BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

09/16/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/16/2025 09:33

County Employment and Wages in South Dakota — First Quarter 2025

News Release Information

25-1375-CHI
Tuesday, September 16, 2025

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  • (312) 353-1138
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County Employment and Wages in South Dakota - First Quarter 2025

Employment increased 0.5 percent in South Dakota's only large county, Minnehaha, from March 2024 to March 2025, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Acting Regional Commissioner Julie Wilson noted that the rate of employment growth in Minnehaha ranked 155th among the 364 largest U.S. counties with published data. (See table 1.)

Employment in Minnehaha stood at 137,200 in March 2025, accounting for 30.4 percent of total employment in South Dakota. Nationwide, the 372 largest counties comprise 73.4 percent of total covered employment in the United States. (Large counties and county equivalents are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2024.)

Large county average weekly wages in the first quarter 2025

The average weekly wage in Minnehaha increased 2.3 percent over the year to $1,307. The national average was $1,589, up 4.1 percent over the year. Minnehaha's weekly wage ranked 203rd nationally, and the percent change ranked 268th among the largest U.S. counties.

Smaller county average weekly wages in the first quarter of 2025

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the 65 small counties in South Dakota, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2024. (See table 2.) Wage levels for all 65 smaller counties were below the national average. Union reported the highest average weekly wage ($1,435). Jones reported the lowest average weekly wage ($678) in the state.

Among all 66 South Dakota counties, 16 reported average weekly wages of less than $875, 18 registered wages from $875 to $949, 15 had wages from $950 to $1,024, and 17 had average weekly wages of $1,025 or higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)

Map 1. Average weekly wages by county in South Dakota, first quarter 2025

(U.S. average = $1,589 )


Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for states have been included in this release in table 3.

Nationwide coverage of the largest counties is published in the County Employment and Wages news release. Additional information about quarterly employment and wages data is available in the news release Technical Note and from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages website.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

The County Employment and Wages release for the second quarter 2025 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, December 3, 2025.

County Changes for the 2025 County Employment and Wages News Releases

Counties with annual average employment of 75,000 or more in 2024 are included in this release and will be included in future 2025 releases. Four counties have been added to the nationwide publication tables: Pinal, AZ; Henry, GA; Wood, OH; and Comal, TX. One county has been dropped from the publication tables: Gregg, TX.

Table 1. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and the largest county in South Dakota, first quarter 2025
Area Establishments,
first quarter
(thousands) 		Employment Average weekly wage (1)
March 2025
(thousands) 		Percent change,
March
2024-25 (2) 		National ranking
by percent change (3) 		First quarter
2025 ($) 		National ranking
by level (3) 		Percent change,
first quarter
2024-25 (2) 		National ranking
by percent change (3)

United States (4)

12,249.3 154,523.8 0.4 -- 1,589 -- 4.1 --

South Dakota

40.5 450.5 0.2 -- 1,163 49 3.0 44

Minnehaha

10.0 137.2 0.5 155 1,307 203 2.3 268

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Percent changes were computed from employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications.
(3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 2. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and all counties in South Dakota, first quarter 2025
Area Establishments Employment March 2025 Average weekly wage ($) (1)

United States (2)

12,249,320 154,523,785 1,589

South Dakota

40,537 450,483 1,163

Aurora

102 806 803

Beadle

676 8,411 1,018

Bennett

97 821 814

Bon Homme

241 1,652 920

Brookings

1,405 19,104 1,109

Brown

1,520 19,254 1,062

Brule

254 1,873 806

Buffalo

27 509 1,025

Butte

476 2,840 894

Campbell

75 396 808

Charles Mix

377 3,390 929

Clark

187 1,166 913

Clay

477 6,125 974

Codington

1,428 16,884 1,032

Corson

66 770 938

Custer

419 2,199 980

Davison

840 12,336 1,045

Day

275 1,913 924

Deuel

198 1,480 987

Dewey

157 2,371 979

Douglas

133 1,022 870

Edmunds

187 1,225 941

Fall River

364 2,461 1,015

Faulk

128 649 835

Grant

379 3,626 1,096

Gregory

228 1,574 758

Haakon

111 777 983

Hamlin

283 2,586 1,108

Hand

164 1,419 880

Hanson

106 605 880

Harding

68 447 966

Hughes

936 10,684 1,238

Hutchinson

299 2,761 925

Hyde

76 548 1,028

Jackson

83 617 822

Jerauld

106 1,523 916

Jones

58 378 678

Kingsbury

269 1,733 977

Lake

503 5,082 1,103

Lawrence

1,665 13,420 964

Lincoln

2,637 29,612 1,317

Lyman

140 1,291 772

McCook

241 1,349 954

McPherson

94 554 839

Marshall

216 1,613 1,106

Meade

1,070 8,978 1,170

Mellette

42 325 703

Miner

105 774 856

Minnehaha

10,035 137,154 1,307

Moody

214 2,453 1,007

Oglala Lakota

134 3,777 936

Pennington

5,803 60,484 1,160

Perkins

140 1,075 809

Potter

143 756 915

Roberts

305 3,349 903

Sanborn

89 632 795

Spink

270 2,189 947

Stanley

153 1,285 860

Sully

96 628 1,011

Todd

103 2,886 930

Tripp

261 2,256 988

Turner

351 2,361 912

Union

893 9,418 1,435

Walworth

254 2,039 951

Yankton

864 12,815 1,093

Ziebach

28 254 940

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 3. Covered establishments, employment, and wages by state, first quarter 2025
State Establishments,
first quarter
(thousands) 		Employment Average weekly wage (1)
March 2025
(thousands) 		Percent change,
March
2024-25 		First quarter
2025 ($) 		National ranking
by level 		Percent change,
first quarter
2024-25 		National ranking
by percent change

