Unemployment in Hyde County, South Dakota, is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties
In Hyde County, 1.5% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hyde County's score
In Hyde County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 40.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hyde 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.
Hyde 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.
- 40.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.7% · 202437th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.0% · 202438th percentile
- People with a disability14.0% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance6.1% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,207 · 202463rd percentile
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- 21.1 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 rent0.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.6% · fiscal year 202737th percentile
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- 18.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202519th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202517th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.0% · second quarter of 202619th percentile
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- 12.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collectornot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202511th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202512th percentile
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- 5.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year1.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.1% · 2020 to 20246th 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 Hyde 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 Hyde County, 28.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hyde County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Hyde County had its largest drop, from 20.5% in 2009 to 14.2% in 2014.
In Hyde County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 20.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Hyde County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.9%; 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 Hyde County getting SNAP food aid fell by more than half to 2.4%, the lowest on the chart, with most of the change between 2009 and 2010
Biggest drop: 2009 to 2010, reaching 4.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hyde County, South Dakota.
How Hyde County has changed
Hyde County's population had its largest drop, from 2,231 in 1979 to 1,965 in 1984.
Hyde County's population fell by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 1,215, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1969 to 1974, reaching 2,469. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hyde County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Hyde County rose most sharply from its first year (467 in 1990) to 585 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Hyde County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 648 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hyde County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.5% | 2025 1.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.9% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,691 | 2024 $62,207 |
The table uses 1.4% for 2025; the score uses 1.5% 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 Hyde County's history
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 3,690. The 2020 Census counted 1,262, 34% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hyde County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hyde County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Hyde County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hyde County ranks 4th of the eight; Buffalo County is highest, at 50.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo County, SD | 62 | 36.3% | 50.5% |
| Lyman County, SD | 38 | 21.4% | 25.5% |
| Potter County, SD | 14 | 9.6% | 24.9% |
| Faulk County, SD | 8 | 13.7% | 18.0% |
| Hyde County, SD | 4 | 11.7% | 20.9% |
| Hughes County, SD | 1 | 8.7% | 16.7% |
| Sully County, SD | 0 | 8.0% | 12.9% |
| Hand County, SD | 0 | 8.4% | 16.0% |
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 Hyde County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Hyde County's poverty rate was 11.7% in 2024, 28th 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, Hyde County ranks 35th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hyde 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 Hyde County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.