The 10 Best Cities For Singles In South Dakota For 2026


The best cities for singles in South Dakota are Vermillion and Brookings for 2026 based on Saturday Night Science.

Are you looking for love in South Dakota?

Or are you just hoping to hook up with a hot South Dakotan?

Either way, we’ve got you covered here.

If you live in South Dakota, there’s a pretty good chance there are a lot of singles in your area. The Mount Rushmore State has plenty of people over 18 who aren’t married or in a serious relationship.

That’s great news for people who are single and looking to mingle.

So, where are the best cities for singles in South Dakota? We used Saturday Night Science to find out.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Best Cities For Singles In South Dakota For 2026

  1. Vermillion
  2. Brookings
  3. Sioux Falls
  4. Yankton
  5. Lead
  6. Springfield
  7. Huron
  8. Volga
  9. Mobridge
  10. Aberdeen

Best Cities For Singles In South Dakota Map

So, what was the best city for singles in South Dakota? Vermillion ranks as the best place for singles in South Dakota if you care about things singles care about, like nightlife, affordable housing, and other singles.

Read below to see how we crunched the numbers and how each city ranked. If you live in or are close to one of these cities and are single, you should probably get out more often.

Just saying.

For more South Dakota reading, check out:

The 10 Best Cities For Singles In South Dakota For 2026

Vermillion, SD

Source: Wikipedia User User:Magicpiano | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 11,878
Median Age: 23.1
Married households: 12.0%
Households with kids: 18.6%
More on Vermillion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

Brookings, SD

Source: Wikipedia User Jon Platek | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 23,948
Median Age: 24.7
Married households: 15.0%
Households with kids: 21.3%
More on Brookings: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

Sioux Falls, SD

Source: Wikipedia User Jonathunder | None
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 201,469
Median Age: 35.5
Married households: 23.0%
Households with kids: 29.3%
More on Sioux Falls: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

Review Of Sioux Falls by HomeSnacks User

I enjoy Sioux Falls since there’s a little bit of everything. Airport near the north end for when I go on vacation, plenty of great restaurants around, some really nice bars downtown, and I can generally find what I’m looking for here.

The amount of construction going around where I live and work

Yankton, SD

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 15,540
Median Age: 41.4
Married households: 24.0%
Households with kids: 25.3%
More on Yankton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

5. Lead

Lead, SD

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 3,006
Median Age: 46.5
Married households: 26.0%
Households with kids: 14.6%
More on Lead: Crime | Movers

6. Springfield

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 2,038
Median Age: 42.0
Married households: 13.0%
Households with kids: 7.8%
More on Springfield: Movers

Huron, SD

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 14,385
Median Age: 36.1
Married households: 23.0%
Households with kids: 31.8%
More on Huron: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

8. Volga

Volga, SD

Source: Wikipedia User Jake DeGroot | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 2,408
Median Age: 28.0
Married households: 37.0%
Households with kids: 28.2%
More on Volga: Movers

Mobridge, SD

Source: Wikipedia User Eric Friedebach | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 2,932
Median Age: 41.7
Married households: 32.0%
Households with kids: 24.8%
More on Mobridge: Data | Crime | Movers

Aberdeen, SD

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 28,189
Median Age: 36.4
Married households: 28.0%
Households with kids: 27.5%
More on Aberdeen: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

Methodology: How do you determine which city is best for singles in South Dakota anyways?

To give you the places in South Dakota which are best for singles to find one another, we used Saturday Night Science to look at a handful of metrics. Of course, we want to measure the type of people who live in each city and make some assumptions about what single people like.

So we researched the internet for a database that contains all that information.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one to get the best, most complete results possible. Using the 2020-2024 American Community Survey Census data produced for the state of South Dakota, we looked at every single city in the state. We paid particular attention to:

  • Population density
  • % of population that’s male vs. female (closer to a 50-50 ratio is better)
  • % of households with kids
  • Median age
  • Number of unmarried people in each city

We then gave each city a “Singles Score.”

The higher the score, the better the city is for singles to find one another. We also limited our results to cities with over 2,000 people. For South Dakota, that meant a total of 36 cities.

We updated this article for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the best cities for singles in South Dakota.

Read on to see why Vermillion is the talk of the town while Hartford is probably a bit on the bland side.

Summary: The Best Cities for Singles in South Dakota for 2026

If you’re looking for a breakdown of cities in South Dakota ranked by criteria that most agree make a place a great spot for finding a single person (and potentially love), this is an accurate list.

The best cities for singles in South Dakota are Vermillion, Brookings, Sioux Falls, Yankton, Lead, Springfield, Huron, Volga, Mobridge, and Aberdeen.

Here’s a look at the most boring cities in South Dakota according to the data:

  1. Hartford
  2. Fort Pierre
  3. Custer

For more South Dakota reading, check out:

Best Cities For Singles In South Dakota

Rank City Population Median Age % Married Households % Households /w Kids
1 Vermillion, SD 11,878 23.1 12.0% 18.6%
2 Brookings, SD 23,948 24.7 15.0% 21.3%
3 Sioux Falls, SD 201,469 35.5 23.0% 29.3%
4 Yankton, SD 15,540 41.4 24.0% 25.3%
5 Lead, SD 3,006 46.5 26.0% 14.6%
6 Springfield, SD 2,038 42.0 13.0% 7.8%
7 Huron, SD 14,385 36.1 23.0% 31.8%
8 Volga, SD 2,408 28.0 37.0% 28.2%
9 Mobridge, SD 2,932 41.7 32.0% 24.8%
10 Aberdeen, SD 28,189 36.4 28.0% 27.5%
11 Box Elder, SD 12,902 28.8 10.0% 42.7%
12 Sisseton, SD 2,670 34.2 21.0% 34.2%
13 Harrisburg, SD 8,519 31.1 31.0% 53.8%
14 Madison, SD 6,094 40.1 25.0% 24.1%
15 Elk Point, SD 2,537 35.5 19.0% 39.1%
16 Tea, SD 6,786 30.6 28.0% 64.1%
17 Mitchell, SD 15,649 39.6 33.0% 22.7%
18 Spearfish, SD 12,930 40.0 20.0% 21.8%
19 Dell Rapids, SD 3,905 39.3 43.0% 32.4%
20 Belle Fourche, SD 5,804 38.3 23.0% 31.8%
21 Sturgis, SD 7,086 40.3 22.0% 29.4%
22 Pierre, SD 13,948 39.4 26.0% 31.1%
23 Winner, SD 2,905 43.6 30.0% 23.2%
24 Brandon, SD 10,996 36.7 27.0% 41.9%
25 Hot Springs, SD 3,548 59.4 17.0% 18.4%
26 Lennox, SD 2,468 38.0 34.0% 35.8%
27 Canton, SD 3,033 42.2 21.0% 25.3%
28 Chamberlain, SD 2,588 43.0 31.0% 26.2%
29 Summerset, SD 3,022 35.1 26.0% 48.1%
30 Watertown, SD 23,044 39.5 32.0% 27.0%
31 Flandreau, SD 2,392 38.5 28.0% 32.0%
32 Beresford, SD 2,360 35.5 38.0% 37.2%
33 Milbank, SD 3,525 50.0 31.0% 21.6%
34 Custer, SD 2,341 51.2 26.0% 21.2%
35 Fort Pierre, SD 2,410 44.2 35.0% 23.4%
36 Hartford, SD 3,478 39.5 42.0% 39.2%
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.