About 19 in 20 adults aged 25 to 54 in Spink County, South Dakota, have a job
In Spink County, 6.8% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Spink County's score
In Spink County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 41.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Unemployment averaged 2.2%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Spink 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.
Spink 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.
- 41.7 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 line14.1% · 202434th percentile
- People with a disability11.8% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- People without health insurance9.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,148 · 202460th percentile
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- 19.7 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 rent5.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.3% · fiscal year 202734th percentile
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- 15.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.7% · August 202513th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people64.9 · 202517th percentile
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- 9.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.5% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.6% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.3% · second quarter of 202613th percentile
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- 5.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working6.8% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Spink 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 Spink County, 24.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Spink County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Spink County had its largest rise, from 19.0% in 2014 to 24.9% in 2019.
In Spink County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 22.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Spink County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Spink County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.0% in 2012 to 9.1% in 2013.
The share of households in Spink County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 4.3%
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 6.8%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Spink County, South Dakota.
How Spink County has changed
Spink County's population fell 42% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 9,280. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Spink County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Spink County made its largest gain on the way to its 2010 high, from 2,304 in 2005 to 2,510 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Spink County was about the same in 2025 as in 1990
High on the chart: 2,510 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Spink County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 2.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.4% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,996 | 2024 $63,148 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Spink County's history
1873
1873 (created) 1879 (organized). Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 15,981. The 2020 Census counted 6,361, 40% of the peak. Census Bureau
1957
A tornado in June 1957 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in April 2019 did $1.28 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2022
A flood in July 2022 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Spink County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Spink County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Spink County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Spink County ranks 2nd of the seven; Day County is highest, at 23.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beadle County, SD | 16 | 10.7% | 19.1% |
| Brown County, SD | 13 | 11.6% | 15.7% |
| Day County, SD | 9 | 15.5% | 23.3% |
| Faulk County, SD | 8 | 13.7% | 18.0% |
| Clark County, SD | 7 | 10.0% | 13.1% |
| Spink County, SD | 3 | 11.7% | 22.2% |
| 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 Spink County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Spink 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, Spink County ranks 39th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Spink 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 Spink County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.