Unemployment in Meade County, South Dakota, is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties
In Meade County, 2.1% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Meade County's score
In Meade County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 30.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 2.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Meade 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.
Meade 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.
- 30.6 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 rent5.6% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.3% · fiscal year 202756th percentile
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- 26.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.1% · 20248th percentile
- Children below the poverty line7.8% · 20245th percentile
- People with a disability14.0% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance9.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$76,427 · 202426th percentile
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- 14.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.4% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.2% · August 202517th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score28.5% · second quarter of 20269th percentile
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- 10.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.2% · August 202512th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people45.2 · 20257th percentile
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- 2.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20261st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working10.7% · 2020 to 20243rd 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 Meade 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 Meade County, 16.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Meade County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Meade County had its largest rise, from 12.2% in 2004 to 16.4% in 2009.
In Meade County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 20.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Meade County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.8%; 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 Meade County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 8.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Meade County, South Dakota.
How Meade County has changed
Meade County's population doubled to 30,918, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 21,125. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Meade County, South Dakota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Meade County more than doubled to 9,206, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 9,206. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Meade County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.4% | 2025 2.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.9% | 2024 8.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,613 | 2024 $76,427 |
The table uses 2.0% for 2025; the score uses 2.1% 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 Meade County's history
1889
Created February 7, 1889. Wikipedia
1991
A tornado in May 1991 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Hail in August 2007 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in June 2008 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 29,852, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Meade County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Meade County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Meade County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Meade County ranks 5th of the seven; Ziebach County is highest, at 41.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ziebach County, SD | 52 | 45.8% | 41.2% |
| Butte County, SD | 25 | 11.6% | 25.3% |
| Pennington County, SD | 18 | 9.8% | 20.0% |
| Perkins County, SD | 8 | 12.8% | 27.9% |
| Lawrence County, SD | 6 | 11.3% | 18.9% |
| Meade County, SD | 3 | 8.1% | 20.8% |
| Haakon County, SD | 0 | 10.8% | 21.2% |
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 Meade County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Meade County's poverty rate was 8.1% in 2024, 61st 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, Meade County ranks 44th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Meade 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 Meade County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.