Health care · Small-town market · South Dakota
Dentists and orthodontists in the Watertown, SD area
The dentists and orthodontists in the Watertown, SD area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 36 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #402 of 526 scored small-town markets
#8 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota
- Listings
- 20
- 4 chain locations (20%)
- Official establishments
- 24
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $16.7M
- On medical and dental services · $1,333 a household
- Spending per listing
- $835K
- 15% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 16.0
- 22% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 29,562
- +4.3% since 2020
See the dentists and orthodontists around any address in the Watertown area
The site report maps the dentists and orthodontists on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Watertown area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for dentists and orthodontists in the Watertown area is 36 (lower middle), #402 of 526 scored small-town markets and #8 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 20 dentists and orthodontists in the Watertown area. 4 of them (20%) are chain locations, against 12% across the U.S. That is 16.0 per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 13.1.
Households in the Watertown area spend about $16.7M a year on medical and dental services, or $1,333 per household, 3% above the U.S. average. That is about $835K of household spending for each practice on map listings, 15% below the U.S. figure of $984K. That spending covers all medical and dental services, which dentists and orthodontists share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 24 businesses with payroll in the Watertown area classed as offices of dentists. That is one for every 522 households, against one for every 952 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $2.1M has gone to businesses classed as offices of dentists in the Watertown area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Watertown area grew 4.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Watertown area compares
The same measures for South Dakota and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the dentists and orthodontists counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Watertown area | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 16.0 | 10.9 | 13.1 |
| Spending per listing | $835K | $1.3M | $984K |
| Households per official establishment | 522 | 1,153 | 952 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −2.2% | −0.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.3% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,333 | $1,402 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $72,727 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 36 | 75 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 24
- Employees, 2023
- 184
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $10.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 204 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 17The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $2.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of dentists in the Watertown area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Watertown area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 29,562+4.3% since 2020
- Households
- 12,526
- Median age
- 39.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 688 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 42
- Median household income
- $72,727
- Average household income
- $90,805
- Median home value
- $237,700
- Jobs located here
- 16,302
- Daytime population
- 29,337Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Watertown area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the dentists and orthodontists on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Watertown area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDentists and orthodontists across South Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Dakota for dentists and orthodontists, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with the Watertown area marked.
Top small-town markets in South Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Huron, SD | 70 | 7 | 9.3 | $1.4M | +2.4% | #80 of 526 |
| 2Spearfish, SD | 68 | 13 | 10.8 | $1.3M | +14.0% | #97 of 526 |
| 3Brookings, SD | 58 | 15 | 10.9 | $1.3M | +9.6% | #197 of 526 |
| 4Mitchell, SD | 50 | 13 | 11.8 | $1.1M | +0.6% | #258 of 526 |
| 5Vermillion, SD | 46 | 8 | 14.4 | $887K | +0.2% | #300 of 526 |
| 6Aberdeen, SD | 42 | 20 | 11.2 | $1.2M | −1.5% | #341 of 526 |
| 7Pierre, SD | 36 | 12 | 14.0 | $1M | −0.5% | #396 of 526 |
| 8Watertown, SD | 36 | 20 | 16.0 | $835K | +4.3% | #402 of 526 |
| 9Yankton, SD | 33 | 19 | 19.6 | $696K | +1.5% | #428 of 526 |
Other business types in the Watertown area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
- Doctors, dentists and clinics46
- Dentists and orthodontists36
- Primary care and pediatrics79
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics
- Chiropractors35
- Physical therapy66
- Optometrists and eye care33
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many dentists and orthodontists are in the Watertown, SD area?
There are 20 dentists and orthodontists on map listings in the Watertown area as of September 2026. 4 of them (20%) are chain locations. The listings count dental practices, orthodontists included. Official counts show 24 businesses with payroll classed as offices of dentists in 2023.
How much do households in the Watertown, SD area spend on medical and dental services?
About $16.7M a year, or $1,333 per household. That is 3% above the U.S. average (an index of 103, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 20 dentists and orthodontists on map listings, it comes to $835K per practice. The spending figure covers all medical and dental services, not only dentists and orthodontists. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,526 households in the Watertown area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Watertown, SD area compare with the U.S. for dentists and orthodontists?
The Watertown area has 16.0 dentists and orthodontists per 10,000 households, 22% above the U.S. rate of 13.1. Spending per practice is $835K, 15% below the U.S. figure of $984K. At the national ratio of dentists and orthodontists to household spending, the Watertown area would have about 17, against 20 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 522 households, against one for every 952 across the U.S.
How fast is the Watertown, SD area growing?
Population estimates put the Watertown area at 29,562 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,526 households. The median household income in the Watertown area is $72,727 a year, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Watertown area scores 36 for dentists and orthodontists (lower middle), #402 of 526 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Watertown area. It maps the dentists and orthodontists on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for dentists and orthodontists · All 56 business types in the Watertown area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Watertown area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Watertown area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.