Auto · Small-town market · South Dakota
Insurance agencies in the Watertown, SD area
The insurance agencies 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 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #455 of 537 scored small-town markets
#4 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota
- Listings
- 32
- 5 chain locations (16%)
- Official establishments
- 30
- +7.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $23.2M
- On vehicle insurance · $1,855 a household
- Spending per listing
- $726K
- 42% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 25.5
- 63% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 29,562
- +4.3% since 2020
See the insurance agencies around any address in the Watertown area
The site report maps the insurance agencies 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 Watertown area scores 27 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for insurance agencies, ranking #455 of 537 scored small-town markets and #4 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 32 insurance agencies in the Watertown area. Of those, 5 are chain locations, or 16%, against 21% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 25.5, 63% above the U.S. rate of 15.6.
At $1,855 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in the Watertown area spend about $23.2M a year on vehicle insurance. That works out to $726K per agency, 42% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M.
In 2023, official counts showed 30 businesses with payroll in the Watertown area classed as insurance agencies and brokerages, up 7.1% from 2019. That is one for every 418 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Watertown area from 2020 to 2025 at +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 vehicle insurance by the insurance agencies 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 | 25.5 | 19.1 | 15.6 |
| Spending per listing | $726K | $957K | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 418 | 491 | 966 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.1% | +3.0% | −1.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.3% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle insurance | $1,855 | $1,827 | $1,957 |
| Median household income | $72,727 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 29 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 30+7.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 122
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $6.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 325 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 19The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as insurance agencies and brokerages 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 insurance agencies 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 cardInsurance agencies across South Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Dakota for insurance agencies, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Spearfish, SD | 38 | 23 | 19.1 | $943K | +14.0% | #374 of 537 |
| 2Brookings, SD | 37 | 28 | 20.3 | $898K | +9.6% | #387 of 537 |
| 3Huron, SD | 30 | 14 | 18.6 | $1M | +2.4% | #436 of 537 |
| 4Watertown, SD | 27 | 32 | 25.5 | $726K | +4.3% | #455 of 537 |
| 5Yankton, SD | 21 | 29 | 29.9 | $598K | +1.5% | #483 of 537 |
| 6Mitchell, SD | 20 | 27 | 24.6 | $747K | +0.6% | #489 of 537 |
| 7Vermillion, SD | 17 | 13 | 23.4 | $705K | +0.2% | #510 of 537 |
| 8Aberdeen, SD | 11 | 47 | 26.2 | $660K | −1.5% | #527 of 537 |
| 9Pierre, SD | 11 | 25 | 29.3 | $579K | −0.5% | #529 of 537 |
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
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many insurance agencies are in the Watertown, SD area?
There are 32 insurance agencies on map listings in the Watertown area as of September 2026. 5 of them (16%) are chain locations. The listings count insurance agencies. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in 2023, up 7.1% from 2019.
How much do households in the Watertown, SD area spend on vehicle insurance?
About $23.2M a year, or $1,855 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 32 insurance agencies on map listings, it comes to $726K per agency. 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 insurance agencies?
The Watertown area has 25.5 insurance agencies per 10,000 households, 63% above the U.S. rate of 15.6. Spending per agency is $726K, 42% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of insurance agencies to household spending, the Watertown area would have about 19, against 32 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 418 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.1% from 2019 to 2023, against −1.0% for 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 27 for insurance agencies (lower middle), #455 of 537 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 insurance agencies 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 insurance agencies · 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.