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South Dakota brings to mind images of Pierre, beautiful landscapes, and some of the best people you'll find in the good ole US of A.
However, like all states, South Dakota has certain places that are going on hard times. These places have an above average percent of people that are living in poverty, out of work, or not making as much as they should be.
With all the talk about income inequality going on around the country, we thought it prudent to take a look at the places in each state that are struggling to make it even as the economy continues to improve. So we set our sites on bringing attention to the places in South Dakota that could use a helping hand.
To do so, we analyzed the newest Census data from the American Community Survey for the 38 places in South Dakota with more than 2,000 people.
Here are the ten poorest places in South Dakota for 2021:
Again, this isn't a commentary on the people that live there or the vibrant culture and traditions of these places. Instead, it's just a look at the facts.
What's the poorst city in South Dakota? According to the facts, Sisseton is the poorest place in South Dakota for 2021.
Rich people more your cup of tea? Feel free to check out the best places in South Dakota or the most dangerous.
For more on how we calculated the top ten, and for more information about these places, read on.
If you're looking for something more national, check out the poorest states in America or the poorest cities in America.
For more South Dakota reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In South Dakota
- Cheapest Places To Live In South Dakota
- Most Dangerous Cities In South Dakota
The 10 Poorest Cities In South Dakota For 2021
1. Sisseton
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Sisseton, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in South Dakota thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.
The city of 2,468 people averages the lowest median household income in South Dakota and the 2nd highest poverty rate. At the very least, the cost of living ranks in the bottom 15% of place in the state, so things like housing are relatively affordable.
2. Vermillion
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The second poorest city in South Dakota is Vermillion.
The city ranks as having the highest incidence of poverty and 2nd lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate 'only' ranks as the 3rd highest in the Mount Rushmore State.
3. Lead
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Placing as the third poorest city, Lead's median income ranks as the 12th lowest.
And that's a sign that there's a relatively substantial jump in the quality of the economy from second to third place on our list. The poverty rate is 16.778749159381302% and ranks near the bottom of places in the state.
But what makes up for the relatively low incomes of the city is its low cost of living. The income you do make here goes further than in most parts of the Mount Rushmore State.
4. Hot Springs
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Hot Springs ranks as the fourth poorest place in South Dakota.
The town ranks as having the 6th lowest median household income and the 12th highest incidence of poverty in the state.
That being said, there's still a ton of cultural diversity in the city as it hosts many events throughout the year.
5. Belle Fourche
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The fifth poorest city in South Dakota is Belle Fourche.
The city ranks as having the 9th lowest median income in the state. However, an extremely low cost of living prevents a good number of folks from living in poverty as the poverty rate only ranks as the 23rd highest in South Dakota.
Still not the best news for Belle Fourche.
6. Rapid City
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Rapid City ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Mount Rushmore State.
It ranks as having the 10th highest incidence of poverty and the 4th highest unemployment rate.
7. Brookings
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Brookings places as the seventh poorest city in South Dakota.
The city of over 24,108 ranks as having the 5th highest incidence of poverty in the state. However, it has a very low cost of living which helps to pay the bills each month.
8. Milbank
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Milbank ranks as the eighth poorest city in South Dakota.
The big issue for the town is the unemployment rate which ranks as the 6th highest in the state.
9. Madison
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Madison couldn't stay out of the top ten poorest places in South Dakota; it ranks number 9.
While the median income is the 25th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Madison ranks as having the 4th most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in South Dakota.
10. Huron
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And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in South Dakota is Huron.
The city of 13,282 people ranks in the bottom 20% for both median income and poverty rate in the Mount Rushmore State.
How We Determined The Poorest Places In South Dakota for 2021
The first thing that comes to most people's minds when they think about determining the poorest places is to simply the poverty rate. That is, the number of people living below a federally established level of income for a household of a certain size.
However, we don't think that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the "poorest places". So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2015-2019 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income adjusted for the cost of living
- Unemployment Rate
The "median household income adjusted for the cost of living" attempts to gauge how expensive it is to live in a place and how that impacts the quality of life. For example, a town might have fewer people living below the official poverty line, but the cost of living is so high they'd still feel poor.
The unemployment rate tries to capture the prospects for improvement in the city or town. If more people are employed, the brighter the future looks and vice versa.
After we collected the data for all 38 places with more than 2,000 people in South Dakota, we ranked each place from 1 to 38 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the poorest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a "Poor Score" with the place having the lowest overall Poor Score, Sisseton, crowned the "Poorest Place In South Dakota For 2021". You can download the data here.
There You Have It - The Poorest Places In South Dakota For 2021
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the poorest places in South Dakota, we weren't sure what we'd encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in South Dakota.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very bottom of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you're curious enough, here are the richest cities in South Dakota, according to data:
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Richest: Summerset
2nd Richest: Brandon
3rd Richest: Dell Rapids
For more South Dakota reading, check out:
- Richest Cities In South Dakota
- Safest Places In South Dakota
- Worst Places To Live In South Dakota
- Most Expensive Places To Live In South Dakota
Detailed List Of The Poorest Places To Live In South Dakota
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sisseton | 2,468 |
| 2 | Vermillion | 10,753 |
| 3 | Lead | 2,985 |
| 4 | Hot Springs | 3,509 |
| 5 | Belle Fourche | 5,616 |
| 6 | Rapid City | 75,258 |
| 7 | Brookings | 24,108 |
| 8 | Milbank | 3,166 |
| 9 | Madison | 7,261 |
| 10 | Huron | 13,282 |
| 11 | Flandreau | 2,458 |
| 12 | Custer | 2,282 |
| 13 | Mitchell | 15,727 |
| 14 | Springfield | 2,056 |
| 15 | Chamberlain | 2,565 |
| 16 | North Sioux City | 2,837 |
| 17 | Mobridge | 3,385 |
| 18 | Spearfish | 11,547 |
| 19 | Watertown | 22,166 |
| 20 | Aberdeen | 28,225 |
| 21 | Pierre | 13,961 |
| 22 | Yankton | 14,573 |
| 23 | Winner | 2,826 |
| 24 | Redfield | 2,583 |
| 25 | Box Elder | 9,683 |
| 26 | Canton | 3,447 |
| 27 | Lennox | 2,505 |
| 28 | Sioux Falls | 177,117 |
| 29 | Sturgis | 6,796 |
| 30 | Beresford | 2,291 |
| 31 | Elk Point | 2,176 |
| 32 | Tea | 5,397 |
| 33 | Harrisburg | 6,087 |
| 34 | Fort Pierre | 2,240 |
| 35 | Hartford | 3,220 |
| 36 | Dell Rapids | 3,660 |
| 37 | Brandon | 9,934 |
| 38 | Summerset | 2,477 |
