About one in 26 people in Lincoln County, South Dakota, lives below the poverty line
In Lincoln County, 3.8% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 99% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lincoln County's score
In Lincoln County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 19.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 1.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lincoln 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.
Lincoln 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.
- 19.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector10.5% · August 20254th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people96.9 · 202534th percentile
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- 12.0 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 rent13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income13.8% · fiscal year 20270th percentile
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- 9.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.2% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.8% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score23.8% · second quarter of 20262nd percentile
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- 3.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line3.8% · 20240th percentile
- Children below the poverty line3.6% · 20240th percentile
- People with a disability9.2% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- People without health insurance4.1% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$106,557 · 20243rd percentile
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- 1.1 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 20260th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working9.1% · 2020 to 20241st 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County, 14.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lincoln County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lincoln County had its largest rise, from 8.7% in 1979 to 10.8% in 1984.
In Lincoln County, pay from work still brings in about seven times as much as benefit checks, with little change in benefit checks' share since 1969
In Lincoln County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 8.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 2.9% in 2010 to 4.1% in 2011.
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2011 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 2.8% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lincoln County, South Dakota.
How Lincoln County has changed
Lincoln County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 63,611 in 2019 to 75,244 in 2024.
Lincoln County's population grew to about six times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 75,244, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 11,906. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lincoln County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County had its largest rise in the last span, from 23,980 in 2020 to 30,502 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County grew to about nine times its 1990 size in 2025, reaching 30,502, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 5,252. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lincoln County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.4% | 2025 1.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.6% | 2024 3.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,227 | 2024 $106,557 |
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 Lincoln County's history
1867
Founded December 30, 1867. Wikipedia
1965
A tornado in June 1965 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1970
A tornado in July 1970 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A tornado in September 2019 did $6.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 65,161, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2024
A flood in June 2024 did $12 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lincoln County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lincoln County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Lincoln County, in South Dakota and Iowa, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lincoln County ranks 6th of the seven; Clay County is highest, at 19.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County, SD | 23 | 19.3% | 19.6% |
| Minnehaha County, SD | 9 | 7.5% | 14.5% |
| Turner County, SD | 2 | 9.5% | 13.4% |
| Union County, SD | 1 | 5.8% | 7.7% |
| Lincoln County, SD | 0 | 3.8% | 8.6% |
| Sioux County, IA | 0 | 7.3% | 14.2% |
| Lyon County, IA | 0 | 7.3% | 14.6% |
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 Lincoln County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Lincoln County's poverty rate was 3.8% in 2024, the lowest 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, Lincoln County ranks 65th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lincoln 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.