Unemployment in Butte County, South Dakota, is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties
In Butte County, 1.9% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Butte County's score
In Butte County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 71.0. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 15.0. About one in eight people with a credit file (12.1%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a lower share than in 91% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Butte 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, Butte County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (11.5%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (23.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 71.0 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 rent20.8% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th percentile
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- 48.8 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 line13.7% · 202431st percentile
- People with a disability15.4% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- People without health insurance11.5% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,896 · 202455th percentile
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- 25.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202517th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.9% · August 202530th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.9% · second quarter of 202628th percentile
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- 19.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year1.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.0% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
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- 15.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.1% · August 20258th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people73.6 · 202521st 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 Butte 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 Butte County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Butte County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Butte County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 25.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Butte County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.3%; 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 Butte County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2020 to 2021, reaching 10.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Butte County, South Dakota.
How Butte County has changed
Butte County's population rose 39% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 9,012. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Butte County, South Dakota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Butte County rose 38% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 2,419. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Butte County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.4% | 2025 1.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.6% | 2024 11.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,876 | 2024 $64,896 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Butte County's history
1883
Established March 2, 1883 in Dakota Territory. Wikipedia
1895
Belle Fourche peaked as world's largest livestock-shipping point at 2,500 carloads per month by 1895, then declined. Wikipedia
1975
Plesiosaur fossils from Cretaceous Period (110 million years ago) discovered in Butte County in 1975. Wikipedia
1998
Hail in July 1998 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in June 2008 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
Hail in August 2011 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in June 2014 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 10,243, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Butte County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Butte County beside its neighbors
Butte County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in South Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. For the share of income from benefit checks, Butte County ranks 3rd of the seven; Perkins County is highest, at 27.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Butte County, SD | 25 | 11.6% | 25.3% |
| Carter County, MT | 15 | 13.0% | 27.1% |
| Perkins County, SD | 8 | 12.8% | 27.9% |
| Lawrence County, SD | 6 | 11.3% | 18.9% |
| Meade County, SD | 3 | 8.1% | 20.8% |
| Crook County, WY | 2 | 7.7% | 20.5% |
| Harding County, SD | 2 | 11.8% | 17.1% |
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 Butte County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Butte 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, Butte County ranks 14th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Butte 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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Dakota Plains 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 Butte County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.