Unemployment in Hughes County, South Dakota, is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties
In Hughes County, 1.8% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 98% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hughes County's score
In Hughes County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 20.1. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hughes 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.
Hughes 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.
- 20.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.7% · 202413th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.1% · 20249th percentile
- People with a disability13.1% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.7% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$83,936 · 202415th percentile
-
- 15.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.1% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.5% · August 202524th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score29.1% · second quarter of 202610th percentile
-
- 15.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector14.9% · August 202518th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people56.7 · 202513th percentile
-
- 15.1 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 rent11.3% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
-
- 5.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year1.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working10.4% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
-
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 Hughes 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 Hughes County, 18.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hughes County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hughes County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Hughes County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hughes County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 10.7% in 2010 to 8.3% in 2011.
The share of households in Hughes County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and has since fallen to 6.1%
Low on the chart: 6.1% 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, Hughes County, South Dakota.
How Hughes County has changed
Hughes County's population had its largest rise, from 11,659 in 1969 to 13,001 in 1974.
Hughes County's population rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17,526
High on the chart: 17,842 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hughes County, South Dakota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hughes County rose 36% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 9,446. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hughes County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 1.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.1% | 2024 8.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,884 | 2024 $83,936 |
The table uses 1.7% for 2025; the score uses 1.8% 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 Hughes County's history
1873
January 8, 1873 (created) November 26, 1880 (organized). Wikipedia
1973
A tornado in July 1973 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 17,765, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1969
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hughes County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hughes County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Hughes County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hughes County ranks 3rd of the five; Lyman County is highest, at 25.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lyman County, SD | 38 | 21.4% | 25.5% |
| Stanley County, SD | 5 | 7.4% | 15.7% |
| Hyde County, SD | 4 | 11.7% | 20.9% |
| Hughes County, SD | 1 | 8.7% | 16.7% |
| Sully County, SD | 0 | 8.0% | 12.9% |
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 Hughes County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Hughes County's poverty rate was 8.7% in 2024, 53rd 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, Hughes County ranks 53rd of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hughes 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.
-
Dakota Plains Legal Services
Legal aid
-
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 Hughes 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 Hughes County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.