the published years.
Crop insurance record
Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1989. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.
Drought and weather
Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.
Land, water and programs
Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.
Next door
| County | Dry rent | Irr. rent | Land value | Corn yield | Claims per $100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howard County | $132 | $245 | $4,372 | 183.6 | $4.73 |
| Buffalo County | $138 | $271 | $4,857 | 195.4 | $3.21 |
| Greeley County | $145 | $267 | $4,034 | 185.4 | $3.48 |
| Hall County | $130 2025 | $279 | $5,923 | 199.8 | $3.74 |
| Merrick County | — | $272 | $5,476 | — | $3.60 |
| Nance County | $204 | $271 | $4,829 | 178.1 | $8.25 |
| Sherman County | $134 | $299 | $3,905 | 177.1 | $4.30 |
| Median next door | $142 | $272 | $4,843 | 185.4 | $3.67 |
Counties that share a stretch of boundary. An older rent carries its year and stays out of the median.
Cite this page
AGSIST Farmland Atlas. Howard County, Nebraska. Figures as of 2026-09-20, from USDA NASS, USDA RMA, USDA FSA, the U.S. Drought Monitor and NOAA. https://agsist.com/farmland-atlas/nebraska/howard-countyEvery figure is a county average from the sources named below. Ranks count counties with 10,000 acres or more in farms, in the same survey year for rent, within the state. Methods: how each figure is built. Downloads: all counties, CSV.
Sources, dates and arithmetic
"Figures as of" is the date this page's numbers last changed; it moves only when a figure on the page does. Source files and their retrieval dates are listed on the data page.
Rent: USDA NASS Cash Rents Survey, county. Land value: Census of Agriculture, operators' estimate of land and buildings. Yield: NASS county corn yields, trend fitted here over every published year since 2008. Loss ratio: claims (indemnity) divided by total premium, USDA RMA Summary of Business, 1989 on, open crop year left out. Drought: U.S. Drought Monitor, weeks with half the county or more in D2 or worse. July lows: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly minimum temperature. A dash means the record does not carry the figure or the source withheld it; the reason is printed beside it.