United States (2)

12,249.3 154,523.8 0.4 1,589 -- 4.1 --

Alabama

163.3 2,102.3 0.3 1,245 39 3.8 23

Alaska

25.3 323.5 1.3 1,452 20 5.8 4

Arizona

226.1 3,259.3 0.3 1,431 21 3.8 23

Arkansas

107.6 1,304.4 0.7 1,236 40 5.6 6

California

1,945.4 18,066.2 0.1 1,905 6 4.2 13

Colorado

242.4 2,862.7 0.1 1,681 8 4.2 13

Connecticut

148.5 1,671.7 0.5 1,980 4 3.8 23

Delaware

45.4 474.3 0.8 1,535 15 3.4 30

District of Columbia

51.5 748.9 -1.4 2,606 1 7.2 1

Florida

886.5 9,958.4 0.9 1,456 19 5.1 8

Georgia

394.8 4,860.7 0.4 1,491 17 3.4 30

Hawaii

60.3 644.8 0.6 1,363 27 6.7 2

Idaho

102.7 848.2 1.2 1,178 48 4.2 13

Illinois

407.1 5,988.9 0.2 1,662 9 3.2 38

Indiana

194.8 3,161.4 0.3 1,323 30 4.2 13

Iowa

111.3 1,537.7 -0.5 1,253 36 3.2 38

Kansas

104.3 1,428.0 0.8 1,246 38 4.0 19

Kentucky

159.6 1,986.3 0.0 1,213 44 2.4 51

Louisiana

157.0 1,921.2 0.5 1,227 42 2.8 49

Maine

66.6 629.6 0.1 1,283 34 2.7 50

Maryland

197.7 2,739.0 -0.2 1,634 10 3.2 38

Massachusetts

289.8 3,575.8 -0.7 2,107 3 4.6 11

Michigan

307.3 4,337.3 -0.3 1,391 24 2.9 48

Minnesota

211.8 2,878.6 -0.1 1,570 14 3.7 27

Mississippi

91.3 1,160.4 -0.4 1,018 51 4.1 17

Missouri

252.4 2,886.9 0.1 1,310 31 3.2 38

Montana

67.1 505.8 0.6 1,189 46 5.6 6

Nebraska

78.6 1,008.4 -0.1 1,231 41 3.1 42

Nevada

106.1 1,541.2 0.2 1,359 29 4.1 17

New Hampshire

66.3 681.0 0.1 1,606 11 4.8 9

New Jersey

338.9 4,259.0 1.1 1,815 7 3.0 44

New Mexico

66.8 868.2 0.3 1,203 45 3.9 22

New York

716.1 9,757.0 1.4 2,213 2 6.2 3

North Carolina

373.2 4,888.5 0.2 1,467 18 4.8 9

North Dakota

36.4 422.8 0.6 1,302 33 3.3 34

Ohio

344.2 5,466.8 0.2 1,361 28 3.5 28

Oklahoma

130.9 1,700.2 0.5 1,186 47 3.0 44

Oregon

186.2 1,965.7 -0.8 1,420 23 3.3 34

Pennsylvania

394.5 6,003.5 0.6 1,500 16 3.5 28

Rhode Island

49.0 489.3 1.0 1,429 22 3.0 44

South Carolina

198.7 2,304.9 1.7 1,247 37 4.4 12

South Dakota

40.5 450.5 0.2 1,163 49 3.0 44

Tennessee

221.0 3,251.5 -0.4 1,364 26 4.0 19

Texas

847.6 14,015.9 1.2 1,587 13 3.1 42

Utah

138.1 1,720.5 1.1 1,365 25 4.0 19

Vermont

33.5 306.8 -0.4 1,280 35 3.8 23

Virginia

321.9 4,108.8 0.8 1,605 12 3.4 30

Washington

240.9 3,583.7 0.9 1,935 5 5.8 4

West Virginia

61.9 694.6 0.0 1,149 50 3.3 34

Wisconsin

208.9 2,898.4 -0.2 1,305 32 3.4 30

Wyoming

31.0 274.6 0.0 1,216 43 3.3 34

Puerto Rico

52.0 946.1 -0.7 699 (3) 3.2 (3)

Virgin Islands

2.9 33.8 -7.5 1,034 (3) 2.7 (3)

Footnotes:
(1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data.
(2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
(3) Data not included in the national ranking.

Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published this content on September 16, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on September 16, 2025 at 15:34 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]