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Radon Levels in Madison County, Nebraska

EPA puts Madison County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and high results are common there: 66.7% of the 213 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

    66.7%

    28.5 pts above NE

    Madison
    66.7%
    Nebraska
    38.2%

    213 tests, 2023

  • Median result

    5.8pCi/L

    Action level reached

    Madison
    5.8 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2023

  • Tests reported

    213

    7th of 33 by tests

    Madison
    213
    Lancaster
    4,058

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2023

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 1

    Highest potential

    1. Zone 1
    2. 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in Nebraska

    10 of 33

    Middle half

    Madison
    66.7%
    Gage
    79.8%

    By share, of 33 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Madison County

Starts at Madison County's median, 5.8 pCi/L

5.8pCi/L

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

EPA’s reading of 5.8 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. Madison County's median reported result, 2023.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

Madison County, At a glance

Madison County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential

EPA puts all of Madison County in and predicts an average indoor of greater than 4 pCi/L (greater than 150 Bq/m³) across the county. That is one forecast for the whole county, not a reading of any address in it; homes above EPA's turn up in all three zones.

USGS geologic potential: High across 90% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Madison County, 2023

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Madison County
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Madison County
YearShare of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L
201468.1%
201568.6%
201658.7%
201754.7%
201868.7%
201961.1%
202054.6%
202153.8%
202257.9%
202366.7%

2023: 66.7%. Across these years the share ran from 53.8% to 68.7%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.

What these figures count

These are the 213 tests reported to CDC for Madison 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

Madison County, Compared

Madison County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

More than half: 66.7% of the 213 radon tests reported to CDC for Madison County in 2023 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 10th of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 28.5 points above the 38.2% pooled from 86 Nebraska counties.

The median result, 5.8 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 60.0 pCi/L. The rest split 10.8% under 2 pCi/L and 22.5% from 2 to 4 (Nebraska: 39.2% and 22.6%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 66.7% share point the same way here.

2 of its 4 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Wayne County at 74.4%; Platte County reported 26.4%. 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 2018, with 1,305 tests reported; the quietest, 2023, had 213.

Over 10 years of annual figures the share held within 2 points, from 68.1% in 2014 to 66.7% in 2023; its peak was 68.7% in 2018. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 33.4%; Madison County sits 33.3 points above it. CDC also counts 88 tests taken after mitigation in Madison 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, Madison County against Nebraska2014 to 2023, years with 30 or more tests: Madison County 68.1% to 66.7%, the state's pooled share 38.2% in 2023.
Madison CountyNebraska, pooled
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Madison County against Nebraska: data table
YearTestsMadison County, at or above 4 pCi/LNebraska, pooled
20141,26068.1%50.5%
20151,09868.6%53.3%
201691558.7%47.4%
20171,29054.7%47.7%
20181,30568.7%44.5%
20191,02661.1%44.3%
20201,00554.6%42.2%
202194253.8%34.9%
202228557.9%34.0%
202321366.7%38.2%
Madison County against Nebraska, the United States and nearby counties, 2023
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Madison County
Madison County21366.7%5.8 pCi/LThis county
Nebraska, pooled86 counties, pooled11,16338.2%Not pooled−28.5 points
United States, pooled642 counties, pooled128,74033.4%Not pooled−33.3 points
Gage Countyhighest in the state8479.8%9.4 pCi/L+13.1 points
Dakota Countylowest in the state1303.1%0.4 pCi/L−63.6 points
Boone County, NEborders it1080.0%7.9 pCi/L+13.3 points
Wayne County, NEborders it4374.4%6.9 pCi/L+7.7 points
Antelope County, NEborders it2774.1%4.6 pCi/L+7.4 points
Stanton County, NEborders it3268.8%7.8 pCi/L+2.1 points
Pierce County, NEborders it5556.4%5.0 pCi/L−10.3 points
Platte County, NEborders it21226.4%1.6 pCi/L−40.3 points
Where Madison County's reported results fell, 2023, beside Nebraska and the United States
ResultMadison County testsMadison County shareNebraska shareU.S. shareAgainst Nebraska
Under 2 pCi/L2310.8%39.2%41.4%−28.4 points
2 to 4 pCi/L4822.5%22.6%25.2%−0.1 points
4 pCi/L and above14266.7%38.2%33.4%+28.5 points
Madison 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
Wayne County5 of 334374.4%6.9 pCi/L
Saunders County6 of 339773.2%6.2 pCi/L
Cuming County7 of 333770.3%6.8 pCi/L
Stanton County8 of 333268.8%7.8 pCi/L
Cass County9 of 3311168.5%5.5 pCi/L
Madison County10 of 3321366.7%5.8 pCi/L
Adams County11 of 3315566.5%4.8 pCi/L
Phelps County12 of 334365.1%4.9 pCi/L
Hamilton County13 of 334864.6%5.0 pCi/L
York County14 of 336264.5%5.7 pCi/L
Otoe County15 of 335964.4%5.7 pCi/L
Madison County radon tests by year, against Nebraska's pooled share
YearTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestNebraska, pooledChange from the row before
202321366.7%5.8 pCi/L60.0 pCi/L38.2%+8.8 points
202228557.9%5.4 pCi/L51.0 pCi/L34.0%+4.1 points
202194253.8%4.3 pCi/L32.6 pCi/L34.9%−0.8 points
20201,00554.6%4.6 pCi/L45.6 pCi/L42.2%−6.5 points
20191,02661.1%4.6 pCi/L32.2 pCi/L44.3%−7.6 points
20181,30568.7%5.7 pCi/L86.0 pCi/L44.5%+14.0 points
20171,29054.7%4.5 pCi/L56.9 pCi/L47.7%−4.0 points
201691558.7%4.8 pCi/L46.4 pCi/L47.4%−9.9 points
20151,09868.6%6.4 pCi/L43.1 pCi/L53.3%+0.5 points
20141,26068.1%5.8 pCi/L39.8 pCi/L50.5%First on file

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

Madison County, Geology

The ground under Madison County

Predicted

Most of the ground under Madison County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 90.0% of its land is high radon potential, with 10.0% moderate. The map puts 90.0% of Madison County in the area it calls Pre-Wisconsin glacial deposits and 10.0% in Pierre Shale. USGS gives the first a radon index of 13, in the high band (12 to 17), and the second 11, in the moderate band (9 to 11).

USGS's geologic areas under Madison County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Pre-Wisconsin glacial depositsLoess-mantled glacial drift.High1390.0%
Pierre ShaleCretaceous marine shaleModerate1110.0%

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

Madison County beside the ground around it

Madison County has more high-potential ground than Nebraska as a whole: 90.0% of its land against 40.9%. Of the 6 counties that border it, 3 have more high-potential ground, Stanton County the most at 100%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Madison County, the 6 counties bordering it and Nebraska
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Madison CountyZone 1None10.0%90.0%
Pierce CountyZone 1None43.2%56.8%
Stanton CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Platte CountyZone 1None17.4%82.6%
Wayne CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Antelope CountyZone 22.5%81.2%16.3%
Boone CountyZone 17.3%None92.7%
Nebraska93 counties, pooled by land areaVaries28.2%30.9%40.9%

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

Local help

Madison County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Madison County

Listed radon businesses with an address in Madison County:

Listed radon professionals by town: Norfolk

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

Madison County, Questions

Questions about radon in Madison County

Are radon levels high in Madison County?

In 2023, 66.7% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Madison County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 5.8 pCi/L. Of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 9 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 38.2%.

Which counties border Madison County?

Madison County borders 6 counties: Pierce County, Stanton County, Platte County, Wayne County, Antelope County and Boone County.

Products

Madison County, Products

Testing a home in Madison County

In Madison County, 66.7% of 213 tests reported to CDC in 2023 reached 4 pCi/L, against 38.2% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Madison County is the one to know: a long-term test (more than 90 days) or a monitor, with a short-term kit for a first answer.

Test kits and monitors3

See every kit and monitor

Madison County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Madison County

Explore

Madison County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Madison County

Calculated by Radon411

Madison County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Madison County

The Census Bureau estimates 36,106 residents in Madison County for July 1, 2025, 573 more than in 2020 (+1.6%). That works out to 63 people per square mile of land. Norfolk alone is home to 26,677 of them, 73.9% of the total. CDC's 213 reported tests for 2023 work out to 5.9 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Nebraska's 5.5.

From Norfolk to Meadow Grove, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Madison County's.

The cities and towns in Madison County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Norfolk26,677+3.0%73.9%
Madison2,162−4.6%6.0%
Battle Creek1,188−0.2%3.3%
Tildenextends beyond Madison County982−0.8%Counted whole
Newman Groveextends beyond Madison County632−4.1%Counted whole
Meadow Grove267−5.0%0.7%

6 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 Madison County is counted whole, so it has no share.

Madison County, Homes

Homes in Madison County

Of Madison County's 15,371 homes, 68% are detached houses, against 72% across Nebraska; 19% are in buildings of five or more homes. Half of its homes were built before 1974, close to Nebraska's 1975: 33% date from before 1960 and 15% from 2000 or later. 68% 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 Madison County, Nebraska, 2019 to 2023
HomesMadison CountyNebraska
Housing units15,371855,631
Detached houses68%72%
In buildings of 5 or more19%17%
Mobile homes4%3%
Built before 196033%32%
Built since 200015%22%
Middle year built19741975
Owner-occupied68%67%

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