City · Clark County, South Dakota

Clark, South Dakota

Clark is a city in Clark County, South Dakota. It has 1,359 residents. Clark, South Dakota has a quality-of-life score of 68 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,075 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within South Dakota it ranks #50 of 75 cities and towns. It ranks best on suicide rate (low), firearm deaths (low) and drug overdose deaths (low). It ranks worst on distance to an emergency room (high), public EV charging ports (low) and mental health care shortage (high).

68High

Quality-of-life score: #5,075 of 15,651 cities and towns
South Dakota: #50 of 75 in SD
Population: 1,359 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 1,004.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 4612180

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 65 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety95#777/15,637
Economy24#11,846/15,631
Housing95#763/14,977
Health80#3,181/15,609
Healthcare18#12,908/15,650
Environment99#146/15,453
Education40#9,351/15,649
Infrastructure19#12,626/15,650
Community53#7,308/15,651
Leisure & amenities83#2,666/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Clark, South Dakota ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Clark County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Suicide rate · low0.0 /100k
100/100South Dakota 22.3 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionClark County value
Firearm deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100South Dakota 15.3 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionClark County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100South Dakota 8.0 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataClark County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high17.4 /10k
98/100South Dakota 8.1 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsClark County value
Rent-burdened households · low38.1%
97/100South Dakota 39.8%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low5.1 µg/m³
96/100South Dakota 5.1 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyClark County value

Weaknesses

Distance to an emergency room · high31.1 mi
1/100South Dakota 6.9 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesClark County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100South Dakota 3.6 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyClark County value
Mental health care shortage · high19.0
4/100South Dakota 18.0United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationClark County value
Job growth · low-4.1%
4/100South Dakota 0.2%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataClark County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.0 /10k
4/100South Dakota 1.2 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsClark County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low36.6%
4/100South Dakota 73.1%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteClark County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
66.9% (2015-2019) → 84.3% (2020-2024)
+17 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
15.8% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$36,979 (2015-2019) → $58,750 (2020-2024)
+59%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
44.4% (2015-2019) → 38.1% (2020-2024)
−6.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
26.0% (2015-2019) → 19.8% (2020-2024)
−6.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Bachelor's degree or higherWorsening
17.8% (2015-2019) → 13.8% (2020-2024)
−4.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Clark, South Dakota improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Household income+59%$36,979 → $58,750
Broadband+17 points66.9% → 84.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Clark, South Dakota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.2 min2015-2019	18.2 min2020-2024	+1.0 min	Within the margin of error	36%
Bachelor's degree or higher	17.8%2015-2019	13.8%2020-2024	−4.1 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Broadband subscriptions	66.9%2015-2019	84.3%2020-2024	+17 points	Improved	85%
Effective property tax rate	1.47%2015-2019	1.21%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	69%
High school diploma or higher	90.3%2015-2019	91.1%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	43%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	2.1×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	82%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4882015-2019	0.4352020-2024	−0.054	Within the margin of error	85%
Median household income	$36,9792015-2019	$58,7502020-2024	+59%	Improved	90%
Poverty rate	12.6%2015-2019	10.7%2020-2024	−1.9 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	26.0%2015-2019	19.8%2020-2024	−6.2 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Rent-burdened households	44.4%2015-2019	38.1%2020-2024	−6.3 points	Within the margin of error	75%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Clark, South Dakota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Clark, South Dakota in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Clark, South Dakota itself moved +7.7 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,359 residents (±177)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

528 households (±67)

Clark, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $25k19%†98
$25k–50k26%†137
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

528 households (±67)

Clark, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Own74%390
Rent26%†138

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

609 workers (±95)

Clark, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Drive alone74%450
Carpool18%†108
Public transit0.0%0

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Clark County, the county holding most of Clark's residents.

Clark County has 125 employer establishments, 316 for every 10,000 residents (1.27× the US rate of 248; 1.00× South Dakota's), with 738 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,423. The Census Bureau also counts 323 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 125; 323 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 316; US 248 · South Dakota 317
Paid employees: 738
Average annual pay: $42,423; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Clark County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	10	25.3	1.63×More than typical	30	$49,633	19
Construction of buildings	8	20.2	2.68×Too few to compare	22	$46,500	11
Restaurants and other eating places	7	17.7	0.96×Too few to compare	40	$13,200	—
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	6	15.2	5.71×Too few to compare	23	$36,174	—
Full-service restaurants	6	15.2	1.98×Too few to compare	40	$13,075	—
Other amusement and recreation industries	6	15.2	6.26×Too few to compare	23	$36,174	—
Religious organizations	6	15.2	2.74×Too few to compare	25	$10,400	—
Truck transportation	6	15.2	3.00×Too few to compare	15	$46,200	23
Ambulatory health care services	5	12.7	0.61×Too few to compare	24	$62,958	—
Building equipment contractors	5	12.7	2.10×Too few to compare	12	$47,500	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	4	10.1	2.01×Too few to compare	14	$40,357	7
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	4	10.1	3.07×Too few to compare	8	$55,875	—

Rank places for an industry Open Clark County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 3,951 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Clark is mostly in Clark County.

See federal money in Clark County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Clark, South Dakota is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Dusty JohnsonR-SD · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 4.7%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Clark County77100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Clark County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/4612180

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends