About half adults aged 25 to 54 in Todd County, South Dakota, are not working
In Todd County, 50.0% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Todd County's score
In Todd County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 90.5. Income and the safety net comes next, at 79.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Todd 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.
Todd County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (12.3%, 2020 to 2024) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202686th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working50.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 79.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line32.9% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line41.7% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability12.3% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- People without health insurance22.8% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$45,187 · 2024top 5%
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- 69.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202519th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind21.3% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score69.4% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 57.8 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 rent13.6% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.9% · fiscal year 202790th percentile
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- 53.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector49.4% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202512th 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 Todd 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 Todd County, 7.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Todd County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Todd County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 43.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Todd County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 43.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Todd County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (31.3% in 2009) to 40.9% in 2010.
The share of households in Todd County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 40.2%
Low on the chart: 31.3% 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, Todd County, South Dakota.
How Todd County has changed
Todd County's population had its largest rise, from 6,058 in 1969 to 7,266 in 1974.
Todd County's population rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 9,172
High on the chart: 9,548 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Todd County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Todd County rose most sharply from its first year (1,868 in 1990) to 2,360 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Todd County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 3,091 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Todd County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.9% | 2025 5.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 53.6% | 2024 32.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,080 | 2024 $45,187 |
The table uses 5.6% for 2025; the score uses 5.3% 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 Todd County's history
1909
Created in 1909; remains unorganized. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 9,612. The 2020 Census counted 9,319, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2025
A tornado in April 2025 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1976
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Todd County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Todd County beside its neighbors
Todd County scores higher than all four counties that border it, in South Dakota and Nebraska. Of the group, Todd County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (43.4%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Todd County, SD | 84 | 32.9% | 43.4% |
| Bennett County, SD | 53 | 29.4% | 33.2% |
| Mellette County, SD | 53 | 25.9% | 32.8% |
| Tripp County, SD | 33 | 16.3% | 23.4% |
| Cherry County, NE | 9 | 10.2% | 20.9% |
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 Todd County the poorest county in South Dakota?
No, Todd County's poverty rate was 32.9% in 2024, 5th 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, Todd County ranks 2nd of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Todd 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 Todd County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.