Unemployment in Miner County, South Dakota, is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties
In Miner 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 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Miner County's score
In Miner County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 33.9. Jobs are the lowest part, at 6.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Miner 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.
Miner 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.
- 33.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.3% · 202433rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.7% · 202426th percentile
- People with a disability15.9% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- People without health insurance5.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,548 · 202430th percentile
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- 24.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.1% · August 202519th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people87.7 · 202529th percentile
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- 22.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.9% · August 202524th 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 score34.0% · second quarter of 202625th percentile
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- 9.7 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 rent9.2% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.3% · fiscal year 20278th percentile
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- 6.0 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 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.4% · 2020 to 20247th 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 Miner 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 Miner County, 25.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Miner County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Miner County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by more than half since 1969, reaching 20.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Miner County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income rose by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Miner County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.3% in 2020 to 9.7% in 2021.
The share of households in Miner County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 6.9%
Low on the chart: 6.0% 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, Miner County, South Dakota.
How Miner County has changed
Miner County's population had its largest drop, from 4,505 in 1969 to 4,068 in 1974.
Miner County's population fell by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 2,303, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 2019 to 2024, reaching 2,303. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Miner County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Miner County fell most sharply after its 2000 high, from 1,006 in 2000 to 745 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Miner County fell by about a fifth from 1990 to 2025, reaching 777, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 692 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Miner County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 2.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.5% | 2024 11.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,061 | 2024 $74,548 |
The table uses 2.3% 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 Miner County's history
1873
1873 (created) 1880 (organized). Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 8,560. The 2020 Census counted 2,298, 27% of the peak. Census Bureau
1992
A tornado in June 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1976
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Miner County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Miner County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Miner County, one scores higher. Of the group, Miner County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (20.1%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanborn County, SD | 5 | 12.7% | 19.5% |
| Miner County, SD | 4 | 11.3% | 20.1% |
| Lake County, SD | 4 | 8.8% | 13.3% |
| McCook County, SD | 4 | 8.3% | 17.4% |
| Kingsbury County, SD | 0 | 9.0% | 19.0% |
| Hanson County, SD | 0 | 8.7% | 14.1% |
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 Miner County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Miner County's poverty rate was 11.3% in 2024, 33rd 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, Miner County ranks 36th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Miner 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.
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 Miner County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.