Official Federal Data
Brown County, South Dakota
FIPS 46013 · Aberdeen, SD · Population 37,877
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$70,898 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
2.1% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$3.2B ▼
GDP
33.8% ▲
Bachelor's+
35.7% national
Demographics & Population
Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 · 5-Year Estimates
Household Income
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
Median Household
$70,898 ▲
Per Capita
$40,863 ▲
Mean Household
$92,772 ▲
Poverty Rate
11.7% ▲
Median Income Comparison
Brown County$70,898
South Dakota$75,081
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 23.6%
18-34 · 22.1%
35-54 · 23.5%
55-64 · 13%
65+ · 17.8%
Race & Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino is an ethnic category and overlaps with the race categories above.
Educational Attainment
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · Population 25+
93.7%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +4.1 pts
33.8%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 1.9 pts
11.1%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 3.0 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
37,877
Population
20,525
Labor Force
Employed
19,837
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
2.1% ▲ +0.3 pts YoY
Mean Commute 12 min below national avg
13.9 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
6.3%
Key Takeaways
- Broadly in line with U.S. norms across income, poverty, and education.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 3,172 workers (21.4% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $63,029.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $3.2B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Finance and Insurance averages $94,118 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $22,027, a 4.3x spread in the same local economy, with implications for workforce development and talent strategy.
Source: BLS QCEW + BEA Regional GDP.
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Industry Concentration
Location Quotient measures regional specialization vs. national average. LQ > 1.0 = concentrated.
Cluster Depth
Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Dominant Cluster
Health Care & Social Assistance Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
860
Cluster Employment
2.00x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Printing and Related Support Activities
6.92x 300
Animal Production and Aquaculture
2.86x 97
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.52x 332
Crop Production
2.41x 160
Mining (except Oil and Gas)
2.28x 54
Building Material and Garden Supply Retailers
2.11x 363
Machinery Manufacturing
2.02x 277
Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods
2.00x 552
Nursing and Residential Care Facilities
2.00x 860
Credit Intermediation and Related Activities
1.81x 583
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.30x
Educational Services
123 employed
0.41x
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
554 employed
0.41x
Social Assistance
254 employed
0.47x
Administrative and Support Services
498 employed
0.49x
Health and Personal Care Retailers
65 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Printing and Related Support Activities concentrates at 6.92x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
- Cluster depth: 10 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base rather than reliance on a single employer or sector.
- Attraction whitespace: 8 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5, candidates for diversification or recruitment depending on labor-market fit.
Source: BLS QCEW sub-sector Location Quotients.
Housing & Affordability
Census ACS · HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026
Housing Overview
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates · Tables B25001, B25077, B25064
$221,100 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$777 ▲
Rent/Mo
67.6% ▲
Owner-Occ
10% ▲
Vacancy
3.1x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$652/mo
1 Bedroom
$708/mo
2 Bedroom
$929/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,168/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,477/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,772/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 3.1x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,772/mo), a clear cost-of-living advantage for workforce attraction.
Source: Census ACS housing tables + HUD Fair Market Rents.
Workforce Pipeline
Labor force readiness, commuting, and workforce composition
Labor Market Overview
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B23025, B08303, B08301
22,198 ▼
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 12 min below national avg
13.9 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
6.3%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
84.8%
of prime-age population
▼ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
33.8% ▲
HS Diploma+
93.7% ▲
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
7,826/yr
2,703/yr
2,132/yr
818/yr
797/yr
793/yr
583/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
22.2%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Elevated retirement risk, above the 20% threshold. Succession planning recommended.
Workforce by Occupation
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
37.2%
Service
17.3%
Sales & Office
17.8%
Construction / Maint.
12.3%
Production / Transport
15.5%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 19,837 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Succession risk is real: 22.2% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.
- Short commutes: 13.9-minute mean commute is a quality-of-life and labor-access advantage worth surfacing for site selectors.
- Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 5,653 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Brown County shows strong potential for printing and related support activities attraction, with a 6.92x concentration and 300 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 22.2% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.
The interconnected base across printing and related support activities, animal production and aquaculture, and gasoline stations and fuel dealers creates supply-chain attraction leverage rather than single-employer risk, a structural advantage for industrial recruitment.
Industry Shift Analysis
Manufacturing Automation Risk
High
Healthcare Growth Forecast
+4.2% CAGR
Remote Work Migration
67/100
Prospect Match Scores
Advanced Manufacturing
92/100
Life Sciences
84/100
Data Centers
71/100
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Data Sources
Updated from official federal government data.
Census ACS 5-Year2024
BLS QCEW2025 annual
BLS LAUS (via FRED)2025 annual
BEA Regional GDP2024
Census CBP2023
HUD Fair Market RentsFY2026
FCC Broadband Map2024
USAspending.govFY2026
College ScorecardAY 2022-23
Frequently Asked Questions
Key economic and demographic figures for Brown County, South Dakota, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Brown County, South Dakota?
37,877 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Brown County, South Dakota?
$70,898 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Brown County, South Dakota?
2.1% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Brown County, South Dakota?
$3.2B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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