In Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2020

In 2024, 49 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.

Photo of Ross Kilburn
Data from
County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026
1st
of 66 counties in South Dakota
84score /100

More distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.

What drives Oglala Lakota County's score

In Oglala Lakota County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 90.0. About three in five adults aged 25 to 54 (63.2%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 77.4.

The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Oglala Lakota 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.

Oglala Lakota County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (10.7%, 2020 to 2024) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (15.8%, 2020 to 2024).

A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.

  • Jobs

    Biggest factor
    90.0 of 100

    Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey

    • Unemployment rate, average over the latest year
      5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026
      85th percentile
    • Adults 25 to 54 not working
      63.2% · 2020 to 2024
      top 5%

  • Income and safety net

    77.4 of 100

    Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey

    • People below the poverty line
      35.8% · 2024
      top 5%
    • Children below the poverty line
      39.7% · 2024
      top 5%
    • People with a disability
      10.7% · 2020 to 2024
      6th percentile
    • People without health insurance
      44.6% · 2020 to 2024
      top 5%
    • Median household income (lower income, longer bar)
      $44,706 · 2024
      top 5%

  • Late payments

    69.1 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025

    • People with a credit card behind
      16.9% · August 2025
      top 5%
    • People with a car or retail loan behind
      19.0% · August 2025
      top 5%
    • People with a subprime credit score
      not published for this county; scored at the state median
      17th percentile

  • Housing costs

    63.7 of 100

    Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027

    • Renters paying half their income or more in rent
      15.8% · 2020 to 2024
      36th percentile
    • Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income
      27.2% · fiscal year 2027
      91st percentile

  • Collections and bankruptcy

    53.8 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025

    • People with unpaid debt sent to a collector
      47.2% · August 2025
      top 5%
    • Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people
      not published for this county; scored at the state median · 2025
      12th 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 Oglala Lakota 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 Oglala Lakota County, 7.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.

Cents of every dollar of income, 2024

Oglala Lakota County

42 9 49

South Dakota

58 25 17

United States

61 21 18
  • Pay from work
  • Investments and rent
  • Benefit checks
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, 2024. Pay from work is total income minus the other two, so the three add to 100.

In Oglala Lakota County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across South Dakota

In Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 49.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.

  • Benefit checks
  • Pay from work
0%40%80% 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 0%40%80% 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/south-dakota/oglala-lakota-county-sd/
Download data (CSV)

The share of households in Oglala Lakota County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 55.0% in 2020 to 46.6% in 2021.

The share of households in Oglala Lakota County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 49.5%

Low on the chart: 44.9% 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, Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota.

0%30%60% 49.6%49.5% 2015201620172018201920202021202220232024 0%30%60% 49.6%49.5% 20152017201920212024
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/south-dakota/oglala-lakota-county-sd/
Download data (CSV)

How Oglala Lakota County has changed

Oglala Lakota County's population had its largest rise, from 8,144 in 1969 to 10,538 in 1974.

Oglala Lakota County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2019, reaching 13,804, then turned down in 2024

High on the chart: 14,048 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota.

010,00020,000 8,14413,360 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 010,00020,000 8,14413,360 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/south-dakota/oglala-lakota-county-sd/
Download data (CSV)

The number of jobs located in Oglala Lakota County doubled from 2015 to 2025.

MeasureThenNowSource
Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW 2015 1,822 2025 3,808 BLS QCEW
Unemployment rateBLS LAUS 1990 13.4% 2025 5.2% BLS LAUS
People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE 2015 44.2% 2024 35.8% Census SAIPE
Median household incomeCensus SAIPE 2015 $30,391 2024 $44,706 Census SAIPE

The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.1% 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 Oglala Lakota County's history

  1. 1875

    The county was created as a part of the Dakota Territory in 1875. Wikipedia

  2. 1999

    A tornado in June 1999 did $3.2 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database

  3. 2001

    Lightning in June 2001 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database

  4. 2006

    A thunderstorm in April 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database

  5. 2020

    The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 13,672, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau

Oglala Lakota County beside its neighbors

Oglala Lakota County scores higher than all eight counties that border it, in South Dakota and Nebraska. Of the group, Oglala Lakota County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (49.2%).

CountyDistress scoreScoreRank in its state Poverty rateBenefit checks, share of incomeBenefit checks
Oglala Lakota County, SD 84 1st of 66 35.8% 49.2%
Jackson County, SD 62 5th of 66 29.1% 33.8%
Bennett County, SD 53 7th of 66 29.4% 33.2%
Fall River County, SD 36 11th of 66 11.7% 36.3%
Dawes County, NE 32 12th of 93 15.9% 27.0%
Sheridan County, NE 21 27th of 93 14.1% 24.7%
Pennington County, SD 18 18th of 66 9.8% 20.0%
Cherry County, NE 9 53rd of 93 10.2% 20.9%
Custer County, SD 2 47th of 66 9.6% 23.5%

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 Oglala Lakota County the poorest county in South Dakota?

No, Oglala Lakota County's poverty rate was 35.8% in 2024, 4th 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, Oglala Lakota County ranks 1st of 66 in the state.

If you're behind on your mortgage in Oglala Lakota 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.

South Dakota foreclosure guide →

The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.

Download the CSV for Oglala Lakota County · Every U.S. county (CSV)

Cite this Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, scores 84 on the County Distress Index (data through Sep 2026): more distressed than 84% of U.S. counties · American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/south-dakota/oglala-lakota-county-sd/

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 Oglala Lakota County comes from, 2024.
  • History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.