Gayest places in South Dakota research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to research the cities in South Dakota with the highest percent of same-sex households for 2026. The data comes from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year vintage, which counts same-sex married spouses and same-sex unmarried partners at the city level.
2.4% gay households · #1 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Clay County, South Dakota
Vermillion is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, in the southeastern corner of the state of South Dakota, and the eleventh largest city in the state. According to the 2010 Census, the population was 10,571. The city lies atop a bluff near the Missouri River.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.7% gay households · #2 gayest in South Dakota
Harrisburg is a city in Lincoln County, South Dakota, United States and is a suburb of Sioux Falls. The population was 4,089 by the 2010 census, having grown from 958 in 2000 census. The population of the Harrisburg zip code has grown from 2,476 in 2000 to 10,342 in 2010.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1.6% gay households · #3 gayest in South Dakota
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
0.7% gay households · #4 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Lawrence County, South Dakota
Spearfish is a city in Lawrence County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 10,494 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
0.5% gay households · #5 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Brookings County, South Dakota
Brookings is a city in Brookings County, South Dakota, United States. Brookings is the fourth largest city in South Dakota, with a population of 22,056 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Brookings County, and home to South Dakota State University, the largest institution of higher education in the state. Also found in Brookings are the South Dakota Art Museum, the Children’s Museum of South Dakota, the annual Brookings Summer Arts Festival, and the headquarters of a number of manufacturing companies and agricultural operations.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
0.5% gay households · #6 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Minnehaha County, South Dakota
Sioux Falls is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 145th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County. and also extends into Lincoln County to the south. It is the 47th fastest-growing city in the United States and the fastest-growing metro area in South Dakota, with a population increase of 22% between 2000 and 2010.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
0.4% gay households · #7 gayest in South Dakota
Winner is a city in Tripp County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 2,897 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Tripp County. Winner also serves as the administrative center of neighboring Todd County, which does not have its own county seat. The nearest airport is Winner Regional Airport.
Winner was laid out in 1909, and named for the fact the town had emerged the “winner” as the county’s most successful trading point.
0.4% gay households · #8 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Yankton County, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton is the principal city of the Yankton Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes the entirety of Yankton County, and which had an estimated population of 22,702 as of July 1, 2015.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
0.4% gay households · #9 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Codington County, South Dakota
Watertown is a city in and the county seat of Codington County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 21,482 at the 2010 census. It is the fifth largest city in South Dakota. It is also the principal city of the Watertown Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Codington and Hamlin counties.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
0.4% gay households · #10 gayest in South Dakota
Located in
Beadle County, South Dakota
Huron is a city in Beadle County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 12,592 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Beadle County. Huron was the home of now-defunct Huron University. The Huron Plainsman, also referred to as the Plainsman, is the newspaper. The first settlement at Huron was made in 1880. The city was named after the Huron Indians. It is currently the ninth largest city in South Dakota, but it once was the fourth. Huron was in the running for capital of South Dakota but lost out to Pierre due to Pierres positioning.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
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Where South Dakota’s LGBTQ households are
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the gayest places in South Dakota for 2026
In order to rank the gayest cities in South Dakota, we used Saturday Night Science and the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the U.S. Census. We looked at:
- Percentage of all households that are unmarried, same-sex partners
We limited the analysis to non-CDPs that have over 1,000 households.
We ranked each place from 1 to 30 with the city containing the highest percentage of unmarried, same-sex partner households being the most gay.
In the end, Vermillion ended up being the most gay place with 2.4% gay households.
Skip to the end to see the list of all the places in the state from gayest to straightest.
We updated this report for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the gayest places in South Dakota.
The full plate
Gayest Places In South Dakota
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Households | LGBTQ Households | % Gay Households |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vermillion | 4,312 | 102 | 2.4% |
| 2 | Harrisburg | 3,008 | 51 | 1.7% |
| 3 | Canton | 1,409 | 23 | 1.6% |
| 4 | Spearfish | 5,932 | 43 | 0.7% |
| 5 | Brookings | 9,145 | 49 | 0.5% |
| 6 | Sioux Falls | 85,992 | 432 | 0.5% |
| 7 | Winner | 1,146 | 5 | 0.4% |
| 8 | Yankton | 6,638 | 27 | 0.4% |
| 9 | Watertown | 10,394 | 40 | 0.4% |
| 10 | Huron | 5,584 | 20 | 0.4% |
| 11 | Box Elder | 4,679 | 16 | 0.3% |
| 12 | Mitchell | 7,305 | 24 | 0.3% |
| 13 | Rapid City | 32,368 | 68 | 0.2% |
| 14 | Brandon | 4,072 | 8 | 0.2% |
| 15 | Aberdeen | 12,469 | 22 | 0.2% |
| 16 | Hot Springs | 1,885 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 17 | Dell Rapids | 1,551 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 18 | Belle Fourche | 2,455 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 19 | Hartford | 1,373 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 20 | Custer | 1,169 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 21 | Summerset | 1,076 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 22 | Milbank | 1,530 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 23 | Sturgis | 3,048 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 24 | Fort Pierre | 1,066 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 25 | Madison | 2,573 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 26 | Mobridge | 1,478 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 27 | Lead | 1,345 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 28 | North Sioux City | 1,591 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 29 | Tea | 2,171 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 30 | Pierre | 5,864 | 0 | 0.0% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. Places with over 1,000 households.
Summary
There You Have It – The Most LGBT Friendly Cities In South Dakota For 2026
If you’re looking at the number of gay households in South Dakota, this is an accurate list.
The gayest cities in South Dakota are Vermillion, Harrisburg, Canton, Spearfish, Brookings, Sioux Falls, Winner, Yankton, Watertown, and Huron. Not sold on South Dakota? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
