Skip to content
RADON411

Locations and reports

Radon Levels in Buffalo County, Nebraska

EPA puts Buffalo County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and high results are common there: 55.5% of the 173 radon tests reported to CDC (2023) came back at or above 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.

Data checked By Radon411Methodology

How to test this homeFind a certified tester

  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    55.5%

    17.3 pts above NE

    Buffalo
    55.5%
    Nebraska
    38.2%

    173 tests, 2023

  • Median result

    4.2pCi/L

    Action level reached

    Buffalo
    4.2 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2023

  • Tests reported

    173

    9th of 33 by tests

    Buffalo
    173
    Lancaster
    4,058

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2023

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 2

    Moderate potential

    1. 1
    2. Zone 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts 2 to 4 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in Nebraska

    22 of 33

    Middle half

    Buffalo
    55.5%
    Gage
    79.8%

    By share, of 33 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Buffalo County

Starts at Buffalo County's median, 4.2 pCi/L

4.2pCi/L

EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.

EPA’s reading of 4.2 pCi/L

At or above 4 pCi/L

  1. Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
  2. 2 to 4consider a fix
  3. 4 and aboveEPA says fix it

This result is at or above 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends fixing a home when the radon level is 4 pCi/L or higher. Buffalo County's median reported result, 2023.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

Buffalo County, At a glance

Buffalo County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential

Buffalo County is a county: EPA's forecast for it as a whole is an average indoor of 2 to 4 pCi/L (75 to 150 Bq/m³). It describes no single address, and homes above EPA's are found in every zone, this one included.

USGS geologic potential: Moderate across 100% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Buffalo County, 2023

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Buffalo County
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Buffalo County
YearShare of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L
201453.1%
201552.0%
201646.7%
201748.2%
201842.8%
201943.8%
202041.1%
202137.1%
202236.1%
202355.5%

2023: 55.5%. Across these years the share ran from 36.1% to 55.5%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.

What these figures count

These are the 173 tests reported to CDC for Buffalo County over 2023, many from homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: they describe the county's reported tests, not this house.

Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2023. Measured data period: 2005 to 2023 (every CDC figure on file).

How to read these figures

Buffalo County, Compared

Buffalo County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

More than half: 55.5% of the 173 radon tests reported to CDC for Buffalo County in 2023 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 22nd of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 17.3 points above the 38.2% pooled from 86 Nebraska counties.

The median result, 4.2 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 13.5 pCi/L. The rest split 8.7% under 2 pCi/L and 35.8% from 2 to 4 (Nebraska: 39.2% and 22.6%). The reported tests do not follow EPA's Zone 2 label for Buffalo County (predicted average between 2 and 4 pCi/L): 55.5% of them reached 4 pCi/L, fewer than that label suggests.

2 of its 4 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Adams County at 66.5%; Hall County reported 17.8%. Statewide for the same period, Gage County reported the highest share (79.8%) and Dakota County the lowest (3.1%).

The busiest year on file was 2015, with 1,893 tests reported; the quietest, 2023, had 173.

Over 10 years of annual figures the share rose 2.4 points, from 53.1% in 2014 to 55.5% in 2023; its peak was 55.5% in 2023. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 33.4%; Buffalo County sits 22.1 points above it. CDC also counts 127 tests taken after mitigation in Buffalo County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Buffalo County against Nebraska2014 to 2023, years with 30 or more tests: Buffalo County 53.1% to 55.5%, the state's pooled share 38.2% in 2023.
Buffalo CountyNebraska, pooled
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Buffalo County against Nebraska: data table
YearTestsBuffalo County, at or above 4 pCi/LNebraska, pooled
20141,38953.1%50.5%
20151,89352.0%53.3%
20161,83046.7%47.4%
20171,89348.2%47.7%
20181,63542.8%44.5%
20191,46743.8%44.3%
20201,21241.1%42.2%
202193937.1%34.9%
202222736.1%34.0%
202317355.5%38.2%
Buffalo County against Nebraska, the United States and nearby counties, 2023
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Buffalo County
Buffalo County17355.5%4.2 pCi/LThis county
Nebraska, pooled86 counties, pooled11,16338.2%Not pooled−17.3 points
United States, pooled642 counties, pooled128,74033.4%Not pooled−22.1 points
Gage Countyhighest in the state8479.8%9.4 pCi/L+24.3 points
Dakota Countylowest in the state1303.1%0.4 pCi/L−52.4 points
Sherman County, NEborders it3100.0%10.8 pCi/L+44.5 points
Kearney County, NEborders it2466.7%5.4 pCi/L+11.2 points
Adams County, NEborders it15566.5%4.8 pCi/L+11.0 points
Phelps County, NEborders it4365.1%4.9 pCi/L+9.6 points
Custer County, NEborders it1450.0%4.0 pCi/L−5.5 points
Howard County, NEborders it944.4%3.3 pCi/L−11.1 points
Dawson County, NEborders it9718.6%2.0 pCi/L−36.9 points
Hall County, NEborders it25317.8%1.7 pCi/L−37.7 points
Where Buffalo County's reported results fell, 2023, beside Nebraska and the United States
ResultBuffalo County testsBuffalo County shareNebraska shareU.S. shareAgainst Nebraska
Under 2 pCi/L158.7%39.2%41.4%−30.5 points
2 to 4 pCi/L6235.8%22.6%25.2%+13.2 points
4 pCi/L and above9655.5%38.2%33.4%+17.3 points
Buffalo County ranked among the 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2023
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Dodge County17 of 3311662.1%5.0 pCi/L
Richardson County18 of 333461.8%5.1 pCi/L
Knox County19 of 334660.9%4.7 pCi/L
Nemaha County20 of 333259.4%5.7 pCi/L
Pierce County21 of 335556.4%5.0 pCi/L
Buffalo County22 of 3317355.5%4.2 pCi/L
Sarpy County23 of 3375551.9%4.1 pCi/L
Douglas County24 of 332,75438.7%2.9 pCi/L
Cheyenne County25 of 335536.4%3.6 pCi/L
Box Butte County26 of 335435.2%3.3 pCi/L
Scotts Bluff County27 of 3327327.5%1.8 pCi/L
Buffalo County radon tests by year, against Nebraska's pooled share
YearTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestNebraska, pooledChange from the row before
202317355.5%4.2 pCi/L13.5 pCi/L38.2%+19.4 points
202222736.1%2.7 pCi/L16.5 pCi/L34.0%−1.0 points
202193937.1%3.0 pCi/L18.2 pCi/L34.9%−4.0 points
20201,21241.1%3.5 pCi/L19.0 pCi/L42.2%−2.7 points
20191,46743.8%3.5 pCi/L23.6 pCi/L44.3%+1.0 points
20181,63542.8%3.5 pCi/L22.5 pCi/L44.5%−5.4 points
20171,89348.2%3.7 pCi/L45.0 pCi/L47.7%+1.5 points
20161,83046.7%3.8 pCi/L33.3 pCi/L47.4%−5.3 points
20151,89352.0%4.1 pCi/L47.0 pCi/L53.3%−1.1 points
20141,38953.1%4.2 pCi/L209.0 pCi/L50.5%First on file

Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.

Buffalo County, Geology

The ground under Buffalo County

Predicted

USGS's geologic map puts all of Buffalo County's mapped land in one class: moderate radon potential. All of it lies in the area the map calls Loess over Tertiary sediments, to which USGS gives a radon index of 11, in the moderate band (9 to 11).

USGS's geologic areas under Buffalo County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Loess over Tertiary sedimentsTertiary bedrock covered by varying thicknesses of loess.Moderate11100%

Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.

Buffalo County beside the ground around it

Across Nebraska 40.9% of the land is rated high; none of Buffalo County's is. Of the 8 counties that border it, 6 have more high-potential ground, Adams County the most at 99.9%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Buffalo County, the 8 counties bordering it and Nebraska
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Buffalo CountyZone 2None100%None
Sherman CountyZone 2None100%None
Kearney CountyZone 1None17.1%82.9%
Hall CountyZone 2None79.7%20.3%
Phelps CountyZone 1None7.0%93.0%
Howard CountyZone 2None83.4%16.6%
Adams CountyZone 1None0.1%99.9%
Dawson CountyZone 2None76.1%23.9%
Custer CountyZone 29.0%91.0%None
Nebraska93 counties, pooled by land areaVaries28.2%30.9%40.9%

The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.

Local help

Buffalo County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Buffalo County

Listed radon businesses with an address in Buffalo County:

Listed radon professionals by town: Kearney

What Nebraska's program says
Phone
(402) 471-1005
Licensing of radon professionals
If radon testing is done in schools, offices, or other places of work, it must be done by a licensed radon measurement business.

What it means

Buffalo County, Questions

Questions about radon in Buffalo County

Are radon levels high in Buffalo County?

In 2023, 55.5% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Buffalo County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 4.2 pCi/L. Of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 21 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 38.2%.

Which counties border Buffalo County?

Buffalo County borders 8 counties: Sherman County, Kearney County, Hall County, Phelps County, Howard County, Adams County, Dawson County and Custer County.

Products

Buffalo County, Products

Testing a home in Buffalo County

In Buffalo County, 55.5% of 173 tests reported to CDC in 2023 reached 4 pCi/L, against 38.2% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 2 a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in Buffalo County; a long-term test tells the year-round average.

Test kits and monitors3

See every kit and monitor

Best radon monitors for Buffalo County homes, compared

Explore

Buffalo County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Buffalo County

Calculated by Radon411

Buffalo County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Buffalo County

The Census Bureau estimates 51,172 residents in Buffalo County for July 1, 2025, 975 more than in 2020 (+1.9%). That works out to 53 people per square mile of land. Kearney alone is home to 34,782 of them, 68.0% of the total. Reported testing is thin here: 173 tests over 2023, or 3.4 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where Nebraska as a whole comes to 5.5.

From Kearney to Miller, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Buffalo County's.

The cities and towns in Buffalo County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Kearney34,782+2.6%68.0%
Gibbon1,913+1.6%3.7%
Ravenna1,397−3.2%2.7%
Sheltonextends beyond Buffalo County1,042LevelCounted whole
Elm Creek983−0.6%1.9%
Pleasanton377+4.7%0.7%
Riverdale243−2.0%0.5%
Amherst204+1.0%0.4%
Miller129−0.8%0.3%

9 incorporated places, as listed in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 place reference files. Residents: U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025). A place that extends beyond Buffalo County is counted whole, so it has no share.

Buffalo County, Homes

Homes in Buffalo County

Of Buffalo County's 21,181 homes, 66% are detached houses, against 72% across Nebraska; 15% are in buildings of five or more homes. Half of its homes were built before 1979, close to Nebraska's 1975: 24% date from before 1960 and 24% from 2000 or later. 65% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Nebraska: 67%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.

Homes in Buffalo County, Nebraska, 2019 to 2023
HomesBuffalo CountyNebraska
Housing units21,181855,631
Detached houses66%72%
In buildings of 5 or more15%17%
Mobile homes6%3%
Built before 196024%32%
Built since 200024%22%
Middle year built19791975
Owner-occupied65%67%

Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.