county

Custer County, SD

Demographic and economic profile of Custer County, SD, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Custer County is a small, rural South Dakota county of 8,686 residents with an economy oriented toward leisure and outdoor recreation, reflected in a median age of 57.6 years and a labor force participation rate of just 54.1%—suggesting a substantial retiree and part-time workforce. The available labor pool carries a 2.0% unemployment rate, median worker earnings of $46,957, and a 32.1% bachelor's degree attainment rate, with a high school completion rate of 95.0%. Population grew modestly at 1.3% over five years, poverty sits low at 6.6%, and an 85.6% homeownership rate against a median home value of $327,200 points to an established, owner-occupied residential base rather than a transient workforce community.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

8,686

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$84,112

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

57.6 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+1.3% since 2018

Custer County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone7,902 (88.9%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races373 (4.2%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race239 (2.7%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone177 (2.0%)
  • Some Other Race Alone133 (1.5%)
  • Asian Alone39 (0.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish121
  2. 2.German or other West Germanic110
  3. 3.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic68
  4. 4.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)18
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island14

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

13.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

53.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

32.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

2.7%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

995

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$34,300

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$50,278

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

2.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

6.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance929
  2. 2.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services575
  3. 3.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining531
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services361
  5. 5.Public Administration (Group)313

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations1,651
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations909
  3. 3.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations635
  4. 4.Service Occupations626
  5. 5.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations381

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 6.65×)427
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 1.50×)285
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.15×)406
  4. 4.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.09×)257
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management (LQ 1.08×)536

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$327,200

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$1,117/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

85.6%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $500,000 to $749,999621 (16.3%)
  • $400,000 to $499,999523 (13.7%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999479 (12.6%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999418 (11.0%)
  • $750,000 to $999,999354 (9.3%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999294 (7.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

32.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

95.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

54.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$46,957

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

29.5 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

0.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone3,028 (74.0%)
  • Worked At Home492 (12.0%)
  • Carpooled375 (9.2%)
  • Walked115 (2.8%)
  • Other33 (0.8%)
  • Bicycle24 (0.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.