Data / Rankings / Job destruction rate / Counties in South Dakota

Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate

Harding County had the highest job destruction rate of 66 counties in 2021, at 26.814%. Mellette County had the lowest, at 5.114%. The median was 10.946% and the figure for South Dakota was 11.045%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest26.814Harding County
Lowest5.114Mellette County
Median10.94666 counties
South Dakota11.045History

Map of counties, 2021

Aurora County: 11.89 %Beadle County: 10.571 %Bennett County: 13.73 %Bon Homme County: 10.992 %Brookings County: 10.638 %Brown County: 12.271 %Brule County: 9.577 %Buffalo County: 15.261 %Butte County: 17.755 %Campbell County: 5.204 %Charles Mix County: 12.322 %Clark County: 6.551 %Clay County: 9.512 %Codington County: 10.028 %Corson County: 10.268 %Custer County: 11.288 %Davison County: 8.858 %Day County: 12.532 %Deuel County: 10.204 %Dewey County: 11.554 %Douglas County: 8.27 %Edmunds County: 6.563 %Fall River County: 6.77 %Faulk County: 12.814 %Grant County: 10.145 %Gregory County: 10.114 %Haakon County: 12.275 %Hamlin County: 8.511 %Hand County: 9.915 %Hanson County: 12.351 %Harding County: 26.814 %Hughes County: 13.483 %Hutchinson County: 8.539 %Hyde County: 14.239 %Jackson County: 13.149 %Jerauld County: 10.206 %Jones County: 15.925 %Kingsbury County: 9.585 %Lake County: 9.769 %Lawrence County: 10.868 %Lincoln County: 8.289 %Lyman County: 25.047 %McCook County: 14.209 %McPherson County: 14.634 %Marshall County: 20.241 %Meade County: 10.512 %Mellette County: 5.114 %Miner County: 11.46 %Minnehaha County: 10.899 %Moody County: 10.749 %Oglala Lakota County: 10.037 %Pennington County: 11.903 %Perkins County: 12.643 %Potter County: 16.696 %Roberts County: 16.623 %Sanborn County: 14.641 %Spink County: 10.632 %Stanley County: 12.358 %Sully County: 22.93 %Todd County: 15.176 %Tripp County: 8.875 %Turner County: 11.072 %Union County: 10.558 %Walworth County: 9.445 %Yankton County: 15.626 %Ziebach County: 6.557 %
  • Under 8.9
  • 8.9 to 10
  • 10 to 11
  • 11 to 12
  • 12 to 15
  • 15 and over
%, 2021. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2021

