Scores by category

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

Safety53#7,348/15,637
Economy82#2,817/15,631
Housing77#3,416/14,977
Health68#4,972/15,609
Healthcare47#8,259/15,650
Environment67#5,027/15,453
Education84#2,575/15,649
Infrastructure63#5,849/15,650
Community32#10,706/15,651
Leisure & amenities29#11,161/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Child care cost burden · low17.9%
98/100South Dakota 21.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMeade County value
Hospital quality rating · high5.0
98/100South Dakota 3.9United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMeade County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low5.4 µg/m³
95/100South Dakota 5.1 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMeade County value
High school diploma or higher · high98.3%
94/100South Dakota 93.2%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100South Dakota 3.8 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMeade County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.345
93/100South Dakota 0.449United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083

Weaknesses

Distance to an airport · high278 mi
0/100South Dakota 114 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauMeade County value
Suicide rate · high38.8 /100k
1/100South Dakota 22.3 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMeade County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high267 mi
1/100South Dakota 185 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauMeade County value
Comfortable days · low21.8%
2/100South Dakota 22.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMeade County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100South Dakota 3.6 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyMeade County value
Pharmacies · low0.6 /10k
5/100South Dakota 1.4 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMeade County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
2,477 (2015-2019) → 3,022 (2020-2024)
+22%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
31.2% (2015-2019) → 59.3% (2020-2024)
+28 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
New homes permittedWorsening
5.2 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateWorsening
0.8% (2015-2019) → 16.0% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
22.1% (2015-2019) → 32.3% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$88,526 (2015-2019) → $119,271 (2020-2024)
+35%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

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, Summerset, South Dakota improved on 1 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 9 moved within the margin of error and 1 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+35%$88,526 → $119,271

Declined1

Price / income+0.5×2.5× → 3.1×

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Summerset, South Dakota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.7 min2015-2019	19.7 min2020-2024	−2.0 min	Within the margin of error	71%
Bachelor's degree or higher	33.9%2015-2019	38.4%2020-2024	+4.6 points	Within the margin of error	64%
Broadband subscriptions	96.9%2015-2019	94.7%2020-2024	−2.2 points	Within the margin of error	4%
Effective property tax rate	1.43%2015-2019	1.08%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Little change	79%
High school diploma or higher	96.0%2015-2019	98.3%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	3.1×2020-2024	+0.5×	Declined	45%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3042015-2019	0.3452020-2024	+0.041	Within the margin of error	21%
Median household income	$88,5262015-2019	$119,2712020-2024	+35%	Improved	65%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	22.1%2015-2019	32.3%2020-2024	+10 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Rent-burdened households	31.2%2015-2019	59.3%2020-2024	+28 points	Within the margin of error	4%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	5.6%2015-2019	11.4%2020-2024	+5.7 points	Within the margin of error	8%

“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 Summerset, South Dakota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Summerset, 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, Summerset, South Dakota itself moved −13 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

3,022 residents (±49)

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: 40–49 women (+5.1 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

3,022 residents (±49)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

White93%2,825
Black0.1%†2
Hispanic or Latino1.7%†52

Education

1,816 residents (±162)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

No high school diploma1.7%†30
High school or GED21%†378
Some college26%

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

1,076 households (±114)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $25k6.4%†69
$25k–50k14%†156
$50k–75k7.9%†85
$75k–100k12%†133
$100k–150k31%†329
$150k–200k16%†173
$200k or more12%†131

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $75k–100k (−12.9 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

1,076 households (±114)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Own79%847
Rent21%†229

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−6.5 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 B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

221 households (±76)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,00020%†45
$1,000–1,50067%†147

Home values

847 homes (±100)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under $150k11%†97
$150k–250k3.7%†31
$250k–400k46%389

Age of homes

1,108 homes (±115)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

2010 or later33%363
2000–200950%552
1980–19995.1%†56

Size of homes

1,108 homes (±115)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms24%†267

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

1,670 workers (±177)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Drive alone88%1,475
Carpool5.4%†90
Public transit0.0%0
Walk2.0%†33
Bike0.0%0
Work from home4.3%†72
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Carpool (−4.8 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

1,598 workers (±173)

Summerset, South Dakota
South Dakota share

Under 15 min24%†391
15–29 min62%990
30–44 min9.2%†147

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

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Rapid City, SD

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 Meade County, the county holding most of Summerset's residents.

Meade County has 805 employer establishments, 260 for every 10,000 residents (1.05× the US rate of 248; 0.82× South Dakota's), with 6,662 paid employees at an average annual pay of $63,199. The Census Bureau also counts 2,735 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 805; 2,735 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 260; US 248 · South Dakota 317
Paid employees: 6,662
Average annual pay: $63,199; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	107	34.6	2.24×More than typical	441	$55,961	231
Construction of buildings	48	15.5	2.05×More than typical	187	$52,749	108
Truck transportation	47	15.2	3.01×More than typical	528	$32,659	74
Lessors of real estate	38	12.3	1.00×About typical	62	$39,435	324
Restaurants and other eating places	32	10.3	0.56×Fewer than typical	389	$21,118	8
Building equipment contractors	31	10	1.67×More than typical	163	$58,215	31
Building finishing contractors	29	9.4	2.47×More than typical	87	$43,218	86
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	28	9.1	2.87×More than typical	100	$49,440	38
Services to buildings and dwellings	28	9.1	1.34×More than typical	75	$35,813	160
Automotive repair and maintenance	27	8.7	1.73×More than typical	122	$51,533	56
Ambulatory health care services	26	8.4	0.40×Fewer than typical	170	$50,300	94
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	20	6.5	1.96×More than typical	123	$58,967	14

Rank places for an industry Open Meade County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 30,923 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Summerset, South Dakota: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

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

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

ELECTRO-TEST & MAINTENANCE, INC$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

5.1MFY2017
5.9MFY2018
6.2MFY2019
22.1MFY2020
3.3KFY2021
3.5KFY2022
-526.2FY2023
-175.3FY2024
4.7K

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 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 Summerset, South Dakota, so they do not add up across cities.

Summerset, South Dakota's figures are part of those of Meade County, SD ($197.4M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Meade 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.

Summerset, 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.

Meade County79100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Rapid City, SD74

Other cities and towns in Meade 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/4662155