About one in 13 people in Hamlin County, South Dakota, has a disability
In Hamlin County, 7.5% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 99% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hamlin County's score
In Hamlin County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 17.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Unemployment averaged 1.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hamlin 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.
Hamlin County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 17.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.2% · 20249th percentile
- Children below the poverty line7.4% · 20245th or lower percentile
- People with a disability7.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance7.7% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$80,325 · 202420th percentile
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- 5.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.8% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.4% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score26.9% · second quarter of 20266th percentile
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- 5.0 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent5.6% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.2% · fiscal year 20275th or lower percentile
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- 5.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector10.5% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people31 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 5.0 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 working10.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Hamlin 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 Hamlin County, 14.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hamlin County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Hamlin County had its largest rise, from 16.0% in 1979 to 18.6% in 1984.
In Hamlin County, pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks, with little change in benefit checks' share since 1969
In Hamlin County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hamlin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 3.3% in 2011 to 4.8% in 2012.
The share of households in Hamlin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 1.4% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hamlin County, South Dakota.
How Hamlin County has changed
Hamlin County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 6,163 in 2019 to 6,596 in 2024.
Hamlin County's population rose by about a fifth to 6,596, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 6,596 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hamlin County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Hamlin County had its largest rise in the last span, from 2,143 in 2020 to 2,703 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Hamlin County more than doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 2,703, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 1,203. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hamlin County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 1.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.9% | 2024 8.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,885 | 2024 $80,325 |
The table uses 1.8% for 2025; the score uses 1.9% 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 Hamlin County's history
1873
1873 (created) 1878 (organized). Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 8,299. The 2020 Census counted 6,164, 74% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A thunderstorm in June 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hamlin County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hamlin County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Hamlin County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hamlin County ranks 4th of the six; Kingsbury County is highest, at 19.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark County, SD | 7 | 10.0% | 13.1% |
| Codington County, SD | 3 | 8.3% | 17.4% |
| Kingsbury County, SD | 0 | 9.0% | 19.0% |
| Brookings County, SD | 0 | 10.8% | 13.5% |
| Deuel County, SD | 0 | 8.6% | 16.3% |
| Hamlin County, SD | 0 | 8.2% | 15.6% |
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 Hamlin County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Hamlin County's poverty rate was 8.2% in 2024, 60th 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, Hamlin County ranks 66th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hamlin 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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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.
Download the CSV for Hamlin County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
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 Hamlin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.