Pennington County, South Dakota

Pennington County population, land area and income

Pennington County had 115,979 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 2,776.8 square miles of land. It ranks 2nd of 66 in South Dakota by population and 3rd by land area. That works out to 41.8 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 Pennington County is 21.9 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $74,641 is in the top quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Pennington County's population changed since 2020

Pennington County gained 6,406 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 5.8%. That ranks 6th 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, Pennington County recorded 5,959 births and 4,880 deaths, a natural change of +1,079. Net international migration added +232 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +5,334. The largest single component was domestic migration, which added 5,334 people.

Where Pennington County is

The Census internal point of Pennington County is at 44.002300, -102.823800. It sits in UTM zone 13N. The map shades South Dakota's 66 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Pennington County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Pennington County

2 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Pennington County, 88,722 people together, or 76% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Pennington County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Rapid City with 79,894.

Counties bordering Pennington County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 7 neighbors for Pennington County, including 1 across a state line. The most populous is Meade County, SD, with 30,918 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Meade County

  30,918 people

  42 mi N

• Lawrence County

  28,809 people

  54 mi WNW

• Oglala Lakota County

  13,360 people

  48 mi SSE

• Custer County

  9,330 people

  39 mi SW

• WY

  Weston County, WY

  6,866 people

  88 mi W

• Jackson County

  2,737 people

  64 mi ESE

• Haakon County

  1,834 people

  67 mi ENE

Distance to Pierre and the nearest big city

Pierre is 125.3 miles ENE of Pennington County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Fort Collins, CO (population 170,924), 264.7 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Box Elder, SD (population 13,887), 14.8 miles away.

Pennington County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Pennington County is 46103: state code 46 for South Dakota plus county code 103. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $74,641.