South Dakota Counties by Population (2026)

2026 Pop.

20K

40K

60K

80K

100K

120K

140K

160K

180K

200K

Top 5 Most Populous Counties

66 Counties

County
2026 Pop. ↓
Area (mi²)
Density
Change (2020)
Minnehaha County215,9668072689.25%
Pennington County117,2722.8K427.03%
Lincoln County79,16757713720.59%
Brookings County38,4567924911.99%
Brown County37,5011.7K22-1.91%
Meade County30,5473.5K92.17%
Lawrence County30,2098003816.88%
Codington County29,854688435.29%
Yankton County23,693521451.73%
Davison County20,148436460.94%
Beadle County19,7261.3K162.94%
Hughes County17,58374224-0.85%
Union County17,431461383.42%
Clay County14,87241236-0.88%
Oglala Lakota County13,2602.1K6-2.84%
Lake County10,94256319-0.66%
Butte County10,8272.3K55.2%
Roberts County10,2321.1K9-0.33%
Custer County9,5381.6K614.46%
Turner County9,391617158.14%
Charles Mix County9,3301.1K9-0.25%
Todd County8,8131.4K6-5.4%
Fall River County7,5211.7K47.89%
Grant County7,45568111-1.09%
Hutchinson County7,42581390.01%
Bon Homme County7,337564135.1%
Hamlin County7,0705071414.61%
Moody County6,665519135.03%
Spink County6,1561.5K4-2.95%
McCook County6,047574116.63%
Tripp County5,6781.6K41.28%
Day County5,5211K51.45%
Dewey County5,4562.3K24.46%
Kingsbury County5,28883261.69%
Brule County5,25981760.1%
Walworth County5,1907077-1.91%
Deuel County4,44062373.35%
Marshall County4,41783852.7%
Clark County4,06295845.51%
Edmunds County4,0131.1K40.78%
Gregory County4,0031K40.25%
Corson County3,7852.5K2-2.72%
Lyman County3,6961.6K2-0.03%
Hanson County3,4114358-1.59%
Bennett County3,3081.2K3-2.62%
Hand County3,1241.4K2-0.64%
Stanley County3,0351.4K22.33%
Douglas County2,90843272.61%
Perkins County2,8732.9K11.56%
Aurora County2,81170842.97%
Jackson County2,6161.9K1-6.54%
Sanborn County2,39956942.96%
Ziebach County2,3972K10.25%
McPherson County2,3621.1K2-1.54%
Potter County2,3538613-4.81%
Miner County2,2835704-0.74%
Mellette County2,2251.3K216.07%
Faulk County2,17698222.26%
Buffalo County1,7954714-7.14%
Haakon County1,7801.8K1-4.76%
Jerauld County1,6335263-0.67%
Sully County1,4851K12.34%
Campbell County1,41173422.39%
Harding County1,3502.7K13.61%
Hyde County1,1738611-6.01%
Jones County92897010.11%

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 215,966. The most recent census shows that its population has increased by 0.09% 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 928. This total represents a increase 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 79,167, 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 1,795 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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