South Dakota Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for South Dakota, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in South Dakota. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in South Dakota. The estimated population of South Dakota is 881,785 people, with a median age of 37.1.

We can look at the total population in South Dakota over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
881,785
+0.28%
+3.08%
2020
879,336
+1%
-
2019
870,638
+0.73%
-
2018
864,289
+1.03%
-
2017
855,444
 - -

Population of South Dakota by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
80.8%
82.7%
 -2.30%
Black/African American
2.1%
1.7%
 +23.53%
Native
8%
8.3%
 -3.61%
Hispanic
4.3%
3.5%
 +22.86%
Asian
1.4%
1.4%
 0.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0.1%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
3.1%
2.4%
 +29.17%
Other
0.2%
0.1%
 +100.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of South Dakota by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 37.1 -0.27% 36.5 +0.55% 37.9 -0.79%
2020 37.2 +0.54% 36.3 +0.83% 38.2 +0.53%
2019 37 +0.54% 36 +0.56% 38 0%
2018 36.8 0% 35.8 +0.28% 38 0%
2017 36.8 - 35.7 - 38 -

The median age of South Dakota gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 61,766 -0.34% 58,870 +2.26% 61,553 60,208
10 to 19 58,611 +7.43% 54,920 +6.54% 63,070 58,600
20 to 29 61,332 -2.99% 56,047 -2.06% 59,515 54,880
30 to 39 55,476 +9.99% 52,115 +5.76% 61,226 55,175
40 to 49 48,312 -0.3% 46,182 +0.06% 48,166 46,205
50 to 59 57,626 -7.3% 57,791 -7.77% 53,526 53,427
60 to 69 49,131 +13.85% 48,437 +10.43% 56,293 53,667
70+ 38,333 +11.95% 50,495 +5.27% 43,112 53,162

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of South Dakota is $63,920.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for South Dakota.

  • Under 25
    $36,890.00
  • 25 to 44
    $71,901.00
  • 45 to 64
    $76,949.00
  • 65 and over
    $47,146.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in South Dakota, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in South Dakota, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of South Dakota is currently $83,175.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

5.19% of households in South Dakota are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of South Dakota against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    16.77%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    22.32%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    18.62%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    14.80%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    16.62%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    5.69%
  • $200,000 or more
    5.19%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in South Dakota is $33,468.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of South Dakota by the total population of South Dakota.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in South Dakota, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in South Dakota to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    10.90%
  • Bachelor's degree
    34.21%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    10.37%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    42.38%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.14%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in South Dakota that are over the age of 16.

The total population of South Dakota over the age of 16 is 686,625.

Of those people, a total of 67.90% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in South Dakota is 65.30%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 48,271 53.60% 10.80%
20 to 24 years 58,119 80.10% 5.60%
25 to 29 years 56,276 86.30% 3.80%
30 to 34 years 57,200 86.10% 2.60%
35 to 44 years 107,033 87.00% 2.70%
45 to 54 years 96,062 85.90% 2.20%
55 to 59 years 57,430 80.50% 2.30%
60 to 64 years 59,450 66.10% 1.70%
65 to 74 years 88,456 33.30% 1.00%
75 years and over 58,328 9.10% 1.60%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in South Dakota. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 586,381 69.00% 2.30%
Black or African American 13,480 73.60% 3.40%
American Indian and Alaska Native 48,124 48.60% 15.90%
Asian 9,948 76.30% 4.60%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 608 64.00% 0.00%
Other 6,346 69.50% 3.30%
Two or more races 21,738 73.60% 6.00%
Hispanic or Latino 23,138 72.40% 6.20%
Not Hispanic or Latino 576,516 68.90% 2.20%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in South Dakota as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in South Dakota is 448,357, with median earnings of $38,686.00.

