Big Sioux makes South Dakota’s top 10 on 14 lists
Big Sioux is ranked on 32 lists against the 37 South Dakota towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 14 and the top quarter on 14.
Big Sioux is on South Dakota’s podium 6 times
Each list ranks every SD town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Big Sioux marked.
Longer growing season than 97% of South Dakota
Not better or worse, just Big Sioux’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
1 spot from the top 3 for health
Lists where Big Sioux sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Big Sioux lands in the top half on 14 of 19 lists
Each dot is Big Sioux’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in SD, the right end is last. Areas where Big Sioux does best come first.
Big Sioux out-ranks 2 of its 3 ranked neighbors
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Where Big Sioux lands in every SD ranking
39 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
People
D Most educated#1 Dakota Dunes · 59.8% #2
Youngest#1 Vermillion · 23.1
#25
Oldest#1 Colonial Pine Hills · 59.5
#12
Most residents 65+#1 Hot Springs · 37.7%
#17
Most kids#1 Tea · 36.3%
#12 Health
D Healthiest#1 Dakota Dunes · 94 / 100 #4 D Lowest obesity#1 Dakota Dunes · 29% #2
Fewest smokers#1 Colonial Pine Hills · 10%
#4
Most active#1 Harrisburg · 15%
#5
Fewest uninsured#1 Colonial Pine Hills · 5%
#5
D
Lowest depression#1 Dakota Dunes · 19%
#3
Closest to a top hospital#1 Sisseton · 0.4 mi
#32 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Chamberlain · 22.4%
#3
D
Most trails#1 Dakota Dunes · 2.8 mi / sq mi
#2
Most walkable#1 Mobridge · 144 / sq mi
#35 
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Milbank · 9.1 min
#8 Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Winner · 1.4 yrs
#36
Cheapest rent#1 Milbank · $548/mo
#30
Lowest property tax#1 Winner · $1,236/yr
#36 Climate
Snowiest#1 Lead · 184 in
#32
Least snow#1 Hot Springs · 32 in
#4
Mildest winters#1 Spearfish · 15.0°
#15
Hottest summers#1 Winner · 88.5°
#12
Coolest summers#1 Lead · 80.7°
#27
Longest growing season#1 Yankton · 164 days
#2
Wettest#1 Lead · 31 in
#6 Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Lead · 9.4%
#25
Most new homes#1 Harrisburg · 28.4 per 1,000
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Lead · +91.7%
#32
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Huron · 5.9 per home
Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Canton · 9.7 per resident
Most library borrowing#1 Canton · 20.7 per resident
Best libraries for kids#1 North Sioux City · 45.3 per child
Safety
Safest#1 Hot Springs · 5.9
The number on the right is Big Sioux’s spot. All of South Dakota’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every SD list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.