Scores by category

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

Safety71#4,461/15,637
Economy34#10,312/15,631
Housing91#1,304/14,977
Health22#12,186/15,609
Healthcare40#9,400/15,650
Environment57#6,655/15,453
Education54#7,134/15,649
Infrastructure16#13,118/15,650
Community81#3,012/15,651
Leisure & amenities88#1,910/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Hot Springs, South Dakota ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Fall River 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

Property crime rate · low55 /100k
100/100South Dakota 1,312 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationFall River County value
Restaurants and bars · high21.4 /10k
99/100South Dakota 10.6 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsFall River County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low4.4 µg/m³
98/100South Dakota 5.1 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyFall River County value
Grocery stores · high4.0 /10k
98/100South Dakota 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsFall River County value
Average commute time · low13.5 min
98/100South Dakota 17.8 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Time spent in the emergency room · low98 min
97/100South Dakota 115 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesFall River County value

Weaknesses

Distance to an airport · high251 mi
0/100South Dakota 114 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauFall River County value
Flu vaccinations · low17.0%
0/100South Dakota 45.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteFall River County value
Pharmacies · low0.0 /10k
1/100South Dakota 1.4 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsFall River County value
Comfortable days · low21.8%
2/100South Dakota 22.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationFall River County value
Traffic deaths · high44.0 /100k
2/100South Dakota 15.7 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataFall River County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high218 mi
2/100South Dakota 185 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauFall River County value

Trends

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

Child poverty rateWorsening
25.0% (2015-2019) → 42.3% (2020-2024)
+17 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
10.8% (2015-2019) → 24.1% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
19.7% (2015-2019) → 28.9% (2020-2024)
+9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,071 (2015-2019) → $66,338 (2020-2024)
+44%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherWorsening
94.7% (2015-2019) → 87.1% (2020-2024)
−7.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
New homes permittedWorsening
3.8 /1k (2021) → 2.5 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−34%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k

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, Hot Springs, South Dakota improved on 1 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 11 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.

Improved1

Household income+44%$46,071 → $66,338

Declined1

Uninsured+13 points10.8% → 24.1%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Hot Springs, South Dakota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.2 min2015-2019	13.5 min2020-2024	−1.7 min	Within the margin of error	68%
Bachelor's degree or higher	19.7%2015-2019	28.9%2020-2024	+9.2 points	Within the margin of error	88%
Broadband subscriptions	81.3%2015-2019	83.6%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Child poverty rate	25.0%2015-2019	42.3%2020-2024	+17 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Effective property tax rate	1.63%2015-2019	1.25%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	83%
High school diploma or higher	94.7%2015-2019	87.1%2020-2024	−7.7 points	Within the margin of error	3%
Home price to income ratio	2.6×2015-2019	3.1×2020-2024	+0.5×	Within the margin of error	48%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3882015-2019	0.4602020-2024	+0.072	Within the margin of error	9%
Median household income	$46,0712015-2019	$66,3382020-2024	+44%	Improved	79%
Poverty rate	15.4%2015-2019	21.1%2020-2024	+5.7 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Rent as share of income	26.7%2015-2019	22.3%2020-2024	−4.4 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Rent-burdened households	38.7%2015-2019	38.4%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.8%2015-2019	24.1%2020-2024	+13 points	Declined	1%

“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 Hot Springs, South Dakota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Hot Springs, 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, Hot Springs, South Dakota itself moved −7.3 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

3,548 residents (±15)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 70–79 women (+5.6 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

3,548 residents (±15)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

White80%2,828
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino2.6%†94

Education

2,976 residents (±141)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

No high school diploma13%†385
High school or GED24%707
Some college20%610

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

1,885 households (±129)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $25k23%†429
$25k–50k17%†320
$50k–75k17%†316
$75k–100k15%†285
$100k–150k22%†424
$150k–200k1.4%†27
$200k or more4.5%†84

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−10.6 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,885 households (±129)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Own62%1,175
Rent38%710

