HomeSouth DakotaBuffalo County
Buffalo County, South Dakota: commercial real estate data.
Buffalo County, South Dakota had an estimated 1,825 residents on July 1, 2024, down 6.2 percent since the 2020 census base of 1,945, across 471 square miles. County output reached $95.5 m in 2024, 11 establishments operate here.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Buffalo County
How many people live in Buffalo County
- Population, American Community Survey 2020-20241,808
- Households508
- Average household size3.56
- Median household income$47,045
- Median age22.8
- Median gross rent$540 per month
- Median owner-occupied home value$117,800
- Home value to household income2.5 times
- Annual rent as a share of median income13.8 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher9.9 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree2.0 percent
- Adults 25 and over848
- Population under 18708
- Share under 1839.2 percent
- Population 65 and over166
- Share 65 and over9.2 percent
- Working age population, 18 to 64934
- Civilian labor force648
- Unemployment rate10.8 percent
- Labor force participation, adults 18 and over58.9 percent
- Rank by population among South Dakota counties59th of 66
- Rank by population among US county-equivalents, Puerto Rico included3135th of 3,222
Buffalo County is the 59th largest of 66 South Dakota counties by population. A median home costs 2.5 times median household income, which is affordable by national standards. Residents under 18 outnumber those 65 and over, at 39.2 percent against 9.2 percent, a household formation profile rather than a retirement one.
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
Buffalo County
Is Buffalo County's population growing?
- Population, July 1, 20241,825
- Census 2020 base population1,945
- Population change since the 2020 census base-6.17 percent
- Population change, 2023 to 2024-59
- Births, 202432
- Deaths, 202425
- Natural change, 20247
- Net domestic migration, 2024-65
- Net international migration, 20240
- Total net migration, 2024-65
- Cumulative net domestic migration, 2021 to 2024-100
- Rank by growth among US county-equivalents3056th of 3,144
The county has lost 6.17 percent of its population since the 2020 census base. More people left than moved in during 2024 and births over deaths did not make up the difference, so the population fell.
US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024, Vintage 2024, estimates 2020 to 2024.
Buffalo County
What is the Buffalo County economy?
- County GDP, 2024$95.5 m
- County GDP, 2023$106.6 m
- GDP change, 2023 to 2024-10.5 percent
- GDP change over five years4.6 percent
- Rank by GDP among the South Dakota areas BEA publishes62nd of 66
- Rank by GDP among the US county areas BEA publishes3063rd of 3,127
- GDP per resident$52,808
Output grew -10.5 percent in the latest year and 4.6 percent over five, which is the trend line a lender will read behind any single year figure.
US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional, table CAGDP2, CAGDP2, through 2024.
Buffalo County
Employment by industry in Buffalo County
- Covered employment, annual average538
- Establishments reporting27
- Average annual pay$50,972
- Average weekly wage$980
US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages.
Buffalo County
How many businesses are in Buffalo County?
- Establishments, all industries11
- Employment at those establishments135
- Annual payroll$3.9 m
- Establishments per 1,000 residents6.1
These are counts of establishments physically operating in the county, not listings, so they are the supply side a feasibility study measures demand against. County Business Patterns counts private establishments with paid employees in March 2023, while the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages above counts every unemployment-insured employer, public ones included, as a 2024 annual average, so the two establishment and employment counts differ.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
Buffalo County
How large is Buffalo County?
- Land area471 sq mi
- Rank by land area among South Dakota counties61st of 66
- Width, east to west32.3 mi
- Height, north to south18.1 mi
- Geographies sharing a boundary5
- Residents per square mile of land4
- Establishments per square mile0.02
US Census Bureau county boundary geometry, TIGER, adjacency computed from shared boundary vertices, TIGER county boundaries. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year. US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
Buffalo County
Flood risk in Buffalo County
- Participation of the county's own NFIP community Buffalo County, unincorporated areasParticipating, community 460255
- Communities in the county in the NFIP Community Status Book1
- Of those, participating in the NFIP1
- NFIP participation rate100.0 percent
- Communities carrying a CRS class0
- Radon levels in Buffalo County, EPA zone predicted average indoor radon screening level greater than 4 pCi/LZone 1
The county's own community in the status book, unincorporated Buffalo County (community 460255), participates in the National Flood Insurance Program and carries no Community Rating System class, so no CRS premium discount applies there. The EPA places Buffalo County in radon zone 1, a predicted average indoor radon screening level greater than 4 pCi/L. The zone is a screening prediction for the county and does not substitute for a test at an address. 100.0 percent of the county's listed communities participate in the National Flood Insurance Program, per Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26. US EPA, Map of Radon Zones, county spreadsheet, 2024-05 publication, EPA 402/A-16/001.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Traffic counts, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Feasibility studies
When a Buffalo County site needs a document a lender will accept.
The same data layer behind this page is the one the studies are written from. A study for a Buffalo County site starts with the figures you are reading, carrying the same source and period into the credit file.
- Population, American Community Survey 2020-20241,808
- Households508
- Average household size3.56
- Median household income$47,045
- Median age22.8
Common questions
Buffalo County questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Buffalo County, South Dakota?
The Census Bureau estimates 1,825 residents on July 1, 2024 (US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024). The American Community Survey 2020-2024 five-year estimate is 1,808, in 508 households, ranking 59th of 66 South Dakota counties. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
Is Buffalo County's population growing?
The population has fallen 6.17 percent since the 2020 census base of 1,945, to 1,825 on July 1, 2024. In 2024 there were 32 births against 25 deaths, with net migration of -65. Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024, Vintage 2024, estimates 2020 to 2024.
What is the median household income in Buffalo County?
$47,045. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $117,800, which is 2.5 times income, and median gross rent is $540 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
How many businesses are in Buffalo County?
11 establishments, employing 135 people with an annual payroll of $3.9 m. These are establishments physically operating in the county, not listings. Source: US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
What is employment by industry in Buffalo County?
Covered employment averages 538 jobs at an average annual pay of $50,972, or $980 a week. Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages.
What is the radon zone for Buffalo County?
Zone 1, a predicted average indoor radon screening level greater than 4 pCi/L. Source: US EPA, Map of Radon Zones, county spreadsheet, 2024-05 publication, EPA 402/A-16/001.
Are traffic counts available for Buffalo County on this page?
No. Annual average daily traffic resolves in the platform rather than in this dataset, so no AADT figure is printed here. It is a gap we know about rather than a figure we estimated.
Is zoning published for Buffalo County?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning, and where a statutory framework applies it is marked as the statewide frame, to be confirmed locally.
Buffalo County
Cities and places in Buffalo.
2 Census places lie wholly or partly in Buffalo County. All 2 carry enough published place level data for a page of their own and are linked.
| Place | Type | Population | SBA 7(a) approvals, projects in this county | Lies in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Thompson | CDP | 1,147 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |
| Gann Valley | CDP | 6 | None recorded | Wholly in this county |