Counties in South Dakota by unemployment rate

Todd County had the highest unemployment rate of 66 counties in May 2026, at 4.5%. Harding County had the lowest, at 1.3%. The median was 1.8% and the figure for South Dakota was 2.1%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest4.5Todd County
Median1.866 counties
South Dakota2.1History

Top 40 counties, May 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Todd CountyTodd County: 4.5 %4.5Oglala Lakota CountyOglala Lakota County: 3.9 %3.9Buffalo CountyBuffalo County: 3.1 %3.1Dewey CountyDewey County: 3 %3Jackson CountyJackson County: 2.9 %2.9Corson CountyCorson County: 2.8 %2.8Jones CountyJones County: 2.8 %2.8Bennett CountyBennett County: 2.6 %2.6Fall River CountyFall River County: 2.5 %2.5Potter CountyPotter County: 2.5 %2.5Roberts CountyRoberts County: 2.5 %2.5Ziebach CountyZiebach County: 2.5 %2.5Mellette CountyMellette County: 2.4 %2.4Moody CountyMoody County: 2.3 %2.3Clay CountyClay County: 2.2 %2.2Campbell CountyCampbell County: 2 %2Gregory CountyGregory County: 2 %2Hanson CountyHanson County: 2 %2Miner CountyMiner County: 2 %2Bon Homme CountyBon Homme County: 1.9 %1.9Brookings CountyBrookings County: 1.9 %1.9Charles Mix CountyCharles Mix County: 1.9 %1.9Custer CountyCuster County: 1.9 %1.9Day CountyDay County: 1.9 %1.9Lyman CountyLyman County: 1.9 %1.9McPherson CountyMcPherson County: 1.9 %1.9Meade CountyMeade County: 1.9 %1.9Union CountyUnion County: 1.9 %1.9Walworth CountyWalworth County: 1.9 %1.9Beadle CountyBeadle County: 1.8 %1.8Butte CountyButte County: 1.8 %1.8Clark CountyClark County: 1.8 %1.8Deuel CountyDeuel County: 1.8 %1.8Douglas CountyDouglas County: 1.8 %1.8Edmunds CountyEdmunds County: 1.8 %1.8Grant CountyGrant County: 1.8 %1.8Lake CountyLake County: 1.8 %1.8Minnehaha CountyMinnehaha County: 1.8 %1.8Pennington CountyPennington County: 1.8 %1.8Spink CountySpink County: 1.8 %1.8
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesMay 2026 (%)Change on May 2025
1Todd County4.5-0.3 pts
2Oglala Lakota County3.90 pts
3Buffalo County3.1-0.9 pts
4Dewey County30 pts
5Jackson County2.9+0.2 pts
6Corson County2.8-0.4 pts
6Jones County2.8+0.7 pts
8Bennett County2.6-0.2 pts
9Fall River County2.5+0.1 pts
9Potter County2.5+0.6 pts
9Roberts County2.5-0.1 pts
9Ziebach County2.50 pts
13Mellette County2.4-0.4 pts
14Moody County2.3+0.4 pts
15Clay County2.2-0.2 pts
16Campbell County2-1.3 pts
16Gregory County2-0.2 pts
16Hanson County2+0.1 pts
16Miner County2-0.2 pts
20Bon Homme County1.9-0.3 pts
20Brookings County1.9-0.2 pts
20Charles Mix County1.9-0.2 pts
20Custer County1.9-0.2 pts
20Day County1.9-0.2 pts
20Lyman County1.9-0.3 pts
20McPherson County1.9-0.5 pts
20Meade County1.9-0.1 pts
20Union County1.9-0.2 pts
20Walworth County1.9-0.5 pts
30Beadle County1.8-0.2 pts
30Butte County1.8-0.1 pts
30Clark County1.8-0.3 pts
30Deuel County1.8-0.1 pts
30Douglas County1.8+0.1 pts
30Edmunds County1.8-0.3 pts
30Grant County1.8-0.3 pts
30Lake County1.8-0.1 pts
30Minnehaha County1.80 pts
30Pennington County1.8-0.2 pts
30Spink County1.8-0.2 pts
30Yankton County1.8-0.1 pts
42Brown County1.7-0.3 pts
42Davison County1.7-0.2 pts
42Faulk County1.70 pts
42Haakon County1.70 pts
42Jerauld County1.7+0.1 pts
42Lawrence County1.7-0.3 pts
42Lincoln County1.7-0.1 pts
42Perkins County1.7-0.2 pts
42Turner County1.7-0.2 pts
51Aurora County1.6+0.1 pts
51Codington County1.6-0.2 pts
51Hand County1.6-0.1 pts
51Hughes County1.6-0.1 pts
51Kingsbury County1.6-0.4 pts
51McCook County1.6-0.2 pts
51Tripp County1.6-0.1 pts
58Brule County1.5-0.1 pts
58Hamlin County1.5-0.2 pts
58Hutchinson County1.5-0.1 pts
58Hyde County1.5-0.2 pts
58Marshall County1.5-0.3 pts
58Sanborn County1.50 pts
58Stanley County1.5-0.1 pts
58Sully County1.5-0.3 pts
66Harding County1.3-0.2 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 4.5% in May 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Harding County, with 1.3% in May 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