Buffalo County, South Dakota

Buffalo County has a population of 1,808 and has shrunk 7.3% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $117,800, about 2.5 times the county's median household income of $47,045.

Home price
$117,800
Income
$47,045
Population
1,808
Unemployment
10.8%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$117,800county
Median gross rent$540county
Median year homes here were built1976county
Share of homes built before 198061.1%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile22.3%county
Share of homes that are vacant12.1%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented47.4%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use0.7%county
Typical monthly rent$1,312(statewide)
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$1,204county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$918county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$1,444county
Home insurance / yr$3,760(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living91.9(statewide)
Median household income$47,045county
Family health premium / yr$24,941(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$8,680(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$3.938(statewide)
Poverty rate33.9%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home12.3%county
Unemployment rate10.8%county
Share of adults in the labor force54.7%county
Share of workers who are self-employed9.2%county
Share of workers employed by government47.6%county
Share of workers in the largest industry34.6%county
Economic output per resident$52,808county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate0.40%county
Top state income tax0.00%(statewide)
Capital gains tax0.00%(statewide)
Combined sales tax6.11%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time13.4 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service51 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport14887county
Miles to nearest general aviation field20 micounty
Airports with airline service located here0county
General aviation airfields located here0county
Passenger train stations and the railway network0county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station232 micounty
Households without a vehicle13.0%county
Traffic deaths608.4county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,000-0.8(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher9.9%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher88.1%county
Public schools in the county0county
Public school enrollment139984(statewide)
Students per full-time teacher14.2(statewide)
Free lunch eligible38.6%(statewide)
Elementary schools314(statewide)
Middle schools170(statewide)
High schools171(statewide)
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above0county
Two-year institutions0county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution71 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians85(statewide)
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county0county
Hospitals here with an emergency department0county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here4(statewide)
Fine particulate matter5.1 µgcounty
Without health insurance43.0%county
Frequent mental distress22.5%county
No leisure-time physical activity36.6%county
Diagnosed diabetes15.7%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population1,808county
Land area in square miles471county
People per square mile of land3.8county
Supermarkets and grocery stores0county
Convenience stores0county
Share living far from a food store59.2%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract100.0%county
Population change since 2020-7.3%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents3county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents0county
Median age22.8 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1839.2%county
Share of residents 65 and over9.2%county
Share of households that are one person34.1%county
Share of residents born outside the United States0.0%county
Second languages0.9%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls77.5%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents257county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents-7county
Households that moved in30county
Households that moved away21county
Average income of arriving households$32,067county
Average income of departing households$21,857county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes13(statewide)
Housing units authorised in the latest year5,305(statewide)
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings37.4%(statewide)
Violent crime rate362(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature47.9°Fcounty
Annual precipitation20.1 incounty
Annual snowfall20.2 incounty
Average daily solar energy4.09 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F28 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing162 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 5acounty
Frost-free days147 dayscounty
Average last spring frostMay 11county
Average first fall frostOct 5county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$224county
Electric utilities serving this county2county
Electricity price per kWh14.5¢county
Household electricity use1,541 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$12.44(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity20.5%county
Homes heated by utility gas1.0%county
Homes heated by propane72.6%county
Homes heated by fuel oil0.0%county
Homes heated by wood2.2%county
Households with broadband68.7%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk10.8county
Coastal flood risk0.0county
Drought risk41.0county
Landslide risk6.0county
Hail risk25.9county
Earthquake risk12.9county
Tornado risk20.2county
Tropical cyclone risk0.0county
Extreme heat risk15.3county
Winter weather risk50.7county
Strong wind risk30.3county
Wildfire risk76.4county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Buffalo County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the South Dakota figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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