Box Elder
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The Box Elder album
Outdoors in Box Elder
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About Box Elder
City in South Dakota, United StatesBox Elder (Lakota: čhaŋšúška; "box elder maple") is a city in Pennington and Meade Counties, South Dakota, United States. The population was 11,746 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 13,887 in 2024, making it the ninth-most populous city in South Dakota. Ellsworth Air Force Base lies on the northwest side of the city, and it is a suburb of Rapid City. Box Elder was named from nearby Boxelder Creek.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
How Box Elder ranks
All →Town numbers
Housing in Box Elder
The typical Box Elder home is worth about $367,000, up 2.3% in a year, 14% above the South Dakota typical home.
A buyer's market
Safety in Box Elder
Safety Grade C
Box Elder reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 69% report less.
Work & commute in Box Elder
Full picture →Most working residents leave Box Elder for work: only 7% work in town. The top destinations are Rapid City (62%), Sioux Falls (4%) and Wall (2%). Half commute less than 8 miles.
Health in Box Elder
Health Grade B+
Healthier than 74% of U.S. towns on seven CDC estimates, and 89% of towns with similar incomes.
Compared with South Dakota
of 26 measures CDC estimates. The other 8 are too close to call.
What stands out
Care nearby
Natural hazards in Box Elder
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 51% of U.S. communities.
Climate in Box Elder
Full climate →Box Elder has cold, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. A typical July afternoon reaches 86°, a January night drops to 14°, and about 49 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
Schools in Box Elder
All Box Elder schools →School Grade B-
The public schools Box Elder’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, trail 52% of South Dakota’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they sit near the middle.
School data from the U.S. Department of Education (NCES, EDFacts). The School Grade is our own summary of state test results and graduation rates, graded within SD. Ratings are from neighbors.
Libraries near Box Elder
See all →Where Box Elder is
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