Counties in South Dakota by unemployment rate

Todd County had the highest unemployment rate of 66 counties in April 2026, at 4.2%. Sully County had the lowest, at 1%. The median was 1.7% and the figure for South Dakota was 2.2%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest4.2Todd County
Median1.766 counties
South Dakota2.2History

Top 40 counties, April 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Todd CountyTodd County: 4.2 %4.2Oglala Lakota CountyOglala Lakota County: 4 %4Buffalo CountyBuffalo County: 3.6 %3.6Jones CountyJones County: 3.2 %3.2Roberts CountyRoberts County: 3.2 %3.2Dewey CountyDewey County: 3.1 %3.1Potter CountyPotter County: 3.1 %3.1Jackson CountyJackson County: 3 %3Grant CountyGrant County: 2.8 %2.8Deuel CountyDeuel County: 2.6 %2.6Ziebach CountyZiebach County: 2.6 %2.6Fall River CountyFall River County: 2.5 %2.5Corson CountyCorson County: 2.4 %2.4Bennett CountyBennett County: 2.3 %2.3Walworth CountyWalworth County: 2.1 %2.1Clark CountyClark County: 2 %2Mellette CountyMellette County: 2 %2Charles Mix CountyCharles Mix County: 1.9 %1.9Day CountyDay County: 1.9 %1.9Hanson CountyHanson County: 1.9 %1.9Marshall CountyMarshall County: 1.9 %1.9Moody CountyMoody County: 1.9 %1.9Clay CountyClay County: 1.8 %1.8Custer CountyCuster County: 1.8 %1.8Edmunds CountyEdmunds County: 1.8 %1.8Lyman CountyLyman County: 1.8 %1.8Miner CountyMiner County: 1.8 %1.8Minnehaha CountyMinnehaha County: 1.8 %1.8Brookings CountyBrookings County: 1.7 %1.7Brown CountyBrown County: 1.7 %1.7Butte CountyButte County: 1.7 %1.7Gregory CountyGregory County: 1.7 %1.7Meade CountyMeade County: 1.7 %1.7Pennington CountyPennington County: 1.7 %1.7Campbell CountyCampbell County: 1.6 %1.6Codington CountyCodington County: 1.6 %1.6Davison CountyDavison County: 1.6 %1.6Douglas CountyDouglas County: 1.6 %1.6Hamlin CountyHamlin County: 1.6 %1.6Kingsbury CountyKingsbury County: 1.6 %1.6
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesApril 2026 (%)Change on April 2025
1Todd County4.2-0.7 pts
2Oglala Lakota County4-0.3 pts
3Buffalo County3.6-0.8 pts
4Jones County3.2+0.3 pts
4Roberts County3.2-0.3 pts
6Dewey County3.1-0.3 pts
6Potter County3.1+1.2 pts
8Jackson County30 pts
9Grant County2.8-1 pts
10Deuel County2.60 pts
10Ziebach County2.6+0.3 pts
12Fall River County2.5+0.2 pts
13Corson County2.4-0.7 pts
14Bennett County2.3-0.5 pts
15Walworth County2.1-0.8 pts
16Clark County2-0.2 pts
16Mellette County2-0.7 pts
18Charles Mix County1.9-0.2 pts
18Day County1.9-0.3 pts
18Hanson County1.90 pts
18Marshall County1.9-0.6 pts
18Moody County1.9-0.2 pts
23Clay County1.8-0.2 pts
23Custer County1.8-0.4 pts
23Edmunds County1.8-0.3 pts
23Lyman County1.8-0.3 pts
23Miner County1.8-0.6 pts
23Minnehaha County1.8-0.2 pts
29Brookings County1.7-0.3 pts
29Brown County1.7-0.4 pts
29Butte County1.7-0.2 pts
29Gregory County1.7-0.4 pts
29Meade County1.7-0.3 pts
29Pennington County1.7-0.2 pts
35Campbell County1.6-1.8 pts
35Codington County1.6-0.3 pts
35Davison County1.6-0.2 pts
35Douglas County1.6-0.1 pts
35Hamlin County1.6-0.3 pts
35Kingsbury County1.6-0.5 pts
35McPherson County1.6-1 pts
35Spink County1.6-0.4 pts
35Union County1.6-0.4 pts
44Beadle County1.5-0.4 pts
44Bon Homme County1.5-0.6 pts
44Lake County1.5-0.2 pts
44Lawrence County1.5-0.3 pts
44Lincoln County1.5-0.3 pts
44Perkins County1.5-0.3 pts
44Turner County1.5-0.4 pts
44Yankton County1.5-0.2 pts
52Faulk County1.4-0.4 pts
52Hughes County1.4-0.1 pts
52Hutchinson County1.4-0.1 pts
52McCook County1.4-0.4 pts
52Tripp County1.40 pts
57Brule County1.30 pts
57Haakon County1.3-0.5 pts
57Stanley County1.3-0.3 pts
60Aurora County1.2-0.4 pts
60Hand County1.2-0.4 pts
62Jerauld County1.1-0.3 pts
62Sanborn County1.1-0.3 pts
64Harding County1-0.4 pts
64Hyde County1-0.5 pts
64Sully County1-0.5 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 4.2% in April 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Sully County, with 1% in April 2026.

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