South Dakota Counties by Population (2025)

2025 Pop.

20K

40K

60K

80K

100K

120K

140K

160K

180K

200K

Top 5 Most Populous Counties

66 Counties

County
2025 Pop. ↓
Area (mi²)
Density
Change (2020)
Minnehaha County210,8148072616.62%
Pennington County116,1242.8K425.98%
Lincoln County77,34657713417.82%
Brown County37,3401.7K22-2.3%
Brookings County36,806792467.15%
Meade County30,9053.5K93.35%
Codington County29,604688434.4%
Lawrence County29,5128003714.17%
Yankton County23,509521450.96%
Davison County19,84143646-0.57%
Beadle County19,5381.3K161.94%
Union County17,618461384.51%
Hughes County17,43574223-1.72%
Clay County15,092412370.59%
Oglala Lakota County13,3132.1K6-2.45%
Lake County10,97956320-0.34%
Butte County10,9142.3K56.05%
Roberts County10,3441.1K90.8%
Custer County9,5431.6K614.4%
Charles Mix County9,4151.1K90.49%
Todd County9,1691.4K7-1.63%
Turner County9,122617155.02%
Grant County7,665681111.67%
Hutchinson County7,4098139-0.22%
Fall River County7,3491.7K45.39%
Bon Homme County7,054564131.18%
Hamlin County6,742507139.43%
Moody County6,614519134.34%
Spink County6,0671.5K4-4.34%
Tripp County5,8271.6K43.92%
McCook County5,733574101.04%
Dewey County5,4652.3K24.59%
Day County5,3711K5-1.2%
Walworth County5,2767077-0.34%
Kingsbury County5,26083261.02%
Brule County5,1968176-1.03%
Marshall County4,43283853.12%
Deuel County4,32562370.53%
Gregory County4,1971K44.93%
Clark County4,00395843.95%
Edmunds County3,9871.1K4-0.25%
Corson County3,7382.5K2-3.86%
Lyman County3,7221.6K20.57%
Hanson County3,49743581.07%
Bennett County3,2661.2K3-3.71%
Hand County3,0801.4K2-2.13%
Stanley County2,9901.4K20.67%
Douglas County2,85443270.71%
Perkins County2,8412.9K1-0.28%
Aurora County2,7087084-1.17%
Jackson County2,7021.9K1-3.6%
Ziebach County2,5142K15.06%
Potter County2,3888613-3.48%
Sanborn County2,37756942.02%
Miner County2,31357040.39%
McPherson County2,2791.1K2-5.16%
Faulk County2,13798220.52%
Mellette County1,8251.3K1-5.05%
Haakon County1,8131.8K1-2.94%
Buffalo County1,7664714-8.88%
Jerauld County1,72852635.17%
Sully County1,4511K1-0.07%
Harding County1,3362.7K12.14%
Campbell County1,3277342-3.84%
Hyde County1,2408611-0.96%
Jones County8869701-4.01%

Overview of South Dakota Counties

There are 66 counties in South Dakota.

Minnehaha County is the largest county in the state, with a population of 210,814. The most recent census shows that its population has increased by 0.07% since the previous census.

A number of other South Dakota counties also boast relatively large populations for their state, though not able to match the density of Minnehaha County:

South Dakota Counties with the Fewest Residents

The smallest county in South Dakota is Jones County , with a population of just 886. This total represents a decrease of 0.0% since the last census count was performed.

Other small counties include:

South Dakota Counties with Rapid Growth

Lincoln County , with its current population of 77,346, has shown the largest population growth, with an increase of 0.2% since the last census.

On the other hand, Buffalo County has had the largest decrease in population, with its 1,766 current residents totalling 0.1% less than the previous census.

Sources

  1. US Census State Population Estimates - Most recent state estimates from the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program
  2. US Census County Population Estimates - Most recent county estimates from the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program
  3. American Community Survey (2009 - 2013)
  4. Census QuickFacts
  5. Historical Populations of States and Counties (1790 - 1990)

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