Harding County: 26.814 %Harding County26.814Lyman County: 25.047 %Lyman County25.047Sully County: 22.93 %Sully County22.93Marshall County: 20.241 %Marshall County20.241Butte County: 17.755 %Butte County17.755Potter County: 16.696 %Potter County16.696Roberts County: 16.623 %Roberts County16.623Jones County: 15.925 %Jones County15.925Yankton County: 15.626 %Yankton County15.626Buffalo County: 15.261 %Buffalo County15.261Todd County: 15.176 %Todd County15.176Sanborn County: 14.641 %Sanborn County14.641McPherson County: 14.634 %McPherson County14.634Hyde County: 14.239 %Hyde County14.239McCook County: 14.209 %McCook County14.209Bennett County: 13.73 %Bennett County13.73Hughes County: 13.483 %Hughes County13.483Jackson County: 13.149 %Jackson County13.149Faulk County: 12.814 %Faulk County12.814Perkins County: 12.643 %Perkins County12.643Day County: 12.532 %Day County12.532Stanley County: 12.358 %Stanley County12.358Hanson County: 12.351 %Hanson County12.351Charles Mix County: 12.322 %Charles Mix County12.322Haakon County: 12.275 %Haakon County12.275Brown County: 12.271 %Brown County12.271Pennington County: 11.903 %Pennington County11.903Aurora County: 11.89 %Aurora County11.89Dewey County: 11.554 %Dewey County11.554Miner County: 11.46 %Miner County11.46Custer County: 11.288 %Custer County11.288Turner County: 11.072 %Turner County11.072Bon Homme County: 10.992 %Bon Homme County10.992Minnehaha County: 10.899 %Minnehaha County10.899Lawrence County: 10.868 %Lawrence County10.868Moody County: 10.749 %Moody County10.749Brookings County: 10.638 %Brookings County10.638Spink County: 10.632 %Spink County10.632Beadle County: 10.571 %Beadle County10.571Union County: 10.558 %Union County10.558Harding County: 26.814 %Harding County26.814Lyman County: 25.047 %Lyman County25.047Sully County: 22.93 %Sully County22.93Marshall County: 20.241 %Marshall County20.241Butte County: 17.755 %Butte County17.755Potter County: 16.696 %Potter County16.696Roberts County: 16.623 %Roberts County16.623Jones County: 15.925 %Jones County15.925Yankton County: 15.626 %Yankton County15.626Buffalo County: 15.261 %Buffalo County15.261Todd County: 15.176 %Todd County15.176Sanborn County: 14.641 %Sanborn County14.641McPherson County: 14.634 %McPherson County14.634Hyde County: 14.239 %Hyde County14.239McCook County: 14.209 %McCook County14.209Bennett County: 13.73 %Bennett County13.73Hughes County: 13.483 %Hughes County13.483Jackson County: 13.149 %Jackson County13.149Faulk County: 12.814 %Faulk County12.814Perkins County: 12.643 %Perkins County12.643Day County: 12.532 %Day County12.532Stanley County: 12.358 %Stanley County12.358Hanson County: 12.351 %Hanson County12.351Charles Mix County: 12.322 %Charles Mix County12.322Haakon County: 12.275 %Haakon County12.275Brown County: 12.271 %Brown County12.271Pennington County: 11.903 %Pennington County11.903Aurora County: 11.89 %Aurora County11.89Dewey County: 11.554 %Dewey County11.554Miner County: 11.46 %Miner County11.46Custer County: 11.288 %Custer County11.288Turner County: 11.072 %Turner County11.072Bon Homme County: 10.992 %Bon Homme County10.992Minnehaha County: 10.899 %Minnehaha County10.899Lawrence County: 10.868 %Lawrence County10.868Moody County: 10.749 %Moody County10.749Brookings County: 10.638 %Brookings County10.638Spink County: 10.632 %Spink County10.632Beadle County: 10.571 %Beadle County10.571Union County: 10.558 %Union County10.558
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2021 (%)Change on 2020
1Harding County26.814+19.59 pts
2Lyman County25.047+10.46 pts
3Sully County22.93+14.39 pts
4Marshall County20.241+11.2 pts
5Butte County17.755+3.25 pts
6Potter County16.696+1.39 pts
7Roberts County16.623+5.56 pts
8Jones County15.925-6.25 pts
9Yankton County15.626+3.45 pts
10Buffalo County15.261-11 pts
11Todd County15.176+8.81 pts
12Sanborn County14.641-0.68 pts
13McPherson County14.634+1.03 pts
14Hyde County14.239+9.45 pts
15McCook County14.209-4.69 pts
16Bennett County13.73-4.91 pts
17Hughes County13.483+3.24 pts
18Jackson County13.149+4.33 pts
19Faulk County12.814+5.35 pts
20Perkins County12.643+4.28 pts
21Day County12.532+1.73 pts
22Stanley County12.358-0.68 pts
23Hanson County12.351-12.7 pts
24Charles Mix County12.322+2.17 pts
25Haakon County12.275+8.56 pts
26Brown County12.271+1.17 pts
27Pennington County11.903+2.8 pts
28Aurora County11.89-3.29 pts
29Dewey County11.554+6.2 pts
30Miner County11.46+2.97 pts
31Custer County11.288-4.51 pts
32Turner County11.072+0.53 pts
33Bon Homme County10.992-0.8 pts
34Minnehaha County10.899+2.01 pts
35Lawrence County10.868-0.83 pts
36Moody County10.749+1.46 pts
37Brookings County10.638-0.47 pts
38Spink County10.632-2.68 pts
39Beadle County10.571-0.58 pts
40Union County10.558-0.66 pts
41Meade County10.512+0.63 pts
42Corson County10.268+5.18 pts
43Jerauld County10.206+7.67 pts
44Deuel County10.204+4.55 pts
45Grant County10.145+0.78 pts
46Gregory County10.114-4.32 pts
47Oglala Lakota County10.037+4.54 pts
48Codington County10.028-0.76 pts
49Hand County9.915+0.23 pts
50Lake County9.769-1.7 pts
51Kingsbury County9.585-2.44 pts
52Brule County9.577-0.59 pts
53Clay County9.512+1.52 pts
54Walworth County9.445-5.77 pts
55Tripp County8.875-10.49 pts
56Davison County8.858-1.86 pts
57Hutchinson County8.539-0.84 pts
58Hamlin County8.511-1.42 pts
59Lincoln County8.289-0.21 pts
60Douglas County8.27-1.7 pts
61Fall River County6.77-2.36 pts
62Edmunds County6.563-0.35 pts
63Ziebach County6.557-9.05 pts
64Clark County6.551-2.15 pts
65Campbell County5.204+1.6 pts
66Mellette County5.114-10.58 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Jobs lost at closing and shrinking establishments during the year, as a percentage of average employment in the two years. United States: Census Bureau Business Dynamics Statistics.

A gross flow: jobs added elsewhere are not subtracted, so the net change is job_creation_rate minus this rate. Not a layoff rate: it counts positions lost at establishments, not people who lost a job. The year is the twelve months to March: 2023 compares March 2022 with March 2023.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2025). Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010 (Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv

MLA 9

Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 25 Sept. 2025, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/south-dakota-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2025. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/south-dakota-counties?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2025) Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010, Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/south-dakota-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_south_dakota_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate, 2021}},
  year = {2025},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/south-dakota-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023\_st\_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010: Counties in South Dakota by job destruction rate, 2021
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/09/25
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/south-dakota-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/job-destruction-rate/south-dakota-counties?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/bds/tables/time-series/2023/bds2023_st_cty.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest job destruction rate?

Harding County, with 26.814% in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest job destruction rate?

Mellette County, with 5.114% in 2021.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Dynamics Statistics: job destruction rate, all covered industries, nation and states from 1978, counties from 2010. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Job destruction rate: other rankings

Counties in South Dakota: more rankings