About one in two people in Ziebach County, South Dakota, lives below the poverty line
In Ziebach County, 45.8% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ziebach County's score
In Ziebach County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 81.4. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 27.0% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), higher than in 90% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 77.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ziebach 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.
Ziebach County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (10.0%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (2.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.4 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 rent21.9% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income27.0% · fiscal year 202790th percentile
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- 77.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line45.8% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line55.0% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability10.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance26.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$45,049 · 2024top 5%
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- 53.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202612th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working38.5% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 33.6 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 behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202517th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.1% · second quarter of 202664th percentile
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- 12.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collectornot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202511th percentile
- 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 Ziebach 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 Ziebach County, 11.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ziebach County
South Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Ziebach County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 41.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Ziebach County, South Dakota, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 41.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ziebach County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 25.4% in 2009 to 32.2% in 2010.
The share of households in Ziebach County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 25.3%
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 32.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Ziebach County, South Dakota.
How Ziebach County has changed
Ziebach County's population had its largest drop, from 2,427 in 1974 to 2,191 in 1979.
Ziebach County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 2,742 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ziebach County, South Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Ziebach County rose most sharply from its first year (238 in 1990) to 306 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Ziebach County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 325 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ziebach County, South Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.9% | 2025 2.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 54.7% | 2024 45.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,434 | 2024 $45,049 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Ziebach County's history
1907
Ute Indians briefly held reservation 1907, displaced from Utah and Wyoming. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 4,039. The 2020 Census counted 2,413, 60% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1976
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ziebach County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ziebach County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Ziebach County, two score higher. Of the group, Ziebach County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (41.2%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dewey County, SD | 82 | 28.8% | 30.1% |
| Corson County, SD | 64 | 37.9% | 38.3% |
| Ziebach County, SD | 52 | 45.8% | 41.2% |
| Perkins County, SD | 8 | 12.8% | 27.9% |
| Meade County, SD | 3 | 8.1% | 20.8% |
| 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 Ziebach County the poorest county in South Dakota?
Yes, Ziebach County's poverty rate was 45.8% in 2024, the highest of 66 counties in South Dakota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Ziebach County ranks 9th of 66 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ziebach 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 Ziebach 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 Ziebach County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.