• county
  • FIPS 46079
  • Largest town: Madison

Lake County, South Dakota

Lake County had 11,006 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 562.9 square miles of land. It ranks 16th of 66 in South Dakota by population and 56th by land area.

Population
11,006
#16 of 66 in South Dakota · #2,344 in US
Area
562.9 sq mi
#56 of 66 in South Dakota · #1,834 in US
Density
20 / sq mi
#13 of 66 in South Dakota · #2,263 in US
Median household income
$70,136
#20 of 66 in South Dakota · #993 in US

Census Vintage 2024 estimates · SAIPE 2023 income · 2024 Gazetteer land area

Lake County within South Dakota. Pin: Pierre.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Lake County

Lake County population, land area and income

Lake County had 11,006 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 562.9 square miles of land. It ranks 16th of 66 in South Dakota by population and 56th by land area. That works out to 19.6 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and below the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in South Dakota has 5,296 residents, so Lake County is 2.1 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $70,136 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

11,006

3144th1st

2344th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

563 sq mi

3144th1st

1834th of 3,144 (US)

Density

19.6 / sq mi

3144th1st

2263rd of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$70,136

3143rd1st

993rd of 3,143 (US)

Rank within South Dakota (66)

Population

11,006

66th1st

16th of 66 (SD)

Land area

563 sq mi

66th1st

56th of 66 (SD)

Density

19.6 / sq mi

66th1st

13th of 66 (SD)

Median household income

$70,136

66th1st

20th of 66 (SD)

How Lake County's population changed since 2020

Lake County lost 10 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 0.1%. That ranks 43rd of 66 in South Dakota for growth. The median South Dakota county changed by +0.8%, and the state as a whole by +4.1%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Lake County recorded 481 births and 460 deaths, a natural change of +21. Net international migration added +18 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -84. The largest single component was domestic migration, which removed 84 people.

11.0k202010.9k202110.9k202211.0k202311.0k2024
Census Vintage 2024 county estimates for July 1 of each year. The axis starts above zero so year-to-year changes are visible.

Components of change, April 2020 to July 2024

Births
481
Deaths
460
Net international migration
+18
Net domestic migration
-84
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
-27

Where Lake County is

The Census internal point of Lake County is at 44.028500, -97.123200. It sits in UTM zone 14N. The map shades South Dakota's 66 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Lake County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Davison County: -0.2%Minnehaha County: +5.5%Bennett County: -3.0%Clark County: +3.2%Hamlin County: +7.1%Jerauld County: +2.8%Brule County: +0.2%Aurora County: +0.4%Turner County: +4.6%Beadle County: +1.5%Hand County: -1.6%Kingsbury County: +1.0%McCook County: +1.7%Miner County: -0.0%Lyman County: +0.5%Codington County: +3.3%Deuel County: +0.8%Sully County: +1.1%Oglala Lakota County: -2.1%Edmunds County: +0.8%Sanborn County: +2.7%Spink County: -3.7%Lake County: -0.1%Hyde County: -3.0%Potter County: -2.9%Perkins County: -0.6%Faulk County: +0.5%Day County: -0.5%Clay County: +1.6%Hanson County: +0.5%Fall River County: +5.5%Brookings County: +5.9%Yankton County: +1.0%Hutchinson County: -0.1%Butte County: +5.8%Custer County: +11.8%Lawrence County: +11.5%Hughes County: -1.2%Grant County: +1.0%Brown County: -1.9%Gregory County: +2.8%Campbell County: -2.8%Bon Homme County: +1.4%McPherson County: -4.0%Lincoln County: +14.6%Stanley County: +1.5%Walworth County: -0.5%Harding County: +1.3%Marshall County: +2.3%Union County: +3.2%Pennington County: +5.8%Buffalo County: -5.8%Moody County: +3.0%Tripp County: +2.0%Roberts County: +0.2%Charles Mix County: -0.3%Meade County: +3.4%Haakon County: -1.8%Jones County: -5.3%Douglas County: +0.5%Dewey County: +1.9%Corson County: -3.6%Mellette County: -4.6%Todd County: -1.6%Jackson County: -2.4%Ziebach County: +1.0%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -1.8%
  2. < +0.2%
  3. < +1.3%
  4. < +3.2%
  5. ≥ +3.2%
no data

Orange pin: Lake County internal point. Dark pin: Pierre.

Internal point

Decimal
44.028500, -97.123200
DMS
44°01'42.60"N 97°07'23.52"W
UTM
14N 650399.7E 4876750.6N
Geohash
9zffmzjh9
Plus code
86P42VHG+CP

Towns in Lake County

One incorporated place of 1,000+ people has residents in Lake County, 6,086 people together, or 55% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Lake County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Madison with 6,086.

  1. 01Madison6,086
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Lake County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Lake County. The most populous is Minnehaha County, SD, with 208,639 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Pierre and the nearest big city

Pierre is 161.3 miles W of Lake County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Sioux Falls, SD (population 209,289), 39.0 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Brookings, SD (population 24,555), 25.2 miles away.

Lake County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Lake County is 46079: state code 46 for South Dakota plus county code 079. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $70,136.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Lake County, South Dakota?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 11,006. That is down 10 people (0.1%) from the July 2020 estimate of 11,016.

What is the FIPS code of Lake County?

46079. The first two digits (46) are South Dakota; the last three (079) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Lake County?

Madison, with 6,086 residents inside Lake County in 2024.

Which counties border Lake County?

6 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Minnehaha County, SD; Brookings County, SD; Moody County, SD; McCook County, SD; Kingsbury County, SD; Miner County, SD.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census Vintage 2024 county population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, counties
  3. 03Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  4. 04Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  5. 05Census 2024 county adjacency file
  6. 06Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.