Summerset, Tea, Brandon: These cities aren’t just some of the best places to live in South Dakota. They are also home to some of the richest people in the Mount Rushmore State.
Summerset in particular houses the richest residents in the state thanks, in part, to a median household income of $119,271 and a ridiculously low poverty rate of 8.6%.
If you’re thinking of moving to one of these towns, you’ll probably need to start saving. The richest places in South Dakota share common characteristics such as having a genius level populous, sky high home prices, and a Pleasantville level of married couples.
How did we come up with these mega wealthy cities? We analyzed Census data from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey for the 26 places in South Dakota with more than 3,000 people.
$119,271 median income · 8.6% poverty · #2 income in South Dakota
$120,139 median income · 4.7% poverty · #1 income in South Dakota
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$110,806 median income · 1.4% poverty · #3 income in South Dakota
Located in
Minnehaha County, South Dakota
Brandon is a city in Minnehaha County, South Dakota, United States and is the largest suburb of Sioux Falls. Brandon is located five miles east of Sioux Falls. The population was estimated at 9,923 by the United States Census Bureau on July 1, 2016, which was up from 8,785 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$99,893 median income · 5.5% poverty · #6 income in South Dakota
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$71,908 median income · 11.0% poverty · #11 income in South Dakota
$100,170 median income · 9.4% poverty · #5 income in South Dakota
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$108,724 median income · 0.5% poverty · #4 income 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
$73,047 median income · 7.5% poverty · #9 income in South Dakota
$65,688 median income · 15.2% poverty · #16 income 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
$73,008 median income · 7.5% poverty · #10 income in South Dakota
Located in
Pennington County, South Dakota
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is South Dakota’s statewide median.
South Dakota statewide median: $75,081
South Dakota statewide median: $317,148
South Dakota statewide median: 11.9%
South Dakota statewide median: 2.9%
On the map
Where the money lives in South Dakota
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the richest places in South Dakota for 2026
The first thing most people reach for is personal income. After all, rich people have really high salaries. But one statistic doesn’t capture what it means to be one of the “richest places,” so we applied Saturday Night Science to two measures from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey:
- Median household income
- Median home value
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place is, and home values are a measure of accumulated wealth. The two combine to define a “Rich City.”
After collecting the data for all 26 places in South Dakota with more than 3,000 people, we ranked each place from 1 to 26 on both criteria, then averaged the two ranks into a “Rich Score.” The place with the lowest Rich Score, Summerset, is crowned the richest city in South Dakota for 2026.
The full plate
All 26 richest cities in South Dakota, ranked
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Rich Score | Population | Median income | Median home value | Poverty | Unemployment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Summerset | 2.00 | 3,022 | $119,271 | $424,113 | 8.6% | 2.2% |
| 2 | Tea | 3.50 | 6,786 | $120,139 | $381,056 | 4.7% | 2.0% |
| 3 | Brandon | 4.00 | 10,996 | $110,806 | $387,890 | 1.4% | 1.2% |
| 4 | Hartford | 5.00 | 3,478 | $99,893 | $398,160 | 5.5% | 0.9% |
| 5 | North Sioux City | 7.00 | 3,045 | $71,908 | $418,356 | 11.0% | 5.1% |
| 6 | Dell Rapids | 7.50 | 3,905 | $100,170 | $362,131 | 9.4% | 0.3% |
| 7 | Harrisburg | 8.00 | 8,519 | $108,724 | $359,383 | 0.5% | 1.0% |
| 8 | Lead | 8.00 | 3,006 | $73,047 | $380,311 | 7.5% | 0.0% |
| 9 | Spearfish | 8.50 | 12,930 | $65,688 | $456,937 | 15.2% | 2.2% |
| 10 | Box Elder | 9.50 | 12,902 | $73,008 | $367,456 | 7.5% | 4.9% |
| 11 | Rapid City | 11.50 | 77,946 | $70,870 | $361,496 | 12.5% | 2.6% |
| 12 | Sioux Falls | 11.50 | 201,469 | $75,970 | $329,723 | 9.6% | 2.5% |
| 13 | Pierre | 13.00 | 13,948 | $77,672 | $293,980 | 10.1% | 1.2% |
| 14 | Hot Springs | 14.00 | 3,548 | $66,338 | $335,477 | 21.1% | 1.8% |
| 15 | Watertown | 15.00 | 23,044 | $69,600 | $304,838 | 9.0% | 1.8% |
| 16 | Belle Fourche | 16.00 | 5,804 | $65,071 | $334,320 | 10.6% | 2.6% |
| 17 | Sturgis | 16.50 | 7,086 | $54,404 | $370,733 | 9.2% | 3.0% |
| 18 | Yankton | 17.50 | 15,540 | $67,804 | $270,787 | 14.1% | 2.0% |
| 19 | Brookings | 18.00 | 23,948 | $63,493 | $312,178 | 16.9% | 4.5% |
| 20 | Madison | 19.50 | 6,094 | $65,593 | $263,104 | 9.5% | 4.4% |
| 21 | Canton | 20.00 | 3,033 | $60,850 | $301,866 | 8.1% | 5.4% |
| 22 | Aberdeen | 21.50 | 28,189 | $64,405 | $240,644 | 13.8% | 3.7% |
| 23 | Mitchell | 23.00 | 15,649 | $58,620 | $247,683 | 12.5% | 1.0% |
| 24 | Vermillion | 23.00 | 11,878 | $50,456 | $272,882 | 24.4% | 8.5% |
| 25 | Huron | 23.50 | 14,385 | $61,452 | $171,872 | 16.1% | 2.6% |
| 26 | Milbank | 24.50 | 3,525 | $56,011 | $228,297 | 13.2% | 1.4% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024, Zillow research. 26 cities with more than 3,000 residents.
Summerset is the richest place in South Dakota for 2026
When we set out to identify the richest places in South Dakota, we weren’t sure what we’d find, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in the state. The richest cities in South Dakota are Summerset, Tea, and Brandon, and when you look at the data they sit at the very top of the income ladder for everyone who lives there.
Breaking into the top ten takes a median household income of at least $65,688. If you’re curious about the other end of the ledger, the poorest places are listed to the right.