Women in South Dakota earning approximately 72.50% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 448,357 $38,686.00
Male 236,986 $44,751.00
Female 211,371 $32,448.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 55,092 $55,528.00
Business and Financial 18,197 $54,311.00
Computer and Mathematical 8,704 $64,783.00
Architecture and Engineering 6,745 $67,162.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 4,651 $51,021.00
Community and Social Service 8,111 $41,401.00
Legal 3,221 $71,630.00
Educational and Library 25,584 $43,225.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 6,416 $34,023.00
Healthcare Practitioners 32,115 $55,017.00
Healthcare Support 13,656 $27,033.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 3,619 $31,697.00
Law Enforcement 4,257 $49,521.00
Food Preparation and Serving 25,239 $15,455.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 16,583 $20,562.00
Personal Care and Service 12,244 $20,021.00
Sales 43,048 $32,958.00
Office and Administrative Support 50,847 $32,936.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 7,873 $33,004.00
Construction and Extraction 23,534 $41,345.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 16,301 $48,371.00
Production 29,214 $39,124.00
Transportation and Material Moving 17,524 $42,959.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 36,793 $61,756.00 18,299 $48,180.00
Business and Financial 7,646 $65,505.00 10,551 $48,563.00
Computer and Mathematical 6,282 $67,330.00 2,422 $57,750.00
Architecture and Engineering 5,689 $69,061.00 1,056 $46,014.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 2,466 $59,880.00 2,185 $46,623.00
Community and Social Service 2,920 $45,987.00 5,191 $38,790.00
Legal 1,481 $84,702.00 1,740 $52,095.00
Educational and Library 6,583 $51,082.00 19,001 $41,191.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 3,140 $39,965.00 3,276 $28,418.00
Healthcare Practitioners 6,999 $82,999.00 25,116 $51,478.00
Healthcare Support 1,624 $29,551.00 12,032 $26,458.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 2,639 $35,913.00 980 $19,382.00
Law Enforcement 3,381 $51,967.00 876 $39,647.00
Food Preparation and Serving 10,872 $16,374.00 14,367 $14,638.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 9,353 $28,411.00 7,230 $12,491.00
Personal Care and Service 2,408 $22,805.00 9,836 $18,942.00
Sales 22,801 $49,081.00 20,247 $19,946.00
Office and Administrative Support 10,084 $39,855.00 40,763 $31,978.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 6,708 $34,123.00 1,165 $28,203.00
Construction and Extraction 22,689 $42,117.00 845 $21,397.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 15,778 $49,541.00 523 $31,992.00
Production 21,014 $42,315.00 8,200 $30,638.00
Transportation and Material Moving 16,033 $44,688.00 1,491 $24,158.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 345,779 households in South Dakota, with an average household size of 2.46 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 216,840 families in South Dakota with an average family size of 3.09 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 170,992 15,622 30,226 128,939
Average Household Size 3.08 3.32 3.64 1.25
Total Families 170,992 15,622 30,226 0
Average Household Size 3.06 2.88 3.39 0

Poverty

Of the 216,840 families in South Dakota, 7.70% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in South Dakota:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 391,857 housing units in South Dakota.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 345,779 88.24%
Vacant 46,078 11.76%

25.80% of the total 391,857 housing units in South Dakota are rental units. This is approximately 101,081 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 236,677 are occupied by the owner - or 60.40% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in South Dakota is $809.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in South Dakota that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    8,021
  • Less than $500
    16,419
  • $500 to $999
    54,895
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    23,331
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    4,509
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    863
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    308
  • $3,000 or more
    756

Property Value

The median value of a property in South Dakota is $187,800.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in South Dakota that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    24,830
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    28,048
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    32,608
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    41,653
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    56,380
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    38,508
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    12,141
  • $1,000,000 or more
    2,509

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in South Dakota. The chart below shows the number of properties in South Dakota that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    66,207
  • 1940 to 1949
    16,256
  • 1950 to 1959
    33,727
  • 1960 to 1969
    30,855
  • 1970 to 1979
    61,094
  • 1980 to 1989
    37,437
  • 1990 to 1999
    49,689
  • 2000 to 2009
    54,048
  • 2010 to 2013
    41,842
  • 2014 or later
    702

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in South Dakota that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    16,993
  • 1 vehicle available
    98,949
  • 2 vehicles available
    125,456
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    104,381

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in South Dakota get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in South Dakota that commute to work in a particular way.

17.4 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in South Dakota.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    32,816
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    82,305
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    83,161
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    74,123
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    53,438
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    17,780
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    27,248
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    5,367
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    5,941
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    13,505
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    7,728
  • 90 or more minutes
    5,193

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for South Dakota in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Counties in South Dakota

We have data for 66 counties in South Dakota. Click on a county below to see more information about the demographics of that county, with links to cities and towns within that county.

Zip Codes in South Dakota

If you want to find out more about the population and demographics of specific zip codes in South Dakota, click on the links below.