About 19 in 20 adults aged 25 to 54 in Stanley County, South Dakota, have a job
In Stanley County, 5.0% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Stanley County's score
In Stanley County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 43.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Unemployment averaged 1.7%, 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 Stanley 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.
Even so, Stanley County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (22.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 43.4 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 rent22.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.4% · fiscal year 20279th percentile
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- 19.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202526th 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 score30.0% · second quarter of 202613th percentile
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- 18.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.4% · 20245th percentile
- Children below the poverty line7.4% · 20245th or lower percentile
- People with a disability17.8% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- People without health insurance3.4% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$88,080 · 202412th percentile
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- 16.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.3% · August 202520th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202512th 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 year1.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working5.0% · 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 Stanley 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 Stanley County, 24.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Stanley County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Stanley County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 15.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Stanley County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Stanley County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.6% in 2011 to 9.1% in 2012.
The share of households in Stanley County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen to 2.3%
Biggest drop: 2010 to 2011, reaching 5.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Stanley County, South Dakota.
How Stanley County has changed
Stanley County's population had its largest rise, from 2,471 in 1989 to 2,620 in 1994.
Stanley County's population rose by about a fifth to 3,015, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 3,015 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Stanley County, South Dakota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Stanley County doubled to 1,327, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 1,277. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Stanley County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.2% | 2025 1.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.2% | 2024 7.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,264 | 2024 $88,080 |
The table uses 1.6% for 2025; the score uses 1.7% 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 Stanley County's history
1873
1873 (created) 1890 (organized). Wikipedia
1994
A thunderstorm in July 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 2,980, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1976
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Stanley County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Stanley County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Stanley County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Stanley County ranks 6th of the seven; Dewey County is highest, at 30.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dewey County, SD | 82 | 28.8% | 30.1% |
| Lyman County, SD | 38 | 21.4% | 25.5% |
| Jones County, SD | 6 | 13.2% | 17.4% |
| Stanley County, SD | 5 | 7.4% | 15.7% |
| Hughes County, SD | 1 | 8.7% | 16.7% |
| Sully County, SD | 0 | 8.0% | 12.9% |
| 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 Stanley County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Stanley County's poverty rate was 7.4% in 2024, 64th 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, Stanley County ranks 34th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Stanley 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.
Download the CSV for Stanley 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 Stanley County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.