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

698 households (±152)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $75040%†282
$750–1,00018%†126
$1,000–1,50038%†265

Home values

1,175 homes (±181)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $150k18%†216
$150k–250k59%689
$250k–400k17%†194

Age of homes

1,933 homes (±122)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

2010 or later3.3%†64
2000–20095.1%†98
1980–199913%†

Size of homes

1,933 homes (±122)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Studio1.1%†21
1 bedroom19%†361
2 bedrooms40%773

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

1,362 workers (±209)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Drive alone87%1,187
Carpool1.5%†20
Public transit0.0%0
Walk4.4%†60
Bike2.7%†37
Work from home4.3%†58
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (+16.4 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

1,304 workers (±217)

Hot Springs, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under 15 min80%1,045
15–29 min13%†169
30–44 min2.8%†36

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Fall River County, the county holding most of Hot Springs's residents.

Fall River County has 209 employer establishments, 283 for every 10,000 residents (1.14× the US rate of 248; 0.89× South Dakota's), with 1,722 paid employees at an average annual pay of $60,008. The Census Bureau also counts 682 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 209; 682 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 283; US 248 · South Dakota 317
Paid employees: 1,722
Average annual pay: $60,008; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	15	20.3	1.11×About typical	123	$17,846	6
Ambulatory health care services	12	16.3	0.78×Fewer than typical	83	$59,193	29
Traveler accommodation	12	16.3	9.02×More than typical	58	$36,534	6
Religious organizations	11	14.9	2.69×More than typical	32	$18,688	—
Construction of buildings	10	13.6	1.79×More than typical	34	$51,471	40
Gasoline stations	10	13.6	4.18×More than typical	114	$30,211	—
Specialty trade contractors	10	13.6	0.88×About typical	22	$50,455	78
Lessors of real estate	9	12.2	0.99×Too few to compare	10	$37,500	67
Full-service restaurants	7	9.5	1.24×Too few to compare	35	$16,200	4
General merchandise stores	5	6.8	3.84×Too few to compare	57	$21,579	9
Limited-service restaurants	5	6.8	0.85×Too few to compare	75	$19,027	—
Offices of other health practitioners	5	6.8	1.12×Too few to compare	11	$56,909	15

Rank places for an industry Open Fall River County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 7,374 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

In FY2026, an estimated $742K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Hot Springs, South Dakota: $209 per resident (US $2,007).

Obligations: $742K; +116% vs FY2025
Per resident: $209; US $2,007
Sole-source: 50%; US 30%
Single offer: 4.1%; US 8.7%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of Veterans Affairs$701.9K95%
Federal Aviation Administration$26.4K3.6%
National Institutes of Health$6,9510.9%
Bureau of Reclamation$5,0120.7%
Forest Service$6890.1%
Department of the Army$6890.1%
National Park Service$4080.1%

Top recipients

BLACK HILLS SERVICE COMPANY, LLC$360.8K49%
PEDERSEN & RANGEL$185.6K25%
ELEVATED TECHNOLOGIES SERVICES, LLC$75.5K10%
IRON MIKE CONSTRUCTION LLC$66.6K9.0%
VISION QUEST SOLUTIONS INC$33.3K4.5%

Spending by fiscal year

294.5KFY2017
45.8KFY2018
48.2KFY2019
29.9KFY2020
61KFY2021
382.8KFY2022
52.2KFY2023
137.9K

Top industries (NAICS)

Electric power generation, transmission and distribution · 2211$360.8K49%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$192.1K26%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$138.6K19%
Investigation and security services · 5616$26.4K3.6%
Support activities for road transportation · 4884$6,9510.9%
Other heavy and civil engineering construction · 2379$5,012

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Hot Springs, South Dakota, so they do not add up across cities.

Hot Springs, South Dakota's figures are part of those of Fall River County, SD ($63.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 1.2% of that total.

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

See federal money in Fall River 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.

Hot Springs, 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.

Fall River County71100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Fall River 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/4630220

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends