county

Brookings County, SD

Demographic and economic profile of Brookings County, SD, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Brookings County is home to South Dakota State University, anchoring an economy oriented around education and research, reflected in a notably young median age of 28.0 years and a 44.0% bachelor's degree attainment rate well above national norms. The labor force of roughly 24,400 participates at a 69.7% rate with a 3.6% unemployment rate, and median worker earnings of $33,725 sit below the median household income of $70,064, suggesting significant part-time or student employment in the mix. Housing remains relatively affordable at a $246,300 median home value and $874 median monthly rent, and the county added population at a 2.1% rate over five years while maintaining a GDP per capita of $65,118.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

34,968

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$70,064

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

28.0 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+2.1% since 2018

Brookings County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone31,063 (87.9%)
  • Asian Alone1,160 (3.3%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races1,002 (2.8%)
  • Some Other Race Alone697 (2.0%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race570 (1.6%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone460 (1.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish997
  2. 2.Other Indo-European599
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic300
  4. 4.Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)193
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island96

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

21.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

65.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

13.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

6.2%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,332

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$65,118

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$34,769

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

3.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

12.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance5,193
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)4,000
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)1,711
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services1,705
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services1,420

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations8,175
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations3,247
  3. 3.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations3,217
  4. 4.Service Occupations2,840
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations1,582

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 4.05×)1,233
  2. 2.Manufacturing (LQ 2.13×)4,048
  3. 3.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.18×)5,273
  4. 4.Information (LQ 1.06×)377
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 0.88×)1,835

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$246,300

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$874/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

57.2%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $300,000 to $399,9991,652 (20.9%)
  • $200,000 to $249,9991,457 (18.5%)
  • $250,000 to $299,9991,281 (16.2%)
  • $400,000 to $499,999674 (8.5%)
  • $500,000 to $749,999485 (6.1%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999454 (5.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

44.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

96.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

69.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$33,725

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

14.3 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone13,720 (73.9%)
  • Worked At Home2,064 (11.1%)
  • Carpooled1,718 (9.2%)
  • Walked720 (3.9%)
  • Bicycle176 (0.9%)
  • Public Transit84 (0.5%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.