South Dakota · 18 places of 5,000+

Largest cities in South Dakota by population

Short answer

Sioux Falls is the largest city in South Dakota with 209,289 residents in 2024, followed by Rapid City (79,894) and Aberdeen (27,919).
Largest
209,289
Places 5,000+
18
100,000+
1

The 18 largest

Sioux Falls leads with 209,289 residents, 2.6 times the 79,894 of second-place Rapid City. The ten largest places hold 438,645 people, 47% of the state's 924,669. 1 place has 100,000 or more.

The median place of 5,000+ is Spearfish at 13,803. Within the top ten, Box Elder grew most since July 2020 (+16.2%) and Aberdeen least (-1.8%). 2 of the 18 places cross a county line; their totals include every county part.

  1. 01Sioux Falls209,289
  2. 02Rapid City79,894
  3. 03Aberdeen27,919
  4. 04Brookings24,555
  5. 05Watertown23,492
  6. 06Yankton15,670
  7. 07Mitchell15,621
  8. 08Huron14,515
  9. 09Box Elder13,887
  10. 10Spearfish13,803
  11. 11Pierre13,788
  12. 12Vermillion11,877
  13. 13Brandon10,837
  14. 14Harrisburg10,203
  15. 15Tea7,699
  16. 16Sturgis7,014
  17. 17Madison6,086
  18. 18Belle Fourche5,855
July 1, 2024 population, Census Vintage 2024.

Dots: the 18 places in the chart. Orange pin: Sioux Falls, ranked first.

All 18 places of 5,000+ ranked

#Place2024Since 2020County
1Sioux Falls209,289+8.2%Minnehaha County +1
2Rapid City79,894+6.6%Pennington County
3Aberdeen27,919-1.8%Brown County
4Brookings24,555+5.1%Brookings County
5Watertown23,492+3.6%Codington County
6Yankton15,670+1.6%Yankton County
7Mitchell15,621-0.3%Davison County
8Huron14,515+1.8%Beadle County
9Box Elder13,887+16.2%Pennington County +1
10Spearfish13,803+12.9%Lawrence County
11Pierre13,788-2.0%Hughes County
12Vermillion11,877+1.3%Clay County
13Brandon10,837-1.9%Minnehaha County
14Harrisburg10,203+49.0%Lincoln County
15Tea7,699+35.6%Lincoln County
16Sturgis7,014-1.2%Meade County
17Madison6,086-1.2%Lake County
18Belle Fourche5,855+3.7%Butte County
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates. Counties from the SUMLEV 157 county parts.

Questions people ask

What is the largest city in South Dakota?

Sioux Falls, with 209,289 residents on July 1, 2024 in the Census Vintage 2024 estimates.

What is the second largest city in South Dakota?

Rapid City, with 79,894 residents, 129,395 fewer than Sioux Falls.

How many cities in South Dakota have more than 100,000 people?

1: Sioux Falls.

How is city size measured here?

By the Census Bureau's July 1, 2024 population estimate for each incorporated place, inside its legal city limits. Metro areas and census-designated places are not ranked.

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 subcounty population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, places

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