Unemployment in Brown County, South Dakota, is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties
In Brown County, 2.0% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Brown County's score
In Brown County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 46.7. Jobs are the lowest part, at 10.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Brown County: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Even so, Brown County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 46.7 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent23.7% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.8% · fiscal year 202712th percentile
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- 27.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.6% · 202436th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.7% · 202411th percentile
- People with a disability13.6% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- People without health insurance5.7% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$72,244 · 202435th percentile
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- 27.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.8% · August 202521st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people92.8 · 202532nd percentile
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- 24.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.5% · August 202532nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.0% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.1% · second quarter of 202626th percentile
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- 10.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20261st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.7% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
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Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Brown County comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Brown County, 17.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Brown County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Brown County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 15.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Brown County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Brown County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled to 8.8%, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2023 and 2024
Low on the chart: 5.2% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Brown County, South Dakota.
How Brown County has changed
Brown County's population had its largest drop, from 38,351 in 1974 to 36,452 in 1979.
Brown County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 38,403 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Brown County, South Dakota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Brown County rose by about a fifth from 1990 to 2025, reaching 19,589, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 20,862 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Brown County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.2% | 2025 2.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.0% | 2024 11.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,833 | 2024 $72,244 |
The table uses 2.1% for 2025; the score uses 2.0% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Brown County's history
1879
First Euro-American settlers arrived in four-person party with livestock and wagons; joined by additional settlers following spring. Wikipedia
1966
A tornado in July 1966 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1973
A tornado in July 1973 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1986
A thunderstorm in September 1986 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in May 2007 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 38,301, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Brown County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Brown County beside its neighbors
Brown County scores higher than all eight counties that border it, in South Dakota and North Dakota. For the share of income from benefit checks, Brown County ranks 8th of the nine; Day County is highest, at 23.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brown County, SD | 13 | 11.6% | 15.7% |
| Day County, SD | 9 | 15.5% | 23.3% |
| Faulk County, SD | 8 | 13.7% | 18.0% |
| Dickey County, ND | 3 | 12.5% | 17.1% |
| Spink County, SD | 3 | 11.7% | 22.2% |
| Sargent County, ND | 2 | 8.1% | 17.3% |
| McPherson County, SD | 2 | 17.9% | 19.9% |
| Marshall County, SD | 2 | 9.5% | 16.7% |
| Edmunds County, SD | 1 | 11.0% | 14.7% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Brown County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Brown County's poverty rate was 11.6% in 2024, 31st highest of 66 in South Dakota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Ziebach County, at 45.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Brown County ranks 23rd of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Brown County
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
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CCCS of LSS - South Dakota
HUD-approved housing counselor
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East River Legal Services
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Brown County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.