Official Federal Data
Codington County, South Dakota
FIPS 46029 · Watertown, SD · Population 28,767
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$72,727 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
2% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$2.1B ▲
GDP
21.4% ▼
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
$72,727 ▲
Per Capita
$39,825 ▲
Mean Household
$90,805 ▲
Poverty Rate
8.8% ▼
Median Income Comparison
Codington County$72,727
South Dakota$75,081
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 23%
18-34 · 20.7%
35-54 · 23.6%
55-64 · 13.2%
65+ · 19.6%
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+
93.9%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +4.3 pts
21.4%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 14.3 pts
5.7%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 8.4 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
28,767
Population
15,741
Labor Force
Employed
15,409
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
2% ▲ +0.3 pts YoY
Mean Commute 12 min below national avg
14.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
5.6%
Key Takeaways
- Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 14.3 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Manufacturing employs 3,275 workers (24.2% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $63,808.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $2.1B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Finance and Insurance averages $80,608 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $20,602, a 3.9x 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
Manufacturing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
2,564
Cluster Employment
8.62x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Machinery Manufacturing
8.62x 1,035
Animal Production and Aquaculture
5.54x 165
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
3.14x 602
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
2.93x 461
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.64x 305
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
2.54x 196
Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing
2.45x 270
Building Material and Garden Supply Retailers
2.39x 361
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.92x 434
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Misc. Retailers
1.86x 304
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.23x
Educational Services
84 employed
0.32x
Administrative and Support Services
299 employed
0.33x
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
396 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Machinery Manufacturing concentrates at 8.62x 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
$237,700 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$938 ▲
Rent/Mo
69.8% ▲
Owner-Occ
7.4% ▼
Vacancy
3.3x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$747/mo
1 Bedroom
$825/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,083/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,319/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,605/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,818/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 3.3x 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 (~$1,818/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
16,530 ▼
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 12 min below national avg
14.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
5.6%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
89.5%
of prime-age population
▼ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
21.4% ▼
HS Diploma+
93.9% ▲
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
23%
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
31.5%
Service
14.7%
Sales & Office
24.3%
Construction / Maint.
10.9%
Production / Transport
18.6%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 15,409 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Succession risk is real: 23% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.
- Short commutes: 14.1-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
Codington County shows strong potential for machinery manufacturing attraction, with a 8.62x concentration and 1,035 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 23% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.
The interconnected base across machinery manufacturing, animal production and aquaculture, and transportation equipment manufacturing 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 Codington County, South Dakota, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Codington County, South Dakota?
28,767 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Codington County, South Dakota?
$72,727 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Codington County, South Dakota?
2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Codington County, South Dakota?
$2.1B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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