Connecticut vs South Dakota

Twenty measures that tend to decide a move, side by side. Every figure is the same one the map shows, from the same source.

Connecticut comes out ahead on 4 of them and South Dakota on 11, but that tally is not a recommendation: it weighs a difference in class size the same as a difference in house price. Read the rows that matter to you.

MeasureConnecticutSouth Dakota
Home price$455,424$325,618
Rent paid$1,537$941
Cost of living112.791.9
Income$96,049$76,881
Property tax1.54%1.00%
Income tax6.99%0.00%
Sales tax6.35%6.11%
Electric bill$204$138
Temperature51.3°F47.4°F
Snowfall25.9 in29.7 in
Precipitation42.5 in23.7 in
Sunshine3.89 kWh/m²4.08 kWh/m²
Students per teacher12.314.2
Bachelor's or higher42.6%34.2%
Crime rate136362
Commute27.0 min18.5 min
Unemployment5.2%2.0%
Population change+2.2%+5.5%
Wildfire risk45.075.5
Flood risk95.854.5

Bold marks the better figure where a measure has a better direction. Weather, snowfall and rainfall are shown plain, because warmer is not better — it is a preference.

Connecticut in fullSouth Dakota in fullAll rankings