Counties in South Dakota by unemployment rate

Todd County had the highest unemployment rate of 66 counties in August 2025, at 7.2%. Hutchinson County had the lowest, at 1.5%. The median was 2.1% and the figure for South Dakota was 2.1%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest7.2Todd County
Median2.166 counties
South Dakota2.1History

Top 40 counties, August 2025

CSVChart (SVG)

Todd CountyTodd County: 7.2 %7.2Dewey CountyDewey County: 6.9 %6.9Corson CountyCorson County: 6.8 %6.8Oglala Lakota CountyOglala Lakota County: 6.4 %6.4Campbell CountyCampbell County: 5.2 %5.2Mellette CountyMellette County: 4.6 %4.6Roberts CountyRoberts County: 4.2 %4.2Buffalo CountyBuffalo County: 3.5 %3.5Ziebach CountyZiebach County: 3.5 %3.5Jackson CountyJackson County: 2.9 %2.9McPherson CountyMcPherson County: 2.8 %2.8Grant CountyGrant County: 2.7 %2.7Fall River CountyFall River County: 2.6 %2.6Clay CountyClay County: 2.5 %2.5Walworth CountyWalworth County: 2.5 %2.5Day CountyDay County: 2.4 %2.4Kingsbury CountyKingsbury County: 2.4 %2.4Lyman CountyLyman County: 2.4 %2.4Moody CountyMoody County: 2.4 %2.4Bennett CountyBennett County: 2.3 %2.3Bon Homme CountyBon Homme County: 2.3 %2.3Brookings CountyBrookings County: 2.3 %2.3Potter CountyPotter County: 2.3 %2.3Beadle CountyBeadle County: 2.2 %2.2Clark CountyClark County: 2.2 %2.2Deuel CountyDeuel County: 2.2 %2.2Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 2.2 %2.2Union CountyUnion County: 2.2 %2.2Brown CountyBrown County: 2.1 %2.1Charles Mix CountyCharles Mix County: 2.1 %2.1Custer CountyCuster County: 2.1 %2.1Douglas CountyDouglas County: 2.1 %2.1Hanson CountyHanson County: 2.1 %2.1Marshall CountyMarshall County: 2.1 %2.1Meade CountyMeade County: 2.1 %2.1Minnehaha CountyMinnehaha County: 2.1 %2.1Pennington CountyPennington County: 2.1 %2.1Perkins CountyPerkins County: 2.1 %2.1Spink CountySpink County: 2.1 %2.1Codington CountyCodington County: 2 %2
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesAugust 2025 (%)Change on August 2024
1Todd County7.2+1.3 pts
2Dewey County6.9+1.1 pts
3Corson County6.8+0.8 pts
4Oglala Lakota County6.4-0.1 pts
5Campbell County5.2+2.9 pts
6Mellette County4.60 pts
7Roberts County4.2+1.3 pts
8Buffalo County3.5-2.6 pts
8Ziebach County3.5-0.6 pts
10Jackson County2.9+0.2 pts
11McPherson County2.8+0.7 pts
12Grant County2.7+0.6 pts
13Fall River County2.6+0.4 pts
14Clay County2.5+0.1 pts
14Walworth County2.50 pts
16Day County2.4+0.5 pts
16Kingsbury County2.4+0.8 pts
16Lyman County2.4+0.1 pts
16Moody County2.4+0.1 pts
20Bennett County2.3-1 pts
20Bon Homme County2.3+0.3 pts
20Brookings County2.3+0.1 pts
20Potter County2.30 pts
24Beadle County2.2+0.5 pts
24Clark County2.2+0.3 pts
24Deuel County2.2+0.4 pts
24Lawrence County2.2+0.3 pts
24Union County2.20 pts
29Brown County2.1+0.2 pts
29Charles Mix County2.1+0.2 pts
29Custer County2.1+0.1 pts
29Douglas County2.1+0.3 pts
29Hanson County2.1-0.3 pts
29Marshall County2.1+0.4 pts
29Meade County2.1+0.3 pts
29Minnehaha County2.1+0.2 pts
29Pennington County2.1+0.2 pts
29Perkins County2.1+0.6 pts
29Spink County2.1+0.1 pts
40Codington County2+0.3 pts
40Hand County2+0.3 pts
40Hyde County2+0.1 pts
40Lincoln County2+0.3 pts
40McCook County2+0.3 pts
40Sanborn County20 pts
40Yankton County2+0.2 pts
47Brule County1.9+0.5 pts
47Butte County1.9+0.1 pts
47Davison County1.9+0.2 pts
47Gregory County1.9+0.3 pts
47Harding County1.9+0.3 pts
47Lake County1.9+0.2 pts
53Hughes County1.8+0.1 pts
53Jerauld County1.8-0.9 pts
53Jones County1.8-1.2 pts
53Miner County1.8-1 pts
53Tripp County1.8+0.2 pts
53Turner County1.80 pts
59Edmunds County1.7-0.3 pts
59Sully County1.70 pts
61Haakon County1.6-0.7 pts
61Stanley County1.6+0.1 pts
63Aurora County1.5-0.3 pts
63Faulk County1.5-0.3 pts
63Hamlin County1.50 pts
63Hutchinson County1.5-0.3 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Unemployed people as a percentage of the labour force, using the survey definition of unemployment: without work, available and looking for work. Spain: EPA, aged 16 and over. EU: Labour Force Survey, aged 15 to 74. United States: civilian labour force aged 16 and over, from the Current Population Survey for the nation and from BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics models, consistent with that survey, for states and counties. Other countries and the World: ILO modelled estimates published by the World Bank, aged 15 and over.

Survey-based. Available for Spain, regions, provinces, EU countries, US states and US counties, not Spanish municipalities. For municipalities use registered_unemployment_rate. US national and state rates are seasonally adjusted; county rates are not. Countries without a national or Eurostat series get the annual ILO modelled estimate, a model output rather than a survey result.

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. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Todd County, with 7.2% in August 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Hutchinson County, with 1.5% in August 2025.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Unemployment rate: other rankings

Counties in South Dakota: more rankings