The Town Files

Pennington County, South Dakota

113,512 people. The median home is worth $302,200 (typical South Dakota town: $182,100) and the median household earns $74,517.

Towns in Pennington County

Towns in Pennington County

TownPeopleMedian homeIncomeMedian age
Rapid City74,703$299,400$70,87039.1
Box Elder11,746$302,100$73,00828.8
Rapid Valley8,098$255,500$83,20843.2

People and housing

Pennington CountyTypical South Dakota town
Median home value$302,200$182,100
Median rent$1,120$785
Median household income$74,517$66,086
Median age40.139.5
Bachelor's degree or higher34.6%23.6%
Below the poverty line11.2%10.1%

Jobs and pay

62,114 jobs in 2024, average pay $57,286 a year.

Largest industries in Pennington CountyHealth care & social assistan…11,430 jobs · $69,289Retail8,654 jobs · $38,087Hotels & restaurants8,168 jobs · $27,135Construction4,812 jobs · $68,435Professional & technical serv…2,926 jobs · $85,204Other services2,739 jobs · $47,914
BLS QCEW 2024.
Unemployment rate in Pennington County0%2%4%6%2000200420082012201620202023 1.9%
BLS LAUS via USDA ERS, annual averages.

Storms since 1996

NOAA recorded 3,274 storm events in Pennington County from 1996 to 2026, with 8 deaths.

Storm events in Pennington County by type since 1996Hail1,442Flood48Blizzard75High Wind409Lightning13Heavy Snow123Flash Flood32Winter Storm319Winter Weather172Cold/Wind Chill16
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

Federal disaster declarations

Pennington County has been included in 21 FEMA declarations since 1953.

DeclaredIncidentDeclaration
April 7, 2026Straight-Line WindsDR-4903: Straight-Line Winds
October 4, 2021FireFM-5418: Auburn Fire
March 29, 2021FireFM-5384: Schroeder Fire
April 5, 2020BiologicalDR-4527: Covid-19 Pandemic
March 13, 2020BiologicalEM-3475: Covid-19
September 23, 2019FloodDR-4463: Severe Storms And Flooding
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024; BLS QCEW and LAUS; NOAA Storm Events; FEMA OpenFEMA (not endorsed by FEMA).