Lincoln is the capital of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers 100.4 square miles and had a pop…Lincoln is the capital of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers 100.4 square miles and had a population of 294,757 in 2023. It is the state's second-most populous city and the 71st-largest in the United States. Lincoln is considered the economic and cultural anchor of the substantially larger metropolitan area in southeastern Nebraska, the Lincoln Metropolitan and Lincoln-Beatrice Combined Statistical Areas, which is home to 361,921 people, the 104th-largest combined statistical area in the United States.