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Box Elder vs Brookings

312 miles apart. The biggest differences: growth since 2010 (+44.6 pts in Box Elder) and work in town (+56.3 pts in Brookings).

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Box Elder, SDHomes around $367KSouth Dakota · 12,902 people
B ×
Brookings, SDA history townSouth Dakota · 23,948 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

Box ElderHomes around $367K
Housing$367K typical home14% above the SD typical home HealthHealthier than 75%of U.S. towns on CDC estimates SafetySafer than 31%of U.S. towns we grade All about Box Elder →
BrookingsA history town
History29 historic places29 places on the National Register HealthHealthier than 84%of U.S. towns on CDC estimates Work15,183 jobsbased in Brookings, a regional job hub All about Brookings →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Growth since 2010+44.6 pts
Box Elder has grown faster since 2010
Box Elder +50.6%Brookings +6%
Work in town+56.3 pts
More of Brookings’s workers stay in town
Brookings 62.9%Box Elder 6.6%
Rent+68%
Rent runs higher in Box Elder
Box Elder $1,491Brookings $889
Jobs per worker3.5×
Brookings is more of a job hub
Brookings 1.50Box Elder 0.43
Street grid2.1×
Brookings has the more walkable street grid
Brookings 55.6Box Elder 25.9
In college+20.9 pts
Brookings is more of a college town
Brookings 28.8%Box Elder 7.9%
★ What stands out · Report cards

Brookings places higher on 17 of 22 SD lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every South Dakota ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety
CBox ElderSafer than 31% of U.S. towns BBrookingsSafer than 62% of U.S. towns
Schools
B−Box ElderBetter than 48% of districts in the state B−BrookingsBetter than 53% of districts in the state
Health
B+Box ElderHealthier than 75% of U.S. towns A−BrookingsHealthier than 84% of U.S. towns
5Box Elder
17Brookings

Lists won, of 22 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Most conserved landOutdoors · 33 towns #29#8 Cheapest rentCost of living · 34 towns #34#13 Closest to a top hospitalHealth · 37 towns #25#3 Most educatedPeople · 37 towns #25#5 Shortest commuteGetting around · 37 towns #29#9 Fewest smokersHealth · 37 towns #21#3 Lowest obesityHealth · 37 towns #7#23 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 37 towns #28#12

Left end = #1 in South Dakota. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Box Elder’s rankings →

Monthly cost

A typical home costs $310 more a month in Box Elder

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Box Elder$2,330/mo
Typical home $367K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.33% · or rent about $1,491/mo · Housing →
Brookings$2,020/mo
Typical home $325K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.17% · or rent about $889/mo · Housing →

The difference: $310 a month, about $3,700 a year, between Box Elder and Brookings.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
Box ElderBrookings
Snow a year49″36″
January low13°F4°F
July high86°F81°F
Growing season (days)139d145d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)51st35th
Outdoors & history
Box ElderBrookings
Trails6 mi6 mi
Conserved land0.7%5.7%
Settled1907—
National Register places—29
Archive photos36
Famous people born here122
Community
Box ElderBrookings
Library hours a week—66 hrs
Colleges in town—1
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

312 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

Box ElderSDBrookingsSD
Box Elder ↔ Brookings312 miles apart
Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Box ElderBrookings
People
Population 12,902Lowest 23,948Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +50.6%Highest SD: +8.9% +6%Lowest SD: +8.9%
Median age 28.8±2.2Highest 24% below SD 24.7±0.5Lowest 35% below SD
Kids under 18 26.9%±3.6Highest SD: 24.2% 18.6%±1.8Lowest SD: 24.2%
Age 65+ 7.5%±2Lowest SD: 18% 12.1%±1.4Highest SD: 18%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 28%Lowest SD: 31.9% 47.5%Highest SD: 31.9%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 7.9%±3.7Lowest SD: 5% 28.8%±1.9Highest SD: 5%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $73,008±$9kHighest about the SD average $63,493±$6kLowest 15% below SD
Box Elder and Brookings are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $302,100±$25kHighest 17% above SD $265,500±$16kLowest 3% above SD
Box Elder and Brookings are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,491±$138Highest 58% above SD $889±$68Lowest 6% below SD
Property taxmedian, yearly $4,019Highest 48% above SD $3,097Lowest 14% above SD
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 43.4%±8.7Highest SD: 39.8% 40.7%±6.9Lowest SD: 39.8%
Box Elder and Brookings are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 7.5%Lowest SD: 11.9% 16.9%Highest SD: 11.9%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 48.2%Highest SD: 68.6% 47.7%Lowest SD: 68.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 2004Highest 24 yrs newer than SD 1986Lowest 6 yrs newer than SD
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 20 minHighest 13% above SD 13 minLowest 30% below SD
Work from home 6.9%±2.6Lowest SD: 9.7% 10.4%±2.3Highest SD: 9.7%
Brookings and Box Elder are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 6.6%Lowest 62.9%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 8.3 miHighest 2.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.43Lowest 1.50Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Rapid City (62%)Sioux Falls (13%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in BrookingsFew work in Box Elder
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0.7%Lowest 5.7%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 5.7 miLowest 6.2 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.4 mi 0.4 mi
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1Lowest 22Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 25.9Lowest 55.6Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #22 of 34 in SD#21 of 34 in SD
School district Douglas School District 51-1Brookings School District 05-1
High school in town Douglas High School - 03Brookings High School - 01
Students per teacherat that high school 17.1Highest 16.7Lowest
South Dakota average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Box Elder neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Box Elder’s Town Square.

Brookings neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Brookings’s Town Square.

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Bordering Box Elder

A
+ Compare
Ashland Heights1,105 people · $220K homes
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Rapid City77,946 people · $299K homes
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Rapid Valley6,975 people · $256K homes

Towns like Box Elder

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Mitchell15,649 people · $192K homes
A
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Aberdeen28,189 people · $217K homes
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Spearfish12,930 people · $346K homes
H
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Huron14,385 people · $159